Salome and Havisham

878 Words4 Pages
compare the ways women are presented in salome and havisham In comparing the two poems there are a number of striking similarities and differences in the ways in such the two women are presented. There are two different viewpoints, firstly, a woman scorned and abandoned and secondly, a woman in control as a man eater. Both women seem to not like men very much but for different reasons meanwhile both women seem out of control, in each case the situation is very much overwhelming the subject. Havisham and Salome are presented in extreme ways by Duffy’s use of some colloquial language and her imagery. Neither of the characters have a voice in the historical books however Duffy gives both the women their own voice in the poems. These poems are very much alike however very different. Duffy uses an oxymoron in the first line of Havisham. `Beloved sweetheart bastard` show that the character has mixed emotions about her lover and gives an air of uncertainty about the characters emotions for her lover. She calls him a bastard because he walked out on her however Duffy uses beloved sweetheart to symbolise her unconditional love for him. Havisham exhibits violent imagery with powerful words, strangle, stabbed and death which all associate her bitterness with her wanting her ex fiancé dead. `Not a day since then I haven’t wished him dead`, proves that Havisham still remembers her wedding day very vividly and feels humiliated having been jilted so is trying to get revenge. Havisham is feeling emotionally detached from life and because of that, envisaging her ex fiancé dead or hurt. The poem infuses images of death to show the extent of her bitterness, along with enjambment. The enjambment proves that her bitterness cannot be contained throughout the poem because the follow through on to the next line instead of stopping. In contrast, Duffy presents the main character Salome
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