Valentine

Question 1

Title

Answer 1

The title establishes the theme of love. Valentine’s Day has connotations of roses and flowers, hearts, chocolates, and so on. Naming a poem ‘Valentine’ might make us expect it to be about traditional expressions of love.

Question 2

form

Answer 2

Despite being a love poem, ‘Valentine’ does not follow any of the conventions of traditional love poetry, e.g. it is not a sonnet, does not use rhyming couplets, etc. this exposes Duffy’s rejection of traditional love - might relate to her lesbianism which wasn’t widely understood or accepted in the 1990s.
It uses free verse, a form that mimics the rhythm of natural speech. Could suggest freedom as love is not bound by convention allowing the persona of the poem to express themselves.

Question 3

stanza 1

Answer 3

• The adverb ‘not’ shows a rejection of the traditional ideas of love: a ‘red rose’ and a ‘satin heart’.
• Duffy uses the vegetable of an ‘onion’ as an unconventional extended metaphor for love throughout the poem.
• This atypical symbol of love perhaps suggests that the love in this poem is not heterosexual reflecting Duffy’s sexuality.
• the onion could also suggest that love is multi-layered and complex.
• The simile ‘like the careful undressing of love’ refers to sexual intimacy. However, it may refer to emotional intimacy as lovers bring down their defences and boundaries and make themselves vulnerable.

Question 4

stanza 2

Answer 4

• verb ‘blind’ and nouns ‘tears’ and ‘grief’ creates a negative tone –Duffy is presenting the negative side of love. this side of love is one that is explored less in traditional romantic poetry showing that Duffy is rejecting traditional depictions of love.
• the sentence ‘I am trying to be truthful’ defends the persona’s statement about the negative side of love showing that they are only saying this in order to be honest with their lover.
• the emphasis the word ‘trying’ suggests that love can be secretive and deceptive this interpretation could link back to the word promises from earlier in the poem.
• ‘Not a cute card or a kissogram’ repeats the negative construction from the first line of the poem. The adverb ‘not’ shows a rejection of the traditional ideas of love: a ‘cute card’ and a ‘kissogram’. suggests that the love in this poem is beyond what is considered typical or traditional.

Question 5

stanza 3

Answer 5

• Repetition of the line ‘I give you an onion’ presents the persona as insistent and forceful creating a sense of unease.
• referring to the strong taste of onions and how it can stay on your lips and breath for quite some time. This image suggests that love can be aggressive or intimidating highlighting another negative aspect of love.
• This is repeated by the adjective ‘possessive’ shows a controlling and insecure side of love showing that this love or onion is claiming the lover for their own.
• Repetition of ‘as we are’ echoes wedding vows – emphasises the eternity of love

Question 6

stanza 4 - 1

Answer 6

• Duffy changes the offer to take the onion ‘here’ to the imperative ‘take it’ which suggests that love has become forceful and uncooperative. This creates a confrontational tone making the poem’s mood darker.
• ‘Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding ring’ is the first positively used traditional romantic image - suggests that traditional ideals of love are lesser than the unconstrained love presented throughout the poem, which is shown by the verb ‘shrink’.
• if the onions platinum loops (the onions layers/rings) turned into a wedding ring they must become smaller for unconventional love to become conventional it must therefore diminish and become less.

Question 7

stanza 4 - 2

Answer 7

• The single word sentence ‘lethal’ has an end-stopped line, mimicking the severity of ‘lethal’ – suggests that love can be deadly and can drive people to do extreme things.
• The repetition of ‘cling’ emphasizes the inescapability of its scent while giving a second idea that love can be possessive and suffocating.
• Duffy finishes the poem with a final disturbing image ‘cling to your knife’. This hints that the image is more sinister than chopping up an onion - shows love’s potential for violence as it can leave people wounded in a number of ways including physically and emotionally - highlights a negative side of love rejecting idealized depictions of it.

Question 8

quotes

Answer 8

stanza 1
* Not a red rose or a satin heart
* onion
* like the careful undressing of love
stanza 2
* It will blind you with tears
* ‘I am trying to be truthful’
* ‘Not a cute card or a kissogram
stanza 3
* I give you an onion’
* possessive’
* as we are’
stanza 4 - 1
* take it
* ‘Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding ring’
stanza 4 - 2
lethal’
‘cling’
cling to your knife