POETRY: valentine Flashcards
(25 cards)
“Not a red rose or a satin heart.”
both are cliched symbols, and are not unique or thoughtful or romantic. Suggests the speaker’s rejection of conventional symbols of love
“I give you an onion.”
just as an onion is multi-layered and can make you cry, so too can love be complex and sometimes unpleasant. Use of the full stop turns the line into a short sentence, drawing the reader’s attention to the honest account of love. Could be a negative or positive thing
“A moon wrapped in brown paper.”
metaphor, the moon is a traditional symbol of love, Duffy subverts the image by relating it to the onion; reducing it to something less grand by wrapping it in plain brown paper (the onion’s skin) rather than something more elaborate. The contrast between the two highlights the poet’s belief that love doesn’t have to be so exaggerated; it can be something purer and more simplistic.
“It promises light”
personification, compares the onion to a person making a commitment, continuing with the ‘fake’ symbols of love in line one
“light “
suggests the love is genuine and offers something positive, linking to the image of the moon
“Like the careful undressing of love”
suggests tenderness, consideration in sensuality. Onion’s layers are compared to getting to know a lover’s body and complexities. Also suggesting an intimate relationship
“Here.”
emphasises the forceful nature of the sentence. Suggests a forceful action, imploring/forcing love, aggressively, almost toxic, insistent and perhaps desperate.
“It will blind you with tears”
just as true love will have it’s complexities and difficulties that will cause pain, so too are onions able to ‘sting’ and make you cry
“Reflection”
physical reflection or looking back/assessing what went wrong, grieving loss and failure - double meaning, ambiguous
“Wobbling”
loss of control, instability
“Grief”
suggests the distress caused by the pain of losing oneself or someone’s partner.
“A wobbling photo of grief”
suggests the distress caused by a failed relationship, looking at oneself in a mirror, our image may appear blurred or distorted due to own tears and pain.
“I am trying to be truthful”
one line stanza emphasises the speaker’s stance, the line suggests the speaker is trying to convey love’s many positive and negative facets. Truthful suggests the speaker is trying to give an honest account and not beautify love
“Not a cute card or a kissogram”
single line stanza echoes the opening line of the poem, alliteration also creates a bitter, harsh tone.
“Cute card”
critical, bitter, rejecting cliches despite positive connotations of cute
“I give you an onion.”
repetition emphasises the importance of the gift and how it should be received by the lover
“Fierce kiss”
potent sharp taste, intoxicating nature of love, hard to get rid of, forceful, rough.
“Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips”
metaphor compares the taste of an onion to a passionate kiss. Just as the memory of the kiss lingers, so does the pungent taste of the onion remain on your lips. Suggests the desire to leave a lasting impression on a lover.
“Possessive and faithful”
juxtaposition, contrasting in connotation but desire for loyalty and trust, desperation, tug-of-war, emphasising complicating nature of love
“As we are/for as long as we are”
enjambement is used to elaborate the previous line, the break in the line suggests doubt of truthfulness. Suggests the relationship may not last or that their love is finite.
Here and now, rejecting romantic ideas.
“wedding-ring/if you like”
enjambement further adds to the bitter interpretation of conventional love, the dismissive nature of the line suggests marriage is unnecessary for love to grow and develop, appears restrictive
“Lethal.”
minor sentence returns to the idea of taste/smell, Duffy exaggerates to convey the destructive nature of love. Suggests deadly, love being the death of you (in respects to personality and health) and can make a person do extreme things.
“Its scent will cling to your fingers”
dark, negative, smell of the onion compared to the scent of a lovers body, committing oneself can be difficult like removing the scent of an onion.
