Pages 75 through 128 Summary and Analysis

The Dedication

The gift to a lover is a testament of one's emotions. Will it satisfy the lover? Excite him? Will it seem too important? He will touch something I have touched. Perhaps it will not be appreciated: "It is too large, too small. What will I do with it?" The essence of the gift might be akin to blackmail on the part of the giver: "Look what (how much) I've given you!" The underlying posture is that the loved one owes the other. This thinking relates to childhood: "We've given you life! Look how we've sacrificed for you." On the other hand, the gift can be a silent dedication, a tribute to the loved one. Love is mute, only poetry (gift) gives it voice. A poem, a work can be given the name of the loved but cannot...