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Warming Her Pearls Poem Analysis

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“Warming Her Pearls” is a poem about the love and intimacy being shared between a mistress and her maiden. The pearls are a representation of the mistress and the maiden’s attempt to show her mistress love and compassion. There seems to be a little sexual tension between the maid and the mistress that the maid takes care of every day. This poem is written in a way that confuses the reader, this represents the uncertainty inherent in homosexual relationships that must be kept secret. Carol Ann Duffy utilizes alliteration, oxymoron and word choices to show the sexual tension that takes place between the two women. The maid has a deep adoration for her mistress. Throughout the poem, the author uses the alliterative soft ‘w’ sounds to hint at the …show more content…

When the maid is placing the pearls around the throat of the mistress, she describes the throat as cool and white. As said in the quote “At six, I place them round her cool, white throat” (Duffy). This can be inferred as a reference to their class difference. The neck of the mistress is ‘white’ because she probably rarely goes outdoors, so her skin tone is very pale. Presumably, the complexion of the maid is darker, perhaps indicating that she goes out more often, to do work. When the narrator is describing the pearls, she states “She fans herself whilst I work willingly, my slow heat entering each pearl”. “My slow heat” may be referring to the erotic feeling that is coming over the maid as she is helping the mistress get ready. In the third stanza of the poem, it states “I dream about her in my attic bed”. This quotation has a double meaning. It could be that the maid dreams about her why she is laying in her bed or the maid wishes for the mistress to be in bed with her. Nevertheless, both these explanations mean the same thing, the maid has an attraction towards the mistress. The mistress does not know the feelings the maid has for her, but there an indefinite lust the maid has for this mistress. Since the maid knows where the mistress is, maybe makes her feel like she has control or power over the

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