MILLS & BOON STYLE WRITING (WITH COMMENTARY)

'Athena and the marriage counsellor'

My husband Stephanos booked these appointments in the vain hope that it would save our marriage. I was doubtful, but as soon as I approached the gold plated plaque which read 'Dr. Greene - Marriage Counsellor', I felt at ease. The door swung open, stealing the breath from my lungs. All I could see was his piercing green eyes locked on mine. ''Mr and Mrs Kostas?'' he called us into his office, I was fixated on every word that left his lips; I was unresponsive. The walls of his office were a pristine painted white, untainted by impurities. Every time he spoke I felt my face turn a deeper shade of scarlet but I had to make sure Stephanos didn't notice. How could someone I had just met evoke such a reaction? He had a hold on me.

''Hi I'm Stephanos, this is my wife Athena.'' I was lost for words, all that came out were utterances. He shot me a quizzical look and asked ''so what can I do for you today?'' My mind was flooding with responses to this question. Should I just admit how unhappy I am? How can I escape this marriage? Although my internal monologue was crying out for help, like a damsel in distress, all I could let out was a sigh of exhaustion. I sure Stephanos had the right intentions, however this seems superfluous to me. Stephanos tried to eliminate the space between us but I knew that this couldn't be saved and deep down I think he did too. 

Dr Greene was the type of guy who had it all and knew it, but not in an arrogant way. He knew he was superior to me but he didn't come across supercilious in the slightest; in fact he was sweet and understanding. His soothing voice made his comments seem less patronising and more constructive. We answered a load of questions regarding our relationship and had discussed a plethora of resolutions but I had dismissed them all. I'm not much of an optimist. After going through the mountains of paperwork set in front of us containing exercises to strengthen the trust in our relationship it was time to leave. I was glad to leave but reluctant that I was leaving with Stephanos and not Dr Greene. 



COMMENTARY: 
*According to Lakoff's deficit theory, women use a wider variety of colour terms to describe things. This is evident in the text as the narrator is 1st person from Athena's point of view and she describes Dr Greene as having piercing green eyes. She also describes her face as turning a deeper shade of scarlet and the walls of the office as 'pristine white' and 'untainted by imperfections'. This supports Lakoff's theory as the female character is paying a lot of attention to the surroundings and being very descriptive

*Athena overthinks the situation a lot and this is also, according to theories, conventional for women. Dr Greene is portrayed as having a cool head and being calm but powerful. This is the antithesis of Athena who is anxious and stressed out by his presence. This is evident in the text as her internal monologue is going into over drive and she is over analysing the situation.