Great piece by Junot Diaz in The New Yorker about his experiences with MFA programs.
I remember one young MFA’r describing how a fellow writer (white) went through his story and erased all the ‘big’ words because, said the peer, that’s not the way ‘Spanish’ people talk. This white peer, of course, had never lived in Latin America or Spain or in any US Latino community—he just knew. The workshop professor never corrected or even questioned said peer either. Just let the idiocy ride.
serhasacomplaint
MFA vs. POC…
Great piece by Junot Diaz in The New Yorker about his experiences with MFA programs.
I remember one young MFA’r describing how a fellow writer (white) went through his story and erased all the ‘big’ words because, said the peer, that’s not the way ‘Spanish’ people talk. This white peer, of course, had never lived in Latin America or Spain or in any US Latino community—he just knew. The workshop professor never corrected or even questioned said peer either. Just let the idiocy ride.
Posted by Stephen Robinson on May 1, 2014 in Social Commentary
Tags: Junot Diaz, MFA, The New Yorker