Controlling the Narrative

Hello poets,

I've noticed people reading poems from male 'she' poets. It’s frustrating. Its tiring. Men plagiarizing women’s work. Men mistranslating other poets' work. Men writing about women’s trauma. They should not be writing about women's experiences. Men should not be writing about female trauma or beautifying mental illness. They can’t tell women how they should feel and deal with their mental illnesses and trauma. You can write dark pieces and about mental illnesses without "romanticizing" it and being harmful. Leave females to write about their own traumas and their own stories.

Have you ever read a poem about their personal human experience? Do you notice who they refer to in their poems? If they never talk about their own experiences and always share someone’s else narrative it can be problematic. We shouldn’t be writing about a human perspective we haven’t experienced. We should control our own narrative and pass the mic to the other necessary voices. I don’t want a white person to be writing about a person of color’s experiences. Men shouldn’t write from a woman’s perspective.

You’re welcome to write about your experiences with them but don’t write their narrative. Pass the mic and make space for us. We should be creating a space for us to share our own stories instead of letting others control our narrative. Share your experiences. Show that you exist. There is one universal way they may see you as. There is more to us than what others know. What are you doing about it?

Other Reads:

• Current State of Poetry World
• Reading Rumi
• Where Have All The Good Male Poets Gone?

stay inspired,

Fida