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Sarah Books
Between you and a bowl of oranges I lie nude Reading //The World's Illusion// through my tears. You reach across me hungry for global fruit, Your bare arm hard, furry and warm on my belly. Your fingers pry the skin of a navel orange Releasing tiny explosions of spicy oil. You place peeled disks of gold in a bizarre pattern On my white body. Rearranging, you bend and bite The disks to release further their eager scent. I say "Stop, you're tickling," my eyes still on the page. Aromas of groves arise. Through green leaves Glow the lofty snows. Through red lips Your white teeth close on a translucent segment. Your face over my face eclipses //The World's Illusion//. Pulp and juice pass into my mouth from your mouth. We laugh against each other's lips. I hold my book Behind your head, still reading, still weeping a little. You say, "Read on, I'm just an illusion," rolling Over upon me soothingly, gently moving, Smiling greenly through long lashes. And soon I say "Don't stop. Don't disillusion me." Snows melt. The mountain silvers into many a stream. The oranges are golden worlds in a dark dream.

Way 1: First Impressions
When I first read the poem "Peeling an Orange" by Virginia Hamilton Adair, I pictured a pair of lovers lounging around on a lazy afternoon. The poem was not what I had expected from reading the title. One question I have is about what "The World's Illusion" is that the speaker refers to in Line 2 when she says "Reading //The World's Illusion// through my tears" (2). My initial thought was that finding out about the book title would unlock the poem. If it is not a real book title, I'm assuming it was made up to enhance the understanding of the rest of the poem. I'm quite sure that either way, this is an important aspect of understanding the poem. A second thing I found myself wondering about it the setting. At first I assumed that it is set in a warm place, perhaps on or near a beach since there are numerous references objects that most people associate with the outdoors. The speaker mentions snow in Lines 12 and 22, which I was unsure about when I first read the poem. I'm not sure if its a metaphor or just actual snow she is referring to. As far as rhyming patterns, I noticed that only the last two lines of the poem truly rhyme. I'm finding it difficult not to make assumptions about the poem and make it more complicated than it needs to be. I'm sure there is much more to it than my initial assumption of it being simply a tender moment between two lovers.

Way 2: Engaging with the Text
Something that stands out to me is that the last two lines of the poem are the only two lines that truly rhyme. This makes the last two lines feel as though they should be emphasized or that it is very important moment in the poem. Before this point, its almost like the text was just rolling along lazily, but these last two lines pack some punch. It's almost as though in these last two lines, everything has clicked for the speaker and she doesn't need to weep anymore because she has found bliss.

Another thing I noticed is the line 19 that says "Over upon me soothingly, gently moving." This line really about stood out to me. This example of assonance gives the impression of a beautiful, comforting, loving, pleasure-filled moment. There are also many examples of alliteration such as "bend and bite" in line 8, "place peeled" in line 7, "long lashes" in line 20, and "Don't disillusion" in line 21. In my opinion, these add to the intimate atmosphere being described in the poem.

Way 3: A Point About Form and It's Relationship to Content
According to Brown and Yarbrough, a poem written using free verse is, "verse without regular metrical form or an overall, uniform rhyme scheme" (326). "Peeling an Orange" is free verse because there isn't a consistent rhyme scheme through the poem. The only lines that truly rhyme are 23 and 24, where stream is rhymed with dream. The fact that this is the only couplet with true rhyme puts extra emphasis here. During the first six lines, each pair of lines forms a sentence. In the first three lines, there are multiple words that make similar sounds, such as you, nude, through, and fruit. Another interesting point to notice is how the author breaks up sentences between lines. This causes the reader to really think about how the poem is meant to sound as it is read.

Way 4: Figurative Language
There are many examples of figurative language throughout the poem. In lines 1 and 2, the speaker says "...I lie nude/Reading //The World's Illusion// through my tears." The term "illusion" is used several more times throughout the poem such as in line 18, which reads "You say 'Read on, I'm just an illusion" and line 21 which reads "I say 'Don't stop. Don't disillusion me." I think that the illusions are a large theme in the poem. My original thought is that the "illusions" are illusions of peace and happiness. This thought was later supported by the information I learned when looking at the biographical contexts.. This is where the author's choice to have the speaker be reading a book titled //The World's Illusion// must be significant.

Way 4: Figurative Language
I also feel that oranges are symbolic of something in "Peeling an Orange." "Your fingers pry the skin of a navel orange," is another place where oranges are a part of what is happening. At this point I'm thinking that the "peeling" of the orange is significant especially because of the later line "You place peeled disks of gold in a bizarre pattern."(7) Also, the last line says "The oranges are golden worlds in a dark dream." (23) My thought is that the "peeling of an orange" could be a metaphor for the emerging moment of intimacy the couple is experiencing in the poem. The "peeling an orange" could be talking about getting to truly know a person, much like peeling the skin off an apple gets you closer to the inner core.

Way 5: Setting
There doesn't seem to be much of a specific setting to this poem. There are what you could call "props," such as the book the speaker is reading, and the oranges. Apart from those things, the poem focuses on the interaction between the two characters as opposed to describing setting. I did come to the conclusion that it is set outdoors because of phrases such as, "aromas of groves" and "green leaves" in line 11, "lofty snows" in line 12, "smiling greenly" in line 20, and then ending of "Snow melts. The mountain silvers into many a stream./The oranges are golden worlds in a dark dream" in lines 22 and 23. These all lead a reader to believe that the couple is probably outdoors or can see the outdoors very clearly. Originally I thought that it was set in a warm location largely because of all the references to oranges. However, the talk of "snows" changed my mind about that. I started to think more along the lines of the idea that the two opposites of the warm and cold potential locations could possibly represent change. It could also represent two opposite opinions on life and the world.

Way 6: Point of View
According to Brown and Yarbrough text in the first person point of view is "told by a narrator who is actually a participant in the events of the particular story, either as a protagonist or as a side character observing the action from a distance" (Brown 63). In "Peeling an Orange" the reader can tell it is written in the first person because of the author's use of the words "I" and "we". Both these words indicate that the speaker is an actual participant in the events being described.

Way 7: Analyzing Complexity, Ambiguity, Difficulty
After initially reading the poem, I felt like the whole thing was ambiguous. More specifically, all the references to oranges seem very ambiguous. The speaker is talking about oranges but there seems to be a deeper meaning. Also, in lines 22-23, "Snow melts. The mountain silvers into many a stream./The oranges are golden worlds in a dark dream." In a literal sense, these lines could be describing part of the setting.

Way 8: Considering Canonicity
According to Brown and Yarbrough, the canon is, "The collection of works judged by literary scholars, readers, and writers of the current culture and past cultures to be worthy of study and continual rediscovery" (323). There are many requirements for a work to be considered a part of the literary canon. //A Practical Guide to Literary Study// suggests that two of the most important are longevity and aesthetic value (2-3). Based on those two requirements I would have to say that "Peeling an Orange" should be considered part of the literary canon. First of all, the poem does not give the reader a sense of it being set in a specific time period. That lends to longevity in that future readers will still be able to relate to the poem. "Peeling an Orange" does not give the reader a feeling that it's themes and ideas can only be applied to a particular period in time. Another reason it should be included in the canon is that it is pleasing to read. The poem peaks a reader's curiosity while describing what many people would consider a beautiful scene. The third reason is that it really engages the reader. In my experience, the first time you read this poem, you get a small amount of understanding out of that reading. It is necessary to reread and truly consider this poem before it becomes unlocked.

Way 9: Biographical Context
According to pbs.org, Virginia Hamilton Adair has been through a lot in her 91 years such as losing her sight to glaucoma (Farnsworth). This was interesting to me because "Peeling an Orange" includes so many detailed images of an almost luscious scene. I couldn't find when exactly she lost her sight, so I don't know if she lost it before or after she wrote this poem. I had assumed that the poem was written by someone who could still see all the objects and scene she was describing. However, it makes a lot of sense that it could have been written after she lost her sight. In that sense, it could have been written almost as a memory. Another thing I found out about Adair is that her husband committed suicide unexpectedly in 1968 (New York Times). In an interview on the PBS website, Adair said,"We had so much I couldn't understand how he could leave it" (pbs.org). When I found this out, I immediately thought of the lines "I say 'Don't stop. Don't disillusion me.'/Snow melts. The mountain silvers into many a stream./The oranges are golden worlds in a dark dream."( Adair 21-23). I looked at the phrase "Don't stop. Don't disillusion me." very differently after learning that her husband unexpectedly committed suicide. All the information I found said that they were in a seemingly happy marriage and that the suicide was completely unexpected. Since the marriage seemed to be happy and her husband appeared to be fine it is possible that the "illusion" that is referred to throughout the poem is a reference to the marriage and how the author may have felt that it was just an illusion. Certainly in her situation a person could feel as though their time with the person who committed suicide was just a lie or an illusion. Relating to that thought, it also could be seen as the "illusion" that her husband was doing fine.

Way 10: Historical and Cultural Contexts
This poem doesn't hint much at what time period it is set in. However, something that stands out is the fact that the couple seems to be in a kind of oasis away from the regular world. I think that is very important to the poem. "Peeling an Orange" was published in 1996, although I could not find when it was actually written. The references to "illusions" and the connection I made between that and the death of the author's husband make me think that it may have been written closer to the time of his suicide. No matter when it was written, it seems to be that the couple has almost run away from the "real world" or the bad and chaotic events happening in the world. They seem to be in a safe haven where they can maybe be happy together for a moment. This also made me think that the "illusion" could be referring to the idea that you can't completely escape the real world.

Way 11: A Critical or Theoretical Context
Taking a psychoanalytical approach to interpreting this poem would be a good way to enhance understanding. According to Brown and Yarbrough, psychoanalytical criticism,"frequently focuses on the significance of symbols and apparently accidental utterances that reveal the deeper intentions of the unconscious mind" (331). With the information that the author's husband committed suicide, it is easier to take a psychoanalytical approach. My thought is that with that information, it looks as though the author is very focused on her husbands suicide. Particularly the phrase "Don't stop. Don't disillusion me" points to her fixation on him seemingly being fine and then leaving her unexpectedly. It seems normal in this case that she would have abandonment issues as a result of his leaving.

Works Cited:
code Brown, James S., and Scott D. Yarbrough. __A Practical Introduction to Literary Study__. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2005. code code Fox, Margalit. "Virginia Hamilton Adair, 91, a Famous Poet Late in Life." __The New York Times__ 18 Sept. 2004. 10 Dec. 2008 . code code Hamilton Adair, Virginia. Interview with Elizabeth Farnsworth. __Online NewsHour__. PBS. 4 Sept. 1996 . code