Relentless Daylight

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Relentless Daylight

• Analysis of Adrienne Rich's poem, "Living in Sin"

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The theme of the poemThe message of the poem

• Day-to-day reality has a way of chipping away at
  even the most pleasant nighttime fantasy

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The Story of the Poem

• Her romantic expectations of living in sin.
• The harsh reality of the day.
• The return of night and romance, but . . .

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Her romantic expectations (1)

• A plate of pears, / and a piano with a Persian
  shawl

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Her romantic expectations (2)

• A plate of pears, / and a piano with a Persian
  shawl

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Her romantic expectations (3)

• A plate of pears, / and a piano with a Persian
  shawl

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The visual images of harsh reality (1)

• the scraps / of last night's cheese

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The visual images of harsh reality (2)

• "a pair of beetle-eyes" peeks out from "among the
  saucers"

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The auditory image of harsh reality (1)

• "Half heresy, to wish the taps less vocal"

Drippy Faucet on Utube http//youtu.be/oBfRemZrKKs
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The auditory image of the harsh reality of the
day (2)

• "at five when each separate stair would writhe
  / under the milkman's tramp"

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The Daily Drag

• he, with a
  yawn,
• sounded a dozen notes upon the keyboard
• declared it out of tune, shrugged at the mirror,
• rubbed at his beard, and went out for
  cigarettes

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The conclusion chipping away

• By evening she was back in love again,
• Though not so wholly but throughout the night
• She woke sometimes to feel the daylight coming
• Like a relentless milkman up the stairs