poetry essay on the woman

The Woman by Kristina Rungano

“The Woman” appears in Kristina Rungano’s first collection of poetry, A Storm is Brewing (1984). She is the first female Zimbabwean poet to publish a book of poetry. It is the only poetry collection of post-independence Zimbabwean-English literature. In her poem, Rungano talks about the role of women in rural Zimbabwean society and how they are treated in the prevalent pro-patriarchal system. The essence of the poem alludes to the indigenous expression, “vakadzi ngavanyarare,” meaning “women should keep quiet.” This piece records how a woman’s voice is muted, burdened with the big earthenware of duty and domestic oppression.

• Read the full text of “ The Woman ”

In “The Woman,” Rungano talks through a lyrical persona who belongs to the rural scene of her country. She represents the majority of the women who are oppressed in the macro-level societal framework, family. This woman is seen invested in various works such as fetching water, working in the fields in scorching heat, bearing children, doing domestic works, etc. She does what he is destined to in a patriarchal society. In contrast, her husband stays busy in worldly pleasures without caring about the pain of his wife. He returns home, sadistically draws pleasure from his weary wife. This cycle keeps repeating in the speaker’s life until her death.

Structure & Form

Rungano’s lyric poem “The Woman” contains 36 lines that are grouped into a single stanza. As there is no regular rhyme or meter, it is a lyric poem. Besides, the text is written from the perspective of a first-person speaker (a rural woman) who talks about the cyclical suffering of womanhood. This piece showcases the feature of 20th-century confessional poetry, where the speaker talks about the untold cruelties, mental agony, and hopelessness. Apart from that, Rungano stylistically uses dashes in some instances for the sake of emphasizing particular terms: “And how feared for the child – yours – I carried.”

Poetic Devices

Rungano’s “The Woman” contains the following poetic devices that make the subject matter more appealing to readers.

• Enjambment: It occurs throughout the text. Rungano uses this device to make readers go through consecutive lines to grasp her idea. For instance, she enjambs the first three lines of the poem.
• Simile: This device is used in the following lines: “Where young women drew water like myself” and “As I hire the great big mud container on my head/ Like a big painful umbrella.”
• Imagery: The poet uses olfactory imagery in the phrases “the smell of flowers” and “sweet smell of the dung.” She uses visual imagery in “the stream that rushed before me,” “How young the grass around,” “the great big mud container on my head,” etc. Besides, she also uses organic imagery in order to convey the internal feelings of the speaker.
• Metaphor: Readers first come across a metaphor in the phrase “sound of duty/ which ground on me.” Here, the sound comes from the speaker’s subconscious mind and keeps her tied to her role as a dutiful mother, devoted wife, and relentless worker. Rungano also uses this device in these phrases, “the pleasures of the flesh,” “angry vigilance of the sun,” etc.
• Repetition: There is a repetition of the term “big” in lines 9-10. It is used to emphasize the magnitude of the speaker’s burden.
• Personification: The poet personifies the “sun” as an angry, vigilant, and male representative. It symbolizes ever-watchful patriarchy.
• Rhetorical Question: The poem ends with two rhetorical questions asked indirectly to the patriarchs, with an undertone of bitter sarcasm.

Rungano makes use of a number of themes in her poem “The Woman.” These include patriarchy, womanhood, women’s suffering, and struggle, motherhood, and society. The poem revolves around a Zimbabwean rural woman who has been married at a young age. She does all the domestic work and looks after her family. Even she has to work in the fields under harsh weather in order to make a living. In contrast, her husband does nothing but intensify the suffering of the wife. Through this story, Rungano shows how a woman is treated in a patriarchal framework. The last two lines pose a serious question to readers regarding how women are brainwashed to take up their gender roles.

Line-by-Line Analysis & Explanation

A minute ago I came … … the grass around it.

Kristina Rungano’s poem “The Woman” presents a rural woman who is married at an early age. She works all day relentlessly under the strict schedule of duty. It is important to mention how Rungano begins her poem. She creates a sense of urgency from the very beginning.

The speaker had just returned from the well a minute ago. She has no time to think about other things except her family and chores. It does not happen with only herself. Several young women face a similar fate in Zimbabwe’s rural scene.

Working under the strict vigilance of the ticking clock makes the woman’s body weary and her heart tired. In the next line, the speaker manages to look at her surroundings. She can feel the force of the rushing stream, the smell of fresh flowers, and the lush beauty of the grass. Here, the “stream,” “flowers,” and “grass” are used as a symbol of youth and freedom. These images from nature are contrasted with the lives of young women who fetch water from the well, including the speaker.

And yet again I heard … … toiled in the fields.

The speaker has no time to heed to such uplifting thoughts inspired by nature. A “sound of duty” rings directly from her subconscious mind. She has to leave her self-fulfilling thoughts aside and attend to duty’s tough call. The speaker is still a girl. Naturally, she has to be drawn to nature’s freeing call. In reality, she can’t.

The bond of marriage has already chained her wings. It has clipped her young feathers right before she could learn to fly. The sound of dutifulness feels like a heavy burden on her back. But, she has to carry it throughout her life and pass it onto her next generation, especially her daughters.

The burden makes her feel old. As she bears the “great big mud container,” a symbol of women’s responsibilities, she can feel how withered her heart is. It is not her age but her duties that make her feel aged. In the next line, Rungano uses a simile in order to compare the earthenware to a “big painful umbrella.” The “umbrella” of patriarchy gives women apparent protection by drawing out their personal desires and sense of freedom.

After fetching water from the well, she got home and cooked a meal for her husband. As she works without any break, her husband has been out drinking and carousing with his friends. He keeps himself busy in the “pleasures of the flesh,” a metaphor for drinking and having intercourse. In contrast to that, his wife toiled in the fields to make a living for both.

Lines 14-21

Under the angry … … applied to the floors

Rungano uses an important symbol in the first line of this section, “the angry vigilance of the sun.” As readers can see here, the “sun” is depicted as a male counterpart. With its scorching heat, it intensifies the suffering of the woman toiling in the fields. Like her husband is indifferent to her suffering, so is the sun. Unlike the symbolic significance of the “sun” in other romantic poems, here the sun is depicted as a tyrant, a vigilant overseer of women’s suffering.

Nobody is there to share the suffering of the woman. Interestingly, only her “womb” is there to share her pain of childbearing. It hints at the fact that the woman is pregnant. Given the fact that she is bearing a child, her husband does not even care to look after her or even help her with her chores.

After returning from the fieldwork, the speaker washed the dishes. Rungano especially emphasizes the term “yours” (the husband’s) by using a semicolon. In the next line, she dexterously uses the pronoun “we” that readers may ignore while reading. Here, “we” include not the speaker’s husband but the child she is bearing.

In reality, she swept the room her husband also shared. Then, she prepared his bedding in the finest corner of the hut. These lines hint at the privilege a man enjoys in his family. Most of the work is done by the woman, but the man is there always to receive special perks like having the finest corner in the hut. She bathed his husband’s cost corner with the “sweet smell of dung” that she applied to all the floors.

Lines 22-30

Then you came … … I hated you

Finally, the lord, with his drunken gait, came in. Then he made his demands to the speaker without looking at her condition. She tried to explain how weary she was after all day’s work. But, he did not care. She brooded over the infant in her womb that was also his child.

The agonized words could not soothe the patriarch’s, cold heart. He beat her and forcefully had his way into her. After he had satisfied his lust, he left her like an object.

The speaker felt unhappy and bitter. She hated him after all he did to her. But, who was there to listen to her agonized request? She had to suffer the pain alone.

Lines 31-36

Yet tomorrow I shall again … … the fruit of the land?

This abominable cycle keeps repeating in women’s lives. Readers can find this scene in any rural society of the world. The unspeakable suffering of women is universal in nature. This cycle has been in motion from time immemorial.

The next day, the same woman who was tortured last night by her husband and her duties should wake up to his duties. She had to milk the cow, plough the land, and cook his food as usual. He should be her divine “Lord” again. Here, Rungano capitalizes the first letter of the term for sake of emphasis. It also has an ironic undertone.

The last three lines contain the crux of the poem. These lines pose two important questions to society. Firstly, the speaker asks whether it is not right that a woman should obey, love, serve, and honour her man. Here, she tries to say that women are destined to be subjugated figuratively. Then she uses a patriotic metaphor, “the fruit of the land.” She asks whether women are not the fruit (children) of the land. This question is not for the women to answer. Rungano asks this question to men.

Historical Context

Kristina Masuwa-Morgan, better known as Kristina Rungano, depicts Zimbabwean society and culture in her best-known poem “The Woman.” This piece was published in Rungano’s first and only published poetry collection in Zimbabwe, A Storm is Brewing . The book was published in 1984 when the poet was 21 years old. She wrote this poem a few years ago when she was studying in Zimbabwe. In this poem, she describes how women are seen in Zimbabwean society and culture. They are treated like objects and subordinates to their male counterparts. The patriarchal framework of the country promotes women’s silence and their utter subjugation. Rungano describes all modes of suffering a woman is entitled to in her family, ranging from doing all the household work to mutedly digesting domestic violence.

Questions and Answers

Kristina Rungano’s poem “The Woman” is about women’s life in Zimbabwe’s rural scene. Rungano describes how a woman has to perform her duties relentlessly and serve her lordly husband throughout her life.

The poem was published in Kristina Rungano’s first collection of poetry, A Storm is Brewing , in 1984.

The speaker of this poem is a young woman who is married at an early age. Rungano uses the first-person narrative technique in order to describe her feelings and sufferings to readers.

Throughout this piece, Rungano talks about a woman who is seen chained to her duties. She works under a strict schedule. Alongside that, she has to work in the fields for a living. On top of that, her drunken husband intensifies her suffering by his indifference.

Rungano repeats the term in the lines, “As I bore the great big mud container on my head/ Like a big painful umbrella.” This repetition depicts the magnitude of the speaker’s pain and her duties.

The tone of this piece is complaining, sad, and hopeless. By using a complaining tone, Rungano tries to pose a series of questions to patriarchal society. It makes the speaker’s case more piercing and appealing to readers.

Rungano uses the “sun” as a symbol of patriarchy. Neither the woman’s husband nor the sun cares for her suffering. It rather intensifies her pain with scorching heat.

These lines hint at the fact that the speaker’s heart is still young. But, the burden of her duties makes her feel aged. Rungano uses these images to contrast them with the speaker’s condition.

The speaker’s heart, the source for personal desires, is tired of the burden of her duties. She has no time to think about herself. For this reason, her heart is gradually weakened.

This line hints at worldly pleasures such as drinking and having sex. The speaker’s husband keeps himself busy in entertainment while she works throughout the day.

The use of dashes naturally puts emphasis on the term “yours.” Here, the speaker wants to point at the fact that the child she is bearing also belongs to her husband. But, he does not care about either her or the child.

The last few lines of the poem describe the cyclical nature of the woman’s suffering. No matter how tired she was for the last night’s torture, she should wake up the next morning and have to follow the same routine. She dejectedly asks herself whether women are destined to serve men.

Similar Poems about Patriarchy & Women’s Suffering

• “Marrying the Hangman” by Margaret Atwood — This poem is based on a real event where a woman marries a hangman to save herself from capital punishment.
• “I’m “wife” — I’ve finished that —” by Emily Dickinson — This piece taps on the themes of women’s suffering and patriarchy.
• “Bequest” by Eunice de Souza — The speaker of this poem describes how patriarchy shapes the fate of women.
• “The Survivor” by Marilyn Chin — In this poem, Chin depicts women as survivors of patriarchal oppression.

External Resources

• Check out New Daughters of Africa — This famous anthology includes literary works of more than 200 African women writers, including some best-known poems of Kristina Rungano.
• Society and Culture of Zimbabwe — Learn about women’s pathetic condition in Zimbabwean society.
• About Kristina Rungano — Read about the poet’s life and her best-loved poems.
• Profile of Kristina Masuwa-Morgan — Explore the academic profile of the poet on the University of Greenwich’s website.

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The Woman Poem by Kristina Rungano Summary, Notes and Line by Line Explanation in English for Students

Table of Contents

Introduction

The poem “The Woman” is written by the first Zimbabwean woman poet, Kristina Rungano. It was published in her first poetry collection “A Storm is Brewing”, in 1984. The poem delves into the poignant portrayal of a woman’s daily struggles, reflecting the societal expectations and inequalities she faces. The poet does not hesitate to talk about the rampant issue of domestic violence and marital rape in the poem. The narrative of the poem unfolds through vivid imagery and a candid expression of emotions, providing insight into the burdens placed upon the female protagonist. The poem highlights the important issue of “women should stay silent” that is prevalent in her community and talks about how a woman is burdened with violence and then required to stay silent about all of it.

About the poet

Kristina Masuwa-Morgan Rungano was born in 1963 in Zimbabwe. She became the first Zimbabwean woman writer with the publication of her first poetry collection “A Storm is Brewing” in 1984. Her poems have been included in numerous anthologies like “Daughters of Africa” and “The Penguin Book of Modern African Poetry”. Her second poetry collection, “To Seek a Reprieve and Other Poems” was published in 2004.

The poem is written in one big stanza. It consists of 36 lines, all varying in length. The poem is written in first person narrative and talks about very personal and intimate issues of the woman’s life, showcasing the features of confessional poetry.

The speaker, a woman, talks about her day. She says that she just arrived home after returning from the well. She observed other young women like herself there. She talks about how her body was tired and fatigued and despite the refreshing surroundings of the fresh water flowing and the smell of fresh flowers wafting over her, she could not forget the weariness in her body and the fatigue in her heart. As she contemplates the beauty of the stream and its surroundings, the weight of duty resurfaces, making her feel aged and burdened. She notices the young grass but can still hear the sound of duty calling her, making her feel grounded and aged.

In these lines the woman recounts her day returning from the well, where she observed young women like herself. Despite the refreshing surroundings, the poet uses vivid imagery to portray her tired body and fatigued heart. The poet here uses metaphor and juxtaposition to symbolize duty as a burden that resurfaces, making her feel aged and grounded. This highlights the expectations that are placed upon women and the struggle against traditional gender roles. The poet contrasts between nature’s beauty and the weight of duty to reveal the theme of conflict, emphasizing the toll of conforming to prescribed roles and the loss of personal freedom.

The speaker describes bearing a heavy mud container on her head, comparing it to a painful umbrella. Returning home, she describes cooking a meal for someone who was busy taking pleasures of the flesh from elsewhere while she worked in the fields. She paints the scene of her working under a harsh and angry sun in the field. This laborious work was shared not by her husband, but only by the child in her womb. She tells us that she is pregnant with his child. She washes dishes which are his.

In this section, the poet vividly describes the physical strain of bearing a heavy mud container, comparing it to a “painful umbrella.” Through metaphor and symbolism, the poet highlights the themes of gender inequality, emphasizing the unequal distribution of labor and the impending challenges of motherhood. The mention of her husband seeking “pleasures of the flesh” adds a layer to social expectations, highlighting the sacrifice and hardship endured by the woman in fulfilling traditional roles within the relationship.

The imagery conveys the physical strain of labor under the sun’s harsh gaze, highlighting the unique burden carried by the bearings of her womb. The mention of washing dishes, specifically “yours,” emphasizes the unequal distribution of domestic responsibilities, revealing a theme of gender-based disparity in the speaker’s daily life.

Lines 17-24

The speaker describes doing the domestic chores of sweeping the shared room before preparing her partner’s bedding. She prepares his bed in the finest corner of the hut. She talks about how she had applied dung to the floors for a sweet smell, this suggests a meticulous effort in homemaking. She had just applied the dung on the floor earlier in the morning. However, the narrative takes a darker turn as the speaker describes the partner entering in a state of drunken lust, making demands.

In this section, the poet describes domestic chores, including sweeping the room and preparing her partner’s bedding in the finest corner of the hut, emphasizing traditional gender roles and expectations. The application of dung for a sweet smell adds ironic depth to the otherwise dedicated homemaking efforts. However, the narrative takes a turn after the arrival of the partner. He enters in a state of drunken lust, introducing a theme of power dynamics and vulnerability. The poet has used the unsettling shift in tone to contrast with the calm and serene domestic space, highlighting the complex and uncomfortable aspects of the relationship.

Lines 25-36

The woman tries to reason with her husband. She explains to him that she will not be able to participate in the sexual act as she was tired. She also talks about how, as she was pregnant, she fears that intercourse could harm his child. She says that the damage would occur to his own child that was in her womb. But he still beats her and has his way with her. This incident left her angry and resentful towards her husband, but only for a short time.

The woman talks about how she hated her husband at the time but she knows that come tomorrow morning, she will get back to her daily domestic chores. He will wake him up in the morning again and then milk the cow, plough the land and cook food for him. She says that he will still remain her Lord, so one who she has to obey. Her responsibility and duty is to obey his commands, love him, serve him and always honor him. She ends the poem by saying that she has to do all of this because he is the “fruit of the land”.

The poet talks about the unsettling incident where, even though the woman expressed her exhaustion and concern for the child she carries, she was met with violence from her partner. He physically as well as sexually abuses her. But despite the unhappiness and bitterness that result, the woman knows that the cycle of domestic duties as well as the cycle of abuse will keep on repeating.

She will have to keep addressing her partner as “Lord” and meet the societal expectation for women to obey, love, serve, and honor their men. The poem concludes with the rhetorical question that highlights the oppression of traditional gender roles on women. The poet portrays the partner as the symbolic “fruit of the land” highlighting how he has a right on the land as well as the woman. This section highlights themes of domestic violence, societal expectations, and the internal conflict faced by the woman in conforming to roles within the relationship.

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Kristina Rungano

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The Woman by Kristina Rungano

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A Summary and Analysis of Alice Walker’s ‘Women’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘Women’ is a 1970 poem by Alice Walker (born 1944), one of the best-known African American writers of the second half of the twentieth century. Although she is probably most famous for her 1982 novel The Color Purple , Walker has written short stories and numerous other novels. She also started out her published career as a poet.

In ‘Women’, Alice Walker pays tribute to the women of her mother’s generation: tough, resolute women who were able to balance their private domestic duties with a fight for better opportunities for their children. Before we offer a closer and more detailed analysis of the poem’s meaning and themes, let’s briefly summarise its content.

‘Women’: summary

The poem comprises a single stanza. Walker begins by summoning her mother’s generation of women. They were true women: they had rather dry, throaty, gruff voices and walked firmly and with a clear sense of purpose. They were able to break down barriers that stood in their way, using not only their hands but their fists (implying anger and strength, as well as that purpose again).

But they could also do the more traditionally ‘womanly’ things of the time, like ironing their husbands’ starched white shirts for work. Indeed, such women were effectively leaders of armies of other women: they wore rags around their heads and commanded and inspired women to follow them.

The struggles they faced in society, to gain access to things like books and places where their daughters might study, were like a field full of booby traps and landmines. These women well understood that it was important for their daughters to get a good education, even though they never had one themselves.

‘Women’: analysis

Alice Walker was born in 1944, the daughter of sharecroppers Minnie Lou Grant and Willie Lee Walker, and grew up in Eatonville, Georgia. Walker’s mother worked as a domestic servant and was a talented gardener, with her daughter later paying homage to the gardens her mother cultivated.

And in many ways, ‘Women’ is first and foremost a tribute to her mother’s tenacity and generosity, although – as the plural of the title immediately suggests – she is paying homage to a whole generation of women who helped to make the opportunities Walker herself, and other women of her own generation, have been able to use.

During the 1960s, Walker had become involved in the US civil rights movement . Indeed, for a time she moved from her home state of Georgia and worked in New York City in the welfare department. Her work reflects not only the struggles of women of Walker’s mother’s generation but, more specifically, the struggles of African-American women, for whom life was doubly hard and opportunities even smaller in number.

Walker is at pains to emphasise that her mother’s generation were not only firebrands or warriors, despite the military language she employs in the poem. Nor, however, does she want to suggest that her mother and other women like her were simply conventional wives and mothers who looked after their children and carried out everyday household tasks.

Instead, they did both. This is neatly encapsulated by the reference to the women having fists as well as hands. Fists are, of course, made from hands: the hands that the women use to conduct their mundane domestic chores could also be tightened into a more bellicose or defiant pose. Fists need not imply violence, and the image that follows links these fists with the act of banging down doors, to get people’s attention and to gain access to places they had been forbidden to set foot before.

Alice Walker’s ‘Women’ is written in free verse . This means that the poem lacks a rhyme scheme or a regular metre or rhythm. But this is not the same as saying that the poem is without any structure or control. Instead, Walker uses enjambment in the poem to great effect. This term (derived from the French) describes a literary device whereby a sentence or phrase continues past the end of a particular verse line and into the next.

And if we analyse ‘Women’ more closely, we find little punctuation. Indeed, there are just two punctuation marks in the whole poem: the dash in the third line, which sharply delineates, but also links, the women’s sharp and resolute features, and the full stop at the very end of the poem.

Otherwise, ‘Women’ is a poem without conventional punctuation. But as T. S. Eliot once observed , verse is itself a system of punctuation. Line endings provide their own pauses in the flow of the poem, as well as joining the thoughts expressed on one line with those that follow in the next.

And in this poem, Walker enacts brief momentary pauses between lines by withholding the final detail until the next line at a given moment: consider how, after ‘fists’, we must wait for ‘Hands’ in the next line; or how the battering down of those ‘Doors’ is delayed for maximum shock value as we wait for the other shoe to drop (or fist to fall) onto those doors in the line that follows.

The overall effect is to create a purposeful, resolute march towards progress as the women bravely work to carve out a brighter and more hopeful future for their children. The effect would be very different if the words were rearranged as prose, or even into longer lines. Each word, each new revelation, has the force of a mini-surprise because it is isolated onto a single line.

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• Poems Amplifying the Women's Rights Movement: Voices of Power and Empowerment

The women's rights movement has been a powerful force throughout history, challenging societal norms and advocating for gender equality. Just as activism has taken many forms, so has the expression of these ideas through poetry. Poets have used their words to capture the struggles, triumphs, and aspirations of women fighting for their rights. In this article, we explore a few remarkable poems that have become symbolic anthems for the women's rights movement.

1. "Still I Rise" by Maya Angelou

2. "phenomenal woman" by maya angelou, 3. "a room of one's own" by virginia woolf, 4. "the women's rights" by alice duer miller.

One of the most famous and empowering poems in the women's rights movement is Maya Angelou's "Still I Rise." With its resounding message of resilience and empowerment, this poem has become an anthem for women worldwide. Angelou's powerful words celebrate the strength of women and their ability to rise above adversity, discrimination, and oppression. The lines "You may shoot me with your words, / You may cut me with your eyes, / You may kill me with your hatefulness, / But still, like air, I'll rise" capture the indomitable spirit of the women's rights movement.

Another iconic poem by Maya Angelou, "Phenomenal Woman," celebrates the beauty, strength, and identity of women. Through vivid descriptions and self-assured language, Angelou emphasizes that true beauty comes from within. The poem radiates with confidence and self-love, urging women to embrace their uniqueness. The stanza "It's the fire in my eyes, / And the flash of my teeth, / The swing in my waist, / And the joy in my feet" exemplifies the poem's empowering essence, reminding women of their inherent worth and value.

In her seminal work, "A Room of One's Own," Virginia Woolf explores the necessity of women having economic and intellectual independence. Though not a poem in the traditional sense, this extended essay is written with a poetic prose style that resonates deeply with readers. Woolf argues that women must have both physical and metaphorical space to express their thoughts and ideas freely. Her poignant words, "A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction," highlight the importance of women's autonomy and agency, inspiring countless women to pursue their passions fearlessly.

Alice Duer Miller's poem, "The Women's Rights," written in the early 20th century, encapsulates the essence of the women's suffrage movement. The poem cleverly challenges the notion that women are inferior to men, highlighting the absurdity of such beliefs. Miller's words capture the determination and resilience of women fighting for their rights, challenging society to recognize their inherent equality. The lines "Why should a woman be treated like a doll / And told that her place is at home? / When she's proved she can manage a home, and all / The offices in Rome," powerfully convey the demand for women's rights and equality.

Poetry has long been a medium for expressing the collective voice of the women's rights movement. Through the power of words, poets have inspired, empowered, and challenged societal norms. These poems, among countless others, continue to resonate with women around the world, reminding them of their worth, strength, and the ongoing fight for equality. As we celebrate the achievements of the women's rights movement, let us also recognize the vital role that poetry plays in amplifying these voices and shaping a more inclusive world.

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Women Summary & Analysis by Alice Walker

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis
• Poetic Devices
• Vocabulary & References
• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme
• Line-by-Line Explanations

Alice Walker published "Women" in her first collection of poems, Once , in 1968. The poem's speaker praises the strength, courage, and perseverance of the Black women of her "mama's generation." Despite not being given the opportunity and resources to excel at (or possibly even attend) school, these women fought for their children to have access to education. The poem further implies that education is an important tool for the liberation of communities oppressed by racism, sexism, and classism.

• Read the full text of “Women”

The Full Text of “Women”

“women” summary, “women” themes.

Black Women’s Strength, Perseverance, and Sacrifice

The Importance of Education

Lines 19-27, line-by-line explanation & analysis of “women”.

They were women ... ... Hands

How they battered ... ... Shirts

Lines 12-18

How they led ... ... Ditches

To discover books ... ... Themselves.

“Women” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

• Lines 3-4: “of / Step”
• Lines 5-6: “as / Hands”
• Lines 7-9: “down / Doors / And”
• Lines 9-10: “ironed / Starched”
• Lines 10-11: “white / Shirts”
• Lines 12-13: “led / Armies”
• Lines 15-16: “mined / Fields”
• Lines 17-18: “trapped / Ditches”
• Lines 22-24: “what / we / Must”
• Lines 24-25: “know / Without”
• Lines 25-26: “page / Of”
• Lines 26-27: “it / Themselves”

Alliteration

• Line 1: “were,” “women”
• Line 2: “My,” “mama's”
• Line 3: “Husky,” “stout”
• Line 4: “Step”
• Line 6: “Hands”
• Line 7: “How,” “down”
• Line 8: “Doors”
• Line 18: “Ditches”
• Line 19: “discover”
• Line 20: “Desks”
• Line 22: “what”
• Line 23: “we”
• Line 25: “Without”
• Lines 7-8: “How they battered down / Doors”
• Lines 12-18: “How they led / Armies / Headragged generals / Across mined / Fields / Booby-trapped / Ditches”
• Lines 3-4: “Husky of voice—stout of / Step”
• Line 7: “How they”
• Line 12: “How they”
• Line 22: “How they,” “knew”
• Line 24: “know”
• Line 25: “knowing”

“Women” Vocabulary

Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

• Husky of voice
• Stout of step
• Battered down
• Booby-trapped
• (Location in poem: Line 3: “Husky of voice”)

Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Women”

Rhyme scheme, “women” speaker, “women” setting, literary and historical context of “women”, more “women” resources, external resources.

A Reading of the Poem — Listen to a recording of "Women."

Learn More About Alice Walker — A biography of the poet from the Poetry Foundation.

A Brief Description of Walker's First Book of Poems — Read a description of the poems in Once, in which "Women" first appeared. 

Writer's Symposium by the Sea with Alice Walker — A 2020 interview with the poet in which she discusses her writing, love, freedom, and societal change. 

Alice Walker Looks Back on Life — A New York Times article exploring Walker's legacy, the publication of her diaries, and her sometimes contentious stances on various social issues. 

LitCharts on Other Poems by Alice Walker

Poem at Thirty-Nine

Ask LitCharts AI: The answer to your questions

Women by Alice Walker. Analysis of the Poem

Alice Walker is a multifaceted author, excelling in both prose and poetry, and her works are deeply influenced by her experience as an African-American woman. She is very concerned with women’s plight and rights and explores the topic in most of her bibliography. While one may be more familiar with the author’s novels, Walker’s poetry is no less striking. Particularly, in Women , the speaker uses a sad yet motivating tone, literary devices such as symbolism and free verse to develop the theme of African-American women’s fight.

In Walker’s Women , the speaker’s retelling of her mother’s generation is in a sad tone which gradually changes into that of encouragement and motivation to highlight the struggle of those women. The speaker dolefully describes the daily chores that African-American women had to do “ironed,” “starched white,” “battered down doors,” and “how they led armies” (Walker line 9, line 10, line 7, line 12, line 13). In the same tone, the speaker refers to the appearance of these women as “husky of their voice,” “stout,” and “fists as well as hands” to indicate how it reflected their battle (Walker line 3, line 5). Shamase and Dhivya, who are well-versed specialists with a focus on African women, agree that African-American women’s lot is conveyed through the tone of sadness and encouragement (9210; 47). Plant, a Ph.D. scholar invested in Africana culture and literature, believes that Walker’s works are inspired by her female ancestors’ harsh experience following the Civil War (10). Altogether, the poet uses a tone denoting both sadness and encouragement to immerse the reader into the atmosphere where African-American women of the past lived and survived.

The speaker also uses the literary device of symbolism to emphasize women’s everyday struggle. It also reinforces the sad tone and the theme of combat for their children’s future (Plant 20; Dhivya 46). The speaker uses military symbols throughout the poem to conceptualize the struggle: “armies,” “headragged generals,” “mine,” “fields,” and “boobie trapped ditches” (Walker line 13, line 14, line 15, line 16, line 17). Those concepts also have an antique air around them, which helps one feel the spirit of that time and, perhaps, the Civil War. Thus, the military symbolism reflects the idea that the women did not merely tolerate their harsh lives; they fought for themselves and the future generations, sometimes literally.

Women ’s tone is strengthened by the use of free verse, allowing for the poem’s reading as a single verse, which would emphasize the idea of liberation through education and enable more interpretations. The 27-line poem does not have a formal structure or a rhyme scheme, but its rhythmic beat creates a sense of a determined, awed, and violent tone: “how they battered down doors” (Walker line 7, line 8). The absence of a rhyme scheme and the use of the plosive sounds (“b,” “d,” “t,” and “k”) allow the poet to intensify a chaotic image. Later, they serve to confirm the women’s victory in the end: “battered,” “bobby-trapped,” and “down” (Walker line 7, line 17). In her life and writing, Walker greatly values education and freedom, so the poem could reflect those phenomena and the poet’s frustration with her ancestors being deprived of both (Plant 35, 77). Overall, the free verse allows the reader to interpret Women in various ways and even change its tone as they see fit, but Walker’s vision remains valid.

Throughout the poem, Walker uses an ambiguous tone, varying from sad to violent, military symbolism, and free verse to highlight the struggles of her predecessors, African-American women. The imagery created by those means blur the lines between the past and the present, as the community’s battle for survival continues, acquiring new forms and adversaries. However, the poem reassures the reader by implying that victory eventually comes, although the cost might be high.

Works Cited

Dhivya, E. “Women as Victims: An Analysis of Alice Walker’s The Color Purple.” Language in India, vol. 16, no. 1, 2016, pp. 47–53.

Plant, Deborah G. Alice Walker: A Woman for Our Times. ABC-CLIO, 2017. Google Books , Web.

Shamase, Maxwell Z. “A Theoretical Exposition of Feminism And Womanism in African Context.” Gender & Behaviour, vol. 15, no. 2, 2017, pp. 9210–9222.

Walker, Alice. Women . 2020. Web.

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An Essay on Woman in Three Epistles

AN ESSAY ON WOMAN, IN THREE EPISTLES.

LONDON: PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR. And Sold by Mr. GRETTON, in Bond-Street. And Mr. POTTINGER, in Pater-Noster-Row.

AN ESSAY ON WOMAN.

EPISTLE II.

K NOW then thyself... and make the Sex thy care, The proper study of Mankind's the FAIR; Plac'd in that state — which all who know thee, know A Politician, Poet, Parson, Beau; Created half to rise, and half to fall, Great son of Homer — doating on a doll; Truth's friend so fond of female falsehood grown, The glory, jest, and riddle of the town. Go, wond'rous creature, as Apollo leads, And mark the Path majestic Milton treads; The little versifiers teach to write, Then to thy bottle and thy w.... at night. The wondering actors, when of late they saw A grave Divine explain theatric law, Admir'd the wisdom of the rev'rend cowl, And shew'd a C....., as we shew an owl. Has he who wrote the Rosciad e'er inclin'd. Ten days together to one female mind? Then might thy friend be constant to his W...., And PRIVILEGE be pleaded then no more. Woman to man still yields {and where's the harm?) Who keeps her close while she has power to charm; Then yields her to his fellow-brutes a prey: And where's the fault, my friend, in us, or they? Two principles in human nature reign, Self-love to urge, and reason to restrain: Self-love, the spring of motion, acts the soul; And reason yields to its supreme controul: Great strength the moving principal requires, Active its task, it prompts, impels, inspires; Sedate and quiet sense and reason lie; We yield to passion, and from reason fly. We sieze immediate good by present sense, And leave to fate and chance the consequence: Thicker than arguments temptations throng, More pow'rful these, though those are ne'er so strong. Self-love and reason to one end aspire, Pain our aversion, pleasure our desire; But greedy still our object to devour, We crop, without remorse, the fairest flow'r: Pleasure, with us, is always understood, Howe'er obtain'd, our best and greatest good. Passions, like elements, though born to fight, By female pow'r subdu'd, are alter'd quite; These 'tis enough to temper and employ, While what affords most pleasure, can destroy. All spread their charms, but charm not all alike, On different senses different objects strike; Hence different ladies, more or less inflame; Or different pow'rs sometimes attend the fame; And calling up each passion of the breast, Each lady, in her turn, subdues the rest. As man, perhaps, the moment of his breath, Imbibes the flame which ends not but with death; The flame, that must subdue the fair at length, Grows with his growth, and strengthens with his strength. So cast and mingled too in Woman's , frame, Her mind's disease, her ruling passion came. Imagination plies her dangerous art, And pours it all upon the peccant part: Nature it's mother, habit is it's nurse, Wit, spirit, faculties, but make it worse. We wretched subjects to the female sway, The tyrant, Woman, one and all, obey; Who, bent to govern by her own wise rules, Will, if she finds not, aim to make us fools; Teach us to mourn our state, but not to mend; A sharp accuser, but a helpless friend! Proud of her easy conquest all along, She still allays our passions, weak or strong. Virtuous and vicious every man must be; Women are neither in a small degree; The rogue and fool, by fits, is fair and wise, Women are always what they most despice: 'Tis but by parts Man follows good or ill; Woman's sole sovereign is her own dear will , While ev'ry man pursues a different goal, Womans whole aim's unlimited controul, The faults of men, and their defects of mind, Afford the highest joy to womankind. See some peculiar whim each man attend; See every Woman lab'ring to one end: See some fit passion ev'ry man employ; Empire alone affords the Woman joy. Behold the Girl , by Nature's kindly law, Pleas'd with a rattle, tickled with a straw; Some other bauble gives her youth delight, A little louder, but as empty quite. Dress, dancing, balls, amuse her riper age, And drams and opiates are the toys of age; Pleas'd with this bauble still, as that before, 'Till tir'd, she sleeps... and life's poor play is o'er .

EPISTLE III.

O H Happiness! to which we all aspire, Wing'd with strong hope, and borne by full desire, Oh Ease! for which in want, in wealth we sigh, That Ease for which we labour and we die. Why should the Female ever have the power, To tyrannize o'er Man, and to devour? Why should the wife, the learned, and the fool, The brave, the rich.... submit to Woman's rule? Ask of the learn'd the cause, the learn'd are blind, This bids us seek, that shun all Womankind; Some place the bliss in serving one alone, Some by a single Passion are undone. Some, sunk to beasts, find pleasure end in pain. Some, swell'd to Gods,... confess all pleasure vain; Some hold the maxim others wrong would call, To try all Women... and to doubt them all. Oh, Sons of Men! attempt no more to rise, But own the wond'rous force of Woman's eyes; Who, big with laughter, your vain toil surveys, And shews her power a thousand diff'rent ways. Know all the happiness we hope to find, Depends upon the will of Womankind. Nothing so true as Pope, long since, let fall, "Most Women have no characters at all"; How many pictures of one nymph we view! All how unlike each other... all how true! See Sin in state majestically drunk; Proud as a Peeress, prouder as a punk; Chaste to her husband, frank to all beside, A teeming mistress, but a barren bride; In whose mad brain the mix'd ideas roll, Of Tallboy's breeches, and Caesar's soul. Who, spite of delicasy, stoops at once, And makes her hearty meal upon a dunce. In Men we various ruling passion find, In Women... two alone divide the mind; Those only fixed, they, first or last, obey, The love of pleasure, and the love of sway.

This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.

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Birthing Woman as Viscera-Sucker

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text in italics from “The Viscera-Sucker and the Politics of Gender” by Herminia Meñez

In preparation for his arrival I made my den:                              candles, bergamot-doused humidifier, coconut water, contraction timer. 

                                         By day, the viscera-sucker                                          appears                                          an exceptionally attractive woman                                          with long hair fuller and richer                                           from the hormones that infused my body

            the creature clung to sac,             placenta,             umbilical cord.

                                         By night, she discards her lower torso, hiding it                                          under the sheets, in a closet, or among a patch                                          of banana trees. Day eleven after due date:                                           the hilot who evicted overstaying children                                           speared needles and enerhiya into my shoulders,                                           initiating his departure.                                           Another hilot swept membranes, 

            commenced a stirring.             *

            *

                        Triad of healers prepared massage                         looped a malong to stretch my back                         sang songs to dance the child down                                          sprinkling holy water, burning incense

                                          contractions                                           were violent,                                           bursting from the inside                                          displaying blessed palms,

            doula did not arrive

                                         the crucifix, and praying                                          are believed to paralyze a witch.

                        blood pooled out of me,                         maxi-pad soaked in red.                                             To capture a viscera-sucker,                         GO! I emitted.                                          one should cast a priest’s cincture                                          or belt around her body                                          to make her

                        At the hospital, I arrived                                          powerless.                                                        a tortured, writhing beast                                                        doctors and nurses in gowns and gloves                                                                                    probed                                                                                    connected                                                                                    draped                                                                                    monitored                                                                                    injected.

              A hand, my hand signed papers shoved at it.               Papers quivered off the narrow bed like leaves blown by a supernatural wind.          

Birth plans prayers blueprints abandoned.

They wringed their hands and wheeled me into the fluorescent chamber.

                                         If someone rubs ashes, salt, vinegar, lemon juice,                                          garlic, ginger, pepper, and other spices on her                                          discarded part, reattachment is impossible Sliced in two, I parted for his removal                                            and the viscera-sucker dies fragmented.

Copyright © 2024 by Aimee Suzara. Originally published in Poem-a-Day on May 23, 2024, by the Academy of American Poets.

More by this poet

“These people, both men and women, seem amphibious, and to be able to live on water as well as on the land, so well do they swim and dive. Five pieces of iron were thrown into the sea to them for the pleasure of seeing them exercise themselves. One of them was skillful enough to get all five of them, and in so short a time, that one can regard it as marvelous.”

Mujer Malvada

To La Siguanaba

I sprout from your black waters—arms rooting  to earth, bajo luna del lago Coatepque. I am birthed from your memory, given a new skin and hide to brush and braid, ashes de Izalco dusting my hair. 

In the ن of it all

two arms in air,  in dance, after catastrophe. 

  the body                     the universe                       the body

the fabric held at two points:

i am lamb.                                   i am shepherd.

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Poems by Phillis Wheatly and Anne Bradstreet Essay

Introduction, the similarity, the difference.

Over the ages and at the time of the Revolution, the majority of authors and poets in American history have been men. Some women authors, such as Phyllis Wheatley and Anne Bradstreet, presented an extraordinary portrayal of history and used poetry to communicate their ideas and opinions. Their voices were heard in a macho environment because these writers were dynamic and distinctive, drawing inspiration from religion and historical periods. Wheatley was a poet in the 1700s, whereas Bradstreet was a writer in the 1600s (Belasco & Johnson, 2006). Their terrible difficulties and battles show their commonality, despite their differences, as depicted by Bradstreet’s radical feminism (via her symbolic interpretations) and Wheatley’s abolitionist attitude.

Belasco and Johnson (2006) state that both Wheatley and Bradstreet penned their works at times of immense social upheaval and change, such as the Age of Revolution. Religious evolution, colonialism, slavery, sexism, and racism were only a few of the socially divisive challenges that nations faced throughout the 1600s and 1800s. As women attempting to adopt a divisive symbol, they penned poetry that demonstrated their unique will to succeed where society had failed. They overcame obstacles to achieve literary success. Phillis Wheatly was confronted with the age-old problem of enslavement and integration into a racist culture. That is why she wrote so much poetry about emancipation, oppression, and liberation. At age seven, she and other enslaved people participated in the harrowing Trans-Atlantic Trade and were brought to Boston. After John Wheatley bought Wheatley to be his wife’s company in Boston, she became his servant. Wheatly published Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral, when she was just twelve years old, making her the first black woman poet. After releasing many collections of poetry, Wheatley passed away in 1784.

Even though she was born in England, Ann Bradstreet made significant contributions to the problems facing communities all around the world. Bradstreet’s culture was European, but it had the same problems with sexism and mistreatment of women as the United States had. Levine et al. (2017) explain that Bradstreet, encouraged by her father to pursue an education, aimed to infer meaning from her firm religious beliefs and explore underlying societal concerns. “Like any good Puritan, Bradstreet constantly probed her conscience and grappled with making meaning of occurrences, such as the home fire questioning a divine design,” which displays her artistic exploration of societal problems and religion. Reference: (Levine et al., 2017; p. 218). By the time of her death in 1672, Bradstreet had published two collections of poetry that captured the spirit of the era while illuminating its hardships and triumphs. Bradstreet and Wheatley’s shared affinity for literature may have been influenced by their same upbringings and early successes in reading and school. Their literary journeys to freedom and achievement find parallels in the struggles of real people.

The subjects and writing styles of these works are informed by the wide range of eras and civilizations in which its authors have lived and by the difficulties each has faced. Wheatley’s poetry has been used to establish her as a Puritan who saw her enslavement as a means by which she became closer to God ( (Showalter, 2010). Slavery had left a strong need for freedom in Wheatley, and the poem To the Right Honourable William, Earl of Dartmouth, is an expression of that longing. She explains how she was taken from her family and how her enslavement was similar to the connection between the colonies and England. In her accounts, slavery has been devastating for her, and she wanted to be free. She had a deep dislike for slavery, despite her devotion to religion and the belief that it brought her closer to God.

By contrast, Bradstreet’s work frequently distanced itself from Puritan ideals and questioned their continued relevance. Bradstreet’s initial skepticism of God’s existence was replaced by awe at the wonders she witnessed. Her evolving worldview is reflected in lines from the song Verses about the Burning of our house: “And when I could no longer see, / I blest His name that gave and took, / That laid my possessions now in the dust. / Yea, thus it was, and so ’twas right. / It was his own, it was not mine” (Bradstreet, 1666). More than that, Bradstreet’s feminist perspective on society’s contempt for women’s place was made clear in her poetry. She writes poetry to demonstrate how English culture has undervalued women and relegated them to the home.

However, she was not trying to encourage them to defy their spouses or abandon their parental duties. Bradstreet emphasizes the value of a woman and her love in her poetry Letter to the beloved and loving husband by saying, “If ever wife was happy in a man, /compare with me, ye ladies, if ye may. / I regard thy love more than vast mines of money” (Bradstreet, 1678). Wheatley and Bradstreet’s lives and the cultures in which they flourished had a substantial impact on the topics and ways they explored in their poetry.

Poetry by Wheatley and Bradstreet is analyzed in literature to show how, although having lived in civilizations with similar problems, they approach and express those problems differently. Despite being born and raised in different eras, both authors went through comparable experiences that ultimately led to their respective creative achievements. It was a battle for them to reach their full academic potential and break out of their circumstances. Thus, despite differences in worldview, writing technique, and subject matter, there are commonalities in their poetic and literary works.

Belasco, S., & Johnson, L. C. (2006). The Bedford anthology of American literature . Bedford/St. Martins.

Levine, R. S., Elliott, M. A., Gustafason, S. M., Hungerford, A., & Loeffelholz, M. (Eds.). (2016). The Norton anthology of American literature: Volume A and B (Vol. 1). WW Norton & Company.

Showalter, E. (2010). A jury of her peers: American women writers from Anne Bradstreet to Annie Proulx. Vintage Books.

Bradstreet, A., & Hensley, J. (1967). The works of Anne Bradstreet . Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Wheatley, P. (1773). Poems on various subjects, religious and moral . Printed for A. Bell.

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IvyPanda. (2024, May 26). Poems by Phillis Wheatly and Anne Bradstreet. https://ivypanda.com/essays/poems-by-phillis-wheatly-and-anne-bradstreet/

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IvyPanda . 2024. "Poems by Phillis Wheatly and Anne Bradstreet." May 26, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/poems-by-phillis-wheatly-and-anne-bradstreet/.

1. IvyPanda . "Poems by Phillis Wheatly and Anne Bradstreet." May 26, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/poems-by-phillis-wheatly-and-anne-bradstreet/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Poems by Phillis Wheatly and Anne Bradstreet." May 26, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/poems-by-phillis-wheatly-and-anne-bradstreet/.

The forgotten women writers of the Shakespearean era

I n a worst-case scenario, Virginia Woolf said, Renaissance women writers would wind up like Judith, Shakespeare ’s sister, who, although she was as clever and talented as her older brother, did not amount to anything. Feeling depressed and rejected , she killed herself .  

But Woolf was wrong. Shakespeare had a daughter named Judith. His sister was Joan, and there’s no indication that either woman was suicidal or inclined to write. “Woolf’s doomed vision of women writers in the 15th and 16th century Europe was horribly mistaken,” according to Ramie Targoff. Her latest book, Shakespeare’s Sisters: How Women Wrote the Renaissance, focuses on successful women writers who lived from about 1450 to 1650. 

Often, they began writing because of a pivotal experience, such as a religious conversion, a death in the family, a divorce, being disinherited, or being unjustly treated. Ultimately, these women had a message, Targoff says, and were determined to express it. 

They lived during a time when women were not educated and were mostly illiterate. Only women at the highest level of society, such as Henry VIII’s daughters, Elizabeth and Mary, received an education. A few wealthy women had tutors who taught them to read, write, play music , paint, and dance. But even wealthy women were considered their husbands' property and were told to keep quiet and let their husbands (whom they called “my lord”) do the talking. Women often tried to hide their work or their names as authors. Only a few sought to be published. Making the situation more difficult, all English books had to be approved by the Anglican Church. Any book that went against the party line was either confiscated or destroyed. 

Then, in the early 1990s, everything changed. According to Targoff, works hidden and neglected for three centuries surfaced, revealing well-written women’s letters, diaries, poems, and memoirs. 

The narrative alternates between different players introduced at the outset with an engaging description of the funeral of Queen Elizabeth I, an occasion that in some way involves the four women who will become major players in the narrative. The jumping around can sometimes be disorienting, with the chapters’ focuses switching as they do from one person’s life and history to another. I also would like to see more samples of the women’s writing itself. 

That said, overall, the book reads like a poetically written novel replete with imagery and figures of sound, as opposed to chapters in a history. Although Shakespeare’s Sisters could be considered scholarly because of its subject matter, the book is written in clear, unpretentious language. Targoff also includes captivating introductions and cliffhanger chapter endings that keep readers turning pages. Resonant details of character, plot, and setting help to bring her story alive. 

Targoff focuses on women who were self-directed despite being born into a society that insisted that women conform to their fathers' and husbands' dictates. Take Lady Anne Clifford (1590-1676). In her time, men usually handed down their property to male relatives because women were thought incapable of the responsibility. Titles could only be passed to male heirs. 

When Clifford’s father died, her rightful inheritance went to her uncle. She believed this to be an injustice. It became the subject of much of her writing. A journal-keeper and memoirist, she fought for decades to hold on to her family’s land. And she won. She became a just and considerate landowner and even established Saint Anne’s Hospital, which gave shelter and medical care to the poor — especially older, indigent women.  

During the Renaissance, Catholics and Protestants warred over their theological doctrines. There were Protestant kings and Catholic queens in the same family. King Charles I (1600-1649) was Protestant, for example, while his queen, Henrietta Maria, was Catholic. Though religion affected most English citizens, it hit Lady Elizabeth Cary (1585-1639) especially hard. She converted to Catholicism when she and her Protestant husband lived in Ireland, and thereby destroyed her marriage. She also lost custody of their 11 children. Carey was determined to recover her family and bring about their conversion to Roman Catholicism. 

As religious fighting broke out and the country descended into civil war, Cary wrote translations, letters, essays, and plays, with one of her better-known plays focusing on the Jewish princess Mariam (Herod’s second wife), a woman who spoke “too rashly” and with “a public voice,” as did Cary in her attempts to spread the word. Her daughters, who became Benedictine nuns, wrote The Lady Falkland, a biography of their mother delving further into her religious nature. 

Mary Sidney (1561-1621), Countess of Pembroke, was the most highly regarded of the poets here. Her brother was the famous poet Philip Sidney. She worked with him as he translated the Psalms and other poems. After his death in battle, she was inspired to write her own translations and poems. She became a published poet in her own right and was a friend of William Shakespeare. 

Aemilia Lanyer (1569-1645), possibly Shakespeare’s Dark Lady, was the first English woman in the 17th century to publish a book of original poetry. Her book, Salve Deus Judaeorum, written in iambic pentameter, showcased Pontius Pilate’s wife, who, because of her dream, had warned Pilate not to crucify Christ. Pilate didn’t heed her warning. 

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

Diane Scharper is a frequent contributor to the Washington Examiner. She teaches the Memoir Seminar for the Johns Hopkins Osher Program.

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ONEFOUR's Unfinished Legacy

After a tumultuous journey, ONEFOUR are looking forward, and they’re adamant that their musical journey is far from over.

Despite being Australia's most significant hip-hop act, Mount Druitt's ONEFOUR has never performed a headline show in Melbourne and only just performed their first international headline show in Bali last month. This will change on June 8, as group members J Emz, Spenny, and Lekks will take the stage as the headliners of RISING festival, alongside co-headliners Snoh Alegra and Yasiin Bey.

As pioneers of the local drill scene, ONEFOUR has left an indelible mark on Australia's hip-hop landscape. Songs like 2019's "The Message," "Spot The Difference," and "In The Beginning" have influenced the sound of an entire emerging class of Australian rappers. They gave fans, critics, and global audiences insight into this journey in their Netflix documentary Against All Odds , released in October last year. 

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The group, whose original lineup included J Emz, Celly, YP, Spenny, and Lekks, has experienced a chaotic rise over the last six years. A sharp binary characterises their story: they've achieved unprecedented success for an Australian rap group, and their music has transcended AUNZ borders. However, they've also encountered serious legal troubles. Most notably, members Celly, Lekks, and YP faced severe legal repercussions for a violent assault committed in 2019. 

ONEFOUR's legal troubles over the years have resulted in frequent lineup changes, and YP also formally left the group in February this year after becoming an ordained priest. Regarding where the group is currently, it's J Emz, Lekks, and Spenny holding the group down—and they're adamant the group's story is far from over. On May 20, ONEFOUR released their highly-anticipated track "Natural Habitat"—which they've been teasing fans with for over a year—featuring verses from Lekks, Spenny, and J Emz. The group has also just announced a tour. 

Complex Australia sat down with J Emz, who spoke on behalf of the group, to talk about ONEFOUR's legacy, their upcoming headlining show at RISING, the Against All Odds documentary, and their upcoming tour. 

The Netflix doc feels like a good starting point—massive congrats. How did it feel putting it out into the world? It was a relief to get it out. It was a good feeling to be able to tell our side of the story and that. But yeah, after the release, we went straight back to the music. We’re just locked in with the studio. 

Nobody gets a Netflix doc, so that was sick. Was there a main takeaway you wanted people to take from it? Particularly the fans?  If there was something I wanted people to hear from me or take away from that documentary, it would be to stay down. Our story isn't finished yet. We're still grinding it out, still trying to mature, still trying to better ourselves. There’s always room for improvement. 

The group recently released “Natural Habitat,” which features verses from you, Spenny, and Lekks. The song has been teased for over a year, and fans have asked for it for ages. Why did you guys decide to release it now? It was a highly-anticipated song, but we were just waiting for the right time, which felt like now. Obviously, it’s pretty shit that YP isn’t with us anymore. So we adjusted the song by taking him off, and I reckon it’s still hard.

The group is headlining RISING festival in Melbourne on June 8. It’s the group’s first-ever show in Melbourne. How are you guys feeling going into that show? Yeah, we're ready to go. Spenny and I have been rehearsing every week we can. We just returned from a show in Bali, which was a good experience. But yeah, we're ready to give the fans in Melbourne what they deserve and put on a good show. It’s well overdue. 

We’re looking forward to it. As you’ve said, you’ve had many changes recently as a group; how does that affect live show prep? Well, over time, having to perform without the boys—without the members who have gone to jail and stuff—we’ve always made do with whoever's out and been able to perform without them, so it’s not an issue. We still always make sure that everyone who shows up has a good time and gets their money's worth. 

In recent years, the group has experienced numerous interventions from NSW Police that have unfairly impacted your ability to perform shows. You guys haven't spoken to the media much about it; is there anything you want to tell people about this? At the end of the day, it’s been happening ever since we started doing music. I won’t say it doesn’t bother us, but when it happens, we’re the type of people that keep it moving—we don’t let it hold us back. We’ve never sat down with our hands in our heads crying about it; you can’t be like that, or else you won’t reach where you want to be. I’m sure if Spenny or Lekks were on here, they’d say the same thing. 

It's indisputable that a significant part of the group's legacy is revolutionising the Australian hip-hop scene. At this stage in the group's story, how do you see ONEFOUR's legacy? At the moment, it's just being against all odds—having your back against the wall—and having to keep pushing through the struggle. That’s it. We’re trying to show people that there’s another way: that music is a way to make money and get out of whatever problems they have. In my opinion, that’s the story, and that’s what we’re tryna prove here. Things have eased up for us, but it’s not over yet. 

Do you have final messages for the fans? I don’t really like talking too much, but I just want to thank everyone for waiting patiently, you know? We’re coming, and you’ll finally get what you guys want. You can purchase tickets to ONEFOUR's RISING festival show here.

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A Federal Judge Delivers Another Urgent, Scathing Warning About the Supreme Court

It takes a lot of courage for a lower court judge to criticize the Supreme Court, but Judge Carlton Reeves has long felt a responsibility to speak candidly to the public about threats to their civil rights. In an opinion on Monday, he calls for the abolition of qualified immunity—a noxious legal doctrine that insulates violent and corrupt government officials, especially law enforcement, from accountability. He embedded this call to action in a broader critique of the Supreme Court’s selective application of precedent—with a focus on the cavalier reversal of Roe v. Wade —as well as its pernicious distrust of democracy. Reeves’ opinion warns all who wish to listen that a broad array of our constitutional liberties are in serious and imminent jeopardy.

A Barack Obama appointee, Reeves sits on a U.S. District Court in Mississippi. His latest opinion was sparked by facts that he sees all too often and has written about before : the egregious violation of a criminal suspect’s constitutional rights as an innocent person wrongly charged with a crime. It began when detective Jacquelyn Thomas of Jackson, Mississippi, accused Desmond Green of murder. The detective’s only evidence was a statement made by Green’s acquaintance, Samuel Jennings—after Jennings was arrested for burglary and grand larceny, and while he was under the influence of meth. Thomas allegedly encouraged Jennings to select Green’s picture out of a photo lineup after he identified someone else as the killer. Allegedly, she also misled the grand jury to secure an indictment, concealing Jennings’ drug abuse as well as the many inconsistencies and inaccuracies in his statement.

Jennings later recanted, admitting that, in his meth-addled state, he’d provided a bogus tip. A judge finally dismissed the charges. By that point, Green had spent 22 months in jail, serving pretrial detention. The facility was violent. The food was moldy. He slept on the floor. His cell was infested with snakes and vermin.

Green then sued Thomas, accusing her of malicious prosecution in violation of the Constitution . Thomas promptly asserted qualified immunity to defeat the lawsuit. This doctrine protects government officials from liability unless they run afoul of “clearly established” law. In other words, there must be an earlier case on the books with similar, “particularized” facts that explicitly bars the official’s actions. If there is no near-identical precedent that unambiguously prohibits those acts, qualified immunity kicks in, the lawsuit is tossed out, and the case never even reaches a jury.

This shield has allowed a repulsive amount of wrongdoing by police and prosecutors to go totally unpunished. Cops are permitted to brutally beat, murder , steal from , and conspire against innocent people because the rights they violate are, ostensibly, not “clearly established.” Courts regularly apply the doctrine when there is a tiny discrepancy between a previous case and the facts at hand as an excuse to let the officer off scot-free. And over the past few decades, SCOTUS itself has expanded qualified immunity to new extremes . The result, as Reeves wrote, is “a perpetuation of racial inequality”: Black Americans experience more violations of their civil rights than any other class, yet qualified immunity denies them a remedy in even the most appalling circumstances.

Here, though, Reeves refused to let the doctrine devour the Constitution. He concluded that there is sufficient on-point precedent to show that Thomas’ malicious prosecution, if proved, violated Green’s “clearly established” rights. So the case may go to trial. That, however, was not the end of his analysis—because, as he pointed out, the concept of qualified immunity is unlawful, unworkable, and indefensible.

The first problem is that judges made up the doctrine as a special favor to other employees of the government. Congress, as Reeves explained, gave individuals the power to sue state officials in federal court through the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, enacted after the Civil War so newly freed Black Americans could sue racist and abusive local police. Congress did not establish anything like “qualified immunity” in the statute. Rather, the Supreme Court invented the doctrine in 1967 , purporting to protect cops who commit illegal arrests in “good faith,” and imposed it unilaterally on the nation. It then crept, kudzu-like , into other areas of law.

“The People never enshrined qualified immunity in the Constitution,” Reeves wrote. “Our representatives in Congress never put it into the statute or voted for it. No President signed it into law. If anything, it represents a kind of ‘trickle-down’ democratic legitimacy.” In recent years, the Supreme Court has not bothered to account for qualified immunity’s origins, but rather maintains it on the basis of respect for precedent: It exists already, so it might as well keep existing.

And here is where Reeves goes for the jugular: The Supreme Court has tossed out far more defensible and entrenched precedent on the basis of far feebler excuses. How can it justify keeping qualified immunity around while recklessly destabilizing vast areas of settled law it doesn’t like?

SCOTUS has suggested that law enforcement officers have come to rely on qualified immunity, creating a “reliance interest” that counsels keeping the doctrine. But when the court overruled Roe in 2022’s Dobbs decision, Reeves wrote, the majority rejected that “kind of vague, ‘generalized assertion about the national psyche.’ ” Instead, Reeves wrote, the justices “thought voters should resolve reliance interests, not judges.” He then repurposed Dobbs ’ most notorious lines : “After all, just like women, law enforcement officers and their unions ‘are not without electoral or political power.’ ” Law enforcement officers, like women, can “affect the legislative process by influencing public opinion, lobbying legislators, voting, and running for office.” If courts can’t protect women’s bodily autonomy, he asked, why should they do the bidding of police unions?

Dobbs , Reeves went on, “also reflects the Supreme Court’s desire to remove itself from the center of a hot-button issue and return it to the electoral process.” Police reform, like abortion, is undoubtedly a “controversy on issues of life and death, where passions run high.” Yet even after Dobbs , SCOTUS “has not yet seen fit to return this contested issue to the democratic process,” Reeves opined. “It is not clear why.” After all, “the current court is certainly not shy about overturning precedent.” And the list of cases on the chopping block “seems to grow every year.” Teachers’ unions and racial minorities have watched the court gut precedent that shielded them for decades. Why should cops get favored treatment? Merely because of SCOTUS’ “policy-based choice” to “privilege government officials over all others.”

Reeves has a complex history with reproductive rights. He was the district court judge who struck down the Mississippi law that the Supreme Court later upheld in Dobbs when overruling Roe . His emphatic opinion famously accused the Mississippi Legislature of misogynistic “gaslighting,” analogizing the state’s defiance of Roe to its earlier defiance of Brown v. Board of Education . It’s evident that, to Reeves, the Supreme Court’s embrace of democracy in Dobbs rings hollow alongside its rejection of democracy in so many other areas, including the Second Amendment. (In a pointed footnote, he called out the court for treating the right to bear arms as a uniquely absolute, unlimited freedom —while greenlighting the erosion of other liberties that it values less.)

The judge folds together these rather scathing observations by reminding us that the Supreme Court’s creation and expansion of qualified immunity is, itself, a rejection of democracy. The Framers, after all, envisioned jury trials as a bulwark of democratic power, a check by “We the People” on government abuse. It was, Reeves wrote, designed to be exercised “one dispute at a time, day after day, rather than on fixed election days.” Unfortunately, an arrogant “judicial supremacy has too-often deprived the people of their proper role” in deciding whether public officials should be liable for their unconstitutional acts. Qualified immunity “reflects a deep distrust of ordinary people” in direct conflict with the Constitution. “In the same way we trust the collective judgment of voters in elections, we must trust the judgment of jurors in deciding cases,” Reeves wrote. They can resolve “tensions and contradictions case by case, as the evidence dictates.” All judges must do “is tell jurors the truth.”

Will the Supreme Court listen? The conservative justices seem disinclined to reevaluate their cynical, selective concerns about precedent and democracy. But with this opinion, Reeves has given the public yet another reason to question these justices’ increasingly dubious wisdom and integrity. Just as importantly, other judges may take note of Monday’s critique and follow Reeves’ suggestion of narrowing qualified immunity wherever possible. They might even join him in calling for its eradication, forcing SCOTUS to either stand by its handiwork or reevaluate it. The judge’s simple suggestion boils down to this: If we’re going to do democracy, let’s actually do democracy—not whatever partisan, half-baked substitute this Supreme Court is trying to pass off to the people.

The Medical Instrument Behind 135 Years of Women’s Pain

Samuel pozzi’s tenaculum forceps, inspired by a bullet extractor, have been the bane of cervical exams since 1889.

The IUD was still dripping with blood when my gynecologist placed it in the palm of my hand. “I want you to hold it,” she said. “I want you to feel how small it is, and ask yourself whether you might be overreacting.”

As I looked at the small, T-shaped copper device she had tried, and failed, to insert into my uterus three times in a row, I had to admit that it was indeed quite small — roughly the size of the plastic floss pick I’d used on my teeth that same morning. Its size seemed disproportionate to the amount of pain I’d just felt. It had been excruciating, worse than anything I’d ever experienced (and I’ve been run over by a motorcycle). My cervix — whose existence I’d happily disregarded up until then — felt raw, like it had just been stapled.

Over the next month, though, I became convinced I had overreacted. Thousands of women (in this essay, women refers to people who have a uterus) have IUDs (the acronym for intrauterine device) inserted daily, I reasoned with myself. I decided to give it another go. My gynecologist wrote me a prescription for antianxiety medication, told me to take an Ibuprofen an hour before the procedure, and I went back to her office with a brand-new insertion kit.

Though I fainted halfway through and vomited in Parisian trash cans all the way back to my home, I was glad the insertion had worked this time. But I still could not understand why the procedure had, again, hurt so much.

Looking for answers, I turned to my friend Lucie, who trained as a general practitioner in neighboring Belgium. She asked me only one question: “Did they use the Pozzi forceps on you?”

I’d never heard of Dr. Samuel Pozzi before — or of his namesake forceps.

A quick call to my doctor confirmed that she had indeed used this instrument on me — but not to worry, she said: It had been routine in cervical procedures across the world for more than a century. On the social platform TikTok, I looked into the “IUD insertion” hashtag, where a 20-year-old with bubblegum pink hair and a couple of hundred followers showed me what my gynecologist had failed to: a metal tool shaped like a pair of scissors, with pointed tips curved inward, meant to grant easier access into the uterus. In the video, she used it to pierce, grab and pull at a silicon ball — a stand-in for my punctured cervix.

“That’s the ‘small pinch’ they warn you about prior to insertion,” historian Evan Elizabeth Hart told me: “the literal stapling of your cervix. Without anesthesia.” Hart specializes in the history of women’s health activism at Missouri Western State University. She’s not afraid to call this what it is — medical gaslighting.

Historically, women have been denied knowledge of and control over their own bodies by a patriarchal and paternalistic medical system, Hart explained. Women are led to believe that their pain is individual (easily fixed with an Ibuprofen) rather than systemic (requiring comprehensive change in both tools and practices). “The only way to challenge the status quo is to raise consciousness about the tools that are used on us and their complicated history,” she said.

The Pozzi forceps, or tenaculum — which had caused me so much physical pain during my IUD insertion — are a good place to start. In 1889, French surgeon Samuel Pozzi, inspired by an American Civil-War era bullet extractor, invented an instrument to ease gynecological exams and provide better care for women. One hundred and thirty-five years later, despite reports of pain, from “just a pinch” to debilitating, this tool continues to be used in IUD insertions and cervical exams worldwide and serves as a testament to the difficulty of challenging medical norms when it comes to women’s reproductive health.

The story of the tenaculum, and its inventor, begins, as many French things do, with a revolution.

Though historians have often described Pozzi as the “father of modern gynecology,” quick Google searches mostly bring up romanticized portraits of the “Love Doctor of Belle Epoque Paris,” as Parisian blog Messy Nessy Chic dubbed him. One French radio host portrayed him as “a friend and lover of the famous, who invariably seduced his patients with nimble fingers as suited for surgery as they were for the boudoir.” The flamboyant life of the Man in the Red Coat, immortalized by the society painter John Singer Sargent, and biographized by Julian Barnes, more often than not overshadows his own invention.

I decided to dig into the archives myself — namely, Pozzi’s foundational “Treatise on Gynecology,” his private letters, and French press clippings that told the story of his crusade for women’s health.

Pozzi was born in 1846 in southwestern France, to a family of Swiss and Italian descent. He grew up surrounded by women — his mother, aunt and grandmother raised him and his five sisters. His father, a local pastor, was largely absent. At the age of 10, he lost his mother to tuberculosis and his youngest sister to typhoid fever. Unsurprisingly, young Pozzi set his sights on medicine, encouraged by his cousin, Alexandre Laboulbene, who served as Napoleon III’s personal doctor in Paris.

“The Siren,” as his peers nicknamed him, was a handsome adolescent with a magnetic personality and a taste for the finer things; but what really set him apart was his work ethic and his passion for healing. By 1864, Pozzi graduated at the top of his class and made his way to Paris. Four years later, he began his surgical residency at the Hopital de la Pitie, home to the capital’s poorest and sickest residents (members of the upper class were still treated at home).

There, he discovered that childbirth was the leading cause of death in women, and that diseases affecting women were overwhelmingly fatal. Pozzi encountered monstrous ovarian cysts, uterine cancers, venereal diseases and puerperal fevers, and was baffled by his teachers’ inability to help. They were, as he would later write in his “Treatise on Gynecology,” “stuck in a constant struggle between medicine and routine,” in a country that, unlike neighboring Germany and England, had yet to make gynecology into a specialty. France was falling behind.

In July of 1870, war tore Pozzi away from his beloved hospital and his early musings on women’s health. His country, determined to reassert its dominant position in continental Europe, had declared war on Prussia. Pozzi’s mentors were sent to the front lines to tend to the empire’s soldiers, and the medical school was shut down. Eager to serve, and even more eager to learn, Pozzi volunteered as a medic.

Much of his surgical apprenticeship took place on the front lines, tending to mutilated bodies, draining infected wounds, amputating shredded limbs and treating bullet wounds. Americans had come up with a new bullet extractor a few years earlier on the battlefields of the Civil War: a set of straight forceps with pointed tips curved inward, which allowed medics to easily grab, hold and pull foreign objects from their patients’ bodies. It was, as Pozzi would later write, “the very best of gripping instruments.”

Upon his return to Paris after the war, Pozzi finished medical school with top marks. After successfully defending his thesis on uterine tumors, he was made associate professor at the age of 29, and quickly became one of Paris’ most sought-after surgeons. In his free time, according to his biography, he translated Charles Darwin, wrote poetry, befriended the Proust brothers, seduced Sarah Bernhardt and read foreign medical journals.

Unlike most of his peers, Pozzi spoke both English and German, and he looked abroad to modernize French gynecological practices. In 1876, he met pioneering surgeon Dr. Joseph Lister at a British Medical Association congress in Scotland and brought his recommendations back to France: antiseptic surgery and preventative healthcare. In Germany and Austria, he found that his peers had started implementing routine checkups for their female patients, rather than wait for surgery to become necessary.

In 1883, Pozzi was named head surgeon of the Broca Hospital in Paris and decided to apply these revolutionary principles to his own service. One year later, he had a brick and wood barracks built in the hospital’s back garden. There, he opened the very first French gynecological department — a “red-letter day for Parisiennes one and all,” according to Le Figaro newspaper.

In the interview that followed with the French daily, Pozzi stated his goal for his new service: “to alleviate women’s suffering.” Pozzi had his modest barracks decorated with colorful frescoes, gifts from his many artist friends intended to heal the minds while he healed the bodies. Like everything else in his hospital, the frescoes could be washed with phenol solution to prevent the spread of diseases. Women, rich and poor, were examined with gloved hands and warmed speculums.

The women’s pages of the Parisian literary periodical Gil Blas sung Pozzi’s praises:

He is beloved by women, for he seems only to be concerned with their sufferings, imaginary and real; for he appears to them as a sort of comforter and magician, penetrating them, understanding them, supporting them; for his way of caring for them, delicate, flexible, reassuring; and, finally, for his inventions.

One of these inventions was a new type of tenaculum, which Pozzi premiered at the 1889 Paris World Fair.

At a time when radical hysterectomies were still the norm to deal with cysts and other uterine diseases, this tool allowed doctors to gain access to their patient’s uterus through the cervix. This meant that they could treat their ailments in a less invasive manner.

Pozzi had obviously been inspired by his time as a field medic two decades prior. In his revolutionary “Treatise on Gynecology,” published one year later and soon translated into five languages, he described his new tool in the simplest of terms, as “a forceps (which is none other than the American bullet extractor).”

As for its use, he wrote the following: “The tenaculum only makes two insignificant stings, which cause no harm and which barely bleed.”

More than a century on from the invention of Pozzi’s field-changing device, my experience was markedly different. Pozzi’s tenaculum had caused me great harm, and much bleeding.

When asked about the disconnect between Pozzi’s writings and my own cervical manipulation, Martin Winckler, a French doctor who retired to write novels and essays about women’s health, told me that I’d been looking at the problem all wrong. The issue was not so much the tool, but what it was used on.

“Pozzi was operating under a false assumption,” Winckler said, “that the cervix was devoid of sensory nerves, and that it could be pierced and prodded without consequence.” In reality, specialists have since discovered, the cervix is the locus of no less than three different nerves: the pelvic nerve, the vagus nerve and the hypogastric nerve. It can very much feel pain, and cause its owner large quantities of it.

And yet the use of the cervical tenaculum has gone largely unquestioned since its inception 135 years ago, in large part thanks to its famous inventor. In 1901, Pozzi was appointed as the very first French Chair of Gynecology, which had been established for him. His “Treatise on Gynecology” would be required reading for generations of surgeons in his home country, and his invention spread across the world. In the annals of French medicine, he is still remembered as the founding father of gynecology.

Though Winckler is a firm believer that “gynecology shouldn’t have a father,” it has several, and their hold on contemporary gynecology is still strong. Much in the same way that James Marion Sims’ speculum has stood the test of time despite its inventor testing it on slaves, Samuel Pozzi’s tenaculum continues to be sold, taught and used. Patriarchal medicine, and a general disregard for female pain, have removed the need for an improvement — until recently.

In the wake of global discussions around the gender pain gap in medicine, women have started speaking up about their painful IUD insertions. They, too, say it feels like death.

In response, ob-gyns have begun experimenting with pain relief options — from meditation to hypnosis and local anesthesia — and developing less painful procedures. Dr. Winckler used what he calls “the torpedo method” (yet another battlefield legacy) in which the gynecologist inserts the IUD alone through the cervix, rather than the larger IUD insertion tube. “This renders Pozzi’s forceps unnecessary in 9 out of 10 insertions,” Winckler said.

As for the object itself, several tech start-ups geared towards women’s health have given the cervical tenaculum a much-needed redesign. Swiss gynecologist David Finci, who felt “ashamed” of using Pozzi’s flesh-piercing instrument on his patients, turned to his brother Julien, a medical device engineer. Together, they founded Aspivix, and designed a suction-based cervical retractor, which adheres to the cervical tissue without penetrating it.

Though the co-founders are, again, male, they have managed to create a female-friendly solution for modern gynecology, tested and approved by a slew of female practitioners and patients. Cleared for U.S., U.K. and EU markets, Carevix promises to “Remove the pain from ‘just a little pinch’ gynecological procedures.”

When I began writing this story, I was fully prepared to despise Pozzi. I was convinced that the man who had designed the tool that had hurt me so badly could only have been a sadist. What I found instead was a forward-looking surgeon who, though he certainly slept with many of his patients, was deeply committed to helping women.

I have to believe that Pozzi would have wanted his 21st-century peers to set aside their tenaculums and make the move to atraumatic devices. Perhaps had he lived long enough, he would have found a better way himself.

But Pozzi’s life was cut short on June 13, 1918. Maurice Machu, a former patient who Pozzi had treated for an enlargement of the scrotum, came to his office to complain that his — very painful — surgery had made him impotent. Pozzi disagreed, suggesting he was “suffering from a nervous complaint.” Enraged, Machu shot him three times in the chest, before turning the gun on himself.

As things stand today, Pozzi’s tenaculum is still used in most gynecological offices across the world. And it looks exactly the same today as it did on the battlefields of the Civil War and at the Paris World Expo in 1889.

At Duke University’s History of Medicine Collections, photographer Lindsey Beal held one of the earlier models in her own hands. In 2018, she set out to document vintage gynecological and obstetric instruments in medical libraries across the United States. She told me she had expected to come across gruesome tools; instead, she encountered instruments she had seen before. So too had most of her friends, and anyone who had interacted with the medical establishment regarding a uterus.

When I asked her what she thought about Pozzi’s tenaculum, she said: “It looked right at home in a medical archive. Not so much in my doctor’s office.”

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