Cousin Kate is a poem about A girl that has had a fling with a rich man “He lured me to his palace home” and has been left distraught by her one and only because he left her for her cousin Kate. She is now comparing her life to cousin Kate’s. We find out that she has a son, even though she is her pride and joy she is ashamed that he came from this man.
The setting in The Seduction is in the quiet Birkenhead docks “Quiet bricks of the Birkenhead docks.” and in the city “Silver stream of traffic through the city.” whereas in Cousin Kate the setting is on a rough estate “mean estate” and in the posh countryside “ He saw you at your fathers gate.
The girls in The Seduction and Cousin Kate are young naive girls who falls into the traps set by the boys. They believe that the boys love them. At the start of the poems the girls are nervous “nervous” giggly “giggled” and in love they think “fell in love”. At the end of the poems the girls are upset “sobbed” “cried” they are angry “spit into his face” and they are ashamed but yet still have their pride “my shame, my pride”
Through the play we see a lot of differing emotions from the girls from happy “She giggled” to angry and sad “spit into his face” and “She sobbed” I think that the girls emotions are consistent and true. I think this because wouldn’t you be upset if the love of your life ran off with your cousin or if your man left you because you was pregnant.
The men in the poems are both pathetic foul men. One of them lures a girl to him using drink “She giggled, drunk and nervous” and the other man lures a girl to him with riches “He lured me to his palace home” these to examples from the poems tell me that the men are only interested in one thing. I think me and you both know what that is. Sex.
The writer of The Seduction uses a metaphor to show how the traffic runs through the city “A silver stream of traffic” I think that this gives the impression that the traffic is silent. The writer also uses a rhetorical question to ask was he the summer of her sixteenth year “For where, now, was he summer of her sixteenth year” I think this was good because it makes the readers think was he the summer of her sixteenth year, or not. Then you have Cousin Kate the writer of this poem uses a different style she uses an oxymoron to show that the girls son is her shame but her pride at the same time “My shame, my pride” This tell you that is ashamed of her son but he is also her pride. The writer also uses contrast to describe the situations of the girl and cousin Kate at this present time “Even though I sit and howl in dust, you sit in gold and sing” I think that this shows you that the girl is jealous of what her cousin has now got. I also think that she is comparing her life with cousin Kate’s.
My personal feeling about the plays are that the men that lured the girls are pathetic and desperate. This was a new experience for the girls and they thought they were in love so they did not realise what was happening to them. I do think that they should have been more careful and I do think that they are not totally innocent. I think that the poems sent out a good message for young girls.
