Responding to Audre Lorde - Casey

Within writing, especially academic writing, the audience of a piece proves to be a central concern of the writer. The writer must keep in mind whom they strive to write for and what group of the population they hope to convey their message to. One way of effectively communicating to one’s audience is through vocabulary choice. Words chosen must be comprehensible by the reader and target their demographic. If one utilizes vocabulary that does not meet these requirements, they fail to connect with their readers. Audre Lorde demonstrates how well chosen vocabulary can build an audience as seen through her essay “Poetry is Not a Luxury”.

First off, Lorde’s use of vocabulary clearly singles out women as her audience. Referring to “us women” in the paper, Lorde defines her audience. Once her audience has been defined, Lorde continues to use applicable vocabulary, which makes the essay more effective in conveying its message to its audience. Since she writes to women in general, her vocabulary does not always reflect that of academia. Instead she writes to the common reader, using everyday language seen in direct passages such as: “ For there are no new ideas. There are only new ways of making them felt.” The phrase demonstrates the plain nature of the language in the essay. This, paired with the use of first person, allows the piece to flow as a discussion. The reader feels apart of a conversation with Lorde. It is as if Lorde speaks directly to them. Even though plain language can at times be looked down upon by academia, Lorde uses it in a way that helps her connect with her reader. The vocabulary within Lorde’s writing creates a clear audience and communicates effectively with them.

However, this is not the only purpose well chosen vocabulary may serve. Lorde also shows how vocabulary can convey mood and tone within a piece. Word choice allows the reader to feel certain things. It allows different emotions to shine through the writing. Throughout her essay, Lorde repeatedly chooses words, which create a feeling of hope and optimism. By constantly referring to the hopes and dreams of the reader and herself Lorde allows the reader to look ahead in their own lives. The abstract thought of ideas and futures presented in the piece create a sense of looking forward and impending hope. Clearly Lorde intentionally chooses specific words to shape the nature of her pieces, something that takes her writing to the next level.

Through both audience and mood, Lorde’s vocabulary strengthens her writing and connects her piece to her reader. In general, vocabulary and the effective use of it can help strengthen writing. It serves multiple purposes including defining audience and creating mood and tone. However well chosen vocabulary can serve other purposes as well. Vocabulary can make arguments more persuasive, reveal biases and establish the level of writing in terms of academic standards. Overall, vocabulary and word choice reveals itself to be pertinent in writing quality pieces as demonstrated by Lorde’s “Poetry is Not a Luxury.”