Mrs Midas

Question 1

“It was late September”

Answer 1

Word Choice - ‘September’ a time we would associate with the golden colours of Autumn. But also, when things come to an end.

Question 2

“I’d just poured a glass of wine, begun to unwind”

Answer 2

Word Choice - ‘glass of wine’ ‘unwind’ creates a calm, laid-back atmosphere
Dionysus was god of wine so classical allusion to Dionysus

Question 3

“its steamy breath gently blanching the windows.”

Answer 3

Personification - used to describe the kitchen creating a warm, appealing atmosphere; relaxation contrasts with what’s about to happen

Question 4

“I” and “He”

Answer 4

Narrative Voice - personal pronoun ‘I’ suggests the poem is told in first person from the POV of Mrs Midas
‘He’ introduces her husband, King Midas, to the poem

Question 5

“wiped the other’s glass like a brow”

Answer 5

Simile - just as someone might wipe sweat from their brow so too does Mrs Midas wipe the condensation from the window. Sensory imagery is used throughout the poem

Question 6

“under the pear tree snapping a twig”

Answer 6

Contrast - created between the laid back atmosphere of the opening lines, which describe Mrs Midas and the final lie which introduces her husband. Created through the word choice of ‘relaxed’ and ‘snapping’

Question 7

“Now the garden was long”

Answer 7

Contrast of inside (Mrs Midas) and outside (King Midas) suggests physical and emotional distance between the couple

Question 8

“visibility poor”

Answer 8

word choice - connotations being unable to see clearly suggests Mrs Midas is struggling to comprehend what she is witnessing

Question 9

“that twig in his hand was gold”

Answer 9

Word choice - first mention of the word ‘gold’

Question 10

“Fondante d’Automne - and it sat in his palm”

Answer 10

Simile - just as a light bulb is round and bright so too is the pear illuminated from being gold
word choice - ‘lightbulb’ moment is a moment of discovery. Midas is discovering his new power

Question 11

“Is he putting fairy lights on the tree?”

Answer 11

Sentence Structure Rhetorical Question - emphasises the confusion and disbelief felt by Mrs Midas upon witnessing her husbands power

Question 12

“He sat in that chair like a king on a burnished throne”

Answer 12

Imagery Simile - just as a king sits on a golden throne so too does Midas sit on his armchair which has now turned to gold. Image suggests wealth and status

Question 13

“He started to laugh”

Answer 13

Contrast - created through word choice of ‘laugh’ - Mrs Midas is dumbfounded whereas King Midas finds the situation amusing

Question 14

“I served up the meal”

Answer 14

Word choice Comic effect - mrs Midas continues to go about her domestic chores despite absurd situation. Matter-of-Fact tone established

Question 15

“he was spitting out the teeth of the rich”

Answer 15

Metaphor - the corn on the cob has turned to gold and now resembles little gold teeth

Question 16

“He toyed with his spoon, then mine, then with the knives, the forks”

Answer 16

List - emphasises the sheer amount of variety of household objects that Midas has turned gold. List emphasises Mrs Midas’ growing realisation that something is wrong

Question 17

“I poured with a shaking hand”

Answer 17

Word Choice - connotations fear and anxiety she is becoming wary of her husbands ability

Question 18

“glass, goblet, golden chalice, drank”

Answer 18

Alliteration of harsh consent ‘g’ represents her disdain for her husbands actions

climatic list emphasises the quick effect of his power which is further emphasised by the rule of three

Question 19

“It was then that I started to scream. He sank to his knees”

Answer 19

Word choice connotations of fear and disdain - a dramatic opening to the stanza as both realisation the seriousness of the situation

Question 20

“Keep his hands to himself”

Answer 20

Word choice - connotations a lack of physical intimacy between the couple. The fact that he is made to sit on the other side of the room represents the distance in their relationship brought on by circumstances

Question 21

“Look, we all have wishes; granted. But who has wishes granted?”

Answer 21

Word Choice play on words ‘granted’ meaning both the assumption that something is true and to have a wish accepted

Question 22

“Do you know about gold? It feeds no one; arum, soft, untarnishable; slakes no thirst”

Answer 22

Rhetorical question which she goes on to answer herself emphasise that she thinks his wish was outrageous
List emphasises the negative attributes of gold, revealing the lack of true value that gold has

Question 23

“Separate beds.”

Answer 23

Word choice; connotations a law of intimacy between the two suggesting the strain on their relationship

Question 24

“the tomb of Tutankhamun”

Answer 24

Metaphor; compares Midas to an Egyptian pharaoh suggesting wealth and status

Question 25

“unwrapping each other, rapidly, like presents, fast food”

Answer 25

Simile; compares their intimacy to a gift, something they longed for
Metaphor; of fast food suggests indulgence

Question 26

“a heart of gold”

Answer 26

Metaphor; usually a positive expression but this time it has negative connotations symbol of death

Question 27

“cover of dark”

Answer 27

Contrasts with the brightness of the gold that is their curse

Question 28

“the woman who married the fool who wished for gold”

Answer 28

She has a negative view of her husband and by extension herself

Question 29

“lack of thought for me”

Answer 29

The speaker fells hurt and betrayed by her husbands thoughtlessness

Question 30

“Pure selfishness”

Answer 30

Word Choice; connotations of thoughtlessness suggests she still feels betrayed

Question 31

“Certain lights, dawn, late afternoon”

Answer 31

Imagery; she remembers him at the time of day when the sky is yellow and orange

Question 32

“once a bowl of apples stopped me dead”

Answer 32

Sentence Structure; repetition of hands emphasises the importance of his tough throughout the poem

Question 33

“I miss most, even now, his hands, his warm hands on my skin, his touch”

Answer 33

miss - word choice; connotations of longing suggests she regrets how things turned out

Imagery; symbolism of the hands/sensory imagery. The thing that she misses the most is ironically the thing that ended her marriage

Question 34

Themes

Answer 34

selfishness and greed
loneliness
love

Question 35

Other poems

Answer 35

Mrs M + Originally - leaving home, changing circumstances, journey (physical, metaphorical)
Mrs M + Valentine - love, loss of relationship, unconventional expression of love