{"id":3388,"date":"2021-03-31T23:03:26","date_gmt":"2021-03-31T23:03:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/160-the-words\/?page_id=3388"},"modified":"2024-07-30T21:46:11","modified_gmt":"2024-07-30T21:46:11","slug":"the-words-april-2021-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/the-words-april-2021-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The Words: April 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1250\" height=\"417\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2018\/11\/The-Words-new-banner-2.jpg\" alt=\"The Words\" class=\"wp-image-1435\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2018\/11\/The-Words-new-banner-2.jpg 1250w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2018\/11\/The-Words-new-banner-2-300x100.jpg 300w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2018\/11\/The-Words-new-banner-2-768x256.jpg 768w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2018\/11\/The-Words-new-banner-2-1024x342.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1250px) 100vw, 1250px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">MacSlams Adapts to the Era of Zoom<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Alice Asch &#8217;22<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"219\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/MacSlams-300x219.jpg\" alt=\"MacSlams\" class=\"wp-image-3405\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/MacSlams-300x219.jpg 300w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/MacSlams-768x560.jpg 768w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/MacSlams.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">MacSlams, Macalester\u2019s slam poetry organization, has powered through this wild year, and shifted our community online. Nothing can compare to the singular, delightful chaos of an in-person Mac poetry slam\u2014the Loch\u2019s makeshift stage bathed in purple and blue spotlight, brave souls climbing the stairs to the microphone and spilling their hearts out for strangers, and all the audience members, giving up their weekend evening to snap along, stomp their feet, heckle, and applaud in support of their peers\u2014but my co-chair Anna \u0160verclov\u00e1 \u201823 and I have tried our best to create a modified version of this experience on Zoom. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/macslams-adapts-to-the-era-of-zoom\/\">Read more about MacSlams here&#8230;<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Afrofuturism, The Next Big Thing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Malcolm Cooke &#8217;21<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-medium wp-image-3379\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/0501_janelle-monae-dirty-computer-1000x1000-1-300x300.jpeg\" alt=\"The Album Cover of Janelle Mon\u00e1e's &quot;Dirty Computer&quot;\" class=\"wp-image-3379\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/0501_janelle-monae-dirty-computer-1000x1000-1-300x300.jpeg 300w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/0501_janelle-monae-dirty-computer-1000x1000-1-150x150.jpeg 150w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/0501_janelle-monae-dirty-computer-1000x1000-1-768x768.jpeg 768w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/0501_janelle-monae-dirty-computer-1000x1000-1.jpeg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Album Cover of Janelle Mon\u00e1e&#8217;s &#8220;Dirty Computer&#8221;<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cI have a colleague who also always asks me, Daylanne what&#8217;s the next big thing? What&#8217;s the next big thing? I said it&#8217;s Afrofuturism, I tell you, it&#8217;s the next big thing,\u201d Daylanne English said. She was describing the motivation behind the sci-fi i<\/span>nfused blackness explored in the new course, \u201cTopics in African American Literature: Afrofuturism.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cThat\u2019s another reason for the course\u2014it is by far the most exciting development in my lifetime, in this field.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Of course, Afrofuturism isn\u2019t entirely new, both as a course at Macalester but also in a much broader sense. The course is new as this is the first time it is being taught generally, instead of as a capstone.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">But the imagined futures, pasts, and presents of Afrofuturism itself have a much longer history. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/afrofuturism\/\">Read more about the course here&#8230;<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">New English Course Takes Students Down the Rabbit Hole<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dalton Greene &#8217;22<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"204\" height=\"247\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/11\/Andrea-Kaston-Tange.jpeg\" alt=\"Andrea Kaston Tange\" class=\"wp-image-3861\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Students looking over the Module 3 schedule may have noticed a new topics course among the ranks of English department offerings: Professor Andrea Kaston Tange\u2019s \u201cDown the Rabbit Hole.\u201d The course, which emphasized dynamic approaches to the process of research and writing, asked students to take up unique projects and present them in multiple ways as the module progressed, with an eye toward adapting their research for a variety of audiences. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/?page_id=3366&amp;preview=true\">Read more about how these projects turned out here&#8230;<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Three Worlds of&nbsp;<em>I&#8217;m Going to Go Back There Someday<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Kira Schukar &#8217;22<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Asher de Forest\u2019s \u201821 original play and Theater &amp; Dance honors project, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">I\u2019m Going to Go Back There Someday<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">, began as a short story in his freshman year of college. Now, three years later, the playwright and director is weeks away from the show\u2019s opening night, scheduled for April 29th at 6 p.m. Touching on themes of grief, relationships, and folklore, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">I\u2019m Going to Go Back There Someday<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> takes place in the belly of two beasts: a Subaru and a whale. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/the-words-march-2021\/the-three-worlds-of-im-going-to-go-back-there-someday\/\">Read more about Asher&#8217;s work here&#8230;<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"512\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/Im-Going-to-Go-Back-There-Someday-Image-1024x512.jpg\" alt=\"The poster for &quot;I'm Going to Go Back There Someday&quot;: a car inside of a whale\" class=\"wp-image-3370\" style=\"width:447px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/Im-Going-to-Go-Back-There-Someday-Image-1024x512.jpg 1024w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/Im-Going-to-Go-Back-There-Someday-Image-300x150.jpg 300w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/Im-Going-to-Go-Back-There-Someday-Image-768x384.jpg 768w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/Im-Going-to-Go-Back-There-Someday-Image-1536x768.jpg 1536w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/03\/Im-Going-to-Go-Back-There-Someday-Image.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\" \/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Wordplay with Gianella Rojas<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Alice Asch &#8217;22<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignleft\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/04\/image0-225x300.jpeg\" alt=\"Gianella Rojas\" class=\"wp-image-3431\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/04\/image0-225x300.jpeg 225w,  https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/603\/2021\/04\/image0.jpeg 480w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">This month at <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Words<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">, we\u2019re celebrating the work of Gianella Rojas \u201821! Gianella hails from Miami, Florida, and has majors in English and Educational Studies. Her passion for creative writing began in elementary school\u2014she penned stories in her composition books, and remembers decorating their covers with tape and construction paper. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Gianella mostly writes poetry and fictional stories (often based on her own life), but she said her interests tend to fluctuate as she encounters new experiences. She\u2019s dabbled in the genres of YA coming-of-age, mythopoeia, speculative fiction, and fantasy. Currently, she\u2019s exploring magical realism.&nbsp;<span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wordplay-with-gianella-rojas\/\">Read more about Gianella here&#8230;<\/a><\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>MacSlams Adapts to the Era of Zoom Alice Asch &#8217;22 MacSlams, Macalester\u2019s slam poetry organization, has powered through this wild year, and shifted our community online. Nothing can compare to the singular, delightful chaos of an in-person Mac poetry slam\u2014the Loch\u2019s makeshift stage bathed in purple and blue spotlight, brave souls climbing the stairs to [&hellip;]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":913,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3388","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3388","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/913"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3388"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3388\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7147,"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3388\/revisions\/7147"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.macalester.edu\/the-words\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3388"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}