“ I span and Eve span
A thread to bind the heart of man;”
By these two initial lines in her poem, I think Gilmore wanted to refresh the reader’s mind of a of feminine love that desires exclusivity with her man. But of course! Who does not want it that way, male or female. Despite the permissiveness of our society today, exclusivity with your spouse/partner is still the ideal ,proper concept of man-woman relationship.
Love pathways between man-woman encounter may among other ways include
(a) love at first sight vis-a- vis mutual attraction
(b) whirlwind romance
The above two pathways does not allow much time of getting to know one another.
This time shortage acquaintance often leads to marital failure.
(c) The normal or shall I say, usual process of boy meets girl involving developmental stages in the relationship is more reassuring. This route involves meeting —-> liking—-> friendship —-> courtship —->going steady —-> engage-
ment —-> wedding. Along these stages is time to become close and know each other’s ways, likes and dislikes ,values, dreams and other nuances as well as finances.
Knowing enough of the prospective partner in life prepares one to accept or reject the prospect. Most probably this long route also prepares one to understand, tolerate and accept the person for what she or he is. This could diminish the pain of disillusion when disillusion moments come.
Gilmore tried to picture for the readers an Aussie woman trusting her man to be strong,
faithful, sensible, responsible and appreciative of her. I would like to think that, that is where lurks a trouble spot. Not all persons show their true colour prior to marriage. Some individuals are flippant. The receiver of flippancy is thrown into emotional and psychological turmoil. This is unhealthy. No wonder Gilmore mentioned thoughts of quitting from some women quarters.
Some women suffered from the feeling of being trapped in a quagmire. Others though maintained their wifely bearing and perhaps their integrity. They stayed put and patient for the sake of their children. They persevered. And again, I would say, but of course! Hope springs eternal. I would not fault them for that. The lying irresponsible man comes home, gets forgiven and welcomed back. Ouched. Sigh. A deep sigh.
Lourdes Murphy.
29/03/2019
Submitted to Prof. Michael Griffith
English 102
ACU
Ondette02 
Lourdes, this is a wonderful reflection on the complexity of human relationships, prompted by your reading of Gilmore’s poem. You go very deeply into the why and the how of courtship and marriage. Well done! A few minor corrections need fixing up.
Thank you for your good work
Michael
Editing Needed (and some workshop follow-ups- see Purdue Owl for help: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/1/
* refresh the reader’s mind of a of feminine love = TYPO…. [ ]
*Love pathways between man-woman encounter may among other ways include= Love pathways between man-woman encounter many among other ways, including:
*(a) love at first sight vis-a- vis mutual attraction = ??? are these the same thing? Or do you mean them to be different? “vis-a-vis” means “opposite to”
(b) whirlwind romance = how is this different to (a)?
*The above two pathways does not allow = The above two pathways DO not allow
*… time of getting to know one another.= … time FOR getting to know one another.
* Ouched.= Ouch!
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Corrections noted . Thank you Michael.
But will edit it sometime later.
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