Natalia Cruz Victorio

Writing 2 - Allison Bocchino

March 19th, 2020
Let’s bring an end to this
When you ignore it, when you don’t acknowledge it,
discrimination and inequality against women will not end.
Their unfair treatment is common in both public and private
spheres, our hearts cannot mend.
Stories, stereotypes and labels are created to force women into
areas of life to suit the life and requests of others.
The idea that a woman’s life is at home, to only bear children and
much more has been a notion present since the days of our
mother’s and their mother’s.
The idea that women act like children or are too emotional,
is used for other’s advantage and to be negatively promotional.

How many women CEOs can you think of immediately?

Women’s history is not all that great.
Previously not being able to attend college, vote and much more.
Why don’t we let women decide their own fate?
There is misogyny, femicide, horizontal and vertical
discrimination.
Why do we constantly bring down the only group of people
capable of bringing life into this earth?

Sociology : the studying of individuals, society and people’s lives.

How can we study society without including the lives of everybody
in our nation?
Do not only study men, study women and everybody within.
Simultaneously, allow everybody to make their own choices about
their body and skin.
Women’s bodies are not up for the debate.
Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness ; common notions that
only apply to some.
Women’s quality of life, their futures or even their income
is not fairly valued, what has this world become?
Why don’t we let women be free?
When will the oppression, femicide, hate and violence end?
Acknowledge it, don’t ignore it, let’s bring an end to this.
 Thousands of ways to communicate

There are numerous human creations that are prominent in today’s world. Language, for

example, is a man made creation that millions of people use today to communicate. Whether it

be written or spoken languages or words, humans are also capable of communicating through

many languages that exist within different communities through the act of translating.

Translating allows groups of people to understand numerous messages, develop new ways of

thinking and more. There is also a purpose or motive to translate a piece of work into a specific

way. Many authors use techniques, varying styles of writing, different genres, to convey a

contrasting meaning into their work. This is done to capture the audience’s attention and to give

birth to a new message. Genre translation allows for the academic article, “Discrimination of

women”1, written by Natalija Zunic, to be translated into a poem. The reasons for a poem, its

purpose, its message and details will be further explained.

Starting off by explaining the conventions of the academic journal, it is essential to

understand its underlying message and to understand the article itself. There are numerous

disciplines that study prejudice and stereotypes. In this case, the disciplines of Feminism, History

and Law, explain their stance on the prejudices against women through the article. The author's

underlying message can be understood in the concluding paragraph where the idea that

everybody should question the systems of power present in today’s society because they are the

ones that allow for constant oppression and for no advancement on human rights, is present. This

is stated as, “It is certain that the curriculum of human rights has to move outside its

male-defined norms, in order to make a global response to discrimination against women. This

1
(​Zunic 2014)
implies the questioning of patriarchal prejudices and the acknowledgement of the rights of

women as human rights..”2. The discourse community that is created, focuses on a community

centered around bringing awareness to the women’s movement, the need to change the future of

women and their available pathways in life. Additionally, the author talks about the history of

women and the encounters with inequality and prejudice. The creation for a new poem is enabled

by including the author’s emotions, by using historical and today’s world evidence and with the

author’s use of professionalism, even though this might be a sensitive/enraging topic. This is

because translating the academic article into a poem enables the prominent message to be

communicated through a different way of writing and allows for emotions to be used in an

effective way. Poems allow for a new message, a new picture and new purpose to be created.

Moving onto the conventions of the poem that was created, it is important to understand

the numerous ways a poem can be written. In this particular case, this poem was free-styled. The

poem consists of questions that are asked allowing the audience to think for themselves, there is

repetition of words and phrases, rhyming and there is also no particular rhythm or flow in this

poem. Looking at the examples that were used as background evidence, taking the poems called

“Women's rights”3 , “Women suffragette”4 and “If women get the right to vote”5, it can be seen

that within these poems there are differing conventions and messages, yet there are also some

comparisons. One of the main messages present in all of the poems is the desire to reach gender

equality, to be recognized in society and to be treated fairly. Further looking into each poem they

all branch into minor topics relating to equality in the home, in the family, in the government, in

2
( ​Zunic 2014, 55-56)
3
​(Walker 1876)
4
​( Miller 2015)
5
(​Cross Curricular Poem)
society and much more. One of the quotes that I believe is essential for its message is : “Are

women people? … of course my son just as much as men are”6. Both the translation of the

academic article and the poem emphasize bringing recognition to a serious issue in the past and

present. Each of the authors in the poems use varying conventions that all have their own

purpose such as asking questions to challenge one’s thinking and to show the authors emotions,

displaying the urgency of the topic/sentiment by using exclamation points. The authors also

emphasize a feeling or thought by repeating certain keywords or phrases. For example,

throughout the poems words like “ rights”7, “ vote”8, “ equality”9, are repeated. Concurrently,

rhyming can allow for specific word choice that can continue an idea or be a reinforcement.

Similarly, within the poem titled “Let’s bring an end to this”, the author challenges the readers'

thinking and conveys the feelings of the original author of the academic article.

To gather main thoughts or important specific concepts from the academic article was

difficult as the whole article was composed of numerous details and information that relate to its

history. It was essential to use prior knowledge about feminism and its concepts to add more

knowledge to the poem, such as ideas and concepts about femicide which describes hate crimes,

deaths and torture of women. At the same time, the poem was free styled in an attempt to

introduce the ideas that I felt were important in chronological order that could be followed with

questions or repeated words. In this case, for poems there is not necessarily a strict guideline that

should be followed yet I attempted to establish a pattern and some rhyming. Matter of fact, to

elaborate on free styled poems and how I applied some concepts to my translation, free styled

6
(​Miller 2015)
7
​(Walker 1876)
8
​(Cross Curricular Poem)
9
​(Miller 2015)
poems still demonstrate an artistic expression even though rhythm, regular meter or rhyme

schemes have no limits. Famous or well-established poems do not necessarily include questions

or question marks but I added those for my own emphasis and style. It almost relates to speech

that can be freestyled. Changing the rhyme or meter can turn poems into other forms of genre,

which can cause some concerns with bending the rules of what a traditional poem would consist

of. For example, a haiku emphasizes structure, syllables, short length, and in not doing so a haiku

would not be created. Another rule that cannot be broken are the author's intentions to be clear

and understandable while still being able to deliver a message in the poem. It is important to

have the audience well engaged and not have them become lost throughout. Poetry is meant to

communicate a message and some rules that can be broken are grammar. When it comes to

words a lot can be bent or broken and can be transformed into something new or rarely seen.

Sometimes it's better to not stick to the ordinary and break some rules.

While writing the piece “Let’s end this'', there were some concerns regarding content as

any piece of work can be subject to error and judgement. This was, that the main idea or that

some points would not be able to be understood by fresh eyes that probably don’t understand

feminism or feminist concepts. There is also a space limit therefore some ideas or in-depth

analysis/explanation is not possible in this instance. As a result of limited space and analysis, this

allows for a possibility for the audience to become lost or not thoroughly understand a statement.

There are also some skills that are needed to accomplish writing a well, good-flowing and

understandable piece. Referencing an academic article written by Kerry Dirk titled “Navigating

genres”10, Dirk explains how it is important to know the ways that a poem, a form of a genre, can

10
​(Dirk 2010)
catch or lose the attention of the audience in a fast, small time frame. This is stated as, “In other

words, knowing what a genre is used for can help people to accomplish goals, whether that goal

be getting a job by knowing how to write a stellar resume, winning a person’s heart by writing a

romantic love letter, or getting into college by writing an effective personal statement”11.

Another academic article written by Ann M. Johns titled “Discourse communities and

communities of practice” states, “ texts should display a vision of reality shared by a particular

discourse community to which the text is addressed…”12. Johns explains the characteristics of

establishing and understanding a discourse community. When writing a poem that pertains to a

particular genre and discourse community, it was important to use a feminist lense and

incorporate feminist ideology. This is because doing so will allow for the creation or relationship

between the academic discourse communities that can be seen in the teachings of feminism,

history and law and the studies of people, society and individuals as is done in sociology. In the

end, aiming for a specific goal can be tedious but there are many elements that should be

considered in order to achieve a well written piece.

The poem that was created reflects the topic and details explained in the original

academic article centered around the discrimination and inequalities that women have faced all

throughout history and in the present. I felt that this was the best way to translate an academic

article that I feel has affected my life and the life of other women around me. The poem is

centered around emotions and so is the academic article. Both the academic article and the poem

are a reflection of each other and also a reflection of other poems that speak about the injustices

done towards women. It was essential to include writing techniques, genre conventions,

11
(​Dirk 2010, 253)
12
(​Johns 1997, 506)
academic thinking and much more into the creation of this genre translation. Poems are a form of

expressing one's feelings, to describe something and the list continues. Women’s suffrage,

inequality and discrimination and its effects can be felt worldwide by many.
 Bibliography

1. Cross Curricular Poem. “ If women get the right to vote.” Accessed March 04, 2020.
Teachers pay teachers. ​https://www.teacherspayteachers.com
/Product/Cross-Curricular-Poem-If-Women-Get-the-Right-to-Vote-197292.
2. Dirk, Kerry. 2010. “ Navigating Genres”.​ Writing spaces : readings on writing. Volume
1.
https://gauchospace.ucsb.edu/courses/pluginfile.php/5892556/mod_resource/content/0/Di
rk%2C%20Navigating%20Genres.pdf​.
3. Johns, Ann M. “ Discourse communities and communities of practice : Membership,
Conflict and Diversity”. ​Cambridge UP. ​(1997). ​ 498-519. ​Cambridge : Cambridge UP.
4. Miller Duer, Anne. 2015. “ Are Women People?”. Accessed March 04, 2020. Pinterest.
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/249386898086975339/​.
5. Walker, Luisa Annie. 1876. “Women’s rights”. Accessed March 04, 2020. Poem
Hunter.com. ​https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/women-s-rights/#content​.
6. Žunić Natalija. "Discrimination against Women and the Human Rights of Women."
Proceedings of the Faculty of Law in Niš. ​2014, no. 67 (2014): 45-58.