Briar Rose

"Of course, dark as it is, he might not be able to see all this, though, as he imagines it, dawn is breaking and, as he pushes aside the ancient drapes (he has already, hands now at her knees, pushed them aside, they turned to dust at his touch)..."

I think this quote is interesting because this is again a variation in Coover's repetition. The idea of the Princess's thighs being spread open has been talked about previously when Coover mentions how the branches "part like thighs". The underlying idea of sex is expressed in an innocent way giving it the feeling of a fairy tale. The reader continually feels suspense thinking that the Prince has reached the sleeping beauty, but each time things fall apart. In this quote her body turns to dust at his touch and he loses her again.