Feminine

How sweet a sound is feminine,

How softly female skips

Along the ripples of the tongue

And through the supple lips.

 

A simple sigh of feminine,

Or female, woman, girl,

Exhales a warm and mystic charm

That spurs the soul to whirl.

 

Whilst masculine is coarse as stone,

And decked in monochrome.

He squarely stands and keeps his march

Set to a metronome.

 

Armed simply with a copper heart,

He tingles skin and bone,

And needs the iron of feminine

To tint and tame his tone.

 

Yet ev’ry face of feminine

Was made from molds of man,

As Eve from Adam was conceived

To spark God’s holy plan.

 

Thus feminine is masculine

Twice firm, twice fit, twice whole,

For underneath the sweet façade

Lies heart, lies spleen, lies soul.

-EDP

Author's Note

Happy International Women's Day!

Reviews

[Emma]

Firstly absolutely love the message here, and an incredible new way to originate the empowerment point, as I had never considered how even the sound assigned to women is defining the kind of character they should become.
Secondly, the rhyming in this is brilliant through the male stanzas, new and purposeful.
Thirdly, your consonance and use of the harsher 't's for men and 'f's and 'p's for women is brilliant and something which I definitely want to start incorporating into my poetry as I think when spoken it is just as rhythmic and emphatic as rhyming.
Only praise for this poem

[emipoemi]

Thank you so much! It's highly advisable to think about what you want to say in the poem, and let the poem "figure it out itself". It's a far more rewarding experience if you give yourself to the craft rather than try to craft yourself. Glad you enjoyed it.

[Emma]

Yes I always find that it is often second nature to encorporate these things into your writing and only an outside view appreciates all the complexities that just...happened

[Julie McCarthy (juliesp..]

Oh what a powerhouse of a poem loved it ! Such a clever write
I m so glad I was born a gal proud of our strong spirit and endurance and of course our softness feminine

[emipoemi]

Glad you enjoyed it.. Thanks for reading.

[Fran Marie]

I find this poem so interesting
how you point out the differences
between female and male..yet
completing each other .love
the 4th and last stanzas

.like to
think the feminine attribute as
being the *iron* fist in a velvet glove
taking and toning the bold brassiness
of the masculine *copper* high
conducting energy..

at any rate that's how I see it
and taken from Adams Rib
as Gods plan ..as a United whole
great ending..can we women make some Ribbons for our hair..jk

[emipoemi]

You have a good angle with your interpretation. Thank you. Glad you enjoyed it.

[Fran Marie]

I did enjoy
you re welcone
and also noted
the Fe and Cu
element symbols
in the Feminine
and MasCUline
spellings within your
poem..

very nicely done

[emipoemi]

that was the discovery that sparked the idea for the poem.

[barleygirl]

I have to agree, the word "feminine" sounds soft & flowing, whereas the word "masculine" feels more angular & staccato. But that's where my relating to your message ends. I pretty much hate to see femininity & masculinity shoved into these tired old boxes! Why can't feminine be tough & untamed? Why can't masculine be sensitive to the point of breaking down & needing a strong woman as a mate? Your poem is beautifully expressed but it strikes a nerve in me, an unfair indictment for this tough self-sufficient b***h who thrives alone in the wilderness, without a man to help! Thank you for allowing my outburst . . . it's nothing personal. Your writing is superb! And most people relate to the genders as you depict here. (((HUGS))) Fondly, Margie

[emipoemi]

If I may call you on something: you tend to miss the bigger picture with my poems, so I'm going to see if rereading it with that in mind would help any. Because this (like all my work) is supposed to elicit discussion - and maybe debate - but not the kind I'm gathering you're proposing with your comments. I'm glad you enjoy my work though. Thanks for reading.

[barleygirl]

I'm sorry for missing your bigger picture many times as you say. Thank you for being honest about how my review strikes you. I thought I was opening this up for discussion, showing my POV, but I didn't meant to say your message is wrong, just different than how I see it. If I'm missing something, please tell me. I'm dense about seeing deeper meanings . . .

[emipoemi]

I as a joke added "and maybe debate" for that reason. Don't worry, I show you where my wit lies in this poem. It starts out with that kind of feel, but then goes on to suggest that men and women need each other (consider the second half of the poem). Try to figure out what the "iron" and "copper" represent in the masculine and feminine personality/psychology, and what the last stanza is nailing into the overall message.

[barleygirl]

Thanks for the hints . . .

[barleygirl]

Becuz of your reading guidance, I now see better how your poem is expressing femininity as being a STRONG attribute, but I still get thrown off becuz it's called masculinity when women are strong & also the emphasis on how woman was made from man's rib . . . I realize you are saying this to uplift the idea of womanhood, but it still makes me feel like an appendage to man. This is a great poem, accomplishing everything you mean for it to, but I can't let go of my biases . . .

[emipoemi]

fair enough. Thanks for reading.

[Nolo Segundo]

This is beautifully done! You've caught the essence of the male-female dichotomy with some remarkable imagery [e.g., 'copper heart']. My highest praise: I wish I had written it!

[emipoemi]

we all have those moments, pal, and the only thing the writer at the receiving end can say is "beat ya to the punch" - xp. Thanks for reading. Glad you enjoyed it.

[Chris Shaw]

An accomplished write. 8/6/8/6 stanzas with excellent flow and end rhyme. A fine write to celebrate International Women's Day. Well done emipoemi.

Chris

[emipoemi]

Thank you. Glad you enjoyed it.

[Beccy]

A unique and clever approach and written in grand poetical style; what more could one want.

Verse 4 my definite favourite, as line 3 proposes, at least to me, the possibility that we were perhaps created from backbone as opposed to rib bone. :))

Beccy.

[emipoemi]

Just my call for simbiosis in human society. Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for reading.

[Beccy]

Yes, living in harmony and equality together, whilst still recognising and celebrating the differences. How good that would be.

[emipoemi]

Men just have to understand that the "iron" they seek will never be theirs on their own account. If they don't support the women's cause, the women won't support them, and they'll remain a rusted piece of copper their entire life. There's a reason why there's no iron in "masculine" whilst in feminine it's front and centre for all to see. And men adherent to patriarchy are too arrogant and embarrassed about that so their sulfuric power strives to burn through their iron in order to in a sense subjugate them.

I've been trying to get this poem to people who would help get the message across, but not even having it in my self-published collection of poems or even the 20 reviewers and 600 viewers of this piece are seemingly making the conversation go viral or whatnot.

I feel sometimes that even when I add to the conversation no one listens.

[Beccy]

Can't agree no one is listening; the road to full equality is a long one, but progress is being made.

I wonder how the world would be, equality wise, if women, not men, were the more physically dominant; rather different I warrant.

[emipoemi]

Oh, I was referring to the fact that when I join the conversation, no one listens. I put this poem out, people read it, but don't use it as part of their hand to advance the conversation. It's like the fact that I'm a white male doesn't give me credit for anything.

but a world based on equalism would be different (and better) indeed.

[Beccy]

I understand what you're saying, particularly your comment about the fact that as a white male, you are not always given credit. I have come across that attitude many times, particularly in certain particularly strident pressure groups; and I find it as discriminatory as any.

[emipoemi]

well, what's worse is that I'm half Latino with a mental illness, which categorizes me also in not one but two marginalized groups - groups that are pretty much getting some of the spotlight now - and still now one pays much attention. What's a guy to do - lol

[Beccy]

Nil illegitimi carborundum; as my dadr is wont to say. :))

I'm a single mum and work in a mostly male and rather chauvinistic environment, so face certain prejudices daily, especially as I'm quite good at what I do, which I find often causes resentment among certain types. Charlie's dad is Russian and long gone back to the motherland and seeming with no intention of returning. I suppose we all have our burdens.

[emipoemi]

I can def stand by that Latin aphorism, though my life is run pretty much by these "illegitimi" - lol. Got no way to fly free yet, which is why I'm trying to join some conversations with my art so people could realize who I am. But yeah, we all got our burdens. But if they ever give you heck, you can try to snap back with the copper/iron talk (how men are made of copper and women of iron), and if they don't get it, tell them to spell "masculine" and "feminine" and figure it out - lol

[Onlyme]

A wonderful empowering poem for women across the world. How without women men would not be here as well.

[emipoemi]

there's in a way a vice versa argument here, but the gender equality factor was an objective with this poem. Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for reading.

[Onlyme]

I know what you mean. Emipoemi

[Terra]

I could shed a tear. This poem is so beautiful. I was actually trying to write something playing on the garden of eden the other day, but the words wouldn't come. This is far superior to anything I could imagine.
I can feel such subtle tones of romance when you describe feminine. It is truly beautiful.

[emipoemi]

Thank you! I was more going for a fight for gender equality vibe, but I can see where the hint of romance is coming from. I myself often identify as a romantic poet - lol. Glad you enjoyed it.

[Moonie]

I really enjoyed the monochrome-metronome rhyme. I like the message you're trying to convey-- both men and women deserve to be needed and loved, and both are interdependent in many ways. ♡

[emipoemi]

So glad you enjoyed it. Thanks for reading.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

i think that when Adam gave his rib to make Eve, it was his strongest one...i have always thought of females as feminine but stronger than males.
i especially like the third stanza with its monochrome and metronome ...the back and forth balance of women and men...needing each other...maybe we more than they...
the strength of women so well portrayed here.
strong writing..
j.

[emipoemi]

That's a good theory: giving his strongest rib. I dig it. Thanks for reading. I'm glad you enjoyed it.