Whatever Keeps Me Flesh: On the Grotesque in Asian Women’s Poetry

Abstract

This essay examines how contemporary Asian and Asian American women poets employ the grotesque in their poetry as a way to explore and critique white supremacy, imperialism, and patriarchy. After situating their work within the personal context of my own creative writing and the larger context of the literary grotesque as theorized by Mikhail Bakhtin and Mary Russo, I will do a close reading of the poems “Manhole Humanity” by Korean poet Kim Hyesoon and “Chatroulette” by Korean American poet Franny Choi, exploring how these poems make use of the grotesque alongside other form, craft, and thematic elements.