Bodenheim offers an affectionate, admiring sketch of his wife’s way with emotion. She is not always gracefully expressive; sometimes her voice turns clumsy and uncertain, producing a weak music that struggles to match her heart. But even then she avoids easy drama. She reaches for graver, more thoughtful tones instead of laughter or tears. The speaker clearly values this restraint. He sees her wrapping loud feelings in a veil of glistening thought, which only occasionally slips to reveal startled emotion beneath. Her mind never bows to sleek, seductive feeling. That last image—slapping emotion’s face and laughing at its surprise—is playful and defiant. The mood is warm, wry, and deeply respectful, celebrating a woman whose power lies in self-possession rather than display.
Two Sonnets to My Wife II — Summary
My wife relents to life and does not speak Each moment with a deft and rapid note. Sometimes a clumsy weirdness finds in her throat And ushers in a music that is weak And bargains with the groping of her heart. But even then she plays with graver tones That do not sell themselves to laughs and moans But seek the counsel of a deeper art.
She drapes her loud emotions in a shroud Of glistening thought that waves above their dance And sometimes parts to show their startled eyes. The depths of mind within her have not bowed To sleek emotion with its amorous glance. She slaps its face and laughs at its surprise!