valentine- carol ann duffy

Question 1

analyse the title:

Answer 1

• establishes a theme of love- makes the reader expect it to be about traditional expressions of love
• connotations to valentine’s day, roses, hearts, chocolates etc

Question 2

analyse:
Not a red rose or a satin heart.

Answer 2

• immediately clear from the antithesis that its not a traditional love poem- subverts
• does not follow any of the normal conventions- not a sonnet, doesn’t use rhyming couplets, uses free verse- mimics rhythm of natural speech- suggests freedom
• assertive and negative tone, contrasts with title
• rejection of the stereotypical cliched symbols of love- implied they lack meaning

Question 3

analyse:
I give you an onion.
It is a moon wrapped in brown paper.
It promises light
like the careful undressing of love.

Answer 3

• 1st person, clear intended audience- intimacy
• unusual yet memorable metaphor for love
• uses an extended metaphor of an onion throughout- they are atypical, multi-layered, natural, base ingredient
• moon is a traditional symbol of love and fertility- constantly changes, controls, is different- grand gesture- perhaps even suggesting love is special and otherworldly
• plain, unsentimental gift- not dressed up- suggests their love is simple, don’t need to be over the top and show off
• ‘careful’- delicate image that hints at sexual love and physical intimacy- important parts of love

Question 4

analyse:
Here.
It will blind you with tears
like a lover.
It will make your reflection a wobbling photo of grief.

Answer 4

• simile, love can often be a sad experience- speaker knows pain of lost love
• warning- love can make you weak, vulnerable- can be painful and sad
• negative language (grief)- unlike traditional valentines day messages and love poetry
• links the onion and love again- onions can make you cry

Question 5

analyse:
I am trying to be truthful.

Answer 5

• suggests realistic love isn’t always happy, or it can be difficult to always be honest in love
• first person- sounds personal- speaker trying to find true meaning of love

Question 6

analyse:
Not a cute card or kissogram.

Answer 6

• alliteration, makes them feel overly sentimental, narrator seems disdainful towards them
• again rejecting superficial tokens of love- echos first line- suggests that real love is more complex and more meaningful than this

Question 7

analyse:
I give you an onion.
Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips,
possessive and faithful
as we are,
for as long as we are.

Answer 7

• repetition- this time feels forceful
• ‘fierce’ connotes with aggression and domineering- suggests passion but also danger, powerful adjective
• love has a lasting effect- for good or bad
• echos wedding vows ‘for as long as we both shall live’
• suggests love can be controlling and insecure (possessive and faithful)
• acknowledges that love may be transient (temporary)
• repetition of ‘as we are’ suggests insecurity and doubt in the relationship

Question 8

analyse:
Take it.
Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding-ring,
if you like.
Lethal.
Its scent will cling to your fingers,
cling to your knife.

Answer 8

• offer now turns to a command- short line creates a forceful tone- imperative, uncooperative
• platinum is a strong metal
• ‘shrink’- restrictive- long term, marriage
• ‘if’- conditional, idea of wedding ring is introduced hesitantly, hidden in the metaphor, alternatively, ‘if’ shows that the persona is lacking confidence in the relationship
• ‘Lethal’ - emphatic, alone on an end-stopped line- shows love can be dangerous, hurt and even kill- onion is a symbol with many layers showing the complex nature of love
• repetition of ‘cling’ emphasises inescapability, love can be possessive and suffocating- dark double meaning
• powerful, disturbing and ambiguous final image- hint that it refers to something more sinister than chopping an onion- love has the power to wound physically and emotionally

Question 9

describe the form of the poem

Answer 9

• very different to traditional love poems
• stanzas are irregular lengths- makes it seem disjointed
• some are 1 line of single words- forceful tone

Question 10

describe the structure of the poem

Answer 10

• is a list of the ways the onion symbolises love
• words and ideas are built up and repeated throughout- could mirror the different layers of an onion as poem’s meaning is revealed gradually
• tone is initially playful, but the repeated insistence that their partner accepts their gift could be read as encouraging or confrontational

Question 11

context:

Answer 11

• contemporary Scottish poet and former poet laureate- perhaps changes her perception of romance
• her writing explores ideas about gender, oppression and sexuality
• openly part of the LGBTQ+ community
• was first written in 1993 when a radio station asked her to write an original poem for Valentine’s day
• explores the commercialism of love

Question 12

key quotes: (8)

Answer 12

• title Valentine
• not a red rose of a satin heart
• I give you an onion
• cute card or kissogram
• it will blind you with tears like a lover
• will make your reflection a wobbling photo of grief
• platinum loops shrink to a wedding ring
• lethal
• its fierce kiss will stay on your lips, possessive and faithful as we are for as long as we are