thesis

Thanks for being so understanding, folks. Much appreciated.

My advisor says that she is delighted with my thesis, and that means a lot to me, since she knows of what she speaks.

Have I ever said what it is that I'm writing, exactly? I'm supposed to be writing a social sciences thesis, since I'm working on a master's degree in Education. So it should be boring, since most of that kind of writing is dull, in my opinion.

I decided I didn't want to do that. So I'm writing a memoir about my life in books. It's just as research-based as any other kind of thesis, but I'm involving a more interesting kind of arts-based narrative, using poetry, letters, lists, a medieval-style gloss, and anything else that suits the content. I guess it's more of a feminist style of writing.

My reproductive life, or lack thereof, also crops up from time to time, since it links to the reproductive practice of teaching children in schools, and it kinda stands in contrast to my productive life in writing. I don't really want to write about infertility, but I did two kick-ass graduate papers on the topic, and it's unavoidable, since I can't even escape from such words as 'conceived' when I write. Do you know what I mean? (See Bitter Milk by Madeleine Grumet for a profound and beautifully written book about teaching/mothering, production/reproduction, etc. - should be mandatory reading for women teachers).

It's challenging to blend academic writing with my creative work - it makes the process really convoluted and crazy - but I think I'm good at it, and I've received great training from the two universities I've attended for this degree. So somehow it's all coming together. I'm presenting part of it at an American conference in a few weeks, and I'm looking forward to it.