The Politics of Art & Authenticity

I wasn’t able to go to the Katherine Vaz reading. I really can’t remember why I didn’t go… oh yes, I had to work. I read Lisbon Story and I was able to find a recording of Vaz reading parts of another story. I feel that I went in with a bit of a prejudice towards her voice. I mean I hadn’t listened to this woman speak ever, and I was thinking of her as a chronic smoker. Ha.

Lisbon Story is a good piece. It is very detailed and the style makes it flow. The descriptions of the surroundings are quite vivid. When Cat first gets to the flat and upon seing Mateus, she describes him. “Ishrieked, one of thosegirlish but full, rending affairs.Inside the V where he clutched the bed sheet, his chest revealed enough of his ribs to suggest the inner planks of a one-man fishing boat. His eyes were clouded but bright, beaming a child’s buoyancy toward sickness”(Vaz 8).  The imagery that Vaz uses is extraordinary. As the reader, it transports me to the place she is describing.

As a child, my parents didn’t really read to me. I think that in a way, all of my successes were due to the fact that since I was lonely child, I was able to find comfort in reading and transporting myself to another world.  Books are not meant to be read aloud. It just makes the reader lose that connection with the text.

I first listened to Vaz read s short story, I can’t recall exactly which one it was. But she killed it. Vaz is a great writer. But her speaking skills are far below par.  She has this monotone voice that makes everything boring. After listening to her speak for what seemed like an eternity[in reality it was only like 5 minutes] I started reading Lisbon Story. And as I was reading instead of following the vivid descriptions she had, I found myself thinking about this lady I met a couple weeks ago. she just wouldn’t put the cigarrete down. It was cigarette after cigarette. I thought Cat must look like that even though Vaz clearly describes her as a beautiful woman.