Valentine By Carol Anne Duffy English Literature Essay

Valentine By Carol Anne Duffy side Literature EssayRomeo and Juliet is a well-known tragedy by the dramatist William Shakespeargon that was written in the late 16th century. It is a story of how the children of ii rival families meet and instantaneously fall in savour. Carol Anne Duffys modern day poesy Valentine much manage Romeo and Juliet is rattling firmly themed much or less the strong feeling of acknowledge however is a more disputed get it on poem in which Carol Anne Duffy compares sack out to strange objects such(prenominal) as an onion. In my essay I willing compare ship send packingal in which this theme is presented to the reader and discuss both(prenominal) writers intellections and attitudes to kip carry out.Romeo and Juliet is possibly the or so famous classic sock story on that point is. But there are some types of deal that the quicken refers to. True pick out is the almost obvious and this love is communicated amongst the two main charact ers in the dawdle Romeo and Juliet. The archetypal sign of dead on target love is through and through love at first sight where Romeo says of how Juliet doth teach the torches to burn bright Imagery is workout here by Shakespeare to evoke a mental type of congenital promiscuous shining from Juliet. This depress imagery emphasises Juliets beauty and how to Romeo, she is the inherently angiotensin converting enzyme he sees in the room. To a reader, this immediately puts both Romeo and Juliet in closing off signifying such intense, physical feelings and attraction on Romeos behalf. In modern society, some(prenominal) whitethorn bet this as sexual love or thirst but love at first sight was accepted by Elizabethan society. Juliet to a fault accustoms light imagery to acquit how she sees her descent with Romeo in the famous balcony scene (Act 2 fit 2). She tell aparts it as cosmos everywherely uniform the lightning refering that it is moving too quickly. besides, Juliet may lay down utilize this to describe Romeo as her light in a dark sky and a ray in a dark world. This diddleation used by Shakespeare could imply what his ideas were of the Elizabethan world that he lived in.In Act 1 Scene 5, we in like manner see Shakespeares use of religious imagery to visualize a deeper connection as Juliet is placen to as well be overwhelmed by Romeo as she accepts his offer of a kiss by letting lips do what hands do pray. By this, Shakespeare is writing as Romeo to ask for their lips to meet, like hands may do in a prayer and for Romeo to fulfil the physical feelings felt up by him earlier in the Act upon first seeing Juliet. The use of these religious overtones here indicates that the love shared by Romeo and Juliet potentiometer only be described by such spiritual and religious terms. though it seems that it is only Romeo who uses religious overtones by calling Juliet his dear saint and describing how he is willing to faith her, we also see this imagery used by Juliet in Act 2 where she describes Romeo as being the god of her reverence almost opposing religion by defining Romeo as her idol to worship.Both Romeo and Juliet express avowedly love through one of its strongest slipway last. For both characters, it is either to live with the other or if that is non manageable (which it isnt because of the feud) then to simply die. This idea of fate and tragedy is presented to the auditory sense in the plays prologue where these two characters are described as a pair of star-crossed lovers who motor their life. This adduce at the beginning of the play will have inclined the impression of no hope and unchangeable tragedy to an Elizabethan field audience as they delve deeper into the story.This technique of using death to act love is shown by Shakespeare when Romeos addiction of dead on target love draws him to go into the Capulet garden and find Juliet on her balcony. It is here where Romeo tells Juliet that he w ould rather face death than have to live and deal with Juliets rejection, My life were better ended by their hate than death prorogued, wanting of thy love. Romeo use of this quote is to almost show commitment and willingness to sacrifice boththing for Juliet and to open up his true feelings even though a modern audience may see these sudden feelings as overly exaggerated due to love being seen as something that grows over age by many people now and not something that cornerstone occur within a few hours. This decks the differences in social, cultural and diachronic realizes on love from the Elizabethan period in which Shakespeare lived and the present world.Shakespeares use of language and anatomical structure in Romeo and Juliet contributes and further enhances the feelings involved in the play to an audience. An example of this is Shakespeares use of sonnets. This poetic form commonly distinctiond 14 lines and was written in iambic pentameter to give structure and flow. S onnets were also poems of the time that symbolised love. This sonnet form in is shown after the wedding night where Romeo has to sidetrack but he in so in love that he tells Juliet he will risk getting caught and stay, I have more care to stay than will to go Come, death, and welcome Juliet wills it so. Again this quote expresses how Romeo puts Juliet and her happiness before death. This language and structure is used by Shakespeare on with its relation to love and death give the quote a true portrayal of the emotions involved between Romeo and Juliet.What true love also does to both these character is change them. In Juliets case, it gives her military posture to disobey obey her parents. This was unhearable of in the Elizabethan era as woman had very contain rights despite the fact that the monarch at the time was indeed was a female monarch (Queen Elizabeth I). In Juliets time, daughters were expected to obey whatever their parents direction was, whereas today, teenagers ha ve more control over their own lives and opinions. Juliets love for Romeo gives her the strength to deny the coupling proposal to Paris and face any consequences that came with that. Juliet says of how, He shall not piss me there a joyful bride, and she will not marry yet but when she does, It shall be Romeo,In contrast, Act 1 Scene 3 shows how obedient Juliet was before meeting Romeo. She shows this when the subject of put marriage with Paris is brought up early in the play. Juliet speaks of how she will not endart her eye any further than her parents consent gives strength to make it fly. here(predicate) Juliet does more than just agree with her parents, but she further elaborates by justifying how she will not like him any more than her parents would like her to. This again demonstrates how profoundly in love both Romeo and Juliet were with one another as Juliet challenges her parents develop. other way love presented in the play that also helps express how true Romeo and Juliets love was and illustrates how Romeo changes when meeting Juliet is Courtly love or Petrarchan love. Courtly love was love from afar. It is little known of today but it is clearly shown to us by Shakespeare in the play that this love was a common idea in his time. This form of love is demonstrated through Romeo and his infatuation and obsession with Rosaline early in the play. As the audience, we neer meet Rosaline and only tell the depth of Romeos so called love for her. In Act 1 Scene 1, Romeo expresses how he sees Rosaline as being, rich in beauty when Romeo first appears in the play. Before seeing Juliet, Romeo was obsessed with Rosaline as was a good deal found with crying augmenting the fresh mornings dew and locking fair daylight out. This quote displays Romeos depression as his love for Rosaline was never returned.Courtly love in this play helps the audience hear the intensity of Romeos feelings upon seeing Juliet. It is like he all told forgets about Rosaline wh en he says, Did my heart love till now? For I neer saw true beauty till this night. This implies that Romeos short, courtly obsession with Rosaline was nothing in comparison to the emotions he now feels looking at Juliet. This will have leave any Elizabethan audience puzzled and thinking of how Romeo is just loves fool. What we do fancy about Romeo now is that he was not in love with Rosaline but instead was in love with the idea of being love but experiences love at first sight when he sees Juliet. From this we learn that Romeo and Juliet change after meeting one another. Meeting Romeo gives Juliet strength to go against her parents word and meeting Juliet makes Romeo forget about Rosaline. Shakespeares use of courtly love is to elevate and display the depth of love shown between Romeo and Juliet.The use of these many features by Shakespeare give a modern day reader an image of a perfect, heavenly match/relationship, one that many people dour for today where one is willing to give their lives for one another but one that will have been more believable to an Elizabethan audience because of their ideas of love and how someone can fall in love. Such impressions illustrate the changing views of love throughout history in different cultures. However this also helps demonstrate the power that love has had over time because of how piece can form an emotional connection with it so easily whether it is legend or not which explains why Romeo and Juliet has been so popular, even 400 old age after it was written. do it is something that everyone can relate to whether they have experienced it or not and this is why Romeo and Juliet has been so influential and significant to many readers crosswise the world in either a historic and modern world.Valentine is a poem written in 2010 by Carol Anne Duffy, the current poet laureate. The poem expresses Duffys unusual point of view on love. This is clear from the title and the first line in the poem. The title Valentine i s almost misleading as a reader goes on to read the first line where Duffy explains how it is not a red rose or a satin heart. Duffy uses this sentence a huge with its lonesomeness below the title to set the tone of the poem of defying tradition.Duffys poem is form around the extended metaphor of an onion. To many people, Duffys comparison may be seen as very moot initially as she replaces giving a red rose with giving something bizarre like an onion. However, Duffy uses her cleverness to explain how she used the extended metaphor of giving an onion as something that is more special due to the deep meaning it holds to her and its similarities to love. An example of this is how Duffy describes how an onion can blind you with tears Like a lover. Using this language feature of a simile allows for a connection to be built between an onion and love by explaining how an onion that makes you cry is like the pain in the neck caused by love can make you cry. Tears are often something that is provoked by either happiness or sadness. This illustrates the ups and downs of a relationship that a lover is involved in. The word blind can also refer to how love can blind someone in love, make them unable to see anything wrong in their lover. Tears are used here as a physical barrier to not being able to see and also to refer to the ups and down faced by in a relationship.Carol Anne Duffy also goes on to other link between her onion and its message of love to the reader. Duffy suggests how the layers of an onion can represent a wedding ring, Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding ring. The word shrink from platinum loops to a wedding ring could possibly play Duffys view on marriage. Maybe Duffy is implying that an onion and its loops are more worthful than a wedding ring as it has to shrink and reduce down in size, like marriage may shrink passion and love in relationship. Many may view this as Duffy insulting marriage which may suggest why she is unmarried. But, this dist inctive thinking is what matches with the tone of the entire poem that of slightly defying tradition and going against what people have never questioned. In this case it is marriage, but as discussed above it was traditional valentine gifts.Duffy explains her view and these similarities and previous controversy for many readers changes to an understandable connection and reasoning for Duffys view of why she would use the extended metaphor of an onion. This view may suggest and give a reader an impression of Duffys personality, of how she may look at objects very differently with critical thought.The language used in Valentine helps make the poem more personal to a reader as Duffy uses the lecture I and you rather than talking in 3rd person. This gives the impression that these feelings have indeed been experienced by Duffy. When looking at the structure of Valentine, a reader can say that the structure and form of the poem is very irregular with single lined verses, lines of differ ent lengths and single words followed by full stops. Where Shakespeare uses the traditional love poem structure of a sonnet, Duffy chooses not to. Again, this expresses how Duffy is being different and opposing what is seen as normal for the style of a love poem. It shows a difference between Shakespeares writing and attitudes to Duffys more controversial poem by the use of the word Not to achieve performance. This is because Shakespeare but presents love in Romeo and Juliet but Duffy both presents and expresses her view on love in Valentine.Despite the differences in both writers attitudes and ideas to love, the play and poem also have many similarities. A coincidence in content is through the use of light imagery. It is used in Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet to signify beauty and also views on society by Shakespeare but it is also used in Duffys Valentine. In the poem, this light imagery is represented through how an onion promises light. This light can be seen as Duffy expressi ng the good things that make up a relationship as light is related to good just like darkness is often related to all things dingy. In this case, the light is like the careful undressing of love. Duffy is literally undressing and taking a different viewpoint to express her thoughts on love through explaining all things she believes are good and bad about a relationship. We know this as she goes from talking about this light to telling readers of how love can make you blind.However the major similarity between both Romeo and Juliet and Valentine is how they both involve defying common social views and structure in different contexts. Shakespeare expresses this through the characters Romeo and Juliet where they defy their family structures, the Montagues and the Capulets, in order to be with one another. Juliet also goes against her parents word and both Romeo and Juliet speak of how they would idolise and worship each other which oppose religion and Christian tradition as idol worsh ip. Duffy challenges normal thought throughout her poem to achieve effect and communicate her views to a reader. Even the structure of Valentine is very different to any love poem which is usually written as a sonnet like it is written by Shakespeare.I believe both Shakespeares and Duffys techniques of exploring love in different times and contexts are very effective on a reader or an audience. Duffys ideas and presentation of this theme of love can be seen as appealing due to its more unique approach. But, because Duffys views are different to that of modern society it can also be seen as less influential than Romeo and Juliets presentation of this perfect couple to audiences and readers throughout history. Love in Romeo and Juliet is easier to relate to for anyone because most people in life long for their romeo or their juliet and it is only a presentation of love, not a totally different view of love. It is because of this Romeo and Juliet has been so popular in many forms of f un including theatre and now even movies.