The Bodies We Inhabit: Reclaiming Power in the Poetry of Melissa Lozada-Oliva and Olivia Gatwood

Abstract

In this study I shall analyse peluda (2017) by Melissa Lozada-Oliva, and New American Best Friend (2017) and Life of the Party (2019) by Olivia Gatwood, focusing on how feminism and confessional poetry are used as means of empowerment and awareness for non-conforming identities. I shall analyse the most recurrent motifs and themes used by both poets in conjunction with feminist theory, highlighting the relationship between female identity and text. Furthermore, I shall describe how Melissa Lozada-Oliva and Olivia Gatwood reclaim their identity, language and discourse throughout the aforementioned books. Moreover, I shall also clarify why confessional poetry and the use of ‘I’ is a political act/choice for feminist poets. Without further ado, in this study I aim to showcase how the political and social issues influence the literary world, contributing to a more inclusive idea of a literary canon.