Before You Were Mine Flashcards
Context for the poem?
Explores how motherhood changes a girl to a woman
Written by Carol Ann Duffy who was brought up in a 1950s Catholic household, explains her religious references
Explores the societal standards expected of women in the 1950s
How is love presented in the poem?
Maternal Love, Possessive Love
What are some themes in the poem?
Guilt, Sacrifice, Identity loss in motherhood
“Marilyn”
Metaphor - Mother is glamorous and looked up to by many
However, has tragedy ahead in her future - could be childbirth
“Your ghost”
Metaphor - shows how mother is only a small part of what she used to be, she is now void of emotion
“Wrong Pavement”
Metaphor - mother may have taken the wrong path in becoming a mother
“Bold girl winking”
Adjective and verb - mother is confident and outgoing, maybe not anymore
“Stamping stars”
Sibilance - links to Hollywood emphasise how glamorous mother is. However stamping could mean that her career has been ruined in having a child
“eh?” “sweetheart?”
Colloquial language - suggests a conversation is happening. Also mother and daughter have a close bond. Both tag questions
“Hands in those high heeled red shoes, relics”
Alliteration - emphasises how the daughter cannot live up to her mother as she cannot wear the same shoes
Caesura - emphasises how they are not worn anymore, mother has changed
I’m ten years away”
The decade ahead”
Repeated motif of time - shows the distance between the speaker and her mother
“Sparkle” “Waltz” “Laugh”
Power of 3 - positive verbs that reflect the change the mother had when having a child.
Could also have a bitter undertone to end the poem
Why are all the stanzas equal length?
To represent the rigid structure of being a mother
What could each stanza represent?
A different photo from a photo album the speaker is looking at
Links to other poems?
MAD - distance from a maternal figure
CMG - discovering a family member
