News at Eleven: Despite the influence of [James] Merrill's

apartment, [Cate] Marvin expects to maintain her independence as she works on longer poems during her stay. One of the themes of her poetry--and her academic work--is the need for women writers to break free from male-dominated literary tradition. In "Lines for a Mentor," part of her second book of poetry, "Fragment of the Head of a Queen," a student fights to distance herself from her male teacher:

. . . He said, Never strike a typewriter,
for they are delicate instruments. I am crouched
beneath the threat of toppling bookshelves.
Of all the change that rattles in my head, the pennies
Are his: not worth much, yet not entirely worthless.

from Hartford Courant: At Home In A Legend's Home: James Merrill's 107 Water St.
also Hartford Courant: Cate Marvin, Writer-In-Residence

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