It is from that statement that I derive my first question to you:ġ. Myself being very closed afraid and shy to everyone and through that never being able to form any type of close heartfelt female friendships ever in my life until joining OurSharedShelf. I had a very emotional response to "Hunger" not only from your traumatic experience and the thoughts and feelings it brought to you throughout your life some of which I have mirrored myself for my own reasons but also to have you slowly describe some of my home and to know that I had similar feelings at a similar time graduating in the class of 1992 at Exeter Area High School when you were at PEA. Thank you Roxane, for your transparency, and for sharing your voice with us.īefore I ask my question I must say Hello to Roxane from Exeter, New Hampshire. Do you find writing and other artistic expression to be helpful in understanding and taking ownership of your story? If so, would you take a moment to share how? What advice would you give to young people who are enduring similar struggles with identity, fear, shame, and the physical out-workings of those struggles (weight gain, eating disorders, etc.)?Īlso, I could not help but think while reading Hunger that writing this book, though difficult, might have been somewhat of a cathartic experience for you. You have survived a great deal, including no small measure of assumptions, hostility, and derision by those you are close to, and by those who presume to know you but do not. You are not obliged to do so, which is perhaps why I am all the more grateful for your intentionality in equipping and empowering others. I greatly appreciate how you use your networking abilities, combined with what you yourself have learned, to connect impassioned readers with authors of diverse backgrounds and seasoned experiences. Have you experienced the same issues with your mother in this particular context? What is your guidance to improve a more constructive relationship with parents? In chapter 52, you mentioned that fat daughters and thin mothers have especially complicated relationships. How do you stay encouraged at such bad days? What is your view on staying motivated for a person who is a constant want of validations that accompany weight loss from others? In chapter 41, you said, there are good days when you know your body is not the real problem and bad days when you cannot separate yourself from your body. At times, my progress is usually hindered when I fall in this deep pit of self-loathing and when I don't want to continue even for myself. As a feminist, I have tried to change the way I look for myself, for my own confidence. Question 1: I'm a 22-year-old, overweight woman whose weight and self-esteem has both fluctuated over the past six years. Roxane, Thank you for sharing such a personal story with the readers, I appreciate your work immensely.
When you were working on this text, did you ever worry that your personal story about your trauma and relationship with food would be used to further this negative stereotype of fat people? In what ways did you feel that the narrative you were crafting about your life added nuance to or combated this stereotype? And finally, do you think that a writer of your celebrity and caliber publishing this memoir will give other fat people a space in the publishing industry to tell their story and add to the narrative of what it can mean to be fat in America? While your trauma was a significant contributing factor to your (and others') weight gain, many people are fat or overweight naturally or due to health or socio-economic conditions outside of their control such as certain thyroid conditions or living in a food desert. One of the predominant, mainstream narratives about fat people is that we choose to be gluttonous and lazy due to selfishness, negligence, or unruly emotions, and you address this societal/media portrayal in your book. As a "Lane Bryant Fat" girl, what are some ways that I can best be an ally to people who are socially and economically disadvantaged for being a size that American society does not typically accommodate?Ģ. Hi Emma, Roxane, and Our Shared Shelf Friends!įirstly, thank you Emma for this opportunity to engage further with these amazing authors, and thank you Roxane Gay for writing such a powerful, personal work.ġ.