Poems are just difficult

I thought that for this entry, I'd just go over Lady Mary Wortley Montagu's poem because I have a hard time understanding poetry. The first stanza seems pretty straight-forward. He's all dressed up for a date with Betty. It also wasn't lost on me that Montagu describes his appearance, just as Swift said that women were pretty.

The second stanza it says that he had wrote her a lot of letters trying to impress her, but she never invited him over (I think). I don't get the line "Jenny her maid could taste a rhyme/And, grieved to see him lose his time". Is it saying that the maid was flattered by his letters? Was it usual for a maid to her Lady's letters? And the stanza ends by saying that he has to pay to see Betty. I'm really not sure how to take that. It kind of sounds like a prostitute, but then again maybe Betty just hopes to get something out of the pointless meeting, the something being money.

The third stanza is when they meet up. He has the money and the second they meet he starts saying stuff she expected and had probably read in his letters. He does give her the money which she takes. Then it says "And in her trunk rose up to lock it". What is her trunk? Maybe a car trunk? It ends by saying she came back to him, expecting a warm welcome as before.

The fourth stanza the narrator feels like she has to put in a disclaimer. At least, that what it feels like to me. "Alas for wretched humankind,/With learning mad, with wisdom blind!/The ox thinks he's for saddle fit/(As long ago friend Horace writ)". I find that whole part very confusing. The first two lines feel like she's saying that people are stupid. Then the last two lines I can't even guess at. After that part, it says that men only assume that women want to hear them speak. At the part with the toupee, it sounds like she's saying he has a big head and goes on to assume the stuff afterwards? That is, the stuff about philosophy and politics. But then she ends it with "That all is right, his head is wrong". So she says that....oh I don't even know. Something she previously stated was right and then men are getting it wrong.

In the fifth stanza she states that no one even bothers to learn their place, but "Strain for wisdom, beauty, spirit" and end up losing praise that should have been theirs because they overstepped and look foolish.

The sixth stanza says that they should follow their instincts because their instinct would tell them when to stop pushing the boundaries where they belong.

I'm immediately confused when the seventh stanza starts. "The reverend lover with surprise/Peeps in her bubbies, and her eyes,/And kisses both, and tries---and tries." What? The reverend lover? What is a reverend lover? What are bubbies? Babies? It's just very confusing. It stays confusing until the diaglogue because I can tell he's blaming the women for his venture into the women's dressing room (in reference to Swift's poem of course).

In the last stanza, the nymph, or woman, responds, but I have no idea what "The blame lies all in sixty odd" means. Betty kicks out her suitor, but he demands the money back because they didn't do anything (Is she a prostitute?) She says she won't give it back because all he did was yell at her. He then says that he'll be revenged for his humility (I love the line "you saucy quean") and says that he'll describe her room (so that means that the suitor is the narrator in Swift's poem, it all suddenly makes a little more sense!). It ends with Betty saying that she's glad he'll write about it, because she couldn't care less.

I know that most of this will probably be clarified on Monday, but for now, I'm still pretty confused in certain parts and stanzas.

Pinchwife

I wanted to a character analysis on Pinchwife from The Country Wife. I feel there is more to him than to be summed up in 'he is covetous of his wife'. From early, we find out that he doesn't like the city at all, and is only there because of some suit of law (lawsuit). It begs the question of what did he do to get it? As far as I'm aware, it's not said, at least in the first two acts. Could it have been something to do with his wife? He does seem very...obsessive? He even goes so far as to try and convince everyone that she's hideous and awkward. He even says that she's ill mannered and says that he won't teach her 'breeding' because the ignorant wife is the best. Although, with men like Horner about, it's hard to lay blame completely on him. He could be a little more lax with her however. Because we know he is older, he seems out of place because everyone else seems younger. Pinchwife seems to have more old fashioned views about women and marriage as do Horner and Harcourt. He also later goes on to talk about how much he hates fops. It makes me think that he holds the image and idea of a man highly. I can see him not liking fops because of how they dress and, to quote him, "Such as sped their Estates before they come to them are Cuckholds before they're married." He doesn't think them smart at all. Perhaps it their hair? Or their fashion? Or even how they act? Who knows. But then, Pinchwife makes a remark in act 2 that his lies he told above seems very close to his opinion on women. "Well, there is no being too hard for Women at their own weapon, lying, therefore I'll quit the Field." It was an offhand remark to clue us into his thoughts. With remarks like that, coupled with the lies he's spreading about her, and how he treats her to her face, the fops he hates so much seems like better men, because while they have ill intentions, they at least treat you like a smart human.