Silent footsteps: renga poetry as a collaborative, creative research method reflecting on the immobilities of gender-based violence in the covid-19 pandemic
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Authors
Parks, Mel
Holt, Amanda
Lewis, Sian
Moriarty, Jessica
Murray, Lesley
Issue Date
2022-06-06
Type
Article
Language
en_US
Keywords
Poetry , Reflexivity , Research Poetry , Renga , Gender-Based Violence , Covid-19 Pandemic
Alternative Title
Abstract
In the Covid-19 global crisis, gender-based violence (GBV) has been reshaped and reconfigured, with increases in some
places and decreases in others. During our exploration of the changes in GBV through trans/feminist collaborative reflexive
storying, we noticed the fragmentary nature of our storied recollections, which both represented and heightened the
emotions in the work. With an intention of distilling the words even further, we challenged ourselves, as transdisciplinary
researchers, to create a collaborative renga poem, which we titled, “Silent Footsteps.” An ancient Japanese form, the renga
is a series of short, linked verses. This article demonstrates that renga offers an accessible, collaborative poetic research
method, not only for research teams but also for non-academic groups to connect with each other. It has the ability to
convey deep emotion, with an authentic personal voice, while being confined to structure and rules. Along with creating
two stanzas each turn in a round of emails, we all wrote a reflection to engage with the process that identifies this method
of writing research as holistic and creative, able to further connect the authors, reflect on the new knowledge and meaning
that this work has motivated. Based on these reflections, which are woven throughout and on the renga poem, which is
presented in full at the end, we argue that (a) renga is a timely poetic form, (b) it enhances transdisciplinary collaboration,
and (c) that it offers both resistance and catharsis.
Description
Citation
Parks, M., Holt, A., Lewis, S., Moriarty, J., & Murray, L. (2022). Silent Footsteps: Renga Poetry as a Collaborative, Creative Research Method Reflecting on the Immobilities of Gender-Based Violence in the Covid-19 Pandemic. Cultural Studies ↔ Critical Methodologies, 22(6), 654–662. https://doi.org/10.1177/15327086221098993
Publisher
Cultural Studies ↔ Critical Methodologies