"Living in Sin" - Adrienne Rich

This is doubling as a "reading assignment" and "class thoughts" entry. Namely, because I loved our class discussion on this poem. And, I loved this poem. There was very vivid imagery, which always makes it interesting, and it was fairly easy to understand what was going on. My favorite thing though, was that there are two equally probable interpretations of the situation that I can see, and I can't decide which I prefer. :)

The first would be that author is a young married woman, who has been disappointed that the early passion of love has burned away. "She had thought that the studio would keep itself;/ no dust upon the furniture of love." It's almost sad to read from that view-point. One would hope that, in a marriage, there is more to be found than simply infatuation and the feeling of love. And yet, there is also some hope, at the end of the poem: ". . .she woke sometimes to feel the daylight coming/like a relentless milkman up the stairs." While relentless has negative conotations, I think that it can be intepreted to show the fact that this marriage is going to be with her every day from here on out. And that, while that can be somewhat depressing for someone no longer "in love," the daylight will come and her and her husband will grow into a more mature, healthy relationship, based on things besides the passionate, early love they shared.

The second would go along more with the title - that the author is having an affair and does not feel fulfilled by it. "Half heresy to wish . . . the panes relieved of grime." The secretive nature of this affair is also what dirties it. However, reality is still there. While the nights may be full of love, the day always comes and she is left doing all the ordinary things of life. "By evening she was back in love again. . ." - however, the ending (when looked at from this perspective) seems to present the possibility of her leaving behind this "living in sin." The relentless daylight could perhaps symbolize reality, and the fact that one of these days, she is going to have to face up to what she's doing, and remove herself from the passionate pleasures of this affair.

So yeah - that wasn't nearly as organized as I had thought it out last night when I couldn't get to sleep. But close enough.