Valentine poem plus grammar

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• havo
• Leerjaar 4

Goals:

* pupils can describe their responses to a poem

* pupils can analyse a poem

* pupils will learn about tone & symbolism

Valentine

What words do you think you will find in a poem called 'Valentine' ?

Do you like the poem?

This poem is NOT about an onion. You have 2 minutes to discuss what you think it is about.

In the poem, there are the themes of love, convention, individualism, and vanity of materialism. As the title of the poem says, it is a pure love poem but unique for the poet's unique expression. The poet metaphorically compares her love to an onion.

Circle or highlight positive words in the poem

And negative words in another colour

What is the tone of the poem?

Duffy starts the poem in a negative

tone which is unusual when

describing love. She rejects the

traditional symbols of love and is forceful in her opinion of this 

At what point in the poem is there a change of tone?

"It is a moon wrapped in brown paper"-Here is the first sign of romance -moonlight is a romantic notion but she

tries to hide it in the ordinary. This is, again, a more honest presentation of love.

How does Carol Ann Duffy explain the choice of an onion as a Valentine's Day gift? Copy citations from the poem.

The whole poem is based around the idea that love is an onion. She

takes pride in this presentation . She is purposefully unromantic and

honest here. "I give you an onion"

It is a moon wrapped in brown paper

It will blind you with tears 

It's fierce kiss will stay on your lips 

Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding ring

Its scent will cling to your fingers

Although seemingly romantic, these quotes underline the close contact between violence and passion. Her love is forceful, as well as her gift. 

The loops (in an onion) shrink to a wedding ring - implying that marriage is a shortening or lessening of love. 

Symbolism

The scent of an onion is a symbol of the thoughts and emotions which remain when a relationship has ended. 

Simile/Personification

The metaphor is extended to show the less positive side of love. Anyone being in love is also at risk of heartbreak. Just as an onion

makes our eyes sting when you cut into it, so too love and heart break can make you cry.

Not a red rose or a satin heart

Not a cute card or a kissogram

What is the effect of starting the poem with the word 'not'

Duffy starts the poem in a negative tone which is unusual when

describing love. She rejects the traditional symbols of love and is

forceful in her opinion of this. 

Lethal.

Its scent will cling to your fingers,

Cling to your knife.

What effect does this part of the poem make on the readers?

Word Choice

This quote introduces the smell of the onion and the knife. This is

violent imagery which implies that the relationship has taken a turn.

This is an unexpected end to the poem

Symbolism

The scent of an onion is a symbol of the thoughts and emotions which remain when a relationship has ended. 

I hope you learned some new notions today.

Symbolism

Symbolism is the idea that things represent other things. What we mean by that is that we can look at something — let's say, the color red — and conclude that it represents not the color red itself but something beyond it: for example, passion, or love, or devotion.

Similie

 A simile is a phrase that uses a comparison to describe. For example, “life” can be described as similar to “a box of chocolates.” 

He's as sick as a dog.

Metaphor

A metaphor is a figure of speech that describes an object or action in a way that isn’t literally true, but helps explain an idea or make a comparison.

"It'a moon wrapped in brown paper"

Try to give a short summary of this poem 

Summary

The speaker presents their lover with a valentine in the form of an onion, then explains the reasoning behind this unusual gift. In doing so, the speaker critiques traditional, idealized images of love and argues for more complete and honest portrayals of its effects.

Carol Ann Duffy

Of her own writing, Duffy has said: "I'm not interested, as a poet, in words like 'plash'. I like to use simple words, but in a complicated way."She told The Observer: "Like the sand and the oyster, it's a creative irritant. In each poem, I'm trying to reveal a truth, so it can't have a fictional beginning.

Poem analysis

I fully understood the stuff about poems

I learned smth but not all

I didn't learn anything ,too complicated

Think of an object that is not usually associated with Valentine and try to come up with why this would be a good present for Valentine's Day

Now what 

Stepping Stones