“Greek Slave” by Hiram Powers
“Greek Slave”, 1873, by Hiram Powers
About fig leaves they were never wrong–
slap one on and whee ding dong–
you had a grand old statue that
even tots could gander at.
So, with the he==
but the she, the she–
choices there were not smooth–
a fig just (didn’t) fit her groove.
(It seems a sculpted ribbed curled leaf
was deemed an insufficient sheathe.)
Whatever.
The female whether marble, bronze,
if she were to have nothing on
needed to stand exactly so
with one thigh crossed and on tiptoe,
one hand, drape fold, just chanced to rest
over that place where babies nest
(you know, when dropped by friendly stork
‘twixt legs you’d n’er describe as forked.)
How beautiful, though, the breasts that rise
so perkily ‘neath downcast eyes,
the lids so modest, groomed, demure,
every hair (upon her head) so pure–
At manacled wrist, a rosary,
so surely we’re allowed to see
those breasts again, look long and hard,
their nudity no fault of art,
nor of the girl–a slave was she,
say the spellbound somewhat breathlessly.
**********************************
A ditty for Margaret Bednar’s prompt “Artistic Interpretations” on With Real Toads. Margaret poses as the prompt a series of (mainly) 19th century marble sculptures from the National Gallery in Washington, D.C. (My hometown!) It is my understanding that fig leaves were used, especially by Victorians, for male sculptures, and not for female sculptures, who were typically placed in a “pudica pose.” (Margaret says this sculpture one of the first publicly accepted nude sculptures in the prurient nineteenth century U.S.A., accepted in part because the girl was a slave, whose nudity was imposed against her will.)
I have some intermediate alternate lines, but they felt a bit too raunchy too use. I don’t mind raunchy, but unfortunately, so much raunchy speech has echoes that could be deemed as demeaning to woman. I try to be rather careful of those things, so chose the more Victorian route.
Thanks, Margaret, for the beautiful photo. Rights reserved to her for that, poem mine.
And please if you have a minute check out my little-bit raunchy, but in a most not demeaning to women, book, Nice. (Pic and cover design below mine.)
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Tags: "Greek Sculpture" 1873 by Hiram Powers Poem, manicddaily, Pudica pose for women pose, Victorian sculpture, Where's My fig leaf poem
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ManicDDaily 
October 17, 2014 at 10:04 am
Delightful ditty …. she said, as NICE downloads onto her Kindle!
October 17, 2014 at 10:09 am
Oh thank you so much, Helen. That really means a lot to me. K.
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October 17, 2014 at 12:30 pm
I laughed aloud at the first few lines, and then looked more closely to make sure you intended it. Such a fun indictment of prurient and prude art–so innocent and so available.
October 17, 2014 at 12:36 pm
Ha. Thanks, Susan–any and all laughs intended. k.
On Fri, Oct 17, 2014 at 1:30 PM, ManicDDaily wrote:
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October 17, 2014 at 12:42 pm
The rhyme carries your reader, K…enjoyed your thoughts on this.
October 17, 2014 at 1:07 pm
The beauty in the hands of beast 😦
October 17, 2014 at 2:21 pm
Oh, K! We went to the same place . . . but I went raunchier. Love this.
October 17, 2014 at 6:30 pm
I like the modesty despite the manacled wrist ~ Love where this took you K ~
October 17, 2014 at 7:27 pm
Very interesting that the enslaved part made her nudity acceptable–and I love your little word plays throughout–the stork one especially. For me, the face is so much more…matronly…than it is seductive, but the body is pure nymphet–an odd sculpture with an odd mood to it–and I think your poem rides that ambivalence perfectly.
October 17, 2014 at 9:52 pm
The face is very matronly– but that may have been their idea of Greek. A Greek goddess. Who knows? I do not think they were actually thinking of slavery very much. It’s an odd period honestly. K.
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October 17, 2014 at 10:27 pm
Lord, Karen, you slayed me – SLEW me? – with this one. I will check out your book (you know me, crass as they come, I wonder if I can conjure a blush for you, lol). The best couplet, in perfect iambic pentamethingie, was:
(It seems a sculpted ribbed curled leaf
was deemed an insufficient sheathe.)
Now that is writing, girl!! Amy
October 18, 2014 at 6:34 am
Thank you Amy! k.
October 18, 2014 at 2:28 am
I think that I shall never see
a nude handled so gracefully
an era indicted
her nudity sighted
only because slaves were property
and if she were attired properly
with fig or leaf?
Then, what *is* proper? A Victorian belief?
OK, I’ve run to the end of my rhyme.
Enjoyed the ditty, k – until next time ~
October 18, 2014 at 6:35 am
I sometimes wonder if all women feel enslaved to the x-ray vision of men’s prying eyes … I’ll plead biology, but Hiram here did keep matters in her own hand in a way that feels fleeting, dangit, missed the view by that passing obstruction. The joke on us, perhaps to the girl’s delight. But who is really manacled but the viewer to the nude? Anyhoo, perhaps many artists turned to sirens and melusinas for their naked subjects, because you didn’t have to fret the details south of the belly button. (Leaving to others to solve the Mermaid Problem, that of how you have sex with one.) The propriety here perhaps is what makes the marble endure.
October 18, 2014 at 6:39 am
Ha! Well, I think oddly the person depicting a woman in this way may not be completely in love with a real woman south of the border as you say. I don’t actually mean to generalize! But the prurient taste also really squashes women — as MZ points out so well–it’s all interesting. I think of someone like Courbet–so different–you know what I mean! A very different take there–k.
October 18, 2014 at 9:24 am
I found your satire thoroughly entertaining! (My thoughts on hearing Powers’ reasoning for showing the woman nude were along the lines of: Methinks he protests too much… especially given his Eve who has no qualms about revealing all!)
I love your poem, which I read as being in defense of womanhood, our bodies a far more sacred thing than men (and art) have given credit for.
a fig just (didn’t) fit her groove!
October 18, 2014 at 12:41 pm
I find it interesting that “man” seems to always make a female “perfect” My daughter has drawn numerous nudes and she adore the rounded, not so perfectly “in-shape” forms. I have one such “imperfect” drawing framed and on my wall. Of course, it isn’t my husband’s favorite – go figure. This poem is so witty and so FUN – yet has quite the satirical edge to it. Well done!
October 18, 2014 at 1:11 pm
LOVE your opening lines. Reminded me of my mother, recalling the first time she saw male genitalia in real life – back in the 30’s – being aghast at the lack of fig leaves….LOL.
October 18, 2014 at 1:26 pm
So strange that nudity against one’s will was more acceptable than it was willfully.. in my head that’s 180 degrees from my view…
October 18, 2014 at 2:23 pm
Your poem’s got a lovely cadence. I read it a couple of times. beautiful. Thanks.
Greetings from London.
October 18, 2014 at 4:41 pm
Love the line in brackets ‘(It seems a sculpted ribbed curled leaf
was deemed an insufficient sheathe.)’.
So playful poem, rhythm and ironic phrases make it fun to read. Great writing!
October 19, 2014 at 9:49 pm
nicely done..your tale carries us along…esp with the rhyme…the art appreciator and american society will often be consumed with the beauty of the form and not realize the story behind it…