Spoken word fangirls who write essays about Olivia Gatwood

“Even the men who laugh their condescending laughs when a teen girl faints at the sight of her favourite pop star, even those men are teen girls, the way they want so badly to be big and important and worshipped by someone.“

When I say We Are All Teen Girls by Olivia Gatwood

So, I wrote a brief feelings-essay on Olivia Gatwood’s Alternate Universe poem and it’s published here.

My aim for this stage of the DA was to perform my modes of autoethnographic research: autobiographical journaling and participant observation. I had the advantage of using my autobiographical research to form a major part of the personal essay.

I fumbled with my time and have only so far achieved the publication of one essay, but I believe this essay is strong. The Alternate Universe Essay favours personal reflective and analytical poetry work: quality over quantity! Although, I do look forward to getting the next three essays out to receive feedback on them.

The girls came out to respond.

What I’ve learned from the feedback is that the cultural ties that Gatwood speaks to are felt. All of the girls that commented, talked about the cultural and personal climate that the poem takes place in. That the effects of the male gaze and society’s conversations are real. How the nostalgic story hits them as women who blossomed from girls. They feel the “emotions”, “feminity”, “beauty”, “vulnerability”, “strength” of Gatwood’s work too. I’ll be expanding on this greatly in my final Digital Artefact and Research Report.

To touch more on ethical concerns, I wanted to ensure I chose a poem that was safe for all to consume. Gatwood’s poem contains no harmful material that could be triggering to some audience members. 

My plan in the next three weeks leading up to the DA is to upload two poetry essays this coming week (much easier with less deadlines), and promote across platforms leading up to the final DA to ensure the most feedback I can engage with.

Expanding on Shalisee’s peer comment: I make it a point now to write more personally about the artists and my own contribution to spoken word communities in NSW. It helps inform the audience of my persona, and supports my autoethnographical research.