Notes on Adania Shibli’s “Six Key Movements to Unlock a Possible History of Materials” (responding to the art of Mona Hatoum), written for Corina Copp’s “Tracing Political Commitment: A Writing Workshop,” April 2024

who are you and
where do you stand and:
why does it have to mean the
difference between life and death

what is the difference between
coming to a standstill
and standing still
is one more involuntary than the other

the fence shapeshifts,
conforming to the terrain not unlike
the way that minute movements
—say, the child’s flick of a marble—
acclimate to their surroundings

what is the difference between
rubber-coated bullet-like marbles
and rubber-coated marble-like bullets
is one deadlier than the other

flayed hands can’t flick marbles,
are almost everything except hands

some identities are heavier
than other identities:
is it possible to redistribute the weight
so that the fallen can stand again