What happen to _______? Tells the story of a female author who suffered by the hands of her husband (who was also an author) who became envious of her success. The story also talks about the struggles of being a woman writer and ways in which women are placed at a disadvantage in the industry, as well as living up to the societal expectations of what a woman’s role should be.
The author begins by sharing a story of a car ride she shared with a man who asks the question “whatever happen to __?. I like how the author uses that story to introduce the main character. She then moves on to tell her story as not only a woman who was abused by her husband but tells her story as being of being an author who is also a teacher, mother, and wife.
The story was very interesting to read because it shared different points of view on the main character’s life. I like how the author introduces the main character by sharing the story of the car ride conversation. I also like how she was able to leave her readers thinking not only about her struggles but of women in general who are facing similar struggles.
The story was very detailed, and I like how descriptive the author was. However, I did get a little confused at times and had to read over a few sections because the author goes off topic a few times, to elaborate on different points then comes back to the story which causes a little confusion for me.
Overall I enjoyed the story and the way in which the author end the story by bringing the readers back to the beginning by saying “ So if you’re ever in a car, carpooling home from a writing workshop, or in a late-night bar, or out for brunch, or catching a bus, or anywhere at all, and somebody wonders out loud, in a romanticized tragic way, “Whatever happened to__?.
The story concluded by representing not just the author’s struggles but by stating that this story was also a representation of all the women who shared similar life experiences like hers who was judged for wanting to be more than what society think they should be, and suffered/is suffering by the hands of an envious partner.
Question to the author: When did you realize your husband was jealous of your success?
Nickay, great response. I think that with her style of writing, it is very easy to feel confused. She continuously transitions from the present to the past throughout her story. However, after I reread the text I realized how unique her style of writing is. It’s truly impressive how she can connect her present thoughts with events from the past. It’s her way of showing us that the woman she is today is made up of the trials she has endured.
Hi Nickay, I enjoyed reading your view of the essay we read. I agree with you i also had to reread the essay a couple of times to understand the way she structures her story, I also liked how she used the dialogue between her and and guy from the car as a way to start of talking about women being oppressed not only in the writing industry but in general.
Hey Nickay, I totally agree with you on being confused on certain parts of her work. There were times that I also had to go back and read parts of her work again. I also liked how you pointed out the point of view. Reading from the author’s point of view made the story more real and personal.
Hey Nickay, I strongly agree with your critique for the anonymous piece/story. There where many parts that had allowed to stop and think for a while to completely understand where the writer is coming from. I enjoyed that you included details about her work such as, that the author decided to ad information she mentioned in the beginning of her piece to the end, which made me believe that you pay attention to small details like that and that is great skill to have as a reader.
I agree the story Anonymous suffered by the hands of her husband who became jealous. Instead of being proud of his wife he just became abusive towards her in front of his daughter. Anonymous was even put in debt by her husband causing her $200,000 for fighting in divorce court.