Claudia Rankine

While there are many fascinating aspects of Claudia Rankine’s book, the one that struck me the most throughout this class was the unique way in which the reader interacts with Citizen. Rankine redefines the concept of being able to put yourself in the shoes of the characters and live out the story yourself from the couch. However, in the scenarios created by Claudia, it is a different kind of drama the reader is immersed in: rather than a story of romantic tension or action-filled suspense, the audience views a strange and frightening world, full of people who hate and fight and insult each other for no legitimate reason: it is our world, with a different perspective than what is usually taken by those so blissfully unaware of what it is to be discriminated against. Not only is the novel intriguing and engaging because of content, it is also because of its utilization of second-person point of view, which allows the reader to further immerse themselves in the tellings of the situations, as it becomes possible for the audience to become the person being discriminated against, and to be a part of the situation, rather than a neutral bystander. Through second-person, the emotions felt while reading become more passionate, and thus the novel has more effect on the thoughts of the reader as they analyze daily life through a new lens.…

Ferguson, Missouri in mid-August. In opening the essay, he admits: “I don’t know what made me buy a plane ticket to St. Louis at 1:15 a.m. on Tuesday. Maybe it was remembering that feeling of helplessness and guilt after learning of the Trayvon Martin verdict while embarking on a carefree cross-country road trip.” Claudia Rankine’s new book, Citizen, effects a similar experience. Citizen requires the reader to enter that realm: the realm of being privileged in an otherwise deprived society; of…

“Citizen” by Claudia Rankine was a very raw and gritty read because of the skillful craftsmanship of diction she employed, which really heightens the expression of the experiences she witnessed as an African American. Many people like to avoid the subject of racism in America but not Rankine, she did not sugar coat anything in her writing, she gave it to you like it is. In addition, Rankine’s straightforward approach really shows the readers the reality of what it was like being black in…

In Citizen By Claudia Rankine, Rankine exposes the nature of oppression and racism that many individuals of color face on a daily basis. Rankine emphasises both “macro” and “micro-aggressions”, implying that racism can manifest in both direct and subtle ways. Throughout the book, Rankine analyses specific events poetically, using figurative and rich language to dwell deeper into the experience of what it is like to be racially oppressed in a predominately “white background”. Throughout the…

Within the first few pages of Citizen by Claudia Rankine the audience is introduced to the term, “John Henryism,” (11). It is a term used to describe those “exposed to stress stemming from racism. They achieve themselves to death trying to dodge the buildup of erasure… the physiological costs were high,” (11). The book then goes on to explore the psychological costs of this erasure, the inner monologue of grief, anger, and confusion that stems from exposure to discrimination. Rankine has turned…

Paper One- Claudia Rankine’s “Citizen” Connection to Black Lives Matter: The racial atmosphere of American society has always been overwhelmingly glaring since the foundation of the country through the establishment and institution of chattel slavery. This unique and particularly brutal form of slavery established the trend of discriminating against a group of people solely based on skin color, particularly targeting those of African descent, which has been ongoing in some form all throughout…

Claudia Rankine’s presentation regarding her book, Citizen: An American Lyric, left me full of mixed feelings. As everyone knows, Rankine wrote this book to preach the importance of civil equality, love for one another, and to promote the better treatment of colored people in America. Rankine's poems provided great insight to the social injustice that occurs in this country. Her poems provided a strong message and after reading her book, I was left feeling upset at our country in the way many…

Claudia Rankine’s book Citizen: An American Lyric redefines our understanding of the presence of racism in everyday life by writing about it in several personal stories, and poetical lines. Prevalent throughout the novel is the theme of “white and black” that represents not only a difference in skin color, but also the visibility of those two colors. One of her most compelling points is about a consequence of the ongoing fight against racism: loss of individual identity. The presence of “white…

through small day-to-day racist encounters or through larger messages displayed publically within media sources, easily available to everyone. In her persuasive, mind opening novel, Citizen: An American Lyric, Claudia Rankine unpacks the racism that she witnesses both on a private and public level through moving poetic style words and images. The strong experiences shared within her words, enables people who may have never personally experienced racism, feel what it might be like to be on the…

Micro aggressions are in abundant cyst that continues to grow on the navel of society. Whether they be painful or none existent they still exist. Claudia Rankine author of, Citizen, was someone aided in pointing out these atrocities. For people of color (in this case black people) it is a shard of glass that feels the need to dig its way into their shoulders a little deeper with each passing day. This is because racism is the most practiced sport still in existence. In the book, Rankine…