The truth about karen (1972)
2022; Feminist Studies; Volume: 48; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1353/fem.2022.0031
ISSN2153-3873
Autores Tópico(s)Irish and British Studies
ResumoThe truth about karen (1972) Kenneth Carroll (bio) in our kitchen,women are whisperingi am not supposed to hearit is about karen, “women thangs” karen had almost diedalmost bled to deatha coat hanger’s jagged tipnear her bare feetacross the courtyard thetemprees sang, “explain it to her mama” karen at 16 could not explain any of itthe 32-yr-old deaconthe unholy consummationbut he had told karenwhat the law wouldn’t allowold wives’ tales woulddangerous as old husband’s desires karen stood alonein the bathroom, in the worldquietly groping, metal inside herhoping to avoid the wrath of rumorslike john in a desert of despairpraying for miracles & water? [End Page 367] he had promised this would workbut where was the water tosignal an end, to keep karen fromturning to/into her motherwhose heart she was sure tobreak with this unspeakable truthin the courtyard the “whatnauts” sang,“i’ll erase away your pain” i was not supposed to hearthe water never came, the ambulance didwhat she could not tell her mother,soon everyone would knowthe women talked of pints lost,scandals, babies, the man& his wife, of circles, viciouslyaccurate & unending the kitchen whispers, ignorantof the school-boy crush I worefor karen, the pubescent flame she ignitedthe fragility of a 12-year-old, who believedin the gospel of every r&b balladwhat I was not supposed to hear,the truth about karen, stole theinnocence from both our souls summer of ’72, slow jams filled the courtyardlovers held each other, slow dragged along a razor’s edgeas if the truth about karen was not knowni avoided her eyes, marveled at her bulging formwondered how she could smile,cursed the whispered voices,the truth, & love. [End Page 368] Kenneth Carroll kenneth carroll is a native Washingtonian, writer, and youth development specialist. His writings have appeared in numerous literary journals, national magazines, and newspapers. He was a 2021 nominee for the Pushcart Poetry Prize and the 2021 Blood Orange Review winner in fiction. He received the White House Humanities Award for his youth literacy work while director of DC WritersCorps. He is former director of the African American Writers Guild and has performed at the Kennedy Center, Nuyorican Café, Library of Congress, and universities and cultural institutions around the country. His book of poetry is titled So What! For The White Dude Who Said This Ain’t Poetry (Bunny and the Crocodile Press, 1997). Copyright © 2022 Feminist Studies, Inc
Referência(s)