Author, Alain de Botton once said, “Intimacy is the capacity to be rather weird with someone - and finding that that's ok with them” (Intimacy). Relationships are founded on an understanding and connection found between two people. Intimacy is often treated as a should be hidden away aspect of relationships. Alan Gillis and Vona Groarke use their poetry to tell the struggles and triumphs of everyday relationships. Both of them do not shy away from portraying the natural and mundane acts that occur in life such as describing the romance and intimacy between people. However, both of them choose to portray romantic intimacy in their own way. In their poetry, Alan Gillis portrays romantic intimacy directly and Vona Groarke depicts romantic intimacy …show more content…
As discussed in Quinn’s review the poem, "In Whose Blent Air All Our Compulsions meet," Quinn notes the lyrically sound of the verses that resemble old traditional English: “in a sequence like 'In Whose Blent Air All Our Compulsions Meet', one encounters lines that sound like echoes of an older lyric tradition in English verse” (Quinn 138). In having such a lyrical sound in his poetry, Gillis's language echoes the old writers of English Poetry and gives a classical feel to his poem while still allowing the portrayal of direct intimacy in his poetry. That kind of classical connects the transition of having elegant language while speaking of intimacy in a very plain style. In that combination of language and topic, readers are able to see this elegance in the writing of this love, while also, seeing the everyday life depiction in his poetry. Quinn notes in his article, “The marvel of the poem is the original combination of registers to write about the most unoriginal of subjects, lovers out for a walk on a country lane. Slowness and speed, huckster patter and ancient lyric sweetness — Gillis wants all the old pleasures of poetry, along with the shock of slang that seems almost ahead of the curve” (Quinn 138). This poem uses an infamous image of two people in love going on a walk, but uses current slang and language to add a …show more content…
While the Quinn was not specifically talking directly about “Among the Barley”, this description used does represent Gillis's typical work of humor and imagery that supports his use of those in describing the romantic intimacy in the poem. By describing this couple in the way that he does, Gillis is able to normalize acts of romantic intimacy in his poetry: “then you reach over, your eyes pursed and finite,/ and blow out the candle. Here comes the night” (In whose bent air p.63). Before this last line, the couple is shown lying in the bed together, and with this darkness that encloses them after she blows out the candle, hints at the intimacy that possible could follow this poem. This line shows the closeness of this couple and the intimate love the openly share within the poem. While looking at the relationships found in “In whose bent air,” Gillis’s lines in this poem shows the relationship as a very natural one and united one: “Put your clothes on, she said, you’re not dead/ yet and we must take the air, and so on./ Yah de yah de yah. And so, we take the air” (In whose bent air p. 60). These lines depict the togetherness that these two feel as they are initially together when she tells the speaker to put their clothes on again and reminds them that they are alive.
Love, partnership and commitment have been the subjects of a multitude of novels, plays poems, movies and great works of art. Throughout these works, the image of love and commitment in love have taken many different forms. Today, we easily recognize symbols of commitment in love to be items such as hearts, wedding bands, roses, etc. However, in literature, especially, more abstract and creative symbols of commitment to a loved one are often present. Additionally, the symbols of devotion that exist in literature do not always involve romantic love as opposed to many movies, painting and sculptures. For example, in the short story, “Saving Sourdi” by May-Lee Chai, symbols of loyalty to a loved one manifest between two sisters. In opposition to symbols of loyalty existing in a platonic manner as it does in “Saving Sourdi,” Peter Meinke’s “The Cranes,” provides symbols of commitment in an amorous relationship.
Rodriguez “would dishonor [] intimacy by holding onto a particular language and calling it [] family language” (Rodriguez 41). Just as Rodriguez realized the importance of “public identity” over time, he realized that intimacy is not felt and remembered with a bunch of words, but instead with feelings, memories, and the times spent together. Rodriguez recalled a few days prior to the death of his grandmother. He states that within all the conversations they had, he can simply only say what she had said to him. However, he argues that the intimacy was not simply between what she had said but the way she said it. It was the voice, the scents, the noises that was reminiscing along with her memories. Rodriguez emphasizes that it’s not about what you say that makes you have “intimate” relationships; instead it’s the people that are involved in making those relationships strong and
Love and affection is an indispensable part of human life. In different culture love may appear differently. In the poem “My god my lotus” lovers responded to each other differently than in the poem “Fishhawk”. Likewise, the presentation of female sexuality, gender disparity and presentation of love were shown inversely in these two poems. Some may argue that love in the past was not as same as love in present. However, we can still find some lovers who are staying with their partners just to maintain the relationship. We may also find some lovers having relationship only because of self-interest. However, a love relationship should always be out of self-interest and must be based on mutual interest. A love usually obtains its perfectness when it develops from both partners equally and with same affection.
First and foremost, many people can attest that when there are serious issues within a relationship the ability to communicate with ease and openness can diminish. Such was the case with Hemingway’s main characters. The American man and the girl immediately display a relationship with distance. The first object of conversation when they arrive to the station is what to drink. As a woman brings their drinks out she observes that, instead of looking at the American or conversing with him, the girl is looking off at the hill line. Moreover, when the couple does speak they are merely talking versus communicating. Lori Gordon opened her article on the art of relationships with this statement, “Confusion. Hurt. Silence. Missed opportunity. It is one of the ironies of modern life that many couples today are living together as complete strangers”(Intimacy: The Art of Relationships). Gordon is referring to how couples begin to withdraw emotionally from the relationship and into other activities; which, is evident in ...
Although in an ideal world it would fit that our lover was a soulmate, most rational people would agree that this is not always the case. Tom Wayman's "Wayman in Love" details an encounter between a man and a woman that, although devoid of true love, the man feels has been a long time coming. Conversely, Carol Jane Bangs' "Touching Each Others Surface's" is the remembrance of a love that is no longer alive. Both of these poems explore the topic of physical encounters that possess no feeling. However, they do so from opposite ends of the spectrum. While "Wayman in Love" is the story of a one-night stand (and therefore devoid of real emotion), "Touching Each Other's Surfaces" is a tale of love long past.
This passage marks the first of several types of love, and gives us an intuitive
Almost everyone has experienced the dread and joy of having romantic feelings for another person; the butterflies that swirl around their stomach, their heightened heartbeat, and the all too familiar fight or flight instinct; even for those who feel platonic attraction to others still feel this way. However, these nerves shake off once one of the two people take the leap of faith towards the other, whether it be saying ‘hello’ or confessing how they really feel. Unfortunately for most people, they never risk talking to the person, and miss their opportunity of having a loving relationship. This idea is the main subject of Katherine Bell’s short story “The Casual Car Pool.” Through the relationships of the symbolic characters, the author argues
The speaker begins the poem an ethereal tone masking the violent nature of her subject matter. The poem is set in the Elysian Fields, a paradise where the souls of the heroic and virtuous were sent (cite). Through her use of the words “dreamed”, “sweet women”, “blossoms” and
Love is a concept that has puzzled humanity for centuries. This attachment of one human being to another, not seen as intensely in other organisms, is something people just cannot wrap their heads around easily. So, in an effort to understand, people write their thoughts down. Stories of love, theories of love, memories of love; they all help us come closer to better knowing this emotional bond. One writer in particular, Sei Shōnagon, explains two types of lovers in her essay "A Lover’s Departure": the good and the bad.
Hacker describes a lighthearted connection between two individuals that is extremely physically intimate and exciting, but lacks emotional connection. Although the speaker recognizes the lack of emotions associated with this relationship, she is content with this situation. Marilyn Hacker plays with enjambment to illustrate visually this separation between these two individuals. Using this literary device, the breaks and interruptions of sentences causes the reader to be pulled into her world, feeling the jarring, yet intoxicating separation the speaker feels.Next, the speaker says she is often “dazed” (2). The usage of this word denotes imagery of being dazzled and stunned by light. The obvious positive nature of this word shows how happy the speaker is in this relationship at this point in time. The duo is described as feeling “speechless and amazed” (5). These words imply a very exciting new relationship. They are so enamored with the physical part of their encounters that they have no words to be said, and no words need to be said. This ineffability implies a relationship that does not grow emotionally, but strictly physically. For two parties to be emotionally invested in each other they must appreciate each other's personalities. This is not something that is currently present in the pair described in the poem. The speaker also tells the reader that she is filled with wonder and astonishment. These positive adjectives tell us that at this point in time, the speaker is in fact happy and content with her current
During the 18th century, two great companion; William Wordsworth collaborated together to create Lyrical Ballad; one of the greatest works of the Romantic period. The two major poems of Lyrical Ballad are Wordsworth’s “Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey” and Coleridge’s “Frost at Midnight.” Even though these two poems contain different experiences of the two speakers, upon close reading of these poems, the similarities are found in their use of language, the tone, the use of illustrative imagery to fascinate the reader’s visual sense and the message to their loved ones.
People often assume a facade when they are suffering to spare the feelings of those they love, particularly following the dissolvement of romance. This desire to spare others stems from selflessness and love, despite the pain that accompanies a separation. Relationships and their endings are composed of complex aspects and feelings, difficult to be understood without personally suffering through it. Through language, perspective, and allusions, poets Sandra Cisneros and Jacques Prévert show how two women react outwardly and inwardly to their lovers leaving in “Monsieur Mon Ami” and “Déjeuner du Matin”, respectively, as well as how their actions contradict their emotions. Language in poetry, such as diction and syntax, allows for poets to convey
Some people believe that opposites attract. Others believe that people who are more similar will have a better relationship. Some prefer relationships with older people, and some prefer them with younger people. Jhumpa Lahiri, author of the short story collection Interpreter of Maladies, explores the dynamic of relationships in her works. In her short story “Interpreter of Maladies” a married woman confesses a secret to a man she barely knows. In her story “This Blessed House” a couple fights over the religious relics they find in their new home. While one reads Lahiri’s stories, a theme begin to emerge that shows the woman of the relationship behaving like an adolescent and the man behaving like her father due to the internalized idea of
This poem has captured a moment in time of a dynamic, tentative, and uncomfortable relationship as it is evolving. The author, having shared her thoughts, concerns, and opinion of the other party's unchanging definition of the relationship, must surely have gone on to somehow reconcile the situation to her own satisfaction. She relishes the work entailed in changing either of them, perhaps.
The consistent pattern of metrical stresses in this stanza, along with the orderly rhyme scheme, and standard verse structure, reflect the mood of serenity, of humankind in harmony with Nature. It is a fine, hot day, `clear as fire', when the speaker comes to drink at the creek. Birdsong punctuates the still air, like the tinkling of broken glass. However, the term `frail' also suggests vulnerability in the presence of danger, and there are other intimations in this stanza of the drama that is about to unfold. Slithery sibilants, as in the words `glass', `grass' and `moss', hint at the existence of a Serpent in the Garden of Eden. As in a Greek tragedy, the intensity of expression in the poem invokes a proleptic tenseness, as yet unexplained.