10 mark questions

Question 1

By referring to this extract (Mrs Midas) and to at least one other poem by Duffy, discuss how the poet explores the impact of change.

Answer 1

In ‘Mrs Midas’, as a result of her husband’s foolish actions, Mrs Midas is forced to remove her husband from her home/life (1)

In “Originally”, Duffy explores her own personal journey of moving from Scotland to England and how this change affects her identity

*Originally the poet’s family’s move to England, forces her to consider the impact of change on aspects of humanity such as identity and sense of self.

• War Photographer the photographer is changed by his experience of the horror of war and, as a result, feels an increasing separateness and isolation towards his own country and the newspaper for which he works.
• In Mrs Tilscher’s Class the speaker reflects on the change from the happiness and security of her primary classroom, to feelings of fear and trepidation as she begins to experience a more adult world.
• Valentine the speaker highlights how the impact of the changes in the relationship, which initially was full of optimism and hopefulness, have resulted in feelings of jealousy and insecurity.
• The Way My Mother Speaks highlights how change causes conflicting emotions as the speaker initially sees herself as being closely tied to her mother but by the end, she realises that she can also have her own identity whilst still being strongly connected to her heritage/family background

Question 2

By referring closely to this poem, and to at least one other poem by Duffy, discuss how the poet explores the attempts of characters to cope with life-changing situations.

Answer 2

Duffy presents characters who develop various coping “strategies” either consciously or unconsciously (1) some more successful in allowing them to accept or move on, whilst others are still struggling (1)

*War Photographer the inability of the photographer to rid himself of his experiences in warzones despite his attempts to adopt a professional distance

• Originally the speaker attempts to adapt her language in order to fit in to her new environment but feels a sense of loss as a result of this
• Valentine the speaker attempts to cope with the loss of her illusions about love by rejecting the clichés of love in favour of a more cynical view

Question 3

By referring to this poem and to at least one other poem by Duffy, discuss how the poet explores emotional conflict within an individual.

Answer 3

the speaker is attracted to other, more positive aspects of love such as intimacy and tenderness but adopts a more realistic/cynical attitude towards love “Not a red rose…onion” (2)

• War Photographer the emotional impact of the horrors the photographer has witnessed in his assignments abroad conflicts with the pride he feels in doing a professional job
• Originally the unresolved emotional conflict of maintaining identity: where is home and all the emotional baggage the question entails
• Mrs Midas the unresolved conflicting emotions she feels for her husband: the contempt she feels for his desires which brought about their separation conflicts with the physical intimacy she now misses.

Question 4

By referring to this poem and at least one other by Duffy, discuss how the poet explores concerns about identity.

Answer 4

the speaker’s sense of alienation from her new surroundings gradually subsides as she starts to become assimilated; the cost of this assimilation however, is an uncertainty about her cultural identity (2)

*War Photographer his difficulty in reconciling his public identity as a professional photographer − getting on with the job − and his human response to the horror and suffering he has encountered

• Valentine the speaker is unwilling to be defined by society’s conventional view of romantic love which prompts her attempt to break free of eg, romantic stereotypes and be more ‘truthful’, more authentic

*Mrs Midas given the consequences of her husband’s ‘wish’, she struggles with the loss of certain aspects of her previous identity − wife, lover, potential mother − due to her prioritising her own self preservation

Question 5

By referring to this poem and to at least one other poem, discuss how Duffy uses contrast to explore central concerns.

Answer 5

‘You could travel up the Blue Nile’ and the more troubled view of life experienced by the older child ‘untidy, hot,/fractious’ encourages the reader to consider the darker aspects of growing up (2)

 War Photographer contrast between his need to be professional and his natural urge towards compassion for human beings in pain raises the question of how we should respond to suffering humanity

 Originally contrast between the speaker’s initial feelings of insecurity in her new home and her eventual assimilation into the new way of life, shown by her way of speaking ‘my tongue/shedding its skin like a snake’ indicates human resilience

 Valentine contrast between the sentimentalised view of love expressed through clichés and the truer view of love shown through the speaker’s gift. ‘I give you an onion’ encourages an honest, uncompromising view of human relationships

 Mrs Midas contrast between the estrangement between Mrs Midas and her husband and their former intimacy, shown in her memory of ‘his warm hands on my skin’ suggests the complexities of a relationship in crisis

 The Way my Mother Speaks contrast between the happiness and sadness of the speaker who cherishes her closeness to her mother while also recognising that she is moving away from her as she matures encourages the reader to appreciate the bitter-sweet nature of changing relationships