Mother Liberty and the Seducer - Woman in Three Stages
12:00 AM |
| Woman in Three Stages, Edvard Munch, 1895 |
Mother
Liberty and the Seducer
Curated by Alex McDonald
Curator's Note: This is the fourth installment in a series of blog posts where I have presented short fiction based off the paintings in my collection. If, please go read my three prior posts. Thank you.
The Woman’s revolution succeeds and her image becomes a symbol, a rallying cry for all the abused.
Decades later, a young Girl sees the woman’s image and wonders how can a woman hold such respect? She even has her chest bare. All she has to offer, out in the open for all to see. And they still admire her?
The Girl bites her lip. She is familiar with a different painting, Edvard Munch’s Woman in Three Stages.
The Girl dreams of a wedding on a beach. Her dress will be white like every other bride’s. And on the wedding night she will lie naked before her husband. Nothing will be held back because he wants it all. She will smile and enjoy it.
But after the romance ends, she will cover her breasts and become an old woman.
The Devil smells his chance and laughs. Where is your husband? He isn’t even in the picture.
Well… He’s….
He never was. You’d do this even if you never found a husband. Men are not the ones dictating this cycle. Women are. Marriage, sex, death. That’s all you’re good for.
But Mother Liberty? She broke the cycle. Look at her!
Are you like her? Do you flash your chest around for all to rally behind? What have you inspired?
Nothing.
The Devil smiles. And what are you gonna do about it?
The Girl locks eyes with the Devil. Everything.
The Girl spits at Munch’s painting. And Mother Liberty. She doesn’t need others telling her how to live. She will make her own decisions.
0 comments