Biracial and silenced: The Cultural Influences of Natasha Trethewey’s Childhood within her Poetry
Natasha Trethewey, undoubtedly one of the most well-known southern modern contemporary poets often expresses her feelings of poetry, stating, “I think there is a poem out there for everyone, to be an entrance into the poetry and a relationship with it” (LeGro). Trethewey began writing as a child, and uses poetry to convey an untold story from her culture.
Trethewey was born on April 26, 1966 in Gulfport, Mississippi. Her parents, Gwendolyn Ann Turnbough and Eric Trethewey, were both prestigious workers in the community as a biracial couple. Trethewey’s childhood during the twentieth century was unlike any childhood during the twenty-first century. Growing up as a biracial child during the Civil Rights Movement drove Trethewey to silence her judgements towards society’s interpretations of race. These unmentioned racist views of society and her own culture soon embedded themselves within her poetry. Trethewey’s use of personal history, factual history, and the familial emotional aspects of the Civil Rights Movement era woven throughout her poetry enhances her career and expresses the unmentionable truth about history; it is often forgotten or unknown.
Trethewey’s childhood during the Civil Rights Movement was unique, and influenced her literary style. She grew up in Gulfport, Mississippi with both of her parents (Wilson). Within a poem of Trethewey’s, “Miscegenation,” she