Submitted by abriden on Monday, June 5, 2006 - 10:50pm

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ENGL 360K
Journal #13
Amanda Briden
6/5/06

Vincent (184-287)

Ms. Vincent –

I think in order to have had a more profound impact on me as a reader I would have liked to know whether or not, from the beginning of the project, you were going to tell everyone that you encountered you were a woman. It is my opinion that you should have decided to tell everyone or no one at all. Two reasons came to mind for why you did not tell the retreaters about yourself. The first you provided. You were scared of how they would react and thought that they could not emotionally handle the embarrassment they might feel after they had opened up to you. The second, one that I felt while reading, was that you established a closer connection to these men than other “subjects” you experienced as Ned. If I had been one of your “subjects,” one you told your secret to, and knew that you chose not to tell other “subjects” about your true identity, I would wonder why they were seemingly more privileged than I. I would think them more privileged because they would never know that they were used and deceived by a friend. They would not have to continue life in constant paranoia of whether or not the people they meet are really who they think they are or whether or not they are imposters. The bottom line from Amanda is that you crossed the line. You deceived and broke the trust of people you encountered.

Sincerely,
Amanda Briden

Does the notion of a men’s movement equate to men being accepted in society as displaying emotion? Just as the feminist movement involved woman disconnecting themselves from the “normalized” feminine.

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