R. D. Laing, Do You Love Me?: An Entertainment in Conversation and Verse

Daniel Burston (Duquesne University); Gavin Miller (University of Glasgow)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.09: English Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary Britain , 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Gina Lyle (University of Glasgow), Graham MacPhee (University of Manchester), Kerry Myler (Birmingham Newman University), Jenni Ramone (The Nottingham Trent University)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1976

Places

Scotland (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Play
Poetry (any)

Resources

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Do You Love Me?: An Entertainment in Conversation and Verse

is a slim compendium of dialogues (many scripted like play texts) and verse (primarily poetry, but also modified or parodic song lyrics). In all, there are 62 of these little texts in

Do You Love Me?

The title derives from the final dialogue, a lengthy question and answer section in which “she” asks “he'” for proof of his love. Does he really like being near her, think she's attractive, like to smell her, think she's funny, love her forever (and so on)? The answer to all these is “yes”; but her final, unanswered (or unanswerable?) question is “Do you

really

love me?”.

On its own, the titular dialogue may seem just a meditation on feminine insecurity, or the endless demands of love. But in the context of Laing's

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913 words

Citation: Burston, Daniel, Gavin Miller. "Do You Love Me?: An Entertainment in Conversation and Verse". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 29 August 2005 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=16845, accessed 04 May 2024.]

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