I Was My Own Route Summary class 12 by Julia de Burgos || Class 12 || English

 

 I Was My Own Route  

Born in Carolina, Puerto Rico, Julia de Burgos (1914-1953) moved to New York, where she worked as a journalist, and then Cuba, where she pursued further studies at the University of Havana. Returning to New York after two years in Cuba, de Burgos, a freedom fighter, served as the art and culture editor for the progressive newspaper Pueblos Hispanos. Predating the Nuyorican poetry movement, de Burgos’ poems deal with themes of women’s liberation and social justice. A precursor to the contemporary Latina/o writers, de Burgos, in her poem “I was my Own Route,” depicts how the women are burdened with the patriarchal ideologies from the past. Therefore, de Burgos urges the women to detach themselves from the past so as to locate their identity within.

Glossary

promissory : containing or conveying a promise

whiplash : a blow with a whip

epochs : periods of time in history or a person’s life, especially the ones marked by

important events of special characteristics

regal : of, like or fit for a king or queen; royal

warped : twisted out of normal or natural shape; strange and unpleasant

homage : things said or done to show great respect

Short Summary

The poem "I was My Own Route" is a poem about sexual discrimination composed by Puerto Rican poet Julia de Burgos. The poem introduced the gender discrimination agenda in response to the social inequalities that existed in modern times.

The poem portrays the plight of women in modern times as a result of social inequality between men and women. It conveyed the idea of ​​how women struggled with the ideas of ancient ancestors. Here in this poem, we find the poet Julia de Burgos urging all women to separate themselves from the past and the ideas of the patriarchs in order to discover who they are.

Here, the main speaker of the poem is a woman who seems saddened by the social inequality of the so-called patriarchal ideology. There are a total of six different verses in this poem in which we find the speaker's firm decision to move forward in search of his identity against male domination.

In the first stanza, we find the previous speakers who are under men and her firm decision to move forward in his new ways of leaving male domination.

Next, in the second section, she discusses her obstacles in her new ways as patriarchal norms and principles. She feels broken because of what she calls the flickering of the wings of the ancient guard, the traditional people.

In the third section, she discusses her new methods that are quite different from the patriarchal view. In her new way, she finds it easy to move on with great joy and a feeling of deep freedom. She believes that a sense of intimate freedom goes with her to create a balance between his life and the reality of the path she has chosen.

In the fourth stage, the speaker feels like a flower that can grow on any soil of the earth. She feels this now in her new ways. Her happiness is exaggerated because she blossoms like a flower anywhere except men's history, future and boundaries.

In the fifth paragraph, the speaker sees all that is within her as living within his reach after choosing his new ways.

In the sixth paragraph, she compares her past with her present. She seems strong right now and doesn't want to follow men's opinions in any way. Her protest against the old guard brought her the kind of great respect.

Explanation Of Poem In Stanza Wise

 First stanza

" I wanted to be like men wanted me to be:

an attempt at life;

a game of hide and seek with my being.

But I was made of nows,

and my feet level on the promissory earth

would not accept walking backwards

and went forward, forward,

mocking the ashes to reach the kiss

of new paths. "

 The speaker just tried to be like the women that men had wanted. Male denied women to have freedom and she was just trying to avoid male domination. If she had to become like men wanted then she had to hide her talent, abilities just to fit in society so she didn't like to play that hide and seek game. She was determined to liberate woman reace from the grip of male chauvinism despite several difficulties.She stood strongly on the promissory earth never walking backward. She challenged the excited norma and values, rules and regulations made by males to made the new path for women which is full of freedom for women.

  

Second Stanza

"At each advancing step on my route forward

my back was ripped by the desperate flapping wings

of the old guard. "

In the second stanza, she discusses her obstacles in her new ways as patriarchal norms and principles. The speaker encounters several male-made social conventions as hurdles in her freshly forwarded path but she overcomes all limits and old determined feet. Many people who are blindily believed in old traditions had tried to stop her but she strongly fight against them and move forward. 

Third Stanza

"But the branch was unpinned forever,

and at each new whiplash my look

separated more and more and more from the distant

familiar horizons;

and my face took the expansion that came from within,

the defined expression that hinted at a feeling

of intimate liberation;

a feeling that surged

from the balance between my life

and the truth of the kiss of the new paths."

In the third stanza , she tells us about a branch of way detaching from th main road. Her main road means the the road that were made by male. The speaker had made a new road for women which is full of freedom. happiness and joy. In that road all women can show their abilities, talents without any fear. They will totally independent in that road. As she approached to her destination that is intemate liberation her face glimpsed of happiness.

 Fourth stage

"Already my course now set in the present,

I felt myself a blossom of all the soils of the earth,

of the soils without history,

of the soils without a future,

of the soil always soil without edges

of all the men and all the epochs."

In the fourth stanza, the speaker compares herself to a blossom that flourishes in difficult place. She feels like a flower that can grow on any soil of the earth. She express her happiness being able to overcome all the obstacles. This suggests that she has made her own way which later becomes a highway to all female races. The route that speaker had made is unaffected of the patriarchal ideology totally different from submissive female identity. Her path leads all the eomen to the intimate liberation.

Fifth Stanza

"And I was all in me as was life in me .. . ."

In the fifth stanza, she admires her strength to digout such a difficult path which let entire women walk safely to their liberation. 

Sixth Stanza

"I wanted to be like men wanted me to be:

an attempt at life;

a game of hide and seek with my being.

But I was made of nows;

when the heralds announced me

at the regal parade of the old guard,

the desire to follow men warped in me,

and the homage was left waiting for me.. . . . . . . . . ."

In the sixth stanza, she compares her past with his present. She feels happy that she had made new route for women in such time where men were avoiding women. She seems strong right now and doesn't want to follow men's opinions in any way. The miserable and painful conditions of women because of hard patriarchal ideologies urged her to combact against them. Her protest against the old guard brought her the kind of great respect.

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