Symbolism in "I Wanna Be Yours"

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Yours” by John Cooper Clarke On the surface, “I Wanna Be Yours” could be seen as a modern, childish love-poem which can be supported by the fact that it has recently been adapted into a song. This would be the case if poet, John Cooper Clarke did not use clever, satirical symbolism to expose themes of the time as well as mocking contemporary, capitalist products. Hailing from the punk-days of 1970’s Britain, Cooper Clarke would be extremely harsh to the society in which he was living, as was the culture of the time. This is not to take away from the heavy theme of love running through the poem which is still prevalent through the symbolism used for the double purpose of satire and deep meaning. Capitalist imagery is a key symbol used by John Cooper Clarke to describe his love for the recipient of this poem whilst also satirising the modern age of Britain: “I wanna be your vacuum cleaner Breathing in your dust” The poet, by saying that he wishes to be the recipients “vacuum cleaner” automatically brings a homely and domestic image to the readers mind, perhaps suggesting that he is longing for a life and a home together with the addressee. This makes it a very useful symbol for Cooper Clarke as he uses it to express the profundity of his love. This is supported by the alliteration of the soft ‘c’ sound in the line, insinuating a feeling of comfort and security for the couple. As a modern audience, this is the image that is brought to mind for us but in terms of the context of production and Cooper Clarke’s punk audience in the 1970’s, this line would have brought a different feeling to light. A “vacuum cleaner” would be seen as symbol for capitalist society and the ideal of normality that Cooper Clarke’s audience would be fighting by dressing as they did or listening to the music and poetry that they did. In this case, this line can be seen as humorous and
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