Carol Ann Duffy - Originally

Question 1

“In a red room which fell through the fields”

Answer 1

• The red room Duffy describes is supposed to literally refer to the red interior of a train which took her to England as a child, but the almost surreal phrasing symbolises the surreal emotions she felt while leaving her home, and the confusion she dealt with during her family’s migration
• The word choice of “fell” has connotations of a loss of control, done without caution/warning, so too Duffy feels her family left their home without a fair warning to her, she feels powerless

Question 2

“bawling Home, Home”

Answer 2

• The repetition of “home” shows the deep longing both Duffy and her brothers felt for their original country, and even at a young age how important it was to them, emphasising the misery and sense of loss they experienced

Question 3

“Eyes of a blind toy”

Answer 3

• The toy Duffy stares at is perhaps meant to actually represent her
• “Blind” has connotations of being unaware and uncertain, so too does Duffy feel unprepared and blindsided by this move

Question 4

“All childhood is an emigration”

Answer 4

• This metaphor emphasises the central themes of the poem - just as an emigration can be a scary/long journey, sometimes to a place unfamiliar or unknown, so too is Duffy saying that growing up is a journey, which can take us to strange and unfamiliar places, with unpleasant surprises along the way

Question 5

“Your accent wrong” // “Shouting words you don’t understand”

Answer 5

• These lines emphasises Duffy’s feelings of exclusion and confusion toward her new peers - she feels like aspects of herself don’t match to everyone else and so finds it difficult to fit in
• Likewise, their words and actions are weird to her and so she can’t relate to them

Question 6

“Seeing your brother swallow a slug” // “feel only a skelf of shame”

Answer 6

• This line refers back to “big boys eating worms” showing how Duffy’s brothers have adapted to their new home, yet she still feels out of place, eliciting further feelings of loneliness
• However she says she only feels a ‘skelf’ of shame, showing that she is beginning to fit in more and accept their new way of life
• Use of Scottish slang word shows that she can never fully let go of her roots and still carries small hints/quirks from her birthplace

Question 7

“My voice shedding its skin like a snake”

Answer 7

• Simile; just as a snake sheds its skin to reveal a new one, so too is Duffy saying she slowly shed her native accent and picked up a new one, leaving behind her Scottish accent
• The use of sibilance could potentially help highlight this