Segments 17, 18 Summary

The lover begins to feel that the narrator is his child, and he begins to refer to her as such. She is consumed into and confabulated with his desire, his sex, and his various moods. Their tumultuous and devastatingly intimate affair continues through the months and is described in considerable detail. As the narrator moves further into the relationship she begins to draw emotionally apart from Lagonelle but even as this happens the narrator moves away from the lover's intimate trust and into Lagonelle's confidence. When the narrator returns to the boarding house in the early morning hours, she often wants to wake Lagonelle and speak with her. However, when Lagonelle wakes she does not return to sleep and becomes somewhat agitated during the later day—thus the narrator usually resists the urge to awaken Lagonelle.

The narrator moves from the passion...