Interpretive essay on book Abeng

Ortiz-Vilarelle

FSP

Fall 2019

Essay #1 due: 9/16

The Presence of the Past in Michelle Cliff’s Abeng

In our discussions about Abeng and its protagonist Clare Savage, the matter of how she “knows” or does not “know” her family and national histories is inescapable. No matter where she finds herself, Clare seems to bring with her a world of memory, history and genealogy. It seems appropriate that this character is a product of the same imaginative impulses responsible for this quote:

"If eyes can be inherited, dimples, tendencies, why not memories;

why can't our DNA contain inklings of the past?"

Michele Cliff “History as Fiction; Fiction as History”

In a 4-page interpretive essay, engage this question of Cliff’s and use it to understand Clare’s peculiar position as a product of her racial, cultural, national, and family heritage.

Be sure to use specific evidence from both Abeng and group #1’s coverage of “The Dissolution of Mrs. White” to support your interpretive claims. Remain focused on the texts as your only source of information and avoid the temptation to stray from the question at hand.

This is a formal collegiate essay and requires a standard format (now is the time to brush up on or explore MLA format) and an analytical approach beyond “report” or “summary”. Besides a solid thesis statement and thoughtful content, your paper should offer attention to structure, organization, and sentence level grammatical concerns.

Have fun stretching the limits of possibility and let your creative and critical tendencies flow. Interpretation is a scholarly skill, not a science!