Valentine- Carol Ann Duffy The poem “Valentine” is about a rather unusual present, an onion. Carol Ann explains why the onion is a greater symbol of love than the clichéd valentine day presents, like roses or chocolates. Throughout the poem we see how an onion becomes a metaphor for love, which is unusual because the onion is a very unflattering, stinky, and not a very romantic object. The poem itself seems to be an extended metaphor about how the onion fits in all the romantic properties of love. The poem starts off with the negative adverb “not”. This immediately shows the rejection of the classical symbols of love. The whole first stanza contains of just one line which, which was probably to give the reader a clear cut idea, that Carol …show more content…
She looks at the ways an onion is suitable for showing love and explains to her lover what an onion will do for him. Further on, Duffy goes onto comparing the onion to the moon. This is a metaphor, as a moon is generally is a symbol for love. She also says the “moon”, “promises light”, which probably means light to guide her lover through his difficulties. In the next stanza, Duff says “it will blind you with tears, just like a lover does”. Over here I guess she means tears of joy, which one would generally experience in a relationship. On the other hand normally a persons eyes only water when they cut the onion, which could be looked at as one breaking someone’s heart, causing the tears. In the next line, “make your reflection a wobbling photo of grief”, could be thought of when someone is crying and they look at their “wobbling” and foggy reflection in the mirror, it causes the to cry more. The fourth and fifth stanzas consist of single lines. Their isolation causes an emphasis on their meanings. The fourth stanza,” I am trying to be truthful”, might represent the fact that honesty is a crucial issue for the poet in this poem, and in a relationship