Sorry, girls, but I just don't buy this stuff about suppression of female poets.
I don't doubt the publication figures, but there are other interpretations available other than sexist suppression.
Quality is quality is quality, and I don't care what the gender of the writer is.
And I don't believe that the majority of editors think any differently.
If something truly fine comes along, I do not believe that editors ask - "is this poet a woman?" before approving of it.
When I see stuff by Dickinson, or Sylvia Plath or Gwen Harwood, I can SEE and HEAR immediately that it is excellent. And I know that the majority of currently practising male poets cannot hope to match that quality.
I really don't believe that really fine poetry is being overlooked on the basis of the gender of its author.
But I also realise that some folks will NEVER believe this.
Get real, girls - get good or get out of the game.
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