Also, if you need more material, write a narrative or story based on a personal experience or an observation of someone you know.
If you’re starting this paper for the first time, start with prewriting. Make some decisions on what you want to discuss and your initial thoughts. Here are some suggestions on how to carry out your writing project. Write a brief reflection on the subject area. Select and review and summarize one of the sources. You may choose to focus on one text and refer to it throughout your paper. Write a story or short narrative based oin personal experience or observation.
Try to set up a “movement” or set of steps that your writing goes through. This includes reflection on some big ideas ( mask, silence, mother tongue), review of a text, personal example of a situation, and some conclusion.
You can choose from any of the guiding questions below and use them as starting points.
To what extent is masculinity a mask? To what extent is femininity a mask?
How does silence work as a mask? What about the boasting associated with masculine behaviour? How does language vs silence work in the mask?
What about the silence of trauma and abuse vs the mother tongue as the origin of language in love, need, security, etc.? Consider the abusive behaviour of silencing someone, or “shutting them up,” or gagging them.
Why do we need to reveal ourselves inlanguage to some other? What if we want to keep silent about something?
What kind of language vs silence is associated with femininity? What are the social limits on young women?s behaviour today, in NYC, in public, on the subway, etc. How are these limits enforced? How do you feel them or perceive them? Compare NYC ways of dressing, talking, dating, etc, vs some other place, country, state; or even the difference between Manhattan vs Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, SI, NJ, Flordia?.
