Before You Were Mine Carol Ann Duffy

Before You Were Mine Carol Ann Duffy Starter: Write down your earliest memory of your parents.

Before You Were Mine Carol Ann Duffy Homework Task Who is Carol Ann Duffy and what is she famous for? 100-150 words by Monday 20th February 2017.

Before You Were Mine Carol Ann Duffy Learning Objectives As we study this poem you will learn about: The story of the poem Memory Poems More about the terms, Memory Poem: Key Features: Visual & Sensory Imagery. You will also complete some mini tasks, and an exam choice question about the poem.

Before You Were Mine Carol Ann Duffy I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it.   The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine.

Mini Task 1 How is the poem structured or composed? Before You Were Mine Structure I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it.   The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Mini Task 1 How is the poem structured or composed?

Before You Were Mine Structure I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on 12 with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff. 11 The three of you bend from the waist, holding 10 each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. 12 Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. 13 I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur 12 in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows 17 the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance 11 like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close 13 with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it. 14   The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? 17 I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics 14 and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square 13 till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, 11 with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? 12 Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass14 stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then 11 I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere 15 in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts 14 where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. 13 Mini Task 1 How is the poem structured or composed? The poem is made up of 4 stanzas of 5 lines. Line length varies from 10-17 syllables. There are no rhyming lines in the poem so it is written in Free Verse. However in each stanza there are several examples of enjambment which help the ‘prose like’ feel of the poem.

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 1 I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. Mini Task 2 Look at the first five lines. What is the poet doing? What does the first line mean? Who is ‘Marilyn’?

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 1 I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. Mini Task 2 Look at the first five lines. What is the poet doing? Looking at old photographs of her mother when she was a teenager. What does the first line mean? It’s 10 years before she will be born. Her mother would have been about 15 years old. Who is ‘Marilyn’? (Not her mother!) Marilyn Monroe. Actress, famous for iconic shot where her dress blows up around her legs in The 7 Year Itch. (She had an IQ of 163 so not stupid!)

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 2 I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it. Mini Task 3 Why is she ‘not here yet’? What are the ‘thousand eyes’? What is the ‘right walk home’? What are ‘fizzy movie tomorrows’?

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 2 I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it. Mini Task 3 Why is she ‘not here yet’? She hasn’t been born and at 15 the last thing her mum is thinking about is having children! What are the ‘thousand eyes’? A mirror-ball – very popular in 1940’s dance halls. What is the ‘right walk home’? Getting walked home by a boy she met at the dance.... What are ‘fizzy movie tomorrows’? ....who then asks you on a date....to the movies ....with the promise of fizzy drinks and perhaps even another date…..!

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 2 I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it. Mini Task 4 How does she know what her mother’s dancing is like?

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 2 I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it. Mini Task 4 How does she know what her mother’s dancing is like? She is looking at another photo, this time of her mother dancing (perhaps wearing the red shoes)

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 2 I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it. Mini Task 5: What might have prompted the next memory? (and it would not have been a photograph!) This is the sort of street her mother would have lived and grown up in in Glasgow, Scotland. Vocabulary Hiding: spanking, physically chastised by a parent.

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 2 I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it. Mini Task 5: What might have prompted the next memory? (and it would not have been a photograph!) I think this is a remembered story she had been told of the time Carol’s mother came home late from a date and her mother was waiting up for her to give Carol’s mother a good ‘hiding’ (spanking) for being late. This is the sort of street her mother would have lived and grown up in in Glasgow, Scotland. Vocabulary Hiding: spanking, physically chastised by a parent.

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 3 The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Mini Task 6 Why is this ‘decade...the best one’? How old are the red shoes? Vocabulary Relic: Something that has survived the passage of time, especially an object or custom

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 3 The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Mini Task 6 Why is this ‘decade...the best one’? Her mother is young, free and single and has not got family responsibilities to worry about. How old are the red shoes? At least 15 years if the ones she plays with are the same shoes her mother is wearing in the photograph. Vocabulary Relic: Something that has survived the passage of time, especially an object or custom

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 3 The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Mini Task 7 What is her mother’s ‘ghost’? What is ‘clear as scent’ an example of? What are the ‘small bites’ in the last line?

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 3 The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Mini Task 7 What is her mother’s ‘ghost’? She is meeting her mother in George Square, Glasgow, and the old woman coming to meet her is the ‘ghost’ of the vibrant young woman in the photographs. What is ‘clear as scent’ an example of? Sensual Imagery (Smell). What are the ‘small bites’ in the last line? Love bites (hickey).....another photo or a detail now noticed in one she has looked at. (Perhaps why the ‘hiding’ was worth it?)

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 3 The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? This is a complex stanza as it exists in several time frames. Ten years before Carol was born The present where she is meeting her mother The recent past where she looked at the photos, unless she has the photos with her at George Square. As a young girl playing with her mother’s red shoes. In Stanza 3, Carol compares the old lady who comes to meet her with her memories of her mother as a child and the photos of the vibrant girl her mother was as a teenager. Mini Task 8: Summarize this slide.

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 4 Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Mini Task 9 What is the ‘cha cha’? How does her mother manage to ‘stamp stars’? Vocabulary Mass: Roman Catholic church service.

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 4 Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Mini Task 9 What is the ‘cha cha’? It’s a fast energetic dance with small steps and swaying hip movements, performed to a Latin American rhythm. How does her mother manage to ‘stamp stars’? As she is dancing down the road her mother catches the steel tip of her high-heeled shoes on the edge of an uneven (wrong) pavement. (Same red shoes perhaps?) Vocabulary Mass: Roman Catholic church service.

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 4 Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Mini Task 10 When does Carol ‘want’ her mother? What ‘mother’ does she want? Where does the ‘glamorous love last?

Before You Were Mine The Poem in Detail – Stanza 4 Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Mini Task 10 When does Carol ‘want’ her mother? As a young girl. What ‘mother’ does she want? The youthful, vibrant, glamorous girl in the photographs . Where does the ‘glamorous love last? In the past, fixed forever by photographs.

Before You Were Mine The Story Of The Poem Mini Task 11 – Summarize this slide. Carol Ann Duffy is looking through some old photographs of her mother’s. In the first one her mother is with two friends and they are laughing as her dress blows up around her legs. This image reminds the poet of the famous still of Marilyn Monroe from the movie The Seven Year Itch. Her mother is NOT called Marilyn! In Stanza 2 Carol begins to think about her mother’s free and happy life in the years before she was born. She then looks at a photo that shows her mother dancing and remembers a story she had been told of the time her mother came home late from a date and got beaten for being late. But her mother must have told Carol the punishment was worth it. In Stanza 3, Carol compares the old lady who comes to meet her with the photos of the vibrant girl her mother was and her childhood memories of her mother. In stanza 4, Carol remembers a silly moment with her mother she enjoyed as a child, a moment that now reminds her of the youthful girl in the photographs she has looked at. This in turn makes her remember that even as a girl she wanted her mother to be the girl she was as a teenager, not the old woman she has become. So this is a memory poem where Carol’s mother grows from being a female icon like Marilyn Monroe to and old woman who is the ‘ghost’ of her former self.

Poetic Devices - Imagery Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Imagery I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it.   The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Imagery is the Key Feature of this poem. On each of the next slides identify the key images in each stanza.

Poetic Devices - Imagery Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Imagery I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. Mini Task 12 Identify the images in Stanza 1.

Poetic Devices - Imagery Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Imagery I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. Mini Task 12 Identify the images in Stanza 1. 1- The poet’s mother standing on the corner with her friends. 2- The three girls bending over, laughing. 3- The dress blowing up like Marilyn Munroe. I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn.

Poetic Devices - Imagery Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Imagery I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it. Mini Task 13 – Identify the images in Stanza 2.

Poetic Devices - Imagery Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Imagery I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it. Mini Task 13 – Identify the images in Stanza 2. 1- The ballroom and the mirrorball 2- Fizzy drinks at the movies 3- The poet’s mother being walked home from the dance. 4- Her mother dancing 5- The poet’s grandmother standing at the top of the street waiting for her daughter to come home form the dance. in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it.

Poetic Devices - Imagery Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Imagery The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Mini Task 14 Identify the images in Stanza 3.

Poetic Devices - Imagery Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Imagery The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Mini Task 14 Identify the images in Stanza 3. 1- The old, red high heeled shoes. 2- Her mother, now old, coming towards her across George Square. 3- The smell of poet’s mother’s perfume – sensory imagery. 4- Her mother under an Xmas tree with lights 5- Love bites (hickey) on her mother’s neck. I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George till I see you, clear as scent, till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, Note ‘clear as sent’ is sensory/smell imagery. with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart?

Poetic Devices - Imagery Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Imagery Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Mini Task 15 Identify the images in Stanza 4.

Poetic Devices - Imagery Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Imagery Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Mini Task 15 Identify the images in Stanza 4. 1- The dance. 2- Her mother teaching her the steps to the dance. 3- Making sparks fly as the metal heal catches an uneven pavement. 4- Another photo of her mother on holiday, winking at the camera. Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass stamping stars from the wrong pavement. wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello,

Poetic Devices - Alliteration Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Alliteration I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it.   The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Mini Task 16 – Identify the alliteration in the poem. What is the effect of this alliteration?

Poetic Devices - Alliteration Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Alliteration I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it.   The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Mini Task 16 – Identify the alliteration in the poem. What is the effect of this alliteration? The alliteration helps add rhythm to the poem.

Poetic Devices - Repetition Before You Were Mine Poetic Devices - Repetition I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals, Maggie McGeeney and Jean Duff.  The three of you bend from the waist, holding each other, or your knees, and shriek at the pavement. Your polka-dot dress blows round your legs. Marilyn. I'm not here yet. The thought of me doesn't occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring. I knew you would dance like that. Before you were mine, your Ma stands at the close with a hiding for the late one. You reckon it's worth it.   The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh? I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes, relics and now your ghost clatters toward me over George Square till I see you, clear as scent, under the tree, with its lights, and whose small bites on your neck, sweetheart? Cha cha cha! You'd teach me the steps on the way home from Mass, stamping stars from the wrong pavement. Even then I wanted the bold girl winking in Portobello, somewhere in Scotland, before I was born. That glamorous love lasts where you sparkle and waltz and laugh before you were mine. Mini Task 17 – Summarize this slide. ‘Before you were mine’ is the title of the poem and is repeated twice in the poem which makes it significant. You would normally expect the phrase to be ‘before I was yours’ and by turning the phrase around Carol Ann Duffy places the emphasis on her relationship with her mother in an almost possessive way, like she ‘owns’ her mother. We get born to our parents, not them to us as this phrase suggests.

Before You Were Mine