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Unconventional Love Poem Analysis

This poem rejects traditional symbols of love like roses and hearts, instead offering the speaker's lover an onion. The onion represents the complex, multilayered nature of real love and relationships. It promises light but will also make the lover cry, representing both the positive and negative aspects of love. The poem hints at jealousy and violence as it compares the onion to a possessive lover whose scent will linger on the lover's fingers and knife. Overall the poem offers a unconventional perspective on love, seeing it as honest rather than simply romantic, and warns of its potential to hurt or even turn lethal.

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29 views2 pages

Unconventional Love Poem Analysis

This poem rejects traditional symbols of love like roses and hearts, instead offering the speaker's lover an onion. The onion represents the complex, multilayered nature of real love and relationships. It promises light but will also make the lover cry, representing both the positive and negative aspects of love. The poem hints at jealousy and violence as it compares the onion to a possessive lover whose scent will linger on the lover's fingers and knife. Overall the poem offers a unconventional perspective on love, seeing it as honest rather than simply romantic, and warns of its potential to hurt or even turn lethal.

Uploaded by

api-322352757
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

This is an unconventional love poem that rejects convention and ideas of

traditional, romantic love. Duffy implies that relationships should be


honest and advises caution.
Themes love and relationships; modern life and expectations in society.

Valentine the title suggests romance.

Not a red rose or a satin heart negative. Rejection of cliched gifts


the speaker refuses to give. Dismisses convention, tradition and
cliche. Challenges conventional symbols of love.
I give you an onion personal. Onion = extended metaphor for
love. Unusual gift. Reflects the true nature of love.
It is a moon wrapped in brown paper moon = romantic
connotations. The moon controls the tide so affects emotions/ mood
(especially women). Ruled by the goddess Diana the maiden and
the huntress shows the two sides of love. Huntress - a reference to
the knife at end of the poem/ a reference to the violent side of
love?
It promises light positive/life giving.
Like the careful undressing of love sensual/tender.

The beginnings of a relationship:

Here direct/bold and intimate.


It will blind you with tears like a lover. The pain of love. Blind
double meaning: Literal tears from onion or reference to the pain of
love/love is blind.
It will make your reflection looks through the eyes of the
heartbroken lover.
A wobbling photo of grief love makes your own reflection
unrecognisable. wobbling love distorts reality.
I am trying to be truthful Single line conveys honesty.
Alliteration of T: importance of truth of emphasised through
alliteration.

Beginning of the second part of the poem mirrors the first half of the
poem structurally and refers back to the opening:

Not a cute card or a kissogram juxtaposes to the previous line as


this is the opposite of truthful.
I give you an onion I: personal.

Images of jealousy and violence creep into representation of romantic


love. The onion is compared to a jealous lover:

Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips alliteration of S:


onomatopoeic kissing sound or aggressive hiss. Refers to the strong
acidic smell/taste of the onion (literally). Figuratively this is the Dark
side of love.
Possessive and faithful possessive - obsessive/unhealthy.
Portrays the two juxtaposing sides of love, the positives and the
negatives.
For as long as we are suggest love is temporary.
Take it command. Bold and confident tone.
Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding ring Platinum
precious metal. Shrink entrapment. Also sense of the platinum
becoming less valuable through marriage. Implies that love
becomes less valuable in marriage. Internal rhyme = sense of
concentric rings.
If you like modern. Sense of choice. Or negativity sense of
nonchalance/lack of interest/giving up (as love will always ends the
same).
Lethal powerful one word line. Dramatic change in relationship
dangerous and violent.
Its scent will cling to your fingers,/ cling to your knife.- repetition of
cling= possessive.
Knife violence. Negative end to the relationship.
Negative end to the poem = left with a negative impression of love.

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