Valentine

Question 1

‘Not a red Rose or a satin heart. I give you an onion. It is moon’

Answer 1

• Not’ —> adverb —> immediately subverts traditional ideas of love by rejecting them.
• ‘red rose or a satin heart’ —> uses cliche and stereotypical imagery of love and its its own stanza—> indicates how the poet will differ in their views and criticise the commercialised and romanticised nature of valentine’s and relationships.
• ‘give you an onion’ —> direct address —> ‘you’ —> indicates that the poet is addressing her lover.
• ‘onion’ —> noun —> defies social conventions of ‘love’ by using juxtaposing imageries to describe romance. The noun ‘onion’ creates a different portrayal of love —> implies that love is complicated and can imply that it is underwhelming in its true appearance. This is also portrays it as mundane due to the mundane item of an ‘onion’ —> does not glorify love and portray it as passionate.
• ‘It is a moon’ —> ‘moon’ —> metaphorical diction of celestial imagery —> at first, implies the strength and beauty of love. However, —> psychoanalytical interpretation —> ‘moon’ is a reflection of light from the sun. This portrays the beauty of the moon as fake and shallow —> reflects and does not omit its own beauty. This portrays ‘love’ as deceiving in the way that the ‘moon’ deceives people of being full of light. Also, the ‘moon’ goes through cyclical patterns —> can represent how love is not constant but ever-changing and intermittent. Juxtaposes regular imageries of love.

Question 2

‘Wrapped in brown paper. It promises light like the careful undressing of love.’

Answer 2

• ‘brown paper’ —> continually juxtaposes ideas of cliched love since ‘paper’ is a cheap commodity. Implies that the view of love that she presents is simple, inexpensive manner. Juxtaposes usual interpretations of love.
• ‘careful undressing of love’ —> ambivalent imagery —> can create erotic imagery of sexual pleasures being a reminder of love. However —> verb —> ‘undressing’ —> builds on the extended metaphor of an ‘onion’ by implying peeling it. This portrays love as multi-faceted portraying it as complex. Adjective —> ‘careful’ —> implies love is fragile by insinuating lots of care is needed when handling it.

Question 3

‘It will blind you with tears like a lover. It will make your reflection a wobbling photo of grief’.

Answer 3

• ‘It will blind you with tears’ —> ‘blind’ —> verb —> metaphorically —> portrays love as deceiving which causes a loss of clarity concerning reality. This portrays love as an illusion of something but deceiving. However, with ‘tears’ —> can also refer to the blinding effect of ‘tears’ which are caused by sorrow. This portrays the extended metaphor of an ‘onion’ as being developed since the similie ‘like a lover’ implies that similar to how an onion cause crying, romance will do similar. This portrays the sorrow and despondency associated with love and perhaps a heartbreak.
• ‘make your reflection a wobbling photo of grief’ —> ‘reflection’ —> refers to the self-image of a person, however, in the adjective ‘wobbling’ it portrays the image of self as unclear, unstable hence portraying love as causing an obscured reputation of self. This portrays its negative aspects blinding the person from reality. Also, in the adjective ‘grief’ —> can portray the fragility and lack of stability caused by love causing a person to become self-conscious and feel unsatisfied and ashamed by their lovers’ perception of them. Portrays love as causing vulnerability.

Question 4

‘I am trying to be truthful. Not a cute card or a kissogram.’

Answer 4

• ‘trying’ —> verb —> implies an unfaithful and dishonourable aspect of relationships —> implies lovers having a natural tendency towards lying and being untruthful. Also, this can be a reference from the narrator to the readership —> implies that this poem aims to uncover the true nature of relationships instead of glorifying it such as in other poems.

Question 5

‘I give you an onion. It’s fierce kiss will stay in your lips’

Answer 5

• ‘I give you an onion.’ —> repetition of ‘onion’ —> portrays it as a recurring poetic motif for love. In this —> portrays the pain, affliction and suffering associated to love —> use of assonance.
• ‘fierce kiss’ —> adjective —> ‘fierce’ —> connotes to ferocious and being vicious. This is used to describe the after taste of an onion —> pungent—> —> however, also portrays the harsh impacts of love. Also, in the action of a ‘kiss’ —> refers to the erotic aspects of love —> however portrays darker implications to this. Suggests that acts of love can be powerful and horrific.
• ‘stay on your lips’ —> gustatory experience —> portrays love as being possessive and obsessive in the verb ‘stay’.
• Context: ‘will’ —> modal verb —> suggests her conviction —> links to her relationship with Adrian Henri at a young age where she struggled and had a power imbalance.

Question 6

‘Possessive and faithful as we are, for as long as we are’.

Answer 6

• ‘possessive and faithful’ —> syndeton —> implies the beauty and sinister aspects of love —> adjective —> ‘faithful’ —> implies loyalty and a good virtue of love. This portrays it as positive since it caused loyalty and trust. However, —> ‘possessive’ —> implies a dominating and selfish nature being obsessive over a partner. This implies the jealousy within love.
• ‘as we are, for as long as we are’ —> adjective —> ‘long’.—> vague terminology —> implies no set period of time and can imply a lack of commitment since it contrasts the set time period of a wedding view being until death. This implies —> love and relationships are finite. Juxtaposes glorified ideas of love being everlasting.

Question 7

‘Take it. It’s platinum loops shrink to a wedding-ring’

Answer 7

• ‘take it’ —> imperative —> implies a forceful and domineering nature. Portrays love as forceful in trying to gain affection —> can portray a lack of reciprocity in relationship since the readers appears to dominate and provide a lack of choice.
• ‘platinum loops’ —> metaphor —> refers to the rings of an onion —> extended metaphor. However —> adjective —> ‘platinum’ —> contributes to the idea of a ‘wedding ring’ since it is a precious metal which is sometimes used in rings.
• ‘shrink’ —> verb portrays a sense of restriction caused by the vows of marriage implying that it causes the rings to become smaller and entrap the person within the vow of love. Also, ‘shrink’ —> can imply that a wedding can reduce the time period of love. This warped view of marriage —> implies her negative experience with it.

Question 8

‘Lethal. It’s scent will cling to your fingers, cling to your knife.’

Answer 8

• ‘lethal’ —> adjective —> provides sense of threat and accompanying violence, which readers largely do not associate with relationships. Its placement on its own line is in itself menacing, making its presence known amongst other words.
• ‘cling’ —> adjective —> repetition —> highlights the powerful effects and the possessive nature of love since, it portrays the effects of a relationship as possesive and unforgettable.
• ‘knife’ —> harming imagery —> portrays the damage which can caused to love. Used in the metaphor of an onion with the onion being cut open. This results to the ending of the relationship, however, the verb ‘cling’ —> implies that love is emotionally scarring since it still remains with you after it ends.