IOC notes

DEMETER

Idea of isolation, harshness. Establishes an uncomfortable dead world.

Where I lived - winter and hard earth.

Disjunct, contradicts flow. Abrupt, blunt communication= Indication that something is wrong -> not appropriate given
that she is mother earth.
caesura - choking on her despair
I sat in my cold stone room
Elongated vowels, echo. Environment is barren, bare = in isolation, likened to a prison
choosing tough words, granite, flint,
Uses hard, concrete images to emphasise brutal, physical nature of grief.

Her depressed state is established.

to break the ice. My broken heart -

Idiomatic expression. Parallels heart to ice to emphasise grief. Disjunct mimics cries.
I tried that, but it skimmed,
Extended metaphor of the ice, to emphasise emotional paralysis. Any mental/physical attempt to end depression is
useless.
flat, over the frozen lake.
Fricative alliteration, gives her failure a haunting/echoing effect.

Shift in tone anguish/pain -> elated/hopeful

She came from a long, long way,

Instinctual recognition. Elongated vowels to emphasise distance ‘she’ has traveled.
but I saw her at last, walking,
Communication now flows, caesura gives pause to show importance of this meeting.
my daughter, my girl, across the fields,
Possessive pronoun. Protective nature of a mother. Contrast to prev. natural imagery, fields = growth,fertility.
Symbolises daughter’s arrival and consolidation of Demeter’s frozen earth.

Daughters arrival has onset Spring + consoled Demeter

in bare feet, bringing all spring's flowers

Simple image = connection to the Earth. Abundance of flowers. Image of flowers frames the collection, where there
symbolise a change in Duffy’s identity. E.g Little Red Cap.
to her mother's house. I swear
Before environment was likened to a prison. Sense of safety.
the air softened and warmed as she moved,
Tactile + kinetic imagery is used to reflect significance of emotional reunion. Powerful enough to change nature itself=
elongated vowels= __ tone Contrast to before where air was chilly +static. Sense of energy + life.

Last stanza = rhyming couplet. Sense of completion and joy.

the blue sky smiling, none too soon,

with the small shy mouth of a new moon.
Sibilance is soothing. Again, physical effect of arrival -> nature is personified and is rejoicing. New moon = new
beginnings. Specifically her transition into motherhood.
The poem Stealing, from the anthology ‘In standing female nude’, is dramatic monologue giving insight into the mind
of a potentially dangerous anonymous speaker. As Duffy portrays his desire for companionship, she suggests that he
is the result of a neglectful society. Similar to ‘Education for leisure’.

Stealing

Establishes a complex character, we start to question why he is so sinister and coldhearted. Done through contrasting
childhood creativity and narrator’s destructive nature.

The most unusual thing I ever stole? A snowman.

Hypophora. Rhetorical question engages the reader, who may he be speaking to? Object unexpected, shocks the
reader. Associated with children + joy, suggesting this is lacking in narrator’s life.
Midnight. He looked magnificent; a tall, white mute
Telegraphic sentence has darker connotations, crime + danger. Strong contrast between this dark setting and dazzling
white.
beneath the winter moon. I wanted him, a mate
Depressing desire. So isolated he desires for a friend he cannot communicate with. (mute)
with a mind as cold as the slice of ice
Internal rhyme. Sinister comparison, revealing lack of compassion and loneliness.
within my own brain. I started with the head.

Further insight into cold, uncaring nature.

Better off dead than giving in, not taking

what you want. He weighed a ton; his torso,
frozen stiff, hugged to my chest, a fierce chill
Figurative emphasise the violent imagery, struggles with stealing the snowman. Fierce = ferocious frightenting
piercing my gut. Part of the thrill was knowing
Visceral imagery, emphasises pain speaker is enduring. Extent he is willing to go to have a companion.
that children would cry in the morning. Life's tough.
(thrill) Sadistic character. Doesn’t obtain morals, disrespects others without a care. Dramatic telegraphic sentence,
unsympathetic motto of the narrator. Projecting his own experience, attempts to absolve his wrongdoing by framing it
as a lesson. We have felt sympathetic towards him before, but this attitude makes it easy to dislike the narrator.

Social isolation is highlighted.

Sometimes I steal things I don't need. I joy-ride cars

Simply for fun. Futile nature of his crimes. Obtains no real purpose = unveils underlying unhappiness.
to nowhere, break into houses just to have a look.
@what? Something is missing from his life. To find this he intrudes on others.
I'm a mucky ghost, leave a mess, maybe pinch a camera.
Oxymoron. Loneliness is emphasised. 1) unseen during robberies. 2) leaves a mess to hurt others. Views himself as a
non-living thing. Tragic confession = monologue is a cry for help from a seriously lost + isolated person.
I watch my gloved hand twisting the doorknob.
So removed from actions, now has become habitual - longevity of isolation.
A stranger's bedroom. Mirrors. I sigh like this - Aah.
Hyphen creates the sense that we are there with the narrator. Positive attitude towards violating someone's personal
space is abnormal and frightening. Again, unnatural behavior.

Duffy helps us understand intense emotions of speaker as it becomes clear that he yearns for companionship.

It took some time. Reassembled in the yard,

he didn't look the same. I took a run
Tone of disappointment. Blinded by the need for companionship, neglected the fact that snowman is an impermanent
object. Enjambment suggests he is suddenly overwhelmed with anger/ frustration. Creates sense of movement.
and booted him. Again. Again. My breath ripped out
Repetition=tantrum. Violent dynamic verb elevates anger and disappointment @ futile attempt to gain companionship.
in rags. It seems daft now. Then I was standing
alone among lumps of snow, sick of the world.
Enjambment emphasises lonely state <- we may feel sympathetic towards melancholic tone. Efforts have been wasted
again isolated + detached.

Ends the poem with a powerful image of mental state, and neglect felt from society.

Boredom. Mostly I'm so bored I could eat myself.

Bold truncated sentence highlights depression + emptiness. Hints at self-harm/ self-destructive language. Visceral
imagery presents a disturbing image of the narrator’s life. Boredom with occasional acts of cruelty/theft , that obtain no
real purpose.
One time, I stole a guitar and thought I might
learn to play. I nicked a bust of Shakespeare once,
flogged it, but the snowman was the strangest.
Non-sequitur, seems conflicted. He is attracted to art, society wants to push him into a cookie cutter role, the fact that
he cannot fulfill this role is pressuring and isolating. Societal pressures are detrimental.
Referencing Shakespeare in a non-sequitur is ironic because he is the epitome of language, exposes the inability to
speak eloquently.
You don't understand a word I'm saying, do you?
By ending with a rhetorical question = cyclical nature of poem. His questions remain unanswered and he retains the
mindset he began with. This creates a sense of hopelessness. He engages the readers, causing us to feel sympathetic
towards him. He feels misunderstood, this rhetorical question sums up the narrator’s feelings of isolation in a society
that cannot help him.