Pandora, Delilah, Bathsheba, Lola, Gilda
-- Speaker (Line 2)

Importance: This line lists allegedly “dangerous” women, often characterized as such for their independence. Pandora comes from Greek myth, while Delilah and Bathsheba are Biblical figures. Lola is a character from Double Indemnity, while Gilda is a title character from a film of the same name. This line implies that the demonization of women has existed since the beginning of time, and has since become a cultural motif.

We dissolve behind veils and trench coats
-- Speaker (Line 8)

Importance: This line intentionally reproduces trademark motifs of the film noir genre. The word “dissolve” is given a double meaning: in one instance it conjures the smoky, soft-focus atmosphere of these films. In the next, it suggests that these women are physically disappearing once divorced from the male gaze. This gives the speaker a feeling of ephemerality in an otherwise eternal scene.

blooms into the night air, thick with gunfire
-- Speaker (Line 13)

Importance: This closing...