Efflorescence: A Feminist Poetry Collection

By Zoe Spoor

Efflorescence is a collection of feminist poetry that explores toxic masculinity, intersectionality, and what it's like to grow up as a woman. At their core, these poems evoke the true nature of feminism-instead of female dominance, an equality regardless of sex, with recognition that gender roles uniformly hurt both men and women.

• Language: English
• Publisher: New Degree Press
• Release date: May 4, 2021
• ISBN: 9781637302439

Book preview

Efflorescence

A Feminist Poetry Collection

Zoe Spoor

new degree press

copyright © 2021 Zoe Spoor

All rights reserved.

Efflorescence

A Feminist Poetry Collection

ISBN

978-1-63676-800-7 Paperback

978-1-63730-242-2 Kindle Ebook

978-1-63730-243-9 Digital Ebook

To my mom and her beautiful soul.

Thank you for the endless support;

I love you to the moon and back.

Contents

Author’s Note

Introduction

Part I

Affliction

Part II

Justice

Part III

Dismay

Part IV

Repose

Part V

Passion

Part VI

Beauty

Acknowledgments

Author’s Note

Dear Readers,

As a young woman, I’ve experienced, seen, and heard many accounts of gender inequality and bias, whether that be directed towards myself or other women. I’ve also endured my own experiences of sexual assault, ones that left me feeling dirty and violated, as well as hearing many of my female friends struggling from this issue. It’s striking, when talking to women about such matters that almost every single one, no matter where identities intersect, has experienced gender bias or sexual harassment. With the birth of the fourth wave of feminism, social media has become a new outlet and brought light to copious new injustices, specifically the #MeToo movement. Many college-aged women have experienced sexual assault, and those closest to me, as survivors, made me explore more about what it means to be a feminist. I therefore decided to delve deeper into the subject, as I wanted to create poems that highlight those disparities and represent these realities in forms of new fashion, in a way that can be both beautiful and devastating at the same time.

In high school, I first began using art as an outlet to create works that explore the nature of feminism. In college, I started writing poetry on the side to fill in the gaps where art could not speak. My passion progressed as my world became bigger. I realized the harsh realities of what it means to be a woman, and going through college, I started to become immune to the way I was being treated. A sense of normality set in, serving to the solitude that this happens to everyone, and undermining the caustic consequences it can have. As many women do, I became content with the way we are sexualized, and the way gender roles have shaped the minds of boys and girls. But soon my eyes were opened through various accounts of gender role strains and stories shared by female peers. I wanted to find a way to speak to these injustices. Through poetry, I strive to tell the stories of every woman, and to show their power and progression through time. I believe poems can be expressed with intense emotionality, to convey not only the vulnerability of a woman