The world
of the strictly Old Boy’s Room
of the Commons
engulfed
a mini industrial revolution.
The pointy cigars
b i l l o w i n g smoke
like crusty chimneys
the wrinkled suitors
as grey as newly-constructed skyscrapers that
t
o
w
e
r
over our Old England.
They sit there lazily
in their relic leather thrones
whinging
in their relic leather thrones
whinging
whining
griping
while some old fools
slouch in the backbenchers
just to earn their treasure
from the Exchequer.
slouch in the backbenchers
just to earn their treasure
from the Exchequer.
And then she came.
Strutting
through valleys of men
with every
through valleys of men
with every
single
step
more conviction
than half of Scotland Yard.
than half of Scotland Yard.
One small step for man.
One giant leap for women?
Her hair perfectly built
Her suit carefully starched
and her trusty trademark handbag
ready to discipline.
‘This is a man’s world!’
And then she came.
3rd place
“A man’s world” by Jacobi Kohu-Morris (Year 12 Logan Park High School). This poem’s witty and ironic images deconstruct and de-sanitise a historical moment, opening it up for new interpretations.