When I think of women authors who
have radically documented their experiences in all of their fullness and
vulnerability, I think most of author and lay analyst Anaïs Nin. Nin preceding the Women’s Movement, over and over
describes in her writings the need for culture and artistic expression to
return back to the subjective, and for women, especially, to write and document
our lives. Nin, similar to other authors writing on femininity and women’s
experience, believes that women’s accounts have historically been made absent
from much scholarship. She beautifully asserts, “we are obliged to accept what
our culture has so long denied, the need of an individual introspective
examination. This alone will bring out the women we are, our reflexes, likes,
dislikes, and we will go forth without guilt or hesitations, towards the
fulfillment of them” (Nin, 1976). Nin (1976) believed strongly in “the woman of
the future” who would create, and share her experience, without shame,
hesitation, or reservation.
What can we, as women, learn from
Nin? To write ourselves openly, deeply, and without censorship. It is through
this kind of soulful writing that we come to know ourselves more, and are able
to create a historical document that spans and honors our lived-experience.
This document can be returned to over and over to remind us as to how far we
have come, how we have developed our wounds into wisdom, and to recognize the continuously
changing nature of our experience--In other words, to lift us out of a kind of
melancholic sense of stuck-ness.
For many women, we have been taught
by larger social and political forces, our developmental histories, and
interpersonal experiences to privilege restraint, docility, caution, and, at
times, even silence. Women such as Nin broke through these socio-cultural norms
in order to express the richness of her life, in all of her ecstasies and pain.
Her bravery and courage was a gift, an offering of The Self to those who would
read her work generations later.
Similar to this kind of confessional
writing, psychotherapy encourages us to explore and better understand our
experience. When life begins to feel meaningless, or when we are overcome by
suffering, this is when it is especially important to write. Through the
darkness, perhaps we can create something new, and maybe even begin the way
towards healing and meaning-making. During some of my own experiences of
difficulty, I have had the privilege of having at least one of Nin’s diaries by
my side. In reading her most intimate and precious thoughts, I received a
wonderful gift--the gift of company, understanding, and, most of all,
shared-experience.
Works Cited
Nin, A. (1976). In favor of the sensitive man, and
other essays (1st ed.). New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
Written by: Rebecca Marcelina Gimeno, M.A.
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