Liberating Words: “The Hunter”

The poems in our ongoing “Liberating Words” series were written in an interdisciplinary course for high school juniors at The Winsor School, an all-girls school in Boston, Mass. The course, “The Personal Is Political: An Interdisciplinary Look at Feminism,” is co-taught by Libby Parsley, a History teacher, and Susanna Ryan, an English teacher. The second unit of the course focuses on the history and literature of second-wave feminism—the women’s liberation movement of the 1960’s and 70’s. Students read a compilation of poems by women writers from that period and then wrote their own poems; the assignment asked them to represent an issue or problem they see as central to 21st-century women’s experience through the very personal genre of poetry.


The Hunter
by Jordan Sclar

You see her
Smiling eyes, upturned lips
Emerging from the front door
Just as the sun touches down on the bottom of its blank canvas
A slight chill melts into the air

She steps off the porch
Eyes scanning the depths
And steps beyond the light of the little house

The shadows elongate
Sinking dark talons into the earth
Drunken shouts become battle cries
The beam of each passing headlight
Seems to penetrate her skin
Picket fences like pitchforks
Passing strangers become bloodhounds

You call out to her
Unmoved, nonchalant
The hourglass figure maintains its pace
Graceful saunter falters slightly
Eyes trained forward

She feels the heat of eyes on her back
Breath catches in her throat
But she holds herself tall

Your large strides reach the figure quickly
The itch of your breath on bare shoulders
Cold fingers reaching for naked skin
Frightened eyes meet yours
The shadow of long legs moves quickly

And quietly

The darkness
Like an envelope
Swallows her

Jordan Sclar is a junior at the Winsor School. She has a passion for singing, crew, and coffee.

 

About

Lia Kornmehl is a junior at the Winsor School who is passionate about jazz music, milk chocolate, and equal opportunities for women in the workplace.