How the Growing Role of Memoir in the Academy Offers a New Way to Teach Race and Gender
In this conversation, two sociologists discuss how to balance personal perspective with an academic approach to memoir. From writing, to reading, to teaching memoir, these authors offer a unique perspective on the growing role of memoir in the academy and.
Memoir is gaining recognition in academic circles as a tool for teaching and discussing complex social issues like race and gender. Traditionally, academic writing prioritizes data and formal analysis, often excluding personal perspectives. However, two sociology professors, Tiffany Gayle Chenault and Georgiann Davis, argue that memoir can bridge the gap between scholarly rigor and public accessibility. Chenault, a professor at Salem State University, and Davis, a professor at the University of New Mexico, have written memoirs that blend their personal experiences with sociological insights. Their books, Black Woman Runner: A Memoir and Five Star White Trash: A Memoir of Fraud and Family, respectively, demonstrate how personal narratives can illuminate broader societal patterns. The authors highlight that memoir allows scholars to connect with students and readers on a human level, making abstract concepts more relatable. Despite skepticism from some academics who view memoir as less rigorous, the genre is increasingly being integrated into sociological research and teaching, as evidenced by a packed panel discussion at the American Sociological Association conference.
Writing a memoir as an academic presents unique challenges, as scholars are typically trained to write for specialized audiences rather than the general public. Chenault and Davis describe the struggle to balance personal storytelling with academic analysis. Chenault worked with developmental editors who guided her to simplify complex ideas and weave data into a narrative flow. She learned to use techniques like pre-story (background context), flash-forwards (hinting at future events), and maintaining a throughline (a consistent narrative thread) to engage readers. Davis, who had an unconventional educational background, found that her experience reading popular press sources like TIME Magazine helped her write in a way that resonates with diverse audiences. Both authors emphasize that memoir does not replace academic rigor but complements it by making research more accessible. For example, Chenault’s memoir explores how racism and sexism affect Black women’s health and exercise habits, using her personal experiences as a runner to illustrate broader societal issues.
Memoir is becoming a powerful teaching tool in sociology, helping students connect personal experiences to larger social issues. Davis and Chenault use memoirs like Jaquira Díaz’s Ordinary Girls in their classrooms to foster discussions without relying on overly academic language. Davis notes that students are drawn to vulnerability and positionality, making memoir an effective way to explore topics like race, gender, and class. The sociological imagination, a concept developed by sociologist C. Wright Mills, is central to this approach. It refers to the ability to connect personal troubles (e.g., individual struggles) to public issues (e.g., systemic inequalities). By using memoir, professors can help students see how their own lives are shaped by broader social forces. For instance, Davis’s memoir discusses her experience with complete androgen insensitivity syndrome (a condition where a person with XY chromosomes is born with female external genitalia but lacks a uterus and undescended testes), which was hidden from her by doctors and her family.
Both authors explore deeply personal struggles in their memoirs, using these experiences to shed light on systemic social issues. Davis’s *Five Star White Trash* delves into her family’s secrets, including her intersex condition, medical abuse, and economic struggles. She describes how her mother hid her intersex status and subjected her to bariatric surgery at age 14, a decision influenced by medical professionals. Davis also reflects on *white privilege*, a term coined by Peggy McIntosh to describe the unearned social advantages white people receive in a racially unequal society. She recounts how a teacher’s mentorship helped her transition from a remedial English class to a college-level course, highlighting how privilege operates in subtle ways. Chenault’s *Black Woman Runner* examines the *Strong Black Woman* trope, a stereotype that portrays Black women as resilient and self-sacrificing. After her mother’s death and her own breast cancer diagnosis, Chenault realized how this trope had shaped her life and health decisions. She also discusses the racism she faced while running, including incidents where she was perceived as
