The poems' Valentine and In Mrs. Tilchers' Class both experience

The poems' Valentine and In Mrs. Tilchers' Class both experience

dramatic change throughout the course of their poems.

They are both very similar in their structure because they both start

off in a very positive way. For example the poem "Valentine" uses the

words 'Red rose' and 'satin heart' in the first line, which also is

the first stanza. Like this, in the poem "In Mrs. Tilchers' Class" the

word 'laugh' is used in the first stanza. From this we can see that

both poems are conforming to normal standard, by starting off very

positively.

In "Valentine" Carol Ann Duffy starts off the poem by describing the

state of the relationship and uses the words 'like the careful

undressing of love' to create a simile of sexual nature. As the poem

progresses, we find out that Carol Ann Duffy is, in fact, ending the

relationship with the person concerned. She uses phrases like

'possessive' and 'lethal', which certainly does not conform to most

Valentine poems of today.

Unlike the beginning of the poem where she uses a lot of very "loving"

words like 'truthful' and 'lover', towards the end she talks about how

the scent of the onion will 'cling to your knife'. The word 'knife' is

the keyword in this line, and Carol Ann Duffy has purposely chosen it

because it is not usually linked with Valentine poems.

The word is a strong contrast towards the beginning of the poem. We

can link the word 'knife' as the last word in the poem, to the last

word in the first line which is 'heart'. We can now more clearly see

the contrast Duffy is trying to make.

The whole poem "Valentine" is an extended metaphor concerning the

onion. Duffy uses the onion to describe the relationship. From words

like 'undressing', 'fierce kiss' to 'tears' and 'grief' she chooses

her language so that you can identify and relate to what she is

writing.

The poem is not only easy to relate to because of its language but

also because it is written based on real life. Duffy wrote the poem

for a lover, so this also makes it easier to understand.

Carol Ann Duffy makes the change in "Valentine" between the fifth and

the sixth stanza. The first three stanzas of the poem focus on the

content of the relationship and we see the contentment of it.

However there is a change. The sixth and seventh stanzas describe an

event and its consequences. The reader can see that when Carol Ann

Duffy says ' I give you an onion. Its fierce kiss will stay on your