Mrs Midas Flashcards
“It was late september”
This contributes to the setting of the poem as it conveys the golden colours that are synonymous with the early autumn months also conveys the end of summer acting as pathetic fallacy to represent the end of the joy and warmth in the relationship that is to come.
“Begun to unwind”
Word choice here of “unwind” suggests the nonchalant and relaxed feel of the environment this creates a juxtaposition to the events that are about to follow in the poem.
“relaxed”
Word choice that conveys the tone of calmness in the setting this also acts to foreshadow the events that are yet to come.
“Its steamy breath gently blanching the windows”
The personification of the kitchen here acts to convey the life of the kitchen and bring the relaxed domestic setting to life. Emphasising the speakers contempt with this lifestyle.
“Then with my fingers wiped the others glass like a brow”
Simile conveys the heat in the kitchen and foreshadows the speakers later exasperation and distress at the situation
“Then with my fingers wiped the others glass like a brow”
Simile conveys the heat in the kitchen and foreshadows the speakers later exasperation and distress at the situation
“Then with my fingers wiped the others glass like a brow”
Simile conveys the heat in the kitchen and foreshadows the speakers later exasperation and distress at the situation
“Then with my fingers wiped the others glass like a brow”
Simile conveys the heat in the kitchen and foreshadows the speakers later exasperation and distress at the situation that will follow.
“He was standing under the pear tree snapping a twig”
The use of onomatopoeia “snapping” conveys a shift in the tone of the poem as this conveys the sudden and violent nature in which chaos is introduced into the scene, The word choice of “snapping” conveys the sudden change in the state of the relationship as her husband now enters. This also uses ambiguity as the reader is now intrigued by the actions of Mr Midas.
“The way the dark ground seems to drink the light of the sky”
The use of personification here conveys the livelihood of the atmosphere. The use of this strange imagery also emphasizes the alien nature of Mr Midas’ actions in the eyes of the speaker. We as a reader can sense that something is off in the environment and Duffy uses this to build tension in the scene as Mr Midas approaches The word choice of “drink” links forwards in the poem to the inability of Mr midas to eat or drink, and the ideas of the goblet.
“-We grew fondante d’otome-“
The use of parentheses indicates that this was a part of the speaker’s past life with her husband as they cared for nature. The correct naming of the variety of pear also emphasises the middle class upbringing of the speaker and highlights the couple’s desire to show their wealth to others. This indicates the good quality of the speaker’s past life however indicates the greed of the family as they have avereice and wish to show off their worldly possessions. This is the eventual cause of the breakdown of the relationship. This conveys the theme of greed in the poem and the theme of change as past tense word choice of “grew” shows that this behavior no longer occurs and is a part of their pasts.
“Is he putting fairy lights in the trees?”
The word choice of “fairy lights” adds a comic effect that acts to reduce the tension in the scene as it directly contrasts the seriousness of the situation that is about to transpire in front of the speaker in this moment.
“He came into the house, the doorknobs gleamed”
The use of two simple statements here show the action of Mr Midas, and the Impact of the action as we realise that to enter the house he must have touched the doorknobs and so the gleaming of the doorknobs was a direct result of him entering the house. This is where the speaker realises her husband’s newfound powers. The action, consequence structure is ironic as it mimics how Mr midas thought about the action of his power however highlights his complete disregard for the consequences of his powers on those around him.
“I thought of the field of the cloth of gold”
This is a historical reference to an event where the kings of england and france met in a field in a competition to display their wealth to one another. This conveys the theme of greed in the poem as it mimics the greedy actions of Mr Midas who made his wish out of pure greed and desire to show off to others. The historical education of the speaker also infers the classy lifestyle that she has lived up until this point. We sense that the lives of Mr and Mrs Midas have not been particularly difficult ones and that Mrs Midas is well off emphasising further the greed of Mr Midas to want even more than he has already been given in life.
“He sat like a king on a burnished throne”
The simile refers to both the action of the throne being turned into gold but also refers to the actual myth of King Midas on which the poem is based. The word choice of “Burnished” conveys the golden and polished colour of the throne further driving home ideas of the greed of Mr Midas and his inherent need to show off to others.
“The look on his face was strange, wild, vein”
The list of negative adjectives to describe the behavior of her husband acts to convey his manic behavior and the joy that he is finding from his new powers. This indicates that Mr Midas is beginning to realise the impact of his new powers and is totally enthralled in them again emphasising his complete disregard for others in his life as he has not explained what is happening to his confused wife.
“What in the name of god is going on? He started to laugh”
The contrast in the behavior of the characters shows the already evident divide in the relationship as a result of her husband’s decisions. The serious and concerned attitude of the speaker contrasts with the manic and greedy attitude of her husband. Conveying his lack of care for her as he does not care to explain what is happening and even goes so far as to find amusement in her panic. This acts as a turning point in their relationship as Mr Midas’ lack of care for his wife is on full display here. This also clearly conveys how the speaker is frustrated and exasperated by the behavior of her husband linking back to the ideas of wiping sweat off her brow.
“I served up the meal”
The deliberate upholding of traditional gender roles here emphasises that Mrs Midas is attempting to return the situation to normality reflecting how she was contempt with the life that they shared together before her husband obtained these supernatural powers.
“Within seconds he was spitting out the teeth of the rich”
The metaphorical comparison here conveys the magnitude of the realisation that her husband can no longer eat as a result of his greed. Here both of them realise the severity of the situation and panic unfolds as the realisation slowly dawns on Mr Midas that he has been doomed by his averiece and desire to show off to others.
“He toyed with his spoon and then mine”
The word choice of “toyed” implies Mr Midas’ childish understanding of the consequences of his actions as he doesn’t realise how severe the fact that he can no longer eat is. He is still enthralled by his greed and desire for wealth as he turns regular household objects to gold.
