The poem is written in the present tense, as if the events in the photo are happening now. Why do you think this is? Is the poet trying to make her mother's past as real as possible?
The poet has a very confident, assertive voice, and makes definite statements. I'm not here yet. She speaks to her mother in a familiar way. The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh?#
Sound
The poem is written to sound as if the poet is talking to her mother, so the poet follows patterns of speech. Many phrases begin with I, as if the poet wants to assert her presence even before she was a presence. I'm ten years away.../ I knew you would dance like that.Iechoes through the poem.
Form
The poem is written in four equal stanzas of five lines each. How does this help you to see the poem?
- It may help you to visualise photos in an album, set out regularly over a page.
- It may help you to realise the regularity of time passing. (The poem keeps reminding us that, ten years after the photo was taken, the happy, bold teenager was a mother.)
You might be able to find other ideas inspired by the form of the poem too.
Ideas and attitudes
The following ideas are contained within the poem. Which do you think come across most strongly?
- The poet romanticises her mother and the glamorous life she used to lead.
-
The poet longs to see her mother as she once was, before she was tied down with motherhood.
-
The poet recognises that all mothers have mothers - her mother's mother used to stand at the close with a hiding for the late one, perhaps as the poet's mother now watches out for her.
- The poet is re-examining her own feelings as a daughter.
Tone
Because the poem is so personal, it is full of feelings. Which come across most vividly to you?
- The poem is very affectionate: it could almost be described as a love poem to her mother.
- The poet romanticises end her mother's adolescence and the teenage dreams she had.
-
The poet seems wistful in her memories - I remember my hands in those red high-heeled shoes - and in her imagined view of her mother's life - your ghost clatters towards me
-
The poet admires and is grateful for the way her mother livened up her childhood - You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass
Exam Questions
Question 1
Explore the ways that Carol Ann Duffy reflects on her mother's past and shows her affection for her in 'Before You Were Mine'.
Teacher's Note
You could comment on:
- how language is used
- the form and structure
Now make some notes on Before you Were Mine, as if you were going to answer this question in the exam.
- Allow yourself ten minutes.
-
Remember Point - Quote - Comment (Make a point, support it with a quotation and then explain how the language helps to add to the line's effectiveness.)
The Answer
The ballroom with the thousand eyes sets a very romantic scene and we can understand how the poet's mother would have been excited to go there and risk staying out late. As well as illustrating how the light played on the mirrorball, sending light across the dancefloor, the thousand eyes could refer to the eyes of five hundred potential suitors (real or imaginary) standing round watching, which would have enhanced the excitement even more.
Throughout, the poet is very possessive of her mother. References to her appear constantly (I'm ten years away... I'm not here yet... I remember...). The word Mine appears in the title and the poem actually concludes with the same words as the title, as if the poet is locking her mother in a firm embrace of words.
Examiner's Note
This answer made points which would be of a Grade A standard.
The Answer
The line I see you, clear as scent is difficult to understand, because you can't see scent. I think it means that the poet has imagined what her mum must have looked like, waiting by the tree, so clearly that she can almost smell the scene. Also, scent is quite a romantic word - maybe her mum wore scent when she met her boyfriend.
The fact that the poet names her mother's friends, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff (which sound like typical names from those times) help us believe in what she is writing. It is more personal - we feel we can get to know her mother's pals too.
Examiner's Note
This answer made points which would be of a Grade C standard.
The Answer
The poet's mum used to imagine herself having as a perfect life, as if she was in a film - fizzy, movie tomorrows, if she met the right boy.
The poet says that her mother looked a bit like Marilyn Monroe in her polka-dot dress, which is interesting because her mother probably dreamed of being like Marilyn.
Examiner's Note
This answer made points which would be of a Grade E standard.
Exam Tips
All of the sample answers make good points. The more you develop a point, the higher your grade will be. Ask yourself how you might develop the ideas that the E grade candidate and the C grade candidate wrote to earn the top grade!
It is important to remember that in the exam you will be asked to compare two poems. Which other poems by Carol Ann Duffy would be suitable? Try Valentine (which expresses a different sort of love) and War Photographer (where she is also examining a person's history and experiences). Think of some comparisons and contrasts that you might draw.
