As he kills a fly casually, he recalls doing “that at school. Shakespeare” He thinks shake spear’s play is not in the language he speaks, and notes that the fly is now in “another language”-at least no longer in the world of the living
Mention of Shakespeare prompts the boast that he is a “genius” who could “be anything at all, with half the chance” His actions are also very kiddish, “ I breathe out talent on the glass to write my name.” It is as though he hasn’t grown up like those children in ‘Mrs. Tilcher’s class” but life has been unkind to him. Maybe he didn’t have someone he could admire and receive “gold stars” from, so he has to give himself praise. As soon as he claims that he can “change the world” he limits this to “something’s world.” He then kills the goldfish and notes that the budgie is frightened while the cat; supposedly as recognition of his “genius” has “hidden itself” This is a very sinister allusion. The speaker tells, “ I see that it is good.” This could be an echo of the creation story of Genesis, where after each day’s work of creation it states “God saw that it was good.” We know that this sick character here wishes to “play God” but he can only destroy where God and Shakespeare create. Almost at an aside the speaker tells us that he is unemployed, and goes into town “for signing on” This is as though he is tiered of waiting for other people to give them a living or some kind of recognition, that they have not earned.
Finally there “is nothing left to kill,” he phones a radio talk show to assert his genius- but is cut off by the presenter. So he goes out with a bread knife. The poem has been presented as a first-person monologue throughout, but ends by addressing the reader as if he or she were the first human victim-“I touch your arm”
The poem shows us the prelude to violence, but does not describe any violence against a real human being- the ending hints at this. Perhaps what happens next depends on the choice of a victim, or weather he or she has the resolution to kill.
The poem title seems a little ironic- we see that the speaker’s education has done him little good. Maybe this links to what Duffy say’s at the end of “In Mrs. Tilscher’s class” where she states “You ran through the gates impatient to be grown, as the sky split open into a thunderstorm” Duffy tries to express that after primary school life and education, the world seems wide open ready for youth, and if you are not protected you can be rejected from the world, and then education seems to have been a lie. But this may not be the fault of the school and teachers.
The poem is in five stanzas, each of four lines. They are unrhymed and the metre is not regular. The lines are mostly end stopped, and every stanza concludes as a full stop. The egotism of the speaker appears in the repeated use of “I.” This shows how the speaker is very self-obsessed.
The poem may seem mildly humorous when the speaker torments his pets. But it can be seen as what happens to those who do nothing.
In Mrs. Tilschers Class is set in a very different tone from Education for leisure. This poem is from the viewpoint of a child experiencing life and if full of happy memories. But we can compare the poems because Education for leisure could show what could happen later in life when there is no safe school or environment. Your left to find out things for your self, just as this child does when Mrs. Tilscher begins to “turn away”, and doesn’t like the things she hears.
The poet remembers particular details from her classroom and the activities she remembers doing with Mrs. Tilscher. It is quite ironic that the places mentioned are third world countries that are full of unemployment and homeless children, “Tana. Ethiopia. Khartoum. Aswan.” So already a hint of harsh reality of the world outside of school is revealed, but unknown to the innocent child. Then Duffy goes straight to “ that for an hour, then a skittle of milk.” She makes it seem as though learning is hard work, and the child understands very little of the outside world. So the skittle of milk is a big treat. We then imagine the children enjoying their milk and maybe they played skittles with their empty bottles.
