Examine the view that Jennings presents the marrie Essays - Emotions

Examine the view that Jennings presents the married couple as having entirely lost their love for each other. Firstly, Jennings portrays that the couple are "Lying apart now..in a separate bed". The use of "separate" beds depicts that the couple have lost their love for each other as a bed commonly symbolises affection and intimacy in a relationship, therefore the portrayal of separate beds juxtaposes the societal norm of couple's behaviour and the lack of affection and love in their relationship. Also, the use of the word death could connote "death bed", which conveys the metaphorical death of their love. Furthermore, the title "One Flesh" is juxtaposed by the continuous idea of separation throughout the poem; the religious belief of a couple becoming one is juxtaposed by the separation of beds. Furthermore, Jennings uses alliteration "Keeping lights on late", which depicts the idea that the father is trying to retain the spark between them, however, is only maintaining an artificial light, which further conveys that genuine love that kept their relationship alive between them has been lost . Structurally, Jennings repeatedly uses caesura and dividers in sentences;"All men elsewhere-" and "Touching them gently." "The repeated use of caesura portrays separation and a lack of continuity in love-connective/connection is lost, which further juxtaposes the love and connection between the two. Structurally, the religious beliefs could also possibly be argued against by Jennings as each of the three stanzas contains six lines=666, connotes the loss of religious beliefs of love. Additionally, Jennings writes that the couple are "Tossed up like flotsam from a former passion."The use of alliteration suggests that the relationship between them is rubbish, that their relationship is the remains of a shipwreck. Furthermore, the passion is described as "former", which depicts that it no longer exists between them. Also, Jennings writes her parents as lexically separate; "my father and my mother", instead of "parents". This further suggests that they are no longer together, in love as " one flesh". Jennings ends the poem with a rhetorical question; "fire from which I came, has..grown cold?", which depicts that their once fiery love is cold and dead. "hardly ever touch" "touching them gently"- hardly opposes touch- violence/unpleasantness "Chastity faces them"- lack of physical love too. "a thread to hold and not wind in"- do not even want to attempt to rekindle love- they are too afraid