What is the main motif in the poem, Adam’s Curse?

Poetry is a recurring motif in the conversation between the three friends, which the poet uses to give context to the larger themes. In the first stanza, the speaker remarks that poetry is a labor-intensive process that should, when successful, appear effortless. Soon after, the speaker admits that this ideology can apply to anything in life that’s worthwhile. As their conversation turns to love, they remark that once lovers would quote “Precedents out of beautiful old books” (Line 27), which likely refers to romantic poetic phrases. The speaker then goes on to say how they used to court their loved one in this way, but that passion, like so much else, has been lost.

Poetry is a recurring motif in the conversation between the three friends, which the poet uses to give context to the larger themes. In the first stanza, the speaker remarks that poetry is a labor-intensive process that should, when successful, appear effortless. Soon after, the speaker admits that this ideology can apply to anything in life that’s worthwhile. As their conversation turns to love, they remark that once lovers would quote “Precedents out of beautiful old books” (Line 27), which likely refers to romantic poetic phrases. The speaker then goes on to say how they used to court their loved one in this way, but that passion, like so much else, has been lost.