The True Meaning Of Womanism In Alice Walker's 'Coming Apart'

790 Words2 Pages

Kelly Mahowski
AML 3604
Dr. Plant
14 September 2014

The True Meaning of “Womanism”

In 1979 Alice Walker penned the short story “Coming Apart” where she first introduces the term womanist. She later resurrects it in the book In Search of Our Mothers Garden. It can be defined as:
“Opp. of "girlish," i.e., frivolous, irresponsible, not serious.) A black feminist or feminist of color. From the black folk expression of mothers to female children, "You acting womanish," i.e., like a woman. Usually referring to outrageous, audacious, courageous or willful behavior. Wanting to know more and in greater depth than is considered "good" for one. Interested in grown-up doings. Acting grown up. Being grown up. Interchangeable with another …show more content…

Because of these qualities she fits into two groups that have had heavy discrimination against them. She can sympathize with both civil rights movements and feminist movements. However, black feminism, or “womanism” as Alice Walker coins it, is extremely different than normal white feminism. In In Search of Our Mothers Garden Walker shows how women of color were rarely represented in early feminist writings- especially through her definition of womanism. The two “southern” phrases (“you acting womanish” and “you trying to be grown”) seem to have several important meanings. Womanism is from from the southern black word “womanish”, which is something that usually mothers in the black south would use when their daughters were acting too mature. Since Walker takes word from …show more content…

In this short poem, the narrative follows and African American woman unsuccessfully attempting to get an abortion, then subsequently committing suicide. This poem is a great demonstration of how black women have both their race and their gender working against them in life. In the poem the condescending doctor thinks that she should “want it/you know…/talk it over with/your folks” (Walker, Ballad of The Brown Girl) even though she clearly has enough money to pay for the procedure. After getting denied, she hangs herself in her dorm room leaving a note that asks “Question-/did ever brown/daughter to black/father a white/baby/take-?” (Walker, Ballad of The Brown Girl) Her note confesses that death would be a more attractive alternative to living in a society as the unwed mother of a mixed race baby. The girl in this poem is a black woman who is experiencing two different prejudices; race and gender. Walker has already started to explain to audiences that there are many different trials that black women have to face versus white

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