In memoir, you have to be particularly careful not to alienate the reader by making the material seem too lived-in. It mustn't have too much of the smell of yourself, otherwise the reader will be unable to make it her own.
Rachel CuskRead
The anorexic is out to prove how little she needs, how little she can survive on; she is out, in a sense, to discredit her nurturers, while at the same time making a public crisis out of her need for nurture. Such vulnerability and such power: it brings the whole female machinery to a halt.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the struggle between the need for nurture and the desire to assert independence, particularly in the context of women's experiences with anorexia.
In this quote, Rachel Cusk explores the complex relationship that anorexics, particularly women, have with their nurturers and society. It highlights the paradox of vulnerability and power, where the act of self-denial through anorexia becomes a form of rebellion against those who provide care. By showcasing their ability to survive on so little, they not only challenge societal norms but also unintentionally critique the support systems around them, resulting in a societal and personal crisis that halts traditional notions of femininity and care.
Themes
AnorexiaNurturePowerVulnerabilityFemininityCrisis
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about mental health at a seminar.
More from Rachel Cusk
All quotes →As writers go, I have a skin of average thickness. I am pleased by a good review, disappointed by a bad. None of it penetrates far enough to influence the thing I write next.
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There is always shame in the creation of an expressive work, whether it's a book or a clay pot. Every artist worries about how they will be seen by others through their work. When you create, you aspire to do justice to yourself, to remake yourself, and there is always the fear that you will expose the very thing that you hoped to transform.
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Shame is something you'll find a lot of - particularly Catholic - girls feel about their bodies, about their sexuality, about their diet, about anything you like. Shame is the way you keep them down. That's the way to crush a girl.
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I have no sense of a model or predecessor when I write a memoir: For me, the form exists as a method of processing material that retains too many connections to life to be approached strictly and aesthetically. A memoir is a risk, a one-off, a bastard child.
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It seems to me that 'women's writing' by nature would not seek equivalence in the male world. It would be a writing that sought to express a distinction, not deny it.
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