Joy harjo - "She had some horses"

In "She had some horses" Harjo speaks of the plight I believe of native american women. Being of such descent herself it only made sense. Each horse described a different identity such as:

"She had horses with full, brown thighs.

She had horses who laughed too much. 

She had horses who danced in their mothers' arms

She had horses who were much too shy, and kept quiet

in stalls of their own making."

Each women is different and this poem punctuates that . I t shows you the difference in personality but still binds them all together. When Harjo states the following this is why I think of plight.

"She had horses who whispered in the dark, who were afraid to speak.

She had horses who screamed out of fear of the silence, who

carried knives to protect themselves from ghosts.

She had horses who waited for destruction.

She had horses who waited for resurrection."

They were forced into different lives, losing many and not knowing what their future held. It was most likely filled with fear, pain and uncertainty which I feel Harjo brings out perfectly.As in those times a person was their tribe and the tribe was each person. All was one and when she states "There were horses I loved and horses I hated, and they all were one" I feel she is in fact talking of herself. She has each of these women in her each disposition, each hope and fear, and she both loved and hated it. At least this is what I got from this poem parts of it did in fact confuse me.

 

Anne Waldman - "Makeup on Empty Space"

Emptiness seems to be the underlining theme of this poem. Though The author speaks of putting makeup on in the most literal sense that could be the theme , it seems to go further than that. Almost as if the author is invisible or trying to hide behind the numerous amounts of makeup and jewels many women adorn. As if we are not really hear nor would we become noticeable without the adornments upon us. Its as if to say we are all simply empty vessels waiting to be covered or filled. Waldman states "I am putting my memory into empty space". The empty space continuously refereed to here is the head and face. So perhaps she feels she will not be worth the recognition without it? All her works and memory goes into the art of putting makeup on and shows you all she has learned. What her life is like her society and background perhaps? It seems to be all about covering or filling up a void. This is what I have gotten from this poem.