time to appear yo the hour is super nigh
time to appear yo the hour is super nigh
liberate your daughters sons nonbinaries
sexuals asexuals sex-positives and -negatives
time to appear yo the hour is super nigh
frankenstein’s monster has returned
but this time isn’t seeking a companion
doesn’t feel alone doesn’t rampage or hide from others
they’ve got way more interesting things to do plus the world needs saving
so time to appear yo the hour is super nigh
this here monster made themself but they’re not so
stupid to believe they’re a totally self-made
monster they know what structural inequality is
class-based society institutional critique even intersectional
feminism frankenstein’s monster is an autodidactic baby
now aware they’ve been lied to their whole life about the nature
of happiness gender power love capitalism socialism
anarchy what beauty is what ugliness is who the real monsters are
you thought they were simply hiding this whole time
but no they were reading marie under heiti talvik foucault graffiti the moon
davis haraway wittig le guin butler both octavia and judith
and they no longer have a single creator to bow before
to beseech to bestow someone just like them
what’s more they now know that existence is performative
an act based on repetition so
time to appear yo the hour is super nigh
frankenstein’s monster is back and now
polyamorous aromantic eco-sexual
more interested in periwinkles than in the third pension pillar
nuclear family or content creation they proclaim
you can be a freak too
you can be a monster too
you don’t have to hide anymore either
our aesthetic sense is still just too tiny so hey
let’s broaden that spectrum a little baby
don’t believe in standard lust packaged into products
like tinder let’s not cram ourselves into something so little
we’re way more like frankenstein’s monster
may the whole world fill with us
MONSTERS CYBORGS
CENTAURS TRANSGENDERS
ANYGENDERS GENDERBENDERS
MYTHOLOGICAL GODDESSES
YEAH WE’RE NOT AFRAID OF SUFFIXES ANYMORE EITHER
IT’S DIVINELY OK TO BE A WOMAN
EVEN MORE SO so
time to appear yo the hour is super nigh
frankenstein’s monster is back and shouting from far away YO
WHERE MY FRANKIES AT
From the collection Frankenstein (2023), translated by Adam Cullen
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sveta Grigorjeva (b. 1988) is a poet, choreographer, and cultural provocateur based in Tallinn. Known for her fierce voice and boundary-pushing performances, she navigates poetry, politics, and movement with equal urgency. Her debut collection Who’s Afraid of Sveta Grigorjeva? was hailed as the best poetry debut of the decade by young Estonian critics, and her most recent book, Frankenstein (2023), blends sharp social commentary with startling tenderness. A doctoral student in choreography, Grigorjeva’s artistic practice spans dance, theory, and lived resistance.
Additional poems by Sveta Grigorjeva are forthcoming in our autumn print edition.
Links: