While speaking at the San Francisco Public Library, Tommy Pico reads a poem commissioned by his father. He recites from the poem “I See the Fire that Burns Within You”: “[A]ll [Native Americans] ever are a metaphor, or a cautionary tale, or a spirit guide. Nothing contemporary. Nothing breathing. Nothing alive” speaks to the ideaContinue reading “Educate Yourself”
Author Archives: akselreid
Plays are Not Meant to be Read in Silence
Due to my five years of studying Latin, I was able to read lots of plays, stories, and jokes in Latin. Although very engaging and entertaining to read, the full power of these texts were lost due to Latin being a language which is never spoken anymore. We would only read aloud our English translationsContinue reading “Plays are Not Meant to be Read in Silence”
Voting Between Healthy and Toxic Masculinity
by: Aksel Reid After reading a NPR article titled “Trump has Weaponized Masculinity as President. Here’s Why it Matters” by Danielle Kurtzleben, the differences between healthy masculinity and toxic masculinity are made abundantly clear. Trump asserts his masculinity by demeaning and insulting others and giving them rude nicknames like “Crying Chuck Schumer” or “Crazy NancyContinue reading “Voting Between Healthy and Toxic Masculinity”
On Taylor Mali’s Poems: “The Penis Warriors” and “Tony Steinberg: Brave Seventh-Grade Warrior”
By Aksel Reid These two poems reveal the positive effects of an all-male school full of teens and pre-teens learning how to grow up. The idea that all masculinity is toxic masculinity is dismantled in these poems as Mali reveals stories from his life experiences of boys becoming comfortable in their masculine skin while stillContinue reading “On Taylor Mali’s Poems: “The Penis Warriors” and “Tony Steinberg: Brave Seventh-Grade Warrior””
Constructions of Gender in Literature 