Nature of Love and Relationship - Essay Example

Nature of Love and Relationship A keen analysis and interpretation of these poems manifests a complexity of the themes. Thesethemes range from sexuality, culture, love, among many others. For purposes of this work I will analyze the ‘nature of love and relationships’, a constant theme in the poems I have selected. My love is one and only, without peer The speaker in this poem is in love with a woman out of is reach. He uses imagery to depict his feelings for the woman. He compares her to a glistening goddess of the sunrise star bright in the forehead of a lucky year. The relationship between the speaker and the woman is evidently founded on respect. The speaker’s description of the woman clearly demonstrates the nature of the relationship between the two. The speaker clearly shows respect for the woman; he likens her sexuality as a gift of knowledge for all the men that have an opportunity to be near her. He says that “such thighs as hers pass knowledge of loveliness known in the old days.” From the speaker’s description it can be inferred that women are looked at with utmost respect. Generally, the speaker’s tone reveals his emotions towards the woman. For example, the speaker’s emotions and by extension love for the woman are concisely captured in the poems title "my love is one and only, without peer". Here the speaker uses the word ‘peer’ to mean that his love is without match. The speaker simply expresses his love for the woman lyrically (Hazan 54). Love, how i’d love to slip down to the pond This poem, like the foregoing, has love as its central theme. Unlike in the poem above, the speaker in this poem is a woman. This can be inferred to mean that even women, in ancient Egypt, could freely express their feelings towards men (Pine 67). In deed, this shows that the sort of love relationships that existed at that gave room to both men and women to express their feelings and that they were not one sided. This poem is important because it depicts the position of women at a stage when the society was dominated by men and women had little or no say on almost all matters. The speaker says that, "Just for you I'd wear my new Memphis swimsuit, made of sheer linen, fit for a queen- Come see how it looks in the water". This shows her commitment and will to show her beloved that she really loves him. The speaker is unembarrassed as it evidenced by this particular line, “A gift, love. No words. Come closer and look, it’s all me.” However, it can be argued that although the speaker in this woman is a woman, the poem was written by a man thus cementing the assertions that the Egyptian society, at that time, was male dominated (Middendorf 68). Nevertheless, the fact that the speaker is a woman shows the place of women in a male dominated society. This gives us a picture of the general relationship between men and women and a more specifically the relationship in matters touching on love. Clearly, her man does not control the speaker. As matter of fact she seems to be enjoying playing with him and enticing him. I think i’ll go home and lie very still In this poem the speaker compares his love for his beloved to terminal sickness.He says that he thinks he would go home and lay very still feigning terminal illness. This is in the hope that neighbors would troop to their home and among them would be his beloved. This poem demonstrates that the speaker is ready to do anything to express his love for her beloved including faking illness (Hazan 55). This is perhaps owing to the fact that because of their relationship the speaker is not able to meet his beloved and therefore he has to devise ways in order to meet his beloved. Indeed, he hopes that after faking illness his beloved would be among the people who would come to see her and would perfectly know what ails him. The speaker is a young boy who is lovesick. This shows that even the young were involved in love relationships. However, it can be deduced that love can cause desperation to young people and make them act foolishly. The tone of this poem is desperate and the theme is love. Love of you is mixed deep in my vitals The poet in this poem uses similes and metaphors to convey his message of love.The speaker says that his love for his beloved is mixed in his vitals. This is captured in the poems title, “Love of you is mixed deep in my vitals”. Vitals are bodily organs that are essential for human life. He compares this to the essential ingredients required to make bread in a bid to help us appreciate his deep and resolute love. He say that his love for his beloved is mixed deep in his vitals like water stirred into flour for bread, like simples compound in a sweet-tasting drug and like pastry and honey mixed to perfection. This shows that his love is deep founded and cannot be shaken. The components he uses to exemplify his love are inseparable once mixed and there the speaker yearns to show that the love he has for his beloved is real and deep and cannot be overcome easily. This is to say that the speaker’s love cannot be separated from himself as it isentirely mixed into his vitals. The speaker seems to suggest that love, like garden flowers, is capable of growing. He talks of a gardener up with the sun burning to watch his prize bud open. This is a reference to how flowers bloom. I wish i were her nubian girl The speaker in this short poem, desires that he was the slave of his beloved. In so doing he would become his beloved confidante and best friend. This is because a slave was considered the confidante and best friend of the master. Additionally, the slave helped the lady in the conduct of her affairs including dressing (Preston 182). The speaker therefore wishes he could be the slave to help his beloved dress and be able to look at her beauty. He says, “Her long gown settles, then, bodiless, hangs from my helping hand”. In this poem it is clear that though the speaker has fallen in love with her beloved, they are probably not in the same social class in life and therefore they are not in a position of getting into a relationship. As a result, the speaker can only wish that he was his beloved slave. It is also important to note that there is no indication in the poem that the speaker’s beloved feels the same way about him. It could be inferred that the love is not mutual and can be reduced to the speaker’s wishes. She bore the folk This poem, like all the other poems in this essay talks about love. However, it introduces another aspect of love: love between two women as opposed to the traditional man to woman love. The poet is Sappho and she is controversially known for writing poems, which advanced lesbianism ideologies. She did this by writing love poems to fellow women. As such, the relationship in this poem is not the conventional man to woman relationship but a woman to woman relationship (Middendorf 68). Consequently, the tone in this poem is shaped by the difficulties that Sappho faced in those times. She could not openly proclaim her love. She wishes that she were dead by stating that, “I simply want to be dead”. She states that things have turned out badly for them and as a result they, Sappho and her lover, cannot love freely. This poem goes a long ways in portraying the response of the society to female relationships. She states that she will leave her lover though against her will. This can be attributed to the lack of a conducive environment for their love to flourish. Fishhawk This ancient poem introduces another twist in the nature of love and relationships. In the previous poems we have seen monogamous relationships only. In this poem, however, the speaker talks about her husband’s desire to seek another woman. In essence, the speaker’s husband has expressed interest to love another woman the way he loves her. Interestingly, the speaker is not perturbed by her husband’s wishes. She is not jealous of her husband’s longings. In fact, in a show of her faithfulness to her husband she consents to the husband’s search for another woman. Perhaps this can be inferred to mean that women had little or no say over men and therefore she had no choice other than to consent to her husband’s advances to get another woman. The speaker demonstrates her helplessness under the circumstances and that the only option she has is to consent. Peach tree soft and tender This short poem focuses strongly on relationships. The speaker uses imagery by likening relationships to a peach tree. The speaker talks about how the peach tree’s leaves grow thick and full and how its ripening fruit is plump. The speaker compares this to how a woman grows in a relationship. The speaker seems to suggest that if one falls in love with a good woman the relationship blossoms. He says, “Peach tree soft and tender, how your blossoms glow”. The speaker does not explicitly express love and there we cannot openly conclude that this poem profoundly talks about love. However, it would be safe to conclude that for a relationship to bloom as envisaged by the speaker, love is an important ingredient. It can be inferred that the success of relationships in this society was based on the traits of the woman. If one fell in love with a woman with decent character and personality the relationship had very high chances of succeeding. Plums are falling In this poem the speaker uses imagery of a woman picking fruits to convey her message. Literally, the woman is pictured picking plums off a tree but the poet is conveying an innermost meaning, probably what is going through the woman’s mind. The speaker is desirous of meeting and getting a married to a young, decent man. She says that many men want her but she wants to be bride of one. From the poem we can deduce that although many men want her, the speaker is not free to choose the one to marry. She hopes and prays that she will marry the right one (Middendorf 67). This shows that even though women are free to love and to be able to figure out the kind of man they would want to get married to this freedom does not extend to choosing a groom of choice. Instead, they have to wait to be chosen. The speaker can just hope of finding the certain qualities in the man that chooses her. This poem demonstrates a state of hopelessness among women regarding the choice of men they would want to marry. The speaker would like to marry a fine and steady man. Even such a man existed among the men who want her she is not free to choose that man to marry her. She pays that she ends up marrying the right one; the one who poses those qualities. This poem, like others analyzed above portrays love and relationships to be a preserve of men almost in entirety. The speaker talks of men who want her but she has not be chosen yet and therefore all she has to do is sit and wait to be chosen. This waiting plunges the speaker into desperation. This poem also shows the importance of relationships in the society. The speaker can be seen to be praying in earnest that she gets the right to marry her. This can be taken to perhaps highlight the importance of marriage in this ancient society. Her character shows the significance of solid relationships. Why, just now, must you question your heart? This short poem is one of the poems that have proved difficult to analyze and interpret. The speaker appears to be talking to and offering advice someone else. This is evident in the where he says, “Why, just now, must you question your heart? Is it really the time for discussion?” The person the speaker is talking seems to be afraid of involving herself in a relationship. A keen look at the poem also reveals that the speaker is probably talking to a couple. The speaker says, “To her, say I, take her tight in your arms!” The speaker then makes reference to a man by saying’ “For god's sake, sweet man, it’s me coming at you”. Clearly, the meaning of this poem cannot be openly discerned. Consequently, the poets theme cannot be easily identified. However, the poem appears to be centered on love because the speaker talks about questioning the heart. Generally, the speaker is advising a young couple which has fallen in love not to questions their hearts. He urges the couple to go ahead and form a union where they will see their love bloom. The speaker encourages the lovers to dissociate themselves from discussion, which would cause them drop, their plans for a union. This union is most likely a marriage. The speaker probes, “Is it really the time for discussion?” I was simply off to see nefrus my friend The speaker in this poem is a young woman. The speaker is going to visit her friend when she sees a man that she admires a lot. The speaker has fallen in love with this man even she has not met and conversed with him. She is afraid that if he sees her he will notice how she has fallen for him. This poem shows that even though women could love, its only men who mostly approached them and not vice versa. As such men and not women prompted relationships. Another interesting aspect is that the speaker says that the boy he has fallen for might be the type kiss and tell or the type who love girls for a short spell and go. She is afraid that if she gets intimate with the boy, the boy may publicize their affair. The speakers also alludes to promiscuity where she says that her beloved maybe one of those me that love girls and leave them soon thereafter. This may also mean that men did not value love and therefore that is why they tend to move from one woman to another. The language used by the speaker also portrays naivety as she talks of men who love and go. Works cited Hazan,Catherine. “Romantic love conceptualized as an attachment process.” Journal of personality and social psychology. 3.7 (1998): 53-67. Print. Middendorf, Unnovice. “Ecstasis, Recession, Pain Images of Suffering in the Classic of Poetry.” From Skin to Heart: Perceptions of Emotions and Bodily Sensations in Traditional Chinese Culture. 2.7(2006) :67-69. Print. Pine, Rayan. Poems of the masters: China's classic anthology of T'ang and Sung dynasty verse. Port Townsend:Copper Canyon Press, 2003.Print. Preston, Toules. From Typology to Literature: Hermeneutics and Historical Narrative in Eighteenth-Century England. The Eighteenth Century. 6.9(2009): 181-186.Print. Read More