What can we tell about the subject matter of the poem from its title?
The poem’s title is ‘Valentine.’ From the title the poem could be talking about the person she is in love with, her valentine. It could’ve been describing the person and using mushy language to describe her lover. The title could have even been talking about a date, maybe on Valentine’s day or an anniversary. It could’ve even been talking about a new person she is spending time with on Valentines Day, however that wasn’t the case as the poem talked the complexities and high-and-lows of love.
What traditional symbols of love are mentioned in the poem and what is the poet’s attitude towards these?
The first line of the poem starts with ‘Not a red rose or a satin heart.’ A red rose and a satin heart are symbols of valentine’s day and the cliche cute gifts that are given. The use of the word, ‘Not’ suggests that she is breaking the social norm of giving these gifts as they mean much less to her than the real love. Duffy also uses alliteration to harshen the tone she is setting for the poem. In the first line she opposes the title of the poem and sets the tone that this isn’t a typical love poem. She also says ‘Not a cute card or a kissogram’ once again shutting down the pretense that they are necessary to maintain love. She doesn’t find the need in giving or receiving such gifts. Her attitude towards the gifts are definitely not the usual and are primarily negative but are reasonable and understandable as she takes the aspect of people that don’t need cheesy gifts to show their love.
What original romantic images are connected to the gift which make it appropriate?
The ‘gift’ is an onion. Duffy compares love throughout the poem to an onion and thus there are several connotations. Duffy is expressing, through the onion, the representation of the love between her and her significant other. This is evidenced by the quotation, ‘Like the careful undressing of love.’ The connection to the onion would be the layers and how you have to peel through the layers to the core which relates to love. Duffy uses this quotation to show the layers of love and you have to essentially ‘undress’ the layers and reach the core that is true love. It could also simply be comparing the gentle peeling of an onion skin to the sexual undressing before copulation. Another quotation that had romantic connotations is ‘Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips.’ The literal meaning is the onion’s taste, when eaten, will stay with you for a long time like an everlasting scent. This relates to how a passionate kiss or a kiss from a loved one will stay with you and form a memory with you.
What negative aspects of the gift are compared to the negative aspects of love and relationships?
Duffy uses the gift to portray the harshness and unpredictability of love, she seems to continue the pessimistic tone set in the beginning of the poem. This is evidenced by the quotation, ‘it will blind you with tears.’ Here, referring to the onion but could also be talking about love. When an onion is cut, the sulfoxides emitted make one cry but the more literal meaning being that your lover may make you cry.The onion is compared to a lover and the way love often leaves us in tears. A large part of being in love is also the risk of being left heart-broken. This connection is explored in the way an onion stings our eyes when we try to get to the ‘heart’ of it (cut it), the same way we may be stung by another person’s heartlessness. Love is a complex rush of emotions, can make you smile, laugh but when things go wrong it can make you cry and that is what Duffy was inferring. Another quotation to support the point is, ‘it will make your reflection a wobbling piece of grief’ imagery where we are looking ‘through’ the eyes of the upset lover who may be gazing at a their own reflection in the mirror and crying at the same time.
On the surface, this poem is about giving an unusual gift for Valentine’s day. What do you think the poem is really about?
This poem introduces an onion as a gift but the poem is talking more about the essence of love. Duffy talks about how she really feels love is and how cliche gifts and romantic gestures don’t mean as much to her as finding the meaning of love and getting to the crux of her relationship. Shedding tears, ripping through the layers to find true love.
The title itself, Valentine, suggests that this poem will deal with the traditional notions of love with its connotations of flowers, hearts and romance. However, the traditional idea as suggested from the title is subverted from the very beginning in the opening line, ‘Not a red rose or a satin heart’ and in the line ‘Not a cute card or a kissogram’. By starting with a negative, Duffy is effectively dismissing traditional symbols of love. She finds the cliche unnecessary and rather wants to work on the functioning of her relationship, the highs-and-lows, the hardships. This is evidenced by the line, ‘I am trying to be truthful’. Duffy is perhaps trying to justify all the negativity about love that has been said so far, and continues to stress the desire for honesty within the relationship. Honesty, to Duffy, is far more important than cliche gift-giving and public display of affection, as long as there is trust and mutual respect and understanding in her relationship, the rest is not as important. Her intention for her love to be pure is also evidenced in the lines, ‘Here’ and ‘Take it.’ It’s almost like she is fulfilling an obligation or some sort of requirement to give a gift. This goes against the cliche gifts given on a special day like Valentine’s day and continues with the theme of the unconventional interpretation of love.
What technique is used throughout the poem to compare love and an onion?
Duffy uses an extended metaphor throughout the poem to compare love and onion. The metaphor being- the onion is a symbol of love. The onion is commonly personified, used as a prominent representation of love and imagery is used to connect the onion to love.
How does the imagery connected to the onion help the poet develop her ideas?
The extended use of imagery through the poem and the comparison of love to an onion helps Duffy present her true feelings about love very cleverly and imagery allows the reader to picture her vision on what love truly is. A quotation to support this is, ‘It is a moon wrapped in brown paper.’ Its literal meaning could simply be the brown layers around the white centre of the onion, but its connotation in the context of love is, Beauty is concealed under layers. The moon is often seen as a sign of beauty and for it to be ‘wrapped in brown paper’ is unusual. Love has many layers and you have to peel through the layers and even though it may make you cry, the end result is pure, true love with understanding and beauty. Another quotation to support the point is, ‘Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding ring.’ The use of the words ‘platinum loops’ shows a significance of importance and a token of commitment, platinum is also one of the world’s most expensive metals and Duffy is trying to say that the onion represents how valuable the platinum is. She compares the white rings of the onion with platinum as, over time, they both shrink in size. Duffy uses imagery to personify the onion. This is evidenced in the quotations, ‘It will blind you with tears’ and ‘it promises light.’ There is a contrasting tone set by both of these quotations. Duffy seems unsure about what love is and the tone of what she truly feels shifts between pessimistic and optimistic. The phrase ‘promises light’ seems to suggest a hopeful approach but the word ‘promises’ suggests a hint of uncertainty and not knowing if it will truly happen, however the phrase, ‘will blind you will tears’ suggests that it is a given that a lover or love itself will make you cry and will break you. Her negative tone set to the poem is conveyed through imagery and personification of the onion. Finally, the quotation, ‘ its scent will cling to your fingers, cling to your knife’
The literal meaning being the scent of the onion will stay with you and no matter how much you try to rinse it away, it stains and takes time to go similar to the sour effect of heartbreak. When you breakup or the love between you and your significant others break, the pain stains you and lingers and it is hard to rinse it away.
Apart from these comparisons, the language tends to be quite simple and straightforward. Why do you think this is?
Duffy intentionally uses simple language in her poem. This poem in particular has no particular rhyme scheme or order and the language is relatively simple to understand. This is because the poem is structured as a conversation, with her lover. She is talking to her lover and connoting things and making him understand the importance of the gift and what she expects from their relationship and what she is doing on her part in the relationship. This is evidenced by the quotation, ‘I am trying to be truthful.’ She doesn’t want to sugar coat anything as she knows the damages will be greater in the future if not discussed now. She takes a very practical approach to her style of conversation in this poem, and sacrifices empathy for honesty.
Write down some of the words/phrases that show that love is not always easy and straightforward.
Duffy uses many words and phrases to convey that love isn’t how it seems on television and on movies and requires work and is often not what people expect. It is about compromise, understanding, honesty and progress together. A quotation to support this is, ‘it will make your reflection a wobbling photo of grief.’ This signifies the hardships of a relationship as at any given point a lover and love can leave you broken hearted and make you a sad mess. Another quotation to support this point, ‘possessive and faithful.’ While the word ‘faithful’ has positive connotations of a relationship based on trust, ‘possessive’ signifies a jealousy and distrust. Duffy uses these words cleverly to show relationships take work and aren’t perfect but a situation is never unrectifiable.
What is the connection between the three lines (1,11,12)?
Lines 1 and 12 follow a similar structure, starting with a negative in the form of the word, ‘Not’ whilst listing a traditional gift given to a loved one on a special occasion such as Valentine’s day. Line 11 talks about honesty and openness, and how she wants her relationship to be one of trust and sharing. The link between the three lines is the understanding between the lovers. Duffy doesn’t want traditional, cliché gifts; she would much rather have values and understanding and honesty amongst her and her partner. To her the idea of romantic gifts simply doesn’t mean as much as honesty, understanding, bondage and the actuality of what a relationship is supposed to be. She doesn’t see the need in expressing her love in the form of gifts as she knows that they don’t truly hold value if the relationship is failing.
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