A Cat Named Mañana

Lloyd, Christina and Walls, Eoghan (2021) A Cat Named Mañana. PhD thesis, Lancaster University.

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Abstract

A Cat Named Mañana is a full-length collection of poems which explores the vagaries of twentieth and twenty-first century life for a transcultural woman. The collection begins during the dissolution of my marriage, which leads me to reflect on reproductive issues, the curative effects of nature and art, as well as the impact of my early formative relationships. My grandmother Esperanza, whose influence on me was foundational, features prominently throughout. She is first introduced as the subject of a photographed sketch, which starts me on a journey to secure her legacy. Esperanza appears in various incarnations. I trace her migrations from Spain to the Philippines and California, to then place her in imagined realms where she serves as both interlocutor and intercessor. At times she is the subject of the poem, at other times she is the speaker. Her historical and ahistorical presence in the collection ushers in my questions regarding the matriline, maternity and its absence. Delving into the bodily pain she endured throughout her life granted me access into my own pain, thereby helping me to contour my understanding of experiences. Ekphrastic in bent, this collection, which could be read as a double portrait, draws from the Spanish Baroque, Catholic hagiography, the art historical canon, marine biology and human physiology to demarcate what it means to be a transcultural woman.