Song For All the Would-Have-Been Princesses
Consider the gall of the bullfrog,
throatily1 calling at night for a mate,
longing for a kiss from a Beauty
that could change his fate. Some say a frog
is the male sex. And girls
who kindly put their lips to its
are promised to get over their fears.2
But what about the cowfrog?3
No mammary glands, no sweet milk, all her eggs
outside herself -- not a frog in history
ever turned into a princess by a peck
on the cheek from an innocent boy,
as though female royalty and luck
sprout from other stuff. Once, before the Ranidae
were green and slimy, a young she-frog,
acting on impulse, shyly flirted with a prince.
She batted her eyes, big and bright as flash bulbs, i
but, busily adjusting his white mink capelet,
the prince said to someone in his court,
"Get this commoner out of here! Does she not realize
such a scandal could cost me my throne?!"
And like St. Brigid,4 the defeated she-frog
might have mumbled, "Please God,
make me ugly, so I will no longer tempt men.
So I will no longer be tempted."
As though for a cowfrog, a would-be princess,
desire itself is shameful.ii
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1) Deep, husky, or guttural
2) Reference to The Princess and the Frog
3) The leopard frog is to be found in the United States. They are also known as meadow frogs and cow frogs. Leopard frogs are often used as environmental indicator species because of their heightened sensitivity to chemical pollutants found in the air and water, and they are commonly used as dissection specimens in biology classrooms (FrogGarden).
4) One of Ireland's patron saints along with Saints Patrick and Columba. Irish hagiography makes her an early Irish Christian nun, abbess, and founder of several monasteries (Irish Times).
Discussion
i) Love should come from two people’ caring for each other and coping with struggles together. It’s what makes the relationship last stronger and happier. But the love that is described in this poem mirrors a superficial quality. Think of the definition of love.
ii) The author points out the irony of frog admiring beauty. Discuss the feminism characteristics that are portrayed within this poem.
