Peder Severin Kroyer, Norwegian
“Greetings, Gentlemen. I’m Relieved To See I’m Not the Only One Who Forgot It Was Casual Friday,” 1897
Oil on canvas
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“A Meeting in the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters.”
/// When I scan members of this Academy,
I see no pleasing zaftig anatomy.
Merely dozens of guys
and no bare female thighs.
Disappointing! (Please do not think bad o’ me.)
/// Groups like this, back then, were not diverse.
Education for women was worse.
If a feminine face
should show up in this place
she’d be some old man’s mistress, or nurse.
/// All the evidence here clearly shows
that a man “seeking chicks” never goes
to a science soirée
where the dues you must pay
are for lab fees, not hiring pros.
/// Yet, it’s true at that time among Danes
there were women with talent and brains.
The best honed every skill
and rose upward until…
the glass ceiling (which now still constrains).
/// The bright flickering illuminations
of each candle enhanced conversations,
and that warm golden glow
lit a cheery tableau
which disguised their ice-cold machinations.
/// When they finish their candlelit dinner
they’ll count votes to select tonight’s winner
of “The Man of the Year.”
It’s a title held dear,
(though it’s always a reprobate sinner).