Havisham Essay

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Havisham & Valentine -Consider two poems by the same poet exploring the same themes. State what the theme is and how the poet revels this. (Pain of love) -You must comment on the effectiveness of these techniques. “Havisham” and “Valentine” are both poems by “Carol Ann Duffy”. They both explore the theme of love or rather painful love. the poet revels the link between the two poems’s through a verity of techniques which is done very effectively but also shows the difference between the obsessive love in “Havisham” and the possessive love of “Valentine”. The pain of love is evident from the beginning in both poems. “Carol Ann Duffy” uses the tone in the first couple of stanzas to show the unorthodox nature of the love. “Not a day since then I haven’t whished him dead”-Havisham This is very effective as the aggressive tone shows “Havisham” has been rejected and her love is causing her pain. Similarly in “Valentine” “Carol Ann Duffy” uses a very forceful tone with words like “here” and “take it” which tells us her lover is not being very co-operative and like “Havisham” suggests a degree of pain within there love. The theme of love is taken to a deeper level by “Carol Ann Duffy” when she shows through literary techniques that the pain of love can be dangerous. The theme of love is contrasted by violent metaphors in both poems. “Ropes on the back of my hands I could strangle with”-Havisham This is another example of the pain of love and it is particularly effective as it shows the extreme physical tension within “Havisham” and describes the pain of love as a driving force of murder. This metaphor and its meaning can also be found in “Valentine” as love is described as “lethal”. “Carol Anne Duffy” uses them both to revile the pain of love and its implications. The pain of love is not only confined to a mental state but also a physical
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