Sleep thou, and I will wind thee in my arms…
So doth the woodbine the sweet honeysuckle
Gently entwist. The female ivy so
Enrings the barky fingers of the elm.
O, how I love thee! How I dote on thee!
– William Shakespeare
A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Act 4, Scene 1. Titania is completely besotted with Bottom, urging him to sleep next to her. Here she speaks about the “female ivy” climbing the elm tree – this image is a metaphorical representation of a couple’s relationship as the woman wraps herself around a man.