Time and again, time and again...
-- The Speaker (Line 1)

Importance: In the opening line, the speaker evokes her weariness through repetition. Glück relies on repetition later in the poem to convey the speaker's same feeling of burnout. The phrase "time and again" implies a drudgery that the speaker must slog through.

I tie / My heart to that headboard
-- The Speaker (Lines 1-2)

Importance: The action statement "I tie" evokes the speaker's choice to remain in her unhappy marriage. While the word "tie" implies bondage, the "I" here specifies the speaker's agency. Though the poem takes place in the speaker's mind, here she guides the reader's focus to her marriage bed. The categories of head and heart help construct the forced union between the speaker and her husband.

He's bored— / I see it.
-- The Speaker (Lines 4-5)

Importance: The distance between the speaker and her husband is not one-sided. Here, the speaker senses her husband's lack of interest in her after physical intercourse. This...