Olive Senior, in her attempt to bring forth poesy reflective and declarative mood of life, nature, humanity and human inclinations may put accent on some elements or facets of the aforesaid, that society may eschew or non give important consideration to ; like adult females and their strengths. This would hence be her manner of conveying visible radiation to things blotted out and non needfully be a subjective attitude to the certain facets of society which she writes about.
Harmonizing to Microsoft Student Encarta Dictionaries, feminism is concerned with the announcement of the rights of adult females and recommending equality among the sexes and supporters normally achieve this by discrediting and reprobating society ‘s adulation of work forces. The focal point of women’s rightists hence is on the demands of adult females to be seen as equal to and possessing the same abilities as work forces. The inquiry can so be asked is this in fact the focal point of Senior ‘s poesy? Condemning society ‘s adulation of work forces and recommending the rights and freedoms of adult females? Surely Senior is doing seeable the abilities and strengths of a adult female and the momentous function adult females play in society but to denounce, revile or disrepute work forces is non her focal point. Be it resolved hence that Olive Senior is non a women’s rightist ; her poesy is non a disapprobation of work forces, nevertheless it is safe to presume that her work is so a jubilation of the strength of adult females.
Olive Senior is a fecund author whose verse forms tend to arouse her readers whether they are male or female. She uses her trade creatively non jus to relay the experiences and indignities of human life ( though fictional in some of her verse forms ) but besides as a station colonial author, to oppugn the ideals of society and their veracity, rewrite myths and legends or deconstructing these through poesy.
An scrutiny of Senior ‘s background and heritage will give anyone reading and perusing her anthologies inkling as to why she writes about these issues and capable affairs. Born in 1941, in rural Jamaica she witnesses the battles of adult females how adult females contest restrictions placed on them by society which deny them visibleness in many domains. It can hence be said that Senior feels compelled to underline the many abilities and strengths of adult females because a great grasp for adult females is non expressed by society. Yemoha: Mother of Waters for illustration, associates all facets of birth or creative activity in nature with the function of adult females as the life givers or kid carriers. In the same manner Yemoha is perpetually conveying forth life, rejuvenating and refilling, adult females are adult females are making the same in as nurturers and female parents nevertheless their functions are non limited to these. Womans are besides compelled to presume the function of both male parent and female parent and Senior seeks to show how adult females encumbered with this load, combine their maternal and economic functions to guarantee the support of themselves and their dependants for whom they assume ultimate duty. In Hurricane Story 1988 the character relates the experience of her female parent, a individual parent who combined these two functions and worked assiduously “ aˆ¦travel to Haiti, Panama, Curacao, Miami wherever there was deal to catch-even places that did n’t hold lucifer. ” Senior through this state of affairs, typical of life in Jamaica shows the resiliency and finding of adult females who where denied many chances to self promotion. She nevertheless shows that adult females are in fact susceptible to and are conformable to adverse conditions such as the loss of her support as the adult female in Hurricane Story 1988 – ” she ban her belly and bellow for five flights a twenty-four hours to Miami grounded ” .
In Tropic Love this resiliency and sense of independency and ego will is one time once more emphasized. The character an perceiver of two passers by relays what this adult female says to her comrade ; “ love me and my household or go forth me to sit by the wayside to sell by the river side to take washingaˆ¦ ” This adult female is determined that the support of her kids is more of import than the pleasance of a adult male who is really a load. She is deciding and is bereft of any shame to prosecute in occupations that may be deemed humbling. So Senior is demoing the many aspects to a adult female ‘s character. She does non make this is an attempt to condemn work forces and condemn society ‘s adulation of work forces. This was in fact typical in Caribbean society and Senior through her poesy seeks to demo how adult females rose above these overbearing restraints.
Another of import presentment is that Olive Senior ‘s poesy does non merely cover with male/female relationships. Senior ‘s verse form nevertheless have the inclination to confirm the significance of the ordinary and a jubilation of the simple life of simple people. Besides she traveled extensively and through this has developed a grater grasp for her civilization and her heritage. Poems such as “ Meditation on Yellow ” , Senior speaks to the subjugation of the Tainos by the Spaniards and the inkinesss in captivity. She highlights the fact that past fortunes such as our history of unreliable bondage has bearing on our current province of head separately and as a people ; “ aˆ¦and merely when I thought I could rest pour my ownaˆ¦.a new setaˆ¦arrive ” . In kernel Senior is stating that bondage has non yet stoping but is veiled in tourer trade in our heads and in society. The verse form “ Pineapple ” , is besides declarative of this phenomenon and in this verse form Senior speaks about the concealed power of the Tainos “ aˆ¦never surmising the requital incarnate in that sweet flesh ” . Here she illustrates that people of different race relationships can all of a sudden alter from positive to negative. “ Hurricane Story 1903 ” is another verse form which proves that Senior poesy in non a disapprobation of work forces. The gramps here is seen as working in concurrence with the grandma. There is a conjunct attempt in fixing for the hurricane and guaranting easy recovery. He is equated with Noah, the great adult male of God who in obeisance to God saved a coevals.
In “ Hurricane Story 1944 ” though after the hurricane things went bad, the combined attempt of both parents and the fact that the, adult male was supportive of his household is another case in which Senior shows that households in Jamaica did comprise of a supportive adult male. She does non challenge the fact that individual female parents had to play the double function at times. When she does highlight this, it is non to discredit males but jus to foreground this societal job as she does in most of her poems- “ Brief Lifes ” is another of these.
Another point to observe is that as a female author it is about an innate inclination to compose about and relay the experiences, the adversities, the strength and the eventual victory of adult females over their fortunes. She, ( as many authors would ) experience it necessary to talk on behalf of adult females expressively associating their ideas, experiences, feelings and emotions ( as in Tropic Love ) reciting the fables and fabulous narratives of adult females and how comparative they are to today ‘s strong ego reliant adult females who work and forfeit for the good of their kids, small town and community ( “ aˆ¦like those strong Amazon adult females striding day-to-day across our landsaˆ¦ . “ -Amazon Women )
Her verse forms are recounts. She views them as a agency of documenting and relaying the experiences of people and she does this in an about informal manner, prosecuting her readers through the colloquial construction of her verse forms, the originative drama she uses, chitchat and the usage of Creole looks which appeal to her mark audience.
It can therefore be concluded that Senior is simply relaying social jobs and the experiences of people peculiarly of the Caribbean. She seeks to convey to light many issues and affairs of significance such as adult females and what they are deserving, subjects that are non given much acknowledgment. She therefore feels compelled to make this as a adult female and as a Caribbean author non in disapprobation of work forces but in jubilation of the unrecognised.
