The piece is an interesting split
between proverb-type sections and more prose-like sections. I think that the arrangement
of these could be a little more effective, as the main group of three proverbs
takes place right after childhood. The second two are warranted, mentioning elementary
school and children’s perception of guns, but “Stick to your guns” could take
place somewhere else in the narrative. This irony is echoed in the comparison
of pride and patriotism. The idea that the narrator was female came a shock
when she mentioned her purse was stolen. The entire purpose of “A little
episode” went completely over my head-the entire buildup is undermined by the
last two line’s confliction. I like that the narrator’s obsession with Annie
Oakley is both emphasized but at the same time understated in the lines “I
purchased every book about her.” The line says so much and so little. The line “the
little girl with the big gun from Oklahoma” made me pause and wonder if the gun
or the girl or both were from Oklahoma. T
idea of feminism should be explored more than at the end of “‘They’re called
Marksmen, Mijo’” or left out completely, in my opinion. The whole piece is a
collage of this daughter of a gun shop owner’s life and perception of guns. At
first she seems indifferent to them but then becomes obsessed with Anne Oakley
and proud-slash-patriotic. There could be more of a buildup.
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