"Manet's Olympia" by Margaret Atwood

[honorat.livejournal.com]

A great ekphrasis poem. The link goes to the painting by Manet.

Manet's Olympia
by Margaret Atwood

She reclines, more or less,
Try that posture, it’s hardly languor.
Her right arm sharp angles.
With her left she conceals her ambush.
Shoes but not stockings,
how sinister. The flower
behind her ear is naturally
not real, of a piece
with the sofa’s drapery.
The windows (if any) are shut.
This is indoor sin.
Above the head of the (clothed) maid
is an invisible voice balloon: Slut.

But. Consider the body,
unfragile, defiant, the pale nipples
staring you right in the bull’s eye.
Consider also the black ribbon
around the neck. What’s under it?
A fine red threadline, where the head
was taken off and glued back on.
The body’s on offer,
but the neck’s as far as it goes.

This is no morsel.
Put clothes on her and you’d have a schoolteacher,
the kind with the brittle whiphand.

There’s someone else in this room.
You, Monsieur Voyeur.
As for that object of yours
she’s seen those before, and better.

I, the head, am the only subject
of this picture.
You, Sir, are furniture.
Get stuffed.

Comments

[mswyrr]

Now this? This is a feminist poem, imho.

<3

The body’s on offer,
but the neck’s as far as it goes.

[honorat.livejournal.com]

:D Nobody does feminism quite like Atwood. I'm glad you enjoyed this.

[elvenpiratelady.livejournal.com]

Wow, this is amazing! The painting 'Olympia' was requested as a fandom for Yuletide this year and I was wondering how anyone could write a fic for it, but Margaret Atwood shows it's definitely possible!

You, Sir, are furniture.
Get stuffed.

OH SNAP.

[honorat.livejournal.com]

I've always liked poems about works of art. Now that you mention it, this picture would be interesting inspiration for a story. Who are these characters and how did they come to be in that picture?

[elvenpiratelady.livejournal.com]

Or a ficathon, even?

[tree_and_leaf]

What a fantastic poem!

[honorat.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you enjoyed it. I've always appreciated Atwoods take on things.

[punkinelf.livejournal.com]

Great poem. Great moose. Is it a moose?

[honorat.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you enjoyed this. I've always liked Atwood's work. The creature in my icon is a Mule Deer. I had a live model for this on a camping trip. This buck was lying by our picnic table ruminating, so I had a good half hour about 2 metres away from him.

[punkinelf.livejournal.com]

Oh you drew this! What a fine mule deer! How it posed for you! Thank you for sharing!

[teithiwr.livejournal.com]

Ooh yes, this is great.

[iatrogenicmyth.livejournal.com]

Atwood = <33333

[mewmewmewmewmew.livejournal.com]

Awesome!!