Act like the violet in its hidden cranny
Be quiet, gentle, modest and meek;
Don't be the bold and forward rose
Who preens each brightly painted streak.
...
Sisters, choose the pride of the rose
Tower over the cringing crowd--
Not like the violet in its cranny
Shrinking, fearful of speaking aloud.
An excerpt from Jutta Burggraf's "True Empowerment of Women" (from Empowering Women, 1995) depicting an anthologized verse of the late 1800s and its retooling during the feminist movements of 1970s.
Women--pit not rose 'gainst violet.
No rifts exist 'twixt iris and prim.
We are a garden. Deep and lively,
With perfect petal, style to stem.
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