HW for Week 2

–Complete Quiz 1 (online)
–Reading assignment: Andrea Long Chu, “The Pink.”
–Writing assignment (due Sun 5pm): I’d like you to respond to Chu’s essay in two different ways.  First, I want you to respond *generally*: tell me what you think this essay is about on the whole, what  you like about it, what you don’t like about it, what you find interesting, weird, boring, etc.
Then, I want you to choose and copy into a quotation one sentence that stands out to you from somewhere in Chu’s essay.  Tell us what stands out to you in this sentence, being as specific as you can.  Try not just to speak about the content/ideas in the sentence; try also to speak about the way that it’s been put together (the sound and order of the words, the kind of words used, etc.)  Try to respond to the question: What, specifically, do you think makes this good/bad prose (writing) and why?
Post your response to these two sets of questions below (as a “comment” on this thread).  I suggest you also save your work elsewhere as you write because OL doesn’t have an “auto-save” feature (like Google Docs, for instance).  You may also use parts of your responses to prompts like this in your essays, so it’s good to have it saved somewhere in document format.
–Write and email me a draft of your Essay 1 by Tuesday at 5p.  Fine if this isn’t yet complete, but try to get at least 2 pages written.  (You can write about a couple of unrelated things if you’re still deciding what to write about.)

42 thoughts on “HW for Week 2”

  1. In the writing “The Pink” by Andrea Long Chu, she explains in utmost detail what it is like to go through the process of getting a vaginoplasty. Chu describes the emotions she felt following up to the surgery and the emotions she felt directly after. Upon reading her writing, I could not help but find it interesting to read about such a controversial topic from the eyes of a personal experience, the subject. I could not help but to take to Chu. I hate the idea of someone being uncomfortable in their own body. But, I also love the idea of self love. Chu gave me a deeper understanding that there can be a tug of war between the two. She went for a vaginoplasty with the idea that she would feel like this whole new person. A woman. She even had a funeral for her dick. While reading, I too got the idea that she would turn into this whole new person but that was not the case. I was surprised and yet even more interested in her emotions once I read the words “The ship would always be Theseus’s, no matter how many parts I replaced.” I read this part and the paragraph it was attached to over and over with many questions. How could this be? Is this not what she wanted? How doesn’t she feel different after such a dramatic change? It was almost like my heart broke for her. She wanted to feel like a woman but still felt trapped in her old body. Was her old body the same as her new body? Those emotions led me to think that maybe it’s not about the flesh itself maybe it’s about the mentality the flesh carries. I I had so many questions and I still do but the one that stuck was, If she had already felt like a woman before surgery would she have felt so trapped in her old body or would she have felt more free after the surgery? Womanhood seemed like a magical fairy tail to her but once she got her womanhood she quickly realized it wasn’t exactly what she thought it would be. Womanhood is full of confusion and emotions. Self love and self hate. Andrea long Chu captured all of those feelings in one writing and for that this was an amazing writing piece. A true eye opener that no matter what we try to be or force ourselves to be a little bit of the old us still lies within us somewhere. We can hide it but there will always be a point where we are forced to face it. 
    -Tessaya Forde

    1. Tessaya,

      Wonderful comment. I too am very intrigued by the question in Chu’s essay that you point to: will transitioning anatomically lead her to feel “more like a woman”? It strikes me as quite brave that Chu is able to express how her surgery may have (partially) failed in this regard. In terms of the essay’s rhetoric, we can talk more in class about how this piece thus appears to be rather unresolved in the end–that is, there is no triumphant “take-away.” So thank you for pointing that out.

      As for the sentence you’ve been drawn to, can I get you to say a bit more about the sentence itself–perhaps in class and/or in your revisions to this post. For starters, it begins with a conditional verb phrase using “would.” Can we begin to unpack what the meaning/impact of this is?

      Thanks,
      M

      1. When Chu says “The ship would always be Theseus’s, no matter how many parts I replaced” I think she uses the term ‘would’ instead of ‘will’ because now that she has got a vaginoplasty the parts don’t physically look the same anymore. But, because they feel the same as before it doesn’t change the fact that it’s still Theseus’s parts. The ‘would’ stands for something that will always be though it is not necessarily the case because of the vaginoplasty, not Theseus’s who once stood as a man. Therefore the part is mentally Theseus’s because that is what it feels like mentally but physically the part is now that of a woman. 
         

  2. Posted for Brittny Dominique:

    Reading Andrea Long Chu’s “The Pink” I believe the essay is about discovering one’s self. In the literal sense of discovery as Chu embarks on a new transition from male to female. However, Chu talks about discovering oneself mentally as well. I found this essay to be very interesting as it is about self-discovery something many of us can relate to, myself included. I found a few lines from this essay interesting, the first line that intrigued me was from the first paragraph. “My cat was 2 the day I got my pussy. She had beaten me to it- bottom surgery.” When I read that entire paragraph I can’t help but to think about my job. I currently work at an emergency animal hospital and I see male cat’s come into the hospital every day for having a urinary obstruction. If a cat repeatedly comes in for more than one Urinary Obstruction the Veterinarian discusses the options of a Perineal Urethrostomy (PU). A PU is a surgical reconstruction of the tube your pet urinates through called the urethra. I found it interesting because in the vet world if a pet has a PU, or is neutered or spayed. The pet technically no longer has a gender. Male cats who have a PU now have vagina’s instead of a penis. I thought it was really interesting how Chu used that reference. Another line I found intriguing in the essay was towards the end after he’s gotten the surgery, he still doesn’t necessarily feel like a woman. He Thought if he was to change that huge factor about himself he will then feel like the person he truly believes he is. Chu stated “I don’t envy your plenitude; I envy your void. Now I’ve got the hole to prove it. I would give anything to hate myself the way you do, assuming it’s different from the way I hate myself- which who knows.” Reading that line, I felt empathetic for Chu. To go through such a painful procedure, mentally and physically to ultimately still not achieve the outcome you wanted must be heartbreaking. Being a woman isn’t simply just replacing your penis with a vagina it’s a lot that goes with the word “Woman” and there is a lot that goes with the word “Feminist”. Chu touches base on that in the essay as well. The word Feminism seems to be the gateway for other controversial situations. The word is political and it opens the door for other controversial topics and discussions. “Feminism now refers, increasingly to the whole platform- which includes calls for migrant rights, a living wage, and clean air as well as the familiar demands for the reproductive freedom and an end to sexual violence.” I agree with Chu. Feminism isn’t just a vague concept it’s a broader spectrum on a lot of other controversial issues. I believe this essay would be considered “good writing” because, I was engaged throughout the entire essay. The use of vocabulary and grammar was sophisticated as it kept me interested. I also like how relatable Chu writes. It’s as if the author is personally telling me the story and I enjoyed it.

    1. Brittny,

      Thank you for this. What you teach us about cat bottom surgery in the first part of your post is fascinating–and I must say, borderline unbelievable. Do neutered male cats really end up with vaginas? I did not know this (nor did I realize that perhaps Chu is referring to this–I thought she was simply punning on the link between “cat” and “pussy” as well as her own cat’s being neutered…)
      In looking at the quotations you’ve chosen and your responses to them, I’m wondering if there is more to say about the way that they are composed–in other words, not just the ideas in these sentences but the craft of the sentences themselves. What to make of the impact had by the short phrases, semi-colon, and multiple periods of the second passage you cite, ending in “Now I’ve got the hole to prove it.” Why might Chu uses such short, choppy prose here? To what effect? I’ll look forward to your response in class and/or in your revisions to this.
      Best,
      M

      1. Hi Professor,
        I’m glad you enjoyed the reference, as soon as she talked about the cat I instantly started to think of UO surgery. Neutered male cats don’t necessarily end up with vaginas. However, in the animal field if a pet is neutered (male) or spayed (female) they lose the ability to reproduced. I always perceive them as gender-less. However, if a male cat who is having difficulties urinating for the second or third time the doctor then recommends the surgery which basically turns the cat’s penis to a “vagina”. Honestly I wish I could ask Chu if she was referring to it like that because that would be so interesting to think of or maybe since I work many hours, my job is subconsciously on my brain and in the essays I read. Touching base on why I believe Chu may have used short or choppy prose is because she wanted the reader to feel how she feels without saying it. “Now I’ve got the hole to prove it” sounds abrupt. Short. Quick. Could be how she’s feeling about the entire procedure. Her feelings changed …. Short. Quick.

  3. The writing “the Pink” by Andrea Long Chu is in my opinion, a very engaging article to read. I think this essay is about the author not feeling like a true woman despise undergoing the procedure of  Male-To-Female surgery and the discomforts she goes through in her body because she still has reminiscents of her male self. Whilst studying her writing, I could not help but to think how interesting it is to envision her thought-process as she is telling her story.  In general I think her skills in story telling is very neat.

    I also think the author lacks when it comes to explaining her root as to why she doesn’t want to be a man. She always expresses her discomfort in her own body but never addresses when the thought of transitioning began. I think an addition to her background story  would add alot to the essay and that is why I don’t think this writing has met its full potential.

    -“..I don’t want what you have, I want the way in which you don’t have it. I don’t envy your plenitude; I envy your void….I would give anything to hate myself the way you do, assuming it’s different from the way I hate myself..”

    I think this is the most powerful message that came out from this article because the author complies with the fact that she will never truly feel like cis woman and by default she envies that which she cannot have. It is within the second sentence of the quote that I personally have identified with because I’ve compared myself to others before and wished I was them to the point where I would give anything to hate myself in the way they do (i.e rich people, talented individuals, gifted individual, etc.)

    And I think this quote specifically makes this a good prose because it not only talks about a transgender-people problems, but it  includes a common issue within our culture that many people who have felt inferior or not good enough, can relate to.

    1. Thank you for your response, Jeicot. I’m with you in liking the way Chu shares “her thought-process as she is telling her story.” I think there is a really nice back and forth in the essay between “showing” (story-making) and “telling” (reflection) that we should talk about more in class at some point. You are also right to point out that Chu doesn’t reveal the “backstory” or “origin” of her desire to be a woman.

      I sympathize with you in wanting to know more about her story, but I also think she left this backstory out on purpose. Here and/or in class, can you say more about why you think she may have chosen to do this? What effects on the reader does Chu’s decision to leave out her backstory have?

      In your follow-up to this, I’d also like you to focus a bit more on the way the sentences you quoted are put together (not just their content). For instance, I notice that many of them in a row begin with “I”: can you say a bit about what you think the effects of this repetition are?
      Thanks
      M

      1. Thank you for your response, Professor Monroe.

        1). I think that Chu chose to leave her origin out of the backstory on purpose because it would leave a sense of curiosity on the reader.

        2). Thanks for pointing out the quotes I chose on my response.

        After looking through the text, I think the author did this to have an emphasis on the word “I” because she wants to directly talk to women as a people and clarify she would give anything to feel like a woman even through struggle (physically & emotionally) and whatever means possible.

         

  4. After reading Chu’s essay, I have learned many things about someone else’s feelings toward their sexuality. In her writing, she explained and described how she felt before and after her vaginoplasty. She was very uncomfortable about her body, and then she decided to get a vaginoplasty surgery thinking that she would feel like a new person(a female). I laughed when I read that she had a funeral for her dick. Then after her surgery, she explained that she does not feel any different; still feels the same emotion that she had with her old body. I was not surprised about the fact that she feels the same after her vaginoplasty surgery because I think that just because someone changed the look of their gentile, that does not change their whole body. Since she had a dick before her surgery, that means her genes were “X” and ”Y,” so her body is still a male, and males produce a lot of testosterone that gives them a different look and emotion.

    In chu’s writing, there is a line that stands out to me that is “A true eye opener that no matter what we try to be or force ourselves to be a little bit of the old us still lies within us somewhere.” This line stands out to me because I can relate to this. I grew up in a village where I used to swim in huge rivers and climb big trees and could play all day with my friends, then I moved to a city, and eventually I came to America, still, sometimes I wish I could go back to those good old days. This sentence not only explains why Chu feels the same even after her vaginoplasty surgery but also gives me an answer on why sometimes I want to go back to my village.

    1. Redoanul, nice to read your thoughts. I’m glad you found the “funeral for a dick” funny; I too think Chu can be a very humorous and entertaining writier. In fact, I think she uses humor as a way of talking about material (eg. vaginoplasty) that would otherwise be hard and/or awkward to write about.

      I did want to point out that part of the MTF transition Chu underwent involves taking hormone blockers that reduce the levels of testosterone in the body; many people who do this also take estrogen and/or other hormones associated with feminine biology. So there is more involved in the transition than just the surgery.

      As I’ve mentioned to some of the others, I’d like to see you analyze the wording of the quotation you’ve chosen a bit more. It strikes me that the pronoun “us” is being used in a kind of unique way in the sentence you’ve chosen. Can you discuss this a bit in your revision/follow-up to this?

      Thanks
      M

      1. After reading Chu’s essay, I have learned many things about someone else’s feelings toward their sexuality. In her writing, she explained and described how she felt before and after her vaginoplasty surgery. She was very uncomfortable about her body, and then she decided to get vaginoplasty surgery, thinking that she would feel like a new person(a female). I was waiting to read why she doesn’t feel like a male and why she considers herself to be more like a female. I was hoping that she would share some of her experiences that possibly made her feel that, but she did not give any. She did not even write what aspects of a female she likes that changed her mind. I laughed when I read that she had a funeral for her dick.Then after her surgery, she explained that she does not feel any different; she still feels the same emotion that she had with her old body. I was not surprised about the fact that she feels the same after her vaginoplasty surgery because I think that just because someone changed the look of their gentile, that does not change their whole body. Since she had a dick before her surgery, that means her genes were “X” and ”Y,” so her body is still a male, and males produce a lot of testosterone that gives them a different look and emotion.
        In chu’s writing, there is a line that stands out to me that is “A true eye opener that no matter what we try to be or force ourselves to be a little bit of the old us still lies within us somewhere.” This line stands out to me because I can relate to this. I grew up in a village where I used to swim in huge rivers and climb big trees and could play all day with my friends, then I moved to a city, and eventually, I came to America, still, sometimes I wish I could go back to those good old days. This sentence not only explains why Chu feels the same even after her vaginoplasty surgery but also gives me an answer on why sometimes I want to go back to my village.

  5. After reading “The Pink” by Andrea Long Chu, I believe it’s about discovering yourself and your sexuality. I like Chu’s way of telling her personal story but also how she speaks about feminism and what is truly means to be a woman. What I found interesting in Chu’s essay is the way anecdotes are presented and then the transition into feminism and back again with another anecdote. A quote that stood out to me from this essay was, “It was winter when I got my pussy, too.” This stood out because it made the essay clearer for me to understand, before that sentence I was still a bit confused about what was going on or what the essay would be about. The paragraph leading the sentence is about how Chu basically transforms himself into someone else. His exterior looks, he changes his hair, he gets new glasses and he goes to the dentist. It was heartbreaking and I sympathized Chu when he said that he cried that night in his apartment, it was a shame that he went through all that change just to feel the same way, to not truly feel like a woman even though he possessed the parts. I believe this is good prose because it’s not just about Chu’s personal experience it’s about real controversial topics. The writing kept me entertained with the stories that Chu provided about the surgery and I liked it. 

    1. Lisette–hi. Thank you for pointing out the way that Chu moves between rather abstract discussions of feminism and theory while also attempting to illustrate some of these abstract points with references to anecdotes from her own experience. We can definitely discuss this more in class if you’re interested.
      As with others, I’ll be looking for you to revise/add to this with a bit more detailed analysis of the wording in the quotation you chose. It strikes me that this sentence is rather short: what are some of the effects of this shortness? I also observe Chu using a sort of ambiguous, possibly offensive, slang term here—-“pussy”; what effects does this choice of words have?
      Thanks,
      M

  6. In the essay “The Pink” by Andrea Long Chu she talks about her experience getting the vaginoplasty surgery. She explains how she felt before and after the the surgery and why she wanted the surgery. She wanted to feel more like a women because she wasn’t comfortable in the body she was in but even after the surgery she still didn’t feel like a women. “not all women do have vaginas, nor do all vaginas have women. Then again, the pussyhat was not an artistic rendering of the female genitalia but a simple bit of costuming.” This stood out to me the most because it made me realize that there are many people in the world that feel like this. They feel like they were just born in a costume its not who they actually are. It made me think how horrible life is. Even before your born there’s already a label placed on you which isn’t fair because you should be able to choose what you want to be labeled as. I really liked this essay because she really went into deep details about what she thinks about the whole situation. The writing kept me very entertained and the vocabulary and grammar was done very well.

     

    1. Jennessy, hi. Yes, I agree with you about how limiting (or in your words, “horrible”) labels can be, especially when applied to people’s sense of gender. Many of us are challenged by the idea you bring up that our gender is more or less decided for us before we are even born, and it could be argued that transgenderism is an attempt to challenge this idea.

      When you follow up on this and revise, would you try to connect the above thoughts to the quote you’ve chosen a bit more? I’d also like to see you analyze the language in it a bit more closely. I notice, for instance that there is a mirroring/reversal going on in the first two phrases you’ve cited—“not all woman have vaginas; not all vaginas have women”—which is known in literary terms as a “chiasmus”. What do you think the effects of Chu’s structuring the sentence in this way are?
      Thanks

      Monroe

  7.  
    In the reading “The Pink”, Andrea Long Chu illustrates the transition of a man to a female by including a first-person perspective.Chu discussed her experiences with her gender transition as well as tackle the idea of feminism in correlation with politics. In Chu’s essay, she states, “Can you really blame the Women’s March for wanting a symbol for universal womanhood, if symbols are all we ever have?” (pg.11) Chu believes that women aren’t given many roles in society, more specifically in politics. Thus, the creation of the Women’s March. Furthermore, I thoroughly enjoyed the way Chu described the surgery process that she underwent. By using a combination of examples and metaphors, Chu explained an alien-like process into more simple and explicit terms. She states, “In vaginoplasty, the penis is not removed but delicately opened up and turned inside out—think slicing a mango. The scrotum, its tenants evicted, helps to line the vaginal wall and form the labia.” Instead of leaving a gory thought of a penis being cut open into the reader’s mind, Chu presented a mango to create a cringe-free understanding of her grisly medical procedure. The metaphors and ideas that she connected to the process of vaginoplasty made her writing more fluent since Chu would have had to use scientific terms to describe the technicalities of the surgery process. Being able to clearly understand an author’s ideas is an important trait for quality writing.

    1. Hello, Denis. I really like the attention you’ve paid to the words chosen by Chu in the second passage you’ve quoted. Nice work unpacking the simile of the mango. It’s not technically a “metaphor” because she makes it clear that she’s comparing two different things through the use of the verb “think”——not a huge issue, but perhaps something to clarify when you’re revising this. Another thing that I’d like to see you unpack a bit more in your follow-up to this is the complicated relationship between feminism, politics, and symbolism——which you’ve begun to unpack (but can go further with). Can you tell us a bit more about how you understand Chu’s stance on the “pussy hats” in particular——and feminism more broadly? It’s more complicated than a show of unconditional support…
      Thanks
      M

  8.      In the essay The Pink by Long Chu, it’s generally about a man wanting to become a female but when deciding to change his/her physical appearance. She didn’t feel different she still felt like a man. 
        What is found interesting is the way Chu described and expressed those feelings she had in the essay. Making the reader sync with the different types of emotions in the essay. With every emotion thrown at the reader you can feel Chu’s happiness, sadness and anger
        “ I dreamed I was a character in a video game. As sometimes happens in video games, I died. When I respawned, I had a new face, the face of another woman altogether. Upon discovering this in the dream, I collapsed into my companion’s arms and told her, through tears, that all I had ever wanted was to become unrecognizable to myself.” 
        This part of the essay stood out for me the most. In a video game it’s a place that people go to to escape the life that their living at the moment to start another one that the gamer can control and live life how they can’t in IRL (in real life). The way to customize your own character update face features or body structure. The most important thing is choosing the gender of the character that’s why Chu would dream that she would be in a game because it’s easy to live in a world free realm but to be chained to the world that Chu was physically born in. 
        The essay that Chu wrote is a “good” essay but people would say it’s a “bad” essay not based on Chu’s writing but the idea of the essay. On the other hand this essay showed the pain that someone can go through to wishing to become the opposite gender. The emotional and physical pain that they endure and wish that they can just switch genders in just a click of a button for example in a video game. 
    -Steven Iglesias 
     

    1. Steven, hi. I’m fond of the passage you’ve chosen to quote because, as a psychoanalyst, I’m very interested in dreams and their interpretation. The interpretation of this passage–and the dream described in it by Chu–is a good start; the link you’ve drawn between choosing a gender when playing a character-based video game and Chu’s wish to choose her gender is fabulous. However, the last line of the quote complicates this interpretation. What do you think it means when Chu says “all I had ever wanted was to become unrecognizable to myself”? That seems to be a wish not for a certain gender, but for something else. Can you respond to this in your follow up to this post? I’d also like to hear more about why you think some people might think this is a “bad” essay based on the “ideas” (content) in it.

  9. In Andrea Long Chu’s “The Pink”, the author vividly details her entire journey of going through the transition from being a man to becoming a woman. Throughout her excerpt, she, first, describes her ailments that she had received pre operation of vaginoplasty in hopes that it would result in a brand new rebirth of her existence into becoming the woman that she had ever longed to be. Before the day of the vaginoplasty procedure, she even holds this gathering as a “funeral for her dick”  in order to join in celebration of shedding her past circumstances of being labeled as a masculine being into what she perceived to be the new excursion to womanhood. What particularly caught my attention when reading this was her emotions about engaging in this new process of womanhood after the procedure. While reading it, I had thought that upon completion of the procedure, she would have finally been at peace due to the fact that she would finally receive what her heart had originally desired. However, that seemed not to be the case. One quote that Chu says during her essay that particularly caught my eye regarding this manner was the following, “They don’t know how much it hurts to watch the object of your desire broken into pieces just because you wanted it.” Upon reading this, I had sympathized with her quote due to the fact that at many times, we, as individuals, constantly long for an empty void in our lives to be filled that we may think or assume another person may have, thus causing envy and depression with one’s self. As for Chu, her void was this feeling of being wholesome in womanhood with this process of becoming transgender.  When comparing the struggle of a woman, Chu simply longs for the ability to even be able to simply acquire and adapt to the female struggle. As a male myself, Chu’s description of the heartaches that women go through really became an eye-opener for me. At many times, women can become subjected to feeling a sense of inadequacy due to the responses of how fellow females, as well as even their own counterparts, view them. They see themselves as simply a hollow figure of who they truly desire to be. “The Pink,” illustrates that there is truly no complete manual in womanhood; each female has to figure out their own journey as to what suits best for her. As for Chu, it appears that she had more security within her beliefs of adopting to womanhood prior to the surgery than the constant struggle we see with her being confident in who she has longed to become after the surgery. Personally, I had wished that she had not excluded her reasoning for wanting to become a transgendered woman. I felt that if Chu had delved into her reasonings more, we, as the readers, would have been better able to decipher why she feels this sense of incompetence as to her quest of becoming a woman. On the other hand, what makes this a good prose writing is that she is able to vividly paint the imagery of her whole process of transition throughout her essay while making analogies regarding her situation more relatable for the reader to imagine and compare; she also ties in to how she incorporates different components of feminism and how their ideologies compare and contrast to the whole symbolistic concept of putting the woman first and being confident to be themselves as women without constant public ridicule, degradation, and chastisement.

    1. Jayvon,
      I think find this response to be a really thoughtful synopsis of Chu’s text as you’ve read it. Your reading of the first quote you bring in is poetic in its reference to a sense of a void that many (all?) people experience and want to do away with by filling that sense of emptiness with something, someone, etc. However, there seems to be a more complicated implication in the quote itself that I’d like you to unpack more in your follow-up to this post. Why, tell us, does Chu suggest that her “object of…desire [is] broken into pieces just because [she] wanted it”? First, what is her “object of desire” in this case? Second, why would that object of desire become shattered as a consequence of her desiring it? It seems to me that one way of approaching this statement–and these questions–is through thinking about Chu’s complicated relationship to feminism (which you begin to elaborate on toward the end of your post–but again, go further!).
      Thanks.
      m

  10. Under the guise of non-linear storytelling, Andrea Long Chu shares her experience undergoing a vaginoplasty in “The Pink”. The first line is an attention-grabber and immediately reeled me into Chu’s world. Vulgar and crude language is an interesting technique in writing to throw unexpected (American) readers into a loop, although in the context of femininity, it’s necessary. Reading through Chu’s complicated, complex journey through womanhood, I began to wonder: What does it truly mean to be a woman? Is it our poise that’s forced upon us from childhood? Our warm, shrill voices that smoothes and comforts? Our genitalia that we shrink and hide from the world? Who and what defines the feeling of being a woman in today’s politically-misaligned society? Chu discovers it isn’t what’s on the outside that will provide her the satisfaction she desperately needs. The sudden realization of the fact, the yearning for more, whatever more is, is what kept my mind searching for answers of my own.

    “Cis women hate when trans women envy them, perhaps because they cannot imagine that they are in possession of anything worth envying,” is a quote I can’t help but relate to. Often times, including the fault of my own, I feel reduced to what’s between my legs. The personal conflict of how I feel about my genitals is difficult to describe. I’ve allowed it to dictate the decisions I make, and find comfort in the choices of others. Something about possessing a vagina is both a power move and shameful luxury — a double-edged sword. It never occurred to me that someone else could long for what I take for granted. But still, what if there’s more to being a woman than physical appearances? What if it’s a state of being that’s indescribable or indisputable from one woman to another, which only fuels our self-loathing and envy. We can never truly be the idealized woman that lives in our heads, but that doesn’t stop us from chasing a fantasy. There is no clear answer, but my own answer, and even then I’m stumped to figure out the complexity of gender identity. Hence the reason The Pink is evidence of good prose. It’s a think piece, full of Greek mythology references, metaphors, and an extended vocabulary beyond my own, of a woman going through a traumatic and extensive change in her life; the ability to claim and display the visibility of being a “woman”. She is consumed with the concept of what would make her a complete woman, yet doesn’t feel fulfilled in her efforts. The inclusion of self-reflection and feminism gave me an opportunity to ponder my thoughts on the matter, which is, in my definition, good writing.

    1. Shanice,
      There is something quite beautiful in the several moments of your post where you suggest (and demonstrate) that part of “good writing”—and what makes Chu’s text “good”—is its ability to frame questions that may or may not be answerable, questions that give the reader a lot of thinking to do rather than quick, easy answers. The question of transgender identity frames one such question that is implicit in your quotation——why would someone who starts life as a male want to become a woman?——which is also a question that Chu never fully answers (to the chagrin of many of your classmates–read above). By the way, when you follow up on this, can you unpack the wording of the quotation a bit more: what does it mean to be a “cis woman”? Is the category of “cis woman” at all problematic, in light of transgenderism, and if so how? Also (and I’m not sure if this is related except by way of being part of the same sentence), what do you think the effect of the word “perhaps” is in the second clause of this sentence? Why do you think Chu chose to use this word? (I think “perhaps” is a *very* useful word to use.)
      Best,
      M

      1. Going back to the reading and your response, I’m leaning towards the definition of good “prose” is leaving readers with their own thoughts and questions around the subject. If a reading doesn’t leave any sort of impression on you, positive or negative, descriptive or blunt, is it really good writing?

        I believe Chu chose to include perhaps to hint at some uncertainty in her answer. She may just not know herself or leaving room for readers to questions and reflect on what they think. As a trans woman, she can’t truly know or understand the reasoning behind the envy from cis woman and cis woman can’t possibly fully grasp the difficulties/realities of a trans woman. We can only guess, imagine and conclude our own theories of what could possibly go through the mind of another identity from our own lived experiences (which can be biased or limited, to begin with). Does this make cis woman or being a cis woman problematic in our world? The very identity itself? No, but our learned behaviors or societal norms that we push out to the world can be since it can add to a toxic environment for people who don’t fit as a cis woman. Not all cis woman even fit into the box of the “cis woman” we often see or want to be. Cis woman in a perfect world has a vagina, has a vagina that’s pretty, has a vagina that can create babies, has a vagina that doesn’t have a long or painful period, has a vagina that is longed by men – the list goes on. In reality, it isn’t what genitalia we have that makes us who we are, which I think why there wasn’t a connection of “togetherness” or happiness of the vaginoplasty with Chu. There are only so many issues we struggle internally that we can solve on the surface.

  11.  After reading Andrea Long Chu’s “The Pink” I believe it is about a transgender woman expressing her troubles of finding her femininity. In this essay Chu talks about some of the things she’s facing going through the transition of a male to female and why this journey is special to her. When I first started reading this essay I was a bit confused because I wasn’t sure what exactly it was going to be about but it immediately got my attention. I found the essay “The Pink” to be very interesting because I was able to get insight on how Chu felt about herself and why she wanted to go through with doing the transition. In the essay she described how she wanted the transition to help her feel more like a woman because she wasn’t comfortable in her body. Chu says that “My family was worried about the risks, but it’s what I wanted”. When I read that in the essay it stood out to me a lot because a lot of times people tend to hold themselves back from what they want and what makes them happy in life because of other people’s opinions. This statement made me happy to read because although it wasn’t Chu who said it and it was the OR nurse who made the comment I feel like it’s still powerful because Chu went through with a very big transition to make herself feel happy and that is very powerful to me. This essay was a good essay in my opinion because of the way that Chu wrote it, speaking on such a big topic such as transgender is very hard to not say something offensive to other people and I feel like Chu couldn’t have written this essay any better. I believe this essay is very entertaining which is a big thing to having a good essay the way that Chu had started the essay with such a strong attention grabber is what caught my attention and made it a very good essay. In conclusion, Andrea Long Chu’s  “The Pink” was a very interesting essay to about a transgender woman trying to feel more like a woman. 

    1. Amani, hi.
      Thanks for the post. A few suggestions for improving it when you revise:

      –can you go into more detail as to why you were confused at the beginning of the essay? which specific passages led you to feel unclear as to what the essay was going to be about?

      –I realize you’ve explained a bit as to why you chose the sentence you did for your quotation, but I guess I’m still wondering what makes the wording in this sentence so special as opposed to any of the other hundreds of sentences in this essay? Can you explain in a more detailed way? You can also choose another quotation if one stands out more to you upon re-reading.

      –Can you say more as to why you think the topic of transgenderism is offensive to some people?

      Thanks
      M

      1. -When I first started reading “The Pink” I originally said that the essay made me feel confused because I wasn’t sure what it was going to be about, however, I was immediately intruiged. The reason I was initially confused was because of the way the essay started abruptly. I was unsure what she was referring to because of the comparisons she was making. In the text she says “Getting a pussy is harder than you’d think. Cats mate in spring and summer, so adopting a kitten in the winter can be tricky.” After reading that sentence I originally thought the essay was going to about a kitten but she proceeds to say “ It was winter when I got my pussy,too. By design, the weeks leading up to surgery were a blur.” reading that sentence sparked confusion, it became clear that she was no longer referring to a furry companion. I came to the realization that the essay was going to be about a transgender persons experience transitioning from male to female.
        -The sentence that I chose for my quotation was “My family was worried about the risks, but its what I wanted.” The reason I chose this sentence is because it was powerful. when she said “but its what I wanted” it really resinated with me because a lot of times people tend to shy away from doing what makes the happy, myself included, they hold themselves back in life trying to please other people because they are worried about their opinions. That is why I decided to chose this particular quotation because in the essay Chu is discussing a transition of male to female and that is not something easy for someone to go through, it displays a lot of self acceptance and courage. That was not only powerful, it was beautiful, she documented this journey, expressed the hardships, and confessed her fears and that alone shows how strong she is as an individual. I have heard that many transgender people often get criticism from their friends and family because of the decisions they choose to make. Chu most likely faced a lot of those opinions from her own friends/family. Sometimes hearing someone express their own hardships can be reassuring for those going through the same situation. This is why I chose that quotation.
        -The topic of transgenderism is such an offensive topic to some people because some people have different beliefs and opinions when it comes to transgender people. I have noticed that often the topic of transgenderism is mainly offensive to the older generation because this is not something they were brought up having knowledge about where as us as the younger generation are much more open minded to the idea and topic of transgender discussions. With this being said when speaking on the topic of a transgender person we have to be careful of what we say so that we are respectful and mindful of everyone’s beliefs and opinions on this sensitive topic.

  12. Andrea Chu’s essay was intriguing and kept me engaged due to the use of creativity within it. Not only does Chu describe the experience prior and after receiving vaginoplasty but she also includes similes to create a variety of visuals for the reader. It states “ In vaginoplasty, the penis is not removed but delicately opened up and turned inside out —think slicing a mango”(pg.3). The operation relates to slicing a mango because once it is sliced, you usually turn it inside out and eat it. Chu also stated “not all women have vaginas, nor do all vaginas have women.”(pg.5). The reason for Chu going through with the vaginoplasty was to help her feel even more comfortable in her body but once the procedure was done, she felt the same not like a woman. This quote made me aware of how there are a large amount of people who are not comfortable in the body they are born in and feel misplaced. I feel that the writing is good piece of writing because she shared strong thoughts on how women are viewed and everyday struggles/thoughts that the transgender women or binary people have to deal with when it comes to their body.

    1. Shania, thanks for this. I’m compelled by the way you’ve analyzed your first quotation. (I hadn’t thought about all of the implications of the fact that Chu chooses a fruit that is typically sliced–and then eaten–as an analogue to the genitals during vaginoplasty.) Here are a couple suggestions for revising:

      –Can you say a bit more about the wording of the second quotation? There is a mirroring/reversal of the order of words (women, vagina; vagina, women) in this sentence that I notice, but can you say more about what the effect of this reversal (known as “chiasmus” in literary terms) is?

      –Can you give an example of the “everyday struggles” that Chu mentions in the essay? To my reading, Chu tends to dwell on fairly odd/weird moments and thoughts rather than the “everyday”/banal. But it’s possible I missed something. Regardless, what did you have in mind?

      Best,
      M

  13. After reading, “The Pink” by Andrea Long Chu I can conclude the narrators perspective on her journey of discovering who she really is mentally and physically. Chu explains the fundamentals of a vaginoplasty surgery based on her own experience and expresses that no matter what you change physically only hides what you think mentally determined from when stated in the essay,”The ship would always be Theseus’s, no matter how many parts I replaced. I guess I should have known this beforehand.” This also built many questions for myself about transgenders, because in the essay she expresses on how her making the decision of getting a vaginoplasty didn’t make her feel like the complete women she wanted to be. It makes me question what really makes her feel complete? whether it’s accepting who she is physically or mentally. I am eager to know that if she knows what she knows now then, would she not continue with her procedure. In addition, throughout the entire reading I focused on how the author chose specific words to express her experience. There were many words that i had to search up but when understood the choice of words were conducted a well written and sophisticated essay.

    1. Juan, thank you. I’m glad that the essay raised the questions you mention regarding transgenderism and whether Chu would still elect to transition from M to F, given how she feels after the procedure. Some suggestions for revising this:

      –Watch the wording in the lead-up to the quotation; I’m getting a little lost in that sentence! We can go over how to work on this sort of sentence (introducing a quote) in class if you’d like.

      –Unpack more of the specific words in the quotation you’ve chosen. It strikes me that there is a good deal of metaphorical meaning in the quotation: explain it to us, please!

      –I’d love for you to share in your post some of the words that were new to you and that you had a chance to look up. (You could quote the sentences that these words appeared in and try to paraphrase them to make sense of what the vocab words mean. For instance, in your current quote, you could look up Theseus and explain why Chu references him in this sentence.)

      Thanks,
      M

  14. While reading Chu’s essay, although I liked the way most of it was put together I disliked how reading the essay actually made me feel just a little uncomfortable while reading some parts of it. Although I found her “geometric vulva” interesting I also found it just as weird. In whole, what I got from her essay was her journey in becoming a trans woman and her journey exploring womanhood especially as a feminist.  
     
    What I found interesting was the authors tattoo. Her first tattoo was a “geometric vulva, on [her] forearm”(Chu 2). Its very interesting how the author used symbolism to portray her own identity or more specifically the experiences she’s endured going through the sex change procedures. She feels a sharp remembrance of the painful tattoo when speaking about it. It’s reminiscent of the very pain she felt when undergoing the operation. Although the pain may not have been compatible in terms of intensity, the raw emotions of fear and discomfort attributes to the overall meaning of the tattoo. She takes a strong sense of pride in her choice and the tattoo is a sort of symbol of it.
    In my opinion, my view of “good” writing would be something that grabs the reader’s attention. Something that makes me question what’s next. When I think about “bad” writing I would think about a generally boring story or a story that doesn’t transition properly into the next topic. In whole, “good” or “bad” writing depends on the audience.

    1. Alia, thank you for your post. Your unpacking of the moment in the essay in which Chu situates the pain of her surgery next to the pain she experiences getting her first tattoo is fabulous. In your follow-up to this, can you please address the following? :

      –I’m sympathetic to your claim that parts of the essay made you uncomfortable, as I too felt a little weird while reading certain parts of it. For instance, the “mango” passage that a lot of other people have been talking about made me squirm a bit, given that the mango (and the actions done to it) are being compared to genitalia. If you’re comfortable sharing, I’d be interested to know which parts of this essay made you feel uncomfortable. It was published in a very well established literary journal called n + 1, and I don’t think there has been too much backlash against this particular work of Chu’s. She does have a new book out titled Females, which, on the other hand, has been very controversial and made some people rather angry (which is a totally valid response to any work of literature–although of course, it is a response that deserves to be unpacked and explained). So don’t feel forced to share more here if you don’t want to, but do feel encouraged if you’re open to it.

      –Can you connect your thoughts about “good” and “bad” writing to Chu’s text a bit more directly? How well does this essay do the things that you associate with “good” and/or “bad” writing? Tell us, please.

      Thanks
      M

  15. In General, I loved this essay because I found it very informative and humorous. At times. Chu also addresses transphobia, trans people in feminism, and what she had to go through when she got bottom surgery. “Getting a pussy is harder than you’d think.” really stood out with me because she chose to insert to insert a comical element to the text in something you’d think would be a very serious topic. That double entendre definitely set the tone for the rest of the essay. I consider this writing “good” because it had a purpose, and got it across wonderfully with elements like humor.

    1. Hi Leonardo,
      Please consider the following suggestions for revision when following up on this post:

      –Say a bit more about how Chu addresses transphobia and the relationship between transgenderism and feminism (the latter is one of the more interesting/important aspects of this essay, I think–thank you for noting that, but go further).

      –Unpack and explain the meanings of the words in your quotation a bit more. What exactly is the double-entendre that you’ve noticed and what are some of the effects on the reader had by Chu’s decision to use a double entendre in this context? Tell us, please!

      –Thank you for appreciating the humor in this essay–I too am fond of this. But can you go further and be more specific when discussing what you think the “purpose” of this essay is? Is it merely to make us laugh? Or is Chu trying to accomplish some other thing(s) as well?

      Thanks,
      M

  16. Andrea Chu’s essay was intriguing and kept me engaged due to the use of creativity within it. Not only does Chu describe the experience prior and after receiving vaginoplasty but she also includes similes to create a variety of visuals for the reader. It states “ In vaginoplasty, the penis is not removed but delicately opened up and turned inside out —think slicing a mango”(pg.3). The operation relates to slicing a mango because once it is sliced, you usually turn it inside out and eat it. Chu also stated “not all women have vaginas, nor do all vaginas have women.”(pg.5). I think this means that there are some women have vaginas and also there are men who change their gender to be male but choose not to do the vaginoplasty procedure. The reason for Chu going through with the vaginoplasty was to help her feel even more comfortable in her body but once the procedure was done, she felt the same not like a woman. This quote made me aware of how there are a large amount of people who are not comfortable in the body they are born in and feel misplaced. I feel that the writing is good piece of writing because she shared strong thoughts on how women are viewed and everyday struggles/thoughts that the transgender women or binary people have to deal with when it comes to their body. One of their struggles would be that they do not feel comfortable in their body and other people may not support their decision and will make them feel like anyone apart of the LGBQT community should feel ashamed for wanting embracing who they really are.
     

  17. The very beginning of Chu’s essay is what made me somewhat uncomfortable. There was some lines where she said “ It was winter when I got my pussy, too” and “Miss Andrea Long Chu asks that you join her and her loved ones at a funeral for her dick.”. Although the whole story didn’t make me uncomfortable, it was parts like these that made me want to skip through the reading.

     

    In my opinion, my view of “good” writing would be something that grabs the reader’s attention. Something that makes me question what’s next. When I think about “bad” writing I would think about a generally boring story or a story that doesn’t transition properly into the next topic. While reading Chu’s essays even though in my opinion, I thought that reading it would gradually get better it didn’t. I felt that majority of the story did not transition properly, to my liking. I found it hard to keep wanting to read more and found myself skipping through the essay. Because of this I would consider this essay to be on the “bad” side of writing. In whole, “good” or “bad” writing actually depends on the audience and their opinion of how it should’ve been written. 

    1. Thank you for your response, Alia–I value that you are being honest about your response to Chu’s text. I appreciate the quotations you’ve cited as making you feel uncomfortable. Perhaps (if and only if you’re comfortable) we can continue to discuss what in particular it was in these quotations that made you feel this way. I guess I’m guessing that it could be the coarse/slang language referring to genitalia; I think Chu is being provocative in using this language, and it’s important to have in mind that while this might appeal to some readers (and make them want to keep reading), it can also offend and alienate others and make them want to stop reading.

      Your point about transitions in the essay is also worth taking a closer look at–remind me in class, and we can come back to it if you’d like. I think Chu is doing something similar here to what she’s doing with slang and vulgarity; at times, I think she’s intentionally hopping around between disparate topics and episodes in order to surprise us, perhaps even in order to throw us off as we’re reading. Again, this can be interesting and engaging to some readers while others will find it annoying, disturbing, etc.

  18. Thank you for the feedback, Professor. For Chu, her “object” of desire was this feeling of being wholesome in womanhood while in this process of becoming transgender. When comparing the struggle of a woman, all Chu had longed for was the ability to simply acquire and adapt to the female struggle. The struggle of the women, themselves, is what she was particularly arguing that is being taken for granted by those who were naturally born women. Unfortunately, her object of desire of acquiring and adapting to the struggle of the female becomes shattered because although she has aspired, for an extensive amount of time, to become a woman and display female-like tendencies, Chu was never born a woman. As a result, she would never be able to totally and fully grasp the hardships and experiences learned from adolescence to adulthood of how to go through obstacles and encounters as a female who is elevating into womanhood. It is simply not just a phase in which can be turned on and off. I believe this is why Chu becomes unsatisfied post-procedure due to the fact that her external appearance could never account for the lack of satisfaction, as well as uncertainty, Chu feels internally of what her idea is to become a woman.

  19. The writing “The Pink” by Andrea Long Chu is about a male undergoing surgery to feel more like a women. I personally loved the essay as it was weird, funny, and related to our society today. The starting kind of threw me off as it went right into talking about body parts and I was a little confused as to what I was reading about. The essay was catchy, but also ongoing as there was too many comparisons and events happening all at once. The writer brought up many events that related to her situation when three would have been enough. I enjoyed the first half of the essay, but after that it got a little boring as there was a lot of repetition and I already got the idea of what the author was trying to prove. In my opinion, the essay was about how a women is portrayed in todays society.

    The quote that really stood out to me was “you can stand on the beach and spy a sandbar across the water, if you swim, you can stand on shoal and look back. Your location will have changed, but your position will be identical”. The quote describes the writers feelings of undergoing a painful surgery perfectly as you can change the outside all you want, but if the inside is the same then nothing truly changes. The quote also stood out to me because I truly feel that being what you want to be or look like physically won’t matter unless you change the inner you.

    1. I found the transitions in the essay to be annoying as I often got confused as to what I was reading. It was like going back and forth with the same meaning but using different words. There was also a lot of repetition such as the saying “not all women have vaginas”, I saw the quote at least three times in the essay which made me think that this is what the writer was trying to prove in their writing. After her surgery, Chu finally realizes that she doesn’t need a vagina to feel like a women because a physical trait can’t make you feel what you already feel inside.

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