Lab Questions 1

On Creativity
1. All of these aspects contribute to creativity due to the fact that nature usually
surprises us; the experience of being nurtured changes our perspectives; and the
nightmares usually scare us. All of these experiences emotionally impact us
somehow, and those emotions contribute to our creativity.
2. I believe Tan means that creative people are multidimensional because they usually
view a situation in many different ways, since they overthink it in order to make it
creative.
3. Yes, I have been inspired by random chance. It was an ordinary afternoon and I was
sitting under my window, just looking at the birds flying outside. Out of a sudden, an
entire poem formed in my mind and I just simply put it to paper. That random
inspiration made me create one of my favorite poems so far and it made me feel
relaxed and happy.
4. In order to create something out of nothing, one needs to constantly question
everything. Amy Tan says to herself that there are no absolute truths, that way, she
constantly questions why everything is the way it is.
The Politics of Fiction
1. She means that in times of chaos we come together, just like reading a good novel. A
good book, just like a situation of chaos, brings people together and it makes the
differences evaporate, since it connects you with people you never even thought of
meeting.
2. She means that when you try to bring the book to real life and reflect on it, you take
the magic away, you transform it into reality, leaving the story behind.
3. The differences are: while fiction is flowing water, identity politics is a brick; while
identity politics divides us, fiction connects. These differences are important to
remember as a writer because they allow us to celebrate fiction as it is.
4. She mentions that good literature is the one that takes us to a place of empathy,
beyond ourselves. I do agree with her, because good literature should make us think
in order to transform our perspective of the world.
5. She believes it is not the proper way because these students shouldn’t be writing
their identities, they should be writing what they feel. The feelings are more important
than “what you know”.