Elizabeth Barrette (ysabetwordsmith) wrote,
Elizabeth Barrette
ysabetwordsmith
  • Mood: busy

Poem: "Medusa's Daughter"

This poem was inspired by a prompt from moosl. The "Abdominal Faces" photo reminded me of Medusa. Now that myth is full of some pretty horrifying patriarchal symbolism. So I turned it all on its ear, used some female imagery, and turned out a fairly disturbing poetic myth. It's written in ascending stanzas, each a line longer than the last.


Medusa’s Daughter


Medusa’s daughter was a complete surprise.

Medusa’s daughter was born
after a blind man found her mother’s cave.

Medusa’s daughter had the beak of a sea-eagle,
and a single snake arose from her brow
to wrap a hundred times around her head.

Medusa’s daughter sprouted a lapful of snakes
rooted in her womb when she became a woman,
each of them wearing a human mask
and each of them bearing a different power.

Medusa’s daughter ran back to the cave
when she heard her mother scream,
but she was too late to save Medusa.
When she got there, Perseus had already
hacked off the head and gone away.

Medusa’s daughter changed herself
into a sea-eagle and pecked Jupiter’s eyes out.
She changed herself into a snake, slithered
to the underworld throne, and bit Pluto on the thigh.
She changed herself into a fish, swam to Neptune,
swallowed him and vomited him up again.

Medusa’s daughter said to the gods:
“I can change more than any of you. Fear me.”
The gods said to Medusa’s daughter:
“We fear you. Go away.”
“Give me the Moon,” she said, and so they did.
“Hey, that’s mine!” whined Diana,
but no one cared.

Medusa’s daughter moved to the Moon.
Its pale dust was the color of her skin.
Its shadows were as sharp as her beak.
Its light was as cold as her eyes.
Its face was as scarred as her heart.
“I will wait for you here,” Medusa’s daughter said
to the mortal women in their dreams.
“Change. Grow. Fly.”
Tags: cyberfunded creativity, fishbowl, gender studies, paganism, poem, poetry, reading, spirituality, writing
Subscribe

  • Fieldhaven as Habitat

    If you follow my posts on gardening, birdfeeding, and photos, then you know that I garden for wildlife. Looking at the YardMap parameters, here…

  • A Little Slice of Terramagne: YardMap

    Sadly the main program is dormant, but the YardMap concept is awesome, and many of its informative articles remain. YardMap was a citizen science…

  • Winterfest in July Bingo Card 7-1-21

    Here is my card for the Winterfest in July Bingo fest. It runs from July 1-30. Celebrate all the holidays and traditions of winter! ( See all my…

  • Post a new comment

    Error

    switch
    default userpic

    Your IP address will be recorded 

    When you submit the form an invisible reCAPTCHA check will be performed.
    You must follow the Privacy Policy and Google Terms of use.
    Help
  • 12 comments
jenny_evergreen

jenny_evergreen

October 14 2009, 12:04:19 UTC 11 years ago

Ooooooooooooh.
ysabetwordsmith

Thank you!

ysabetwordsmith

October 14 2009, 17:28:48 UTC 11 years ago

I'm glad you appreciate this one.

Deleted comment

ysabetwordsmith

Yay!

ysabetwordsmith

October 14 2009, 20:23:22 UTC 11 years ago

Thanks for the encouraging words. This one is turning out pretty popular.
wyld_dandelyon

wyld_dandelyon

October 15 2009, 01:51:12 UTC 11 years ago

I like ssessu best, so far, of these. My seventh-grade niece likes the one from her prompt best, but really likes this one too.
ysabetwordsmith

Thank you!

ysabetwordsmith

October 15 2009, 02:07:32 UTC 11 years ago

I appreciate the continued feedback.
dormouse_in_tea

dormouse_in_tea

October 15 2009, 04:01:20 UTC 11 years ago

This is fantastic. Fun to read, and lots of thinky thoughts after.
ysabetwordsmith

Yay!

ysabetwordsmith

October 15 2009, 04:45:02 UTC 11 years ago

I love it when a poem sticks in the reader's mind. Some of my favorite writers are on my favorites list for precisely that reason. Sometimes I go back days later and post, "That thing you wrote, I had this other thought about it this afternoon on the way home, and ..."
fayanora

fayanora

October 17 2009, 07:15:43 UTC 11 years ago

Oooooooh, I love it!
filkferengi

filkferengi

October 19 2009, 00:41:23 UTC 11 years ago

Powerful!
ysabetwordsmith

Thank you!

ysabetwordsmith

October 19 2009, 01:55:00 UTC 11 years ago

I'm glad you enjoyed this.
ext_340358

Lara Dann

November 30 2010, 14:34:59 UTC 10 years ago

WOW! I love this poem. I am an artist, and I was doing a search for research on Medusa's Daughter and stumbled upon your poem. I have finally found visual inspiration! Wonderful work!
ysabetwordsmith

Thank you!

ysabetwordsmith

November 30 2010, 18:16:56 UTC 10 years ago

I'm glad you like this. I would enjoy seeing what you make of it on the artwork side. Also, I sent you a friend request on Facebook.

You might also like to revisit my LJ next week. I do a monthly Poetry Fishbowl and the next one is Tuesday, Dec. 7. People give me ideas and I write poems based on whatever I get.

  • Fieldhaven as Habitat

    If you follow my posts on gardening, birdfeeding, and photos, then you know that I garden for wildlife. Looking at the YardMap parameters, here…

  • A Little Slice of Terramagne: YardMap

    Sadly the main program is dormant, but the YardMap concept is awesome, and many of its informative articles remain. YardMap was a citizen science…

  • Winterfest in July Bingo Card 7-1-21

    Here is my card for the Winterfest in July Bingo fest. It runs from July 1-30. Celebrate all the holidays and traditions of winter! ( See all my…