Letter to a bride to be
Thank you for sharing with me the newest (yet quite retro) issue of Vogue Bridal Patterns. I love that off-white shot silk you brought back from your travels and think it would suit your complexion perfectly. It looks much better than the Nora white organza. It’s also a tribute to your integrity and I hope I’m not reading too much into your choice of colour. But before you start making the dress, I urge you to indulge in a little intertextual journey around your maiden room, if I may say so, for I'm not sure you know on what galère you are embarking. Mark my words. I don't mean gondola, or anything romantic, but galley, a low, flat ship with one or more sails (glad you opted for a visor instead of a veil) and up to three banks of oars worked by slaves. First, as an artist, you must re-read Tennyson's 'The Lady of Shalott’ against the grain. Then turn to Elizabeth Bishop's 'The Gentleman of Shalott' and Jessica Anderson's Tirra Lirra by the River. I studied both in year twelve (wish I'd paid more attention). Finally, and this may surprise you, especially coming from me, read Henrik Ibsen's A Doll House, a work your father drew on to devise our home. Deep down, I now think Ibsen understood the difference between need and desire; desire and love; love and lust. Your father would disagree, of course, but I would maintain that Ibsen was really a proto-feminist writer. Wink. One last thing: beware of identifications. With two (anti)heroines bearing your Christian name, you wouldn’t want to become unduly hystericised. Much love. X
No comments:
Post a Comment