In this section of her memoir, Notley recalls a memory about her Grandmother telling her the story of her ancient ancestor, bragging about her beauty and number of suitors. Although her grandmother brags, Notley seems to focus more upon how the ancestress needed to be guarded by men at all times unable to be alone or independent. She also paints these men in a negative light as they aim to steal the woman who is viewed as no more than an object to steal or admire than a human being. What does Notley's grandmother have to brag about? That her ancestor was overly objectified and not valued as a human being who can make her own decisions independently?

This section deals with the memory of how Notley learned her real name, and now wants to be called by her real name and not a child’s name like “Libby”. Is this due to the fact that she no longer wants to be looked down upon as a child and a young girl? Perhaps it is because if she is to make a name for herself, she wants it to be one of her true identity. Either way, Notley seemed to always have been ambitious in pursuing what she wanted and aspiring to make a name for herself, announcing and claiming her own identity as an individual.

This passage speaks about Notley's Aunt Dorothy who was the first death to ever impact her. The fact that she resorted back to a childlike state seems significant as it creates a sentiment of dependency, especially when Alice's father speaks down to Dorothy. This displays the issues of not only women being looked down upon as dependent, but those with mental illness being viewed as lesser beings as well.

This passage comes along later in the sequence of memories which create Tell Me Again, yet is resorts back to the topic of Notley's Aunt Dorothy, her child-like mind, and her sense of dependency as a result of her mental impairment. However, this deals with the cause of her death and how Notley's father and other aunt both played an indirect role in her demise by signing a contract to allow for a risky surgery to occur. What is most interesting about this passage is the repeated emphasis Notley places upon her father's role in her aunt's death. Perhaps this is due to the fact that her father was supposed to be the "man" who would take care of his sister or perhaps this is simply due to the disbelief Notley has that her father, who she is closer to, could have anything to do with the death of a family member.

The statement that Notley was scared of the prophets because they, "knew more about God than God seemed to,” is one that can be interpreted in many different ways. Is Notley perhaps commenting about male dominance and how when men are given power, they are viewed as gods or as chosen by some greater being? Or is she stating that perhaps religion is entirely made up and is used just as another means for men to remain in power and seem important? Either way, the issue of male dominance is present in the statement, which she claims scares her.

An interesting concept behind this passage is the contrast in Notley's view of the book Tropic of Cancer as a woman, and her principal's view of the text as a man. Notley claims to not have much of an appreciation for the text, or at least the way it is written. This seems to display the sexualization of women in the media and how women are viewed by male counterparts and society as a result. However, I do not believe Notley has an issue with the idea of eroticism, but simply that it is a man describing a woman's body rather than a woman doing the writing.

Seeing as Notley discusses erotic books with her principal and has odd relationships with her male teachers, it comes off as interesting that she was not allowed to say “the nakedness of woman” in front of her class. How is this an inappropriate topic to discuss in class yet women can be sexualized by male authors and magazines plastered all over the media? This objection does come off as a bit "funny" and out of place when we consider the context and world in which we live where women's bodies are constantly sexualized and objectified, especially when what she wanted to discuss had nothing to do with sexuality just simply the female body. Has the media ingrained the sexualization of women so deeply into our society that a naked women is immediately viewed in a sensual way?

As seen in the rest of her memoir, Notley is not quite the religious type. However, it seems as though religion helped serve as an "origin story" for her feminist sentiments as she believed the New testament was "too lacking in women". Not only is the New Testament boring to her due to its length and other content, Alice specifically states that she did not want to read a text that lacked feminist elements. Seeing as her favorite stories always had female main characters it seems very typical of texts such as the bible which feature male dominance to not be some of her favorite texts to read.

This statement displays Notley's open admiration of and appreciation for her mother. Her mother constantly runs through an endless cycle of chores and responsibilities every day in order to provide for her children the life she believes they deserve. The long list runs through all of these daily tasks in emphasis of all that she does, compounding as one task is followed by another. It is long and difficult to read just as the tasks themselves are to carry out.

This excerpt from Notley's memoir consists of Alice and her mother not wanting to shed a tear in front of anyone at her father’s funeral. With this simple act, Notley and her mother defy stereotypes and expectations in a show of strength, power, and self-control. When discussing "Mexican funerals", Notley and her mother agreed that they disliked them due to the open mourning. They do not wish to be viewed as even more vulnerable in a society that already views them as such.

In this passage Notley touches on the defiance of societal expectations about women and beauty as she shares her and her aunt's appreciation for non-physical beauty. Although Notley often focuses on the issues of sexualizing women based on their appearance, with this we can see that her appreciation of womanhood and women as members of society lies deeper than the surface, as she believes it should in other contexts.

Once again Notley is defying gender expectations and stereotypes in stating that she did not think she would ever get married -- something which is expected of every young girl. Even from her childhood, we can see Notley's bold defiance against societal normalities and her need to stand for her beliefs.

The suicide of Mrs. Garcia's daughter is yet again another bold topic being discussed within the text, especially since it was a woman who killed herself. Suicide is an topic not meant to be discussed openly due to society's terms, whether a man or a woman, the idea of a person taking their own life is one not many are comfortable with discussing.

The passages above and below deal with Notley's open discussion of topics such as sexual encounters and experience which are considered bold topics to be discussed in general, let alone by a woman. All of Notley's Tell Me Again the lineage of Notley’s feminist outlook. It’s origins lie in the books she reads, the men who see her as an equal, her independence and all that caused her open-ness in relation to sexual and “hushed” topics. Although Notley claims to have "permitted herself" to discuss such topics, it is no wonder she bears no discomfort in their discussion due to their surrounding her in her youth.