Symbol Analysis
During the course of a romantic relationship, people inevitably collect mementoes—physical objects associated with special memories. These sentimental love tokens might include funny valentines, dried flowers pressed between the pages of a favorite book of poetry (by Walcott, perhaps?), or Instagrams of the happy couple frolicking on the beach. “Love After Love” includes images of such mementoes: “love letters,” “photographs,” “desperate notes.” But the identity of this former lover (identified only as “another”) is mysterious, to say the least. Could it be someone you need to get over so you can get back to feeling like your old self again?
- Line 12: Here are those “love letters,” stashed on a “bookshelf.” Notice how specific the image is, as the poet includes the location of the letters. Are the letters lovingly preserved in a place of honor on the bookshelf, or stored on a high shelf so you won’t be tempted to torture yourself by rereading them?
- Line 13: Here are some more mementoes of the mysterious love affair: photographs and notes. The image of the photographs is generic, lacking any descriptive details, but the image of the notes includes the emotionally intense word “desperate.” This makes you wonder whether the writer was feeling desperate just to spend more time with the beloved, or whether these notes were penned during the death throes of the relationship.