Men Talk Poem Analysis

Men Talk Textual Analysis
Men Talk is a poem abstracted from a book called New Cliches and True Confessions, written by Scottish poet Liz Lochhead. It is about how women are perceived from the perspective of a man. The theme of the poem is the stereotypical views on women. Liz Lochhead uses a variety of stylistic features, structural organization of stanzas, and diction to express this idea.

Liz Lochhead uses literary devices and techniques to show the stereotypical views on the way women talks. Onomatopoeia was used when presenting the annoyance of women talk. In the poem, it said that ‘’Women Yap Yap Yap’’ (34). Repetition of the word yap puts emphasis on the how women talk continuously. Yap is like a sound of dog barking. ‘’Women niggle niggle niggle’’ (12) is also an onomatopoeia.

So rather than speaking out useful and meaningful words, it shows that women are only making noise coming out of their mouths. Metaphors are used to associate women to negative things. ‘’Verbal Diarrhoea is a Female Disease’’ (35) ‘’chew the fat’’, and ‘’spill the beans.’’ (16). It means women let out secrets easily and their mouths are always moving. Saying that women talk is a disease has a very negative connotation because it compares women talk to a grotesque and revolting sickness. The metaphors have an effect on the views upon women by saying women cant keep secrets and are infectious, meaning women’s ways of talking are spread easily among them. It is a representation of what women are known for doing from the point of view of a man. Simile was used in the poem. The way women spread was compared to ‘’Philadelphia Cream Cheese.’’ (37). The quote suggests women spread rumours around very quickly and easily. Just like the Philadelphia Cream Cheese, the amount of time it takes to spread it over