WordgatheringA Journal of Disability Poetry |
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Essays in This IssueWhen groups that have been marginalized from the main stream of literature finally find their writing making its way into the hands of readers, the works that generally makes the biggest initial splash tend to be autobiographical life writing or fiction that is in large part thinly reworked autobiography. This is no less true of disability literature than that of any other group. When essays begin to appear, the first ones are also often narrative records of personal experiences. It is only when writers within the new genre start to believe in their genre and look critically at the contributions that it has to make, that essays start to become more exploratory and stake out new territory. The essays presented in this issue of Wordgathering illustrate some of the exploratory paths that disability literature is taking and represent perhaps our most diverse group of essayists yet. Laurie Clements Lambeth introduces a relatively unknown poetic form – the erasure poem – and illustrates its potential for disability poetry. Leroy Moore, the founder of Krip Hop Nation, shows discusses what happens when disability poetry meets hip hop. Poet Sheila Black turns the old personal essay about the medicalization of disability into something new through the use of experimental prose. Lynn Thermann's lyric essay on drug abuse might just as easily be called a poem.
In addition to the essays above, readers will find another direction that creativity in disability is taking in Linda Cronin's essay, "Sandie Yi and Wearable Art" in the Arts section of this issue. Return to Top |
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