Duffy uses semantic field of nature in ‘Forest’ to reiterate how she feels the relationships progression involving intimacy was as natural to her as “rough bark” or the “loam on [her] bare feet”. The earthen language used such as “the perfume of soil” could be interpreted as Duffy’s appreciation for the world’s beauty heightening after the intimacy she experienced with her lover, represented by the juxtaposition of the words “perfume” and “soil”. Another example would be the description of moon light as “the moon [‘s]…shimmering cloth”. ‘Row’ represents the shift in their relationship from passion and happiness, to the explosiveness of an argument they have. Duffy uses the repetition of the conjunctive “But” to prevent the counterfeiting of a perfect relationship; there were obstacles in her love story also.
In ‘Quickdraw’ the extended metaphor of a Western ‘show down’ is used to illustrate the emotional combat between the couple as they text each other after an argument. The semantic field of western cowboy-eque dual is used with “high-noon”, “Last Chance Saloon” and “Sheriff”. This displays the chaotic state of the relationship as the hyperbole of comparing their argument to a dual to the death, using their mobiles as “guns”, emphasises the “calamity” of the situation. There is also a direct contrast to the poem ‘Text’ in which the mobile phone is tended by Duffy as “an injured bird”, a mechanism of communicating her love to her girlfriend; whereas in ‘Quickdraw’, the mobile phone is used as a weapon of hatred, used to deliver “the silver bullets of your (her lover’s) kiss”. There is also repetition in ‘Quickdraw’; “take this…and this…and this” reiterating the hurt Duffy experiences when she texts her as she describes it as the receiving of continuous physical blows.
Imagery is used rigorously in Rapture to at times exaggerate the state of the relationship but in other times, it is used to symbolise certain aspects of the relationship, an example being passion. One could argue that the continuous reference to rivers and water in the series of poems symbolises the passion in the relationship. In ‘Forest’, Duffy uses the imagery of water as an innuendo for the relationship strengthening through sex; “You stood, waist deep, in a stream, pulling me in”. Her lover seducing her is described as her “pulling me (Duffy) in”, which could represent the relationship’s growth as she trusts her lover enough to take this leap of faith, “…and so I swam” and allow the relationship to get intimate. The use of water as a motif for passion is again repeated in the poem ‘Row’; “But when we rowed, the room swayed and sank down on its knees”. The word “row” could be considered to have a double meaning, as arguing and physical rowing on a boat. If the word row is conceived as the action of rowing on a boat, on water, then it represents their distance from the passion they had earlier as instead of allowing themselves to be submerged in the passion (e.g. Water or river), they row away from the love they experienced earlier in the relationship.
The structure of the poems depends on the nature of each poem. ‘Text’ is about the couple texting each other short, sweet messages early in the relationship, which explains the short, two line stanzas with a very simple rhyme scheme. However, as the relationship becomes more complicated, the structure correlates as in ‘Forest’, there is no consistent rhyme scheme and the lines of each stanza are inconsistent, which could be linked to the references to the wild and the flow of water. Dissimilarly, ‘Row’ has a strict rhyme scheme of ‘abba’ which could refer to the mechanical way in which they argue and the loss of love. However, the last stanza of the poem breaks the mould as the rhyme scheme changes to ‘abbb’ which may be because love is only mentioned in the last stanza, reminding her of what she had before the fight as well as the first word of each line in the last stanza spelling out “But your[e] my love”. Moreover, the structure of ‘Quickdraw’ draws a parallel with the message of the poem as the combative turn in the relationship as the free verse could represent the chaotic nature of the relationship at this point. The hurt Duffy experiences is also reiterated by her singling out the first line of stanza two and three which, when combined, spell out “You’ve wounded me/through the heart”. Furthermore, the battling nature of the poem is also physically illustrated by the second and third stanzas being shaped like revolvers.
Rapture is an honest depiction of a very human relationship, with Duffy attempting to eschew the deceptive nature of certain love poems by emphasising the highs but also the flaws of passionate love. The poems ‘Text’, ‘Forest’, ‘Row’ and ‘Quickdraw’- together form the progression and digression of a very genuine relationship as well as being brilliantly intuitive stand-alone poems by representing the birth, the intimacy, the fights and the aftermath of those fights.
by
yasmiinii (student)
