The Contract Says: We’d Like the Conversation to Be Bilingual

Limón uses irony, a form of humor in verse that expresses the opposite of the intended meaning, to discuss her experiences as a female author of color. The speaker of the poem is characterized as a powerful publisher, asking questions of an author presumed to be Limón (see: Contextual Analysis), before they enter a contractual agreement with one another. The speaker is arrogant and insensitive from the onset of the poem, asking Limón to bring her “brown- / ness so we can be sure to please // the funders” (Lines 1-3), revealing that Limón has significantly less power than the speaker in this dynamic. The speaker consistently uses the pronoun “we,” putting distance between themselves and Limón through this acknowledgement of monetary and racial difference. The speaker feels entitled to Limón’s “brown- / ness” (Lines 1-2), abusing her diverse background to fill a quota. Limón is asked to “check this / box” (Lines 3-4) because the publishing house is “applying for a grant” (Line 4), making it clear that the publisher is only interested in printing diverse stories as a way for them to appear more inclusive to their investors. Much of Limón’s work is autobiographical (see: Contextual Analysis), so by using irony as a subversion technique by writing as the