It wasn't until reading Gwen Harwood's work in year
12 that I formed a deep appreciation towards poetry which inspired
me to become an English teacher and has significantly shaped the way I view and
construct texts today.
When I first read this poem I thought of humanity values and the idea that the poem was 'real' it didn't
glorify life but instead it was a representation of reality. My teacher also suggested feminist
reading with the line "I fired" representing that for women to gain a sense of power
they must first sacrifice their femineity and attribute masculine qualities. We were
also show an image of Gwen Harwood where we identified her as a kind and
cheerful woman yet her poetry portrays her passion, turmoil and anger that she
experienced in her own life. Here I was engaging in
Critical Literacy.
It is this
understanding of the hybrid nature of texts and how they position listeners,
viewers and readers that taps into the notion of critical literacy as described
by Luke (2000). In the 'Four Resources Model' Luke and Freebody indentify this
as the role of 'text analyst' (1999). Through the role of text analyst
individuals look at what is happening beyond the text like I was able to recognise how the text had shaped my perspective
and how the text empowered and
disempowered groups such as the feminist example. I was also able to distinguish
that the poem had not been created to express the neutral humanity values but
rather it was a representation of Gwen Harwood's experiences and views on her own
life.
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