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1. Describe the first stanza of "Mock Orange." Who is speaking and to whom? What is she saying?

The speaker is most likely a woman speaking to a man. It sounds as though the man suggested the moon is keeping her up, but she assures him it is the flowers in the yard which hinder her sleep.

2. How does tone change in the second stanza?

The second stanza takes on a more frustrated tone. The speaker repeats the word hate three times and laments the way "the man's mouth" seals her mouth during intercourse.

3. What are the speaker's feelings toward her partner in the second stanza? How do you know?

The speaker is disdainful of her partner in the second stanza. She laments their lovemaking, which seems to stifle her and represent the imbalance of power between a man and a woman.

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