How does Jefferson represent her childhood on the page?

Throughout the text, Jefferson presents fragmented memories of her childhood past. Some of her first reflections on this era appear in Chapter II. However, once her memories beget difficult truths about her father's depression and anger, Jefferson momentarily withdraws. She is indeed reluctant to shape the entirety of her memoir around her childhood trauma. Therefore, throughout all of the chapters that follow, allusions to and descriptions of Jefferson's childhood primarily centralize Jefferson's and Denise's relationship.

How does Jefferson rely upon others' stories and lives to understand her own?

From start to end, Jefferson repeatedly centralizes the stories and lives of cultural figures instead of her own. Whenever she reaches "an emotional stalemate" in her story, she veers into the story of a writer, singer, artist, performer, or activist she admires (34). By relaying these stories, Jefferson is reifying her...