In Paris with You Analysis

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The poem In Paris with You contrasts reality with the fantasy of love. The poem explores the consequences of love. For example how difficult it is to fall in love and trust somebody again after bad experiences. The narrator seems to reject all the “Traditional expectations” of love in search of reality and quick, easy affection. This poem takes the reader through the journey of trusting/ being part of a relationship again. When you first look at this poem it appears to deal with a person rebounding from a failed relationship into a new encounters set against the clichéd romantic backdrop of Paris. However, when you look at this poem closer it seems that despite the romantic language and imagery there is actually a dark side of the poem suggesting that the heartbroken narrator is merely looking for some company to help them deal with a previous failed relationship. The title of the poem “In Paris with You” quickly establishes what the reader thinks is the setting of the poem: Paris. Paris is often thought of as the city of love and romance. However James Fenton opens his poem with the sentence “Don't talk to me of love.” By starting with a morose tone and a negative imperative it not only shows the narrator is getting over a broken relationship, but it also shows the reader that the narrator finds it a difficult subject to talk about. Fenton then goes on to say “I've had an earful / And I get tearful.” Rather than both words of the rhyming pair coming at the end of lines, “tearful” is in the middle of the second line. The rhymes actually seem to give a lighter atmosphere to the first stanza, even though Fenton is feeling down. He describes himself as “one of your talking wounded,” which of course is a play on the phrase “walking wounded” used to describe people who have only slight injuries. It implies that despite his broken heart and bruised feelings, the

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