Introduction Essay

Adrienne Rich’s “When we Dead Awaken” captured my attention when she quotes “We need to know the writings of the past, and know it differently than we ever have known it; not to pass on a tradition but to break it’s hold over us”. I hope that I find myself becoming consumed and trapped by the powerful ways of seeing and understanding what is being represented in the text of this books readings, as did Rodriguez in his ”Achievement of Desire”. Readings of such strong, aggressive, labor-intensive, surprising, striking, and sometimes troubling texts have never even been brought to my attention before. I feel one of the biggest obstacles to over come is the opening up of the mind, and letting it go wondering and develop it’s own perception of the text. I know that keeping focused on a not so easy to understand text could definitely be a battle in itself. I truly find it difficult to understand why teachers in my past could not have touched at least a tiny bit on this transaction of which our minds would be engaged in. I hope from reading these ever so intriguing

texts, I will turn my as of now some what timid mode of understanding into a much greater existence of thinking and better understanding how these topics relate to my life.

I have found in just reading the introduction to this book that my mind has opened up and been put on a higher level of learning. The words Adrienne Rich uses to express her strong belief in her statements help put her words across in a very stern, clear, appearance.

I have quickly come to realize that to succeed in this college writing coarse a totally different way of thinking is necessary.

I think one of my most difficult aspects of this book is going to be understanding the conflicts and phrases used by the ever so educated authors featured in this book. Unlike the teachers in my past I think this introduction has exemplified a very well said and thought-out explanation of the different ways in which to be a strong reader and how to retain what it is you are reading, and then making the transition from your reading, and then making the transition from what it is you have read to putting it back into your own life experiences to make the reading most relate to you. I can’t help to notice how highly the authors of this book portray the text to be.