The Reunion

Reunion by Carolyn Forche

On the phonograph, the voice of a woman already dead for three decades, singing of a man who could make her do anything.
-The persona is listening to something that she can relate to.
-She is listening to something that makes her remember something (a man/a broken relationship) from the past.
On the table, two fragile glasses of black wine, a bottle wrapped in its towel.
-These three lines refers to an act of sexual intercourse.
-The two fragile glasses could be a metaphor for bodies.
-Black wines do not exist. The word “black” could connote something negative. It could mean that something is corrupted. Since the wine is inside the glasses, this could mean that the act itself is corrupted.
-Also, the line, “a bottle wrapped in its towel” further proves that a sexual intercourse is going on.The towel could be a metaphor for blanket, and the bottle refers to the man and woman. They are now made one because of the act. The way the man and the woman wrap themselves in the blanket is similar to the way the bottle is wrapped in its towel.
It is that room, the one we took in every city, it is as I remember: the bed, a block of moonlight and pillows.
-The woman is reminiscing on important details where she and the man did it. Based from the lines, she can remember these details very well. She remembers the room, the bed they laid on, how the moon looked and the pillows they used. This moment was very significant to the woman.
My fingernails, pecks of light on your thighs.
-These two lines could refer to how the woman was trying to get the guy to do it again, the next day after the act.

The stink of the fire escape.
The wet butts of cigarettes you crushed one after another.
-The line “you crushed one after another” alludes to the fact that they had intercourse (repeatedly) and in the end, this act made the woman really tired. They did it numerous times. That is why the two lines “the stink of the fire escape” and