Valentine - Carol Ann Duffy Flashcards
(29 cards)
when was this poem written?
1993
themes?
- power - power of love
- love
- man - about human feelings and relationships
poet context
- contemporary Scottish poet and former poet laureate
- her writing explores ideas about gender, oppression and sexuality
- she is openly part of the LGBTQ+ community and was the first female, gay poet laureate
- this poem was first written when a radio station asked Duffy to write an original poem for Valentine’s Day
- Duffy is a feminist
- she writes about unhappy relationships from a female perspective
- she ran away with an older man when she was 15 years old
what is the meaning of this poem?
- using the image of an onion as the poem’s central conceit, Duffy explores love in an unconventional way
- although love is seen as a wonderful thing that ‘promises light’, it is then shown to be able to cause sadness - ‘blind you with tears’, and be possessive - ‘fierce kiss’ and insecure - ‘as long as we are’ - and even deadly, which is seen in the poem’s final image: ‘cling to your knife’
what is the mood of this poem?
- initially, the poem’s mood seems loving and sincere, as seen in ‘I give you an onion’, which can be seen as an offer of a gift
- later, the mood seems almost deranged and insistent, as in ‘lethal’ showing a dark side to love
what was the motivation for the poet to write this poem?
- writing this poem for a radio station, Duffy appears to reject traditional ideals of love through her choice of form and imagery in the poem
- instead of presenting idealised romantic love, Duffy seems to accept all aspects of love, from its tenderness, sadness, possessiveness and even its potential for violence
- this less than traditional depiction of love may be inspired by Duffy’s sexuality, which was not necessarily accepted during the 1990s
title: ‘Valentine’
LANGUAGE:
- the title establishes the theme of love
- Valentine’s Day has connotations of roses and flowers, hearts and chocolates etc - cliched and materialistic romance
- naming a poem ‘Valentine’ might make the reader expect it to be about traditional expressions of love
‘Not’
LANGUAGE:
- the adverb ‘Not’ shows a rejection of the ideas to follow
‘red rose’
‘satin heart’
IMAGERY:
- traditional romantic images
- thoughtless and commercial
‘I’
‘you’
LANGUAGE:
- ‘I’ shows the poem is written in first person perspective
- ‘you’ shows there is a clear intended audience
- these pronouns provide an intimate feel to the poem
‘onion’
IMAGERY:
- poem’s central conceit - the onion is used as an extended metaphor for love
- represents how love can be atypical, multi-layered and is natural
- an onion is a malapropic way to express love
‘moon’
IMAGERY:
- this metaphor suggests that the onion, the symbol for love, is special and other worldly
‘It promises light’
LANGUAGE:
- Duffy is alluding to the positives of love
- the verb ‘promises’ is interesting, as promises can be broken
‘like the careful undressing of love’
LANGUAGE:
- Duffy suggests that sexual and emotional intimacy are both important and positive parts of love - these two aspects of love both ‘promises light’
- lovers bring down their defences and boundaries and make themselves vulnerable
- could also be a warning to treat love carefully
‘Here.’
STRUCTURE:
- this line creates the impression that the poem’s persona is literally presenting an onion to someone
- by ending the sentence immediately, it suggests there is silence whilst the recipient accepts the gift and tries to come to terms with it
‘blind’
‘tears’
‘grief’
LANGUAGE:
- a negative tone is used to explore the negative side of love - breaking from traditional love poetry showing Duffy is rejecting traditional depictions of love in her poem
- suggests love could bring you sadness and make you cry
‘like a lover’
IMAGERY:
- this image suggests love can be painful and sad
‘I am trying to be truthful.’
LANGUAGE:
- this suggests realistic love isn’t always happy, or could suggest it is difficult to always be honest in love
- in contrast, this could suggest that honesty and love do not always go hand in hand
- love can be secretive and deceptive
‘Not a cute card or kissogram.’
STRUCTURE:
- repeated negative construction emphasises the rejection of traditional ideals of love
- anaphora of ‘Not’
‘I give you an onion.’
STRUCTURE:
- the repitition of this line now makes it sound quite forceful as if the persona is insisting that their gift is accepted
- love is not always positive or simple
‘fierce kiss’
IMAGERY:
- this image suggests that love can be aggressive or domineering
‘possessive’
LANGUAGE:
- the adjective ‘possessive’ displays how love can be controlling and insecure
‘as we are, for as long as we are’
STRUCTURE:
- the repitition of ‘as we are’ shows insecurity and doubt in the relationship
- ‘as long as’ shows that the poem’s persona is aware that their relationship may not last forever, potentially not forever faithful
- mimics a wedding vow which could be an extended metaphor for longevity - this could come across as threatening
‘Take it.’
LANGUAGE:
- this imperative suggests that love has become forceful and uncooperative as the persona is commanding the audience to take the onion, and therefore their love
