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Click here inspired by Sue Monk Kidd
When Tereus rapes her
he cuts out Philomela’s tongue
to silence her voice
and locks her in a tower
To silence her voice
patriarchy devalues the feminine
for fear she’ll tell the truth
and rend from men the power
For fear she’ll tell the truth
a woman silences her own creative voice
to gain love, validation, esteem
and over and over again
To gain love, validation, esteem
she sells her sexual soul
for this above all else
is the value of women to men
For this above all else
is the reason we must weave
our angers, truths and visions
Into poetic tapestries, our stories
Our angers, truths and visions
must be shared with sisters, daughters
brothers and fathers too, must see
our triumphs and our glories
Brothers and fathers, too, must see
that a woman’s life depends upon
the tapestries she weaves
with her voice, despite fear of rejection
The tapestries she weaves
tell Philomela’s story to her sister
when Tereus rapes her
Finding her voice is her salvation
i love it even more that you mentioned my poem.
i thought this was brilliant and couldn't speak my heart any closer.
change is slow, but ever forward..
walk on women, walk on..
anyhow, i'll have to come back, but i had to come see who you were b4 sleep. take care,and thanks again, xo, fawnie
Yes, Jim is right about the rhyme sceme and Bob purity, but I think the poem itself is better for the lack of it, and that's the point, after all. I love the craft in the reuse of the lines. They don't simply repeat; they propel the poem.
...awesome, fantastic, super, great, incredible!
Syn, wow. I'm speechless. Excellent, excellent piece of work.
...a woman speaking up for the words of all women. I'm not familiar with the story, but the poem was a joy!
to the ancients. An excellent bob woven nicely. You might want to check the rhyme scheme if you want to please the bob purists... nice one.
jim : )
I wouldn't know a Greek myth from a Greek salad
But this is a great piece of writing
You really outdid yourself.
You been reading that poetry book haven't ya??
; )
You get beter and better Sis
Thank you for this
by Sue Monk Kidd directly inspired this poem and drew the correlations between the myth and the need to tell our stories. Awesome book is a must read. This is the story of one woman's awakening and her path to the feminine Divine.
was something I often read when I was younger. I vaguely remember this one. I really like how you used it in this poem.
There is so much here that's good and expressive of something important. I love the way you use the Greek heroic tale of Philomel's tapestry as an explanation for women needing to tell their stories. This is beautifully written and even has the feel of a feminist morality play. Yet it remonstrates with the facts of the myth, and I think that literary remove makes it that much more powerful. Thank you. :)