Lovers' Quarrels, 20 cents the first quarter mileKenneth Fearing's poem "Love, 20 cents the first quarter mile", expresses the wide range emotions experienced in an argument. The poem depicts the all-too-familiar situation of a lovers' quarrel in which the character, who can be assumed to be a man, struggles to resolve an argument during a taxi ride. During his attempts to resolve the feud, the character experiences a variety of emotions ranging from apologetic to accusing to sarcastic to romantic. In this poem, the reader gains personal insight into the character's conflicting and changing feelings. The first stanza of the poem leads the reader to believe that the character has been a less than perfect companion to his counterpart. However, the character seems willing to admit that he "may" have committed some transgressions and appears to apologize for them. He admits that he "may have lied to and about" (line 1) his partner, and that he also "cursed [her] extravagance, slandered [her] tastes,/defamed [his] relatives and slandered some of them] friends" (4-5). “Nevertheless,” he implores him, “come back”(7). In the second stanza, the character expresses his willingness to concede to his companion, as long as she is ready to make some of her own concessions. "I will agree to forget the statements you made/...to the neighbors...,/ and you will forget this figment of your imagination, the blonde/ from Detroit;/ I agree that your friend...is not not crazy.. ./but on the contrary rather brilliant,/ and you will agree that...Steinburg is neither a drunkard/ nor a crook,...... middle of paper ...... We will have a party to end all celebrations" (28). He reveals how petty he considers the argument by contradicting his earlier concessions. "We will invite... Steinburg, who actually got off the wagon, and that crazy woman who lives upstairs..."(31-32). Apparently, the storm of the argument has passed and the reader feels a sense of calm and resolution. Over the course of this poem, readers intimately experience the wide range of feelings the character experiences in a short period of time. The meaning of the title "Love, 20 cents the First Quarter Mile" is that the character is not only paying for a taxi ride, but also for the time it takes to appease his partner and convince her of his love for her. survive even the most trivial arguments.