From the minarets the call to prayer resounds
Breaking the peaceful silence of the dawn
In its undulation of fervent fanatical need
And all across the world the daily call spreads
Making non-believers at least tolerant
Of the mysterious words and haunting refrain
Lulled into acceptance as by a snake charmer
Women too now rising up
In the name of liberation
Fervently fanatical in the need
To have it their way,
From conception to abortion and infanticide
To now the freedom to filicide,
Have it their way
A brave new Burger Queen world
Without compromise or sacrifice
For the only job they were born to do.
Meanwhile the minaret keeps up its call
Loudly proclaiming to the faithful
Ignorant and deluded,
And increasingly deserving,
“Make Misogyny Great Again”.
(9/13/26)
Pure and sinful. Saintly and filthy.
An angry dog. Teeth sharp and gnashing. I don’t understand why I’m so angry.
A warning shot before I’m put down. Knocked to the ground, air leaves my lungs in form of sharp breath.
Mans best friend is a quiet woman and lord only knows I am not.
Perfect until my mouth opens.
Then I have opinions and am devalued.
I am bark and bite.
Dog. .
Put me on a leash and lead me around, why don’t you?
I will drag my heels and disobey.
Nip at you and run away.
Mans best friend is a woman that submits.
So I bend the rules and run wild.
Tall grass tickles my legs.
Morning dew drips.
Stray.
You took your wife, Omar,
my friend, away from me
because I am not Arabic
and I cannot love her
deeply and appropriately.
I hate your
narcissism,
religion,
and misogyny.
I would walk, no
run over you
if you were a sea of faces
in hell,
caught in your own web of
self-agony.
Sometimes hate
takes a lot more
energy and passion
than continuous loving
ever meant to be.
There are plenty
of great soccer players,
and you are not one of them.
No one will remember you.
You can’t swing a dead cat
without hitting
a good-looking man.
There are billions of men
on this crowded planet
of infedelity.
But a man of character
and integrity,
is a diamond
formed under pressure,
that’s not me.
I married a diamond,
and I am free.
I am the least of
your faceless,
socialite fans:
this petite
silly and eccentric,
tarot reading,
un-Arabic me.
Would you like to meet my lover,
Hades?
I am his Persephone.
They fvck us
Calloused hands maim soft breasts
They call it genourous
When teeth sink in but don't break flesh
They like our scars
Til they're inflicted by another
They like our hearts
How easy it is to crush them
They make our youth up
Of babies we don't want
They say they love us
Looking at our bodies
They only want our bodies
Am I as beautiful as they say?
Or are they blinded by my looks.
Sure im a woman,
But that’s all they know.
That my femininity is for them to behold,
My walk talk and glance,
All created for them,
And them alone.
Assuming romance over friendship,
Assuming I owe them something—
For what?
Glancing my way?
Being nice?
Do my words mean so little to you,
That you mistake them for common flirtation?
Those words held meaning.
Those words reached out,
Asking for affection,
Instead you silenced them,
And asked for connection—
Through not the mind but body,
For I was never a person,
Just a tool you could use.
For your own whims,
Leaving stains on my skin,
Who cares how I feel?
I’m just the show,
The entertainment—
I’m a vase of flowers.
With no attachments,
Cut for your admiration,
Left on display,
Perfect in every way-
Even Aphrodite feels dismay.
A Woman's Place
A woman's place,
is where she stands.
And the same,
goes for a man.
They can decide,
what they shall do.
For God gave them freewill
and means to choose.
Some will choose good.
And some will choose bad.
But none can deny, starting from the Garden,
choices are all we really ever had.
We can choose to fight.
We can choose to love.
We can choose the world,
or choose God above.
But whatever the choice we choose,
some will win... while others... lose.
by Martin Braun
August 26, 2023
We all ask questions, some simply ask the wrong ones... and follow the wrong answers.
(Cinderella is the protagonist of the 1697 fairytale by Charles Perrault. The whimsical tale is later told in 1812 by the Grimm brothers.)
“Why, if it isn’t my dear Cinderella,
That twinkle in your eyes, still bright as your ballroom days,
In your smile I still see the sweetness of Nutella,
And in your glow some golden summer rays.”
“How do you do, old friend?
My schedule has been quite busy,
The chores of a princess seem to have no end,
Should I say of a prince’s wife, who often returns tipsy.”
“I must ask, with all due respect,
Why let a man who but found a slipper
Behave in a manner so incorrect,
Out all night favoring a stripper?”
“Oh, dear, you must know,
The man’s delight is but for a show”
“Cinderella, holder of a sunrise’s beauty,
Tell me why you refuse to see,
Why you remain so carelessly happy,
Treated with no sense of dignity?”
“I have reached my happily ever after,
And I do still get my daily dose of laughter.”
“I hope that someday soon,
You will fulfill your own fate,
You will sing your own proud tune,
And leave this pitiful pig of a date.”
MISOGYNY
HE SAID
I AM YOUR BOSS, YOU FOLLOW ME.
little me said, I thought GOD was the boss.
HE SAID I WILL HIT YOU WHEN I THINK YOU DESERVE IT, EVEN IN FRONT OF YOUR CHILDREN! I AM THE ROOF OVER YOUR HEAD!!
little me knew that if we said “no,” HE had the capability of crushing them all, like Esther.
so, then, the skinny white girl
with nowhere else to go
said
okay
To Him, No One is a Rank Stranger
No one is a rank stranger
hiding behind dark threats.
No one is a rank stranger
concealing their cruel epithets.
Recognizing an identity
that is unique-ly theirs.
Acknowledging an identity
and a desire they wish to share.
Finding a common experience
is the treasure he seeks to be found.
Finding a common experience
is as wonderous
glorious and marvelous
as any diamond discovered underground.
Becoming part of the family
by finding a way to care,
is being part of a family
with trust and love and laughter shared.
He is building bridges
starting on common ground,
digging for diamonds like a miner,
finding love where none thought could be found.
To him no one is a rank stranger,
Ignoring what sets us apart.
He’s finding value in the person,
seeing God’s image in every heart.
by Martin Braun
12/08/18
Dedicated to my mom who influenced me, and my friend Audrey who inspired me.
There's a cold dark place
Sylvia Plath has been inside
A kind of sacrificial lamb
An experiment of sorts
Misogyny for the masses
A Hitler for wives
Dust that, rub this,
Lunch is cold, you shall pay!
Only one way out
Put the lunch in the gas oven
Warm it up real nice and slow
Then turn it up
"Is that better, Heil Hughes"
Misogyny
Footnote
There is speculation whether Ted Hughes drove his former wife Sylvia Plath to suicide
Looking for the formal definition, structure, and history of this poetry form? Visit the Poetry Dictionary entry below. Then return to explore how PoetrySoup members bring the form to life through their own poems.