Carol Ann Duffy is a Scottish poet and playwright. Duffy began to write poetry from the age of 11, and was encouraged by two English teachers to develop her literary talent.
At the age of 15, Duffy had a few of her poems published, and she went on to study at the University of Liverpool. In 1977 she received an honours degree in philosophy. During her time at university Duffy also had two plays performed at the Liverpool Playhouse.
Duffy was appointed as Poet Laureate on May 1st 2009. Children studying for their G.C.S.E’s, and A levels have also studied her poems. Many older children and adults of this generation hold Duffy’s poetry dearly; perhaps it is Duffy’s honest exploration of everyday experiences in scenes from adult life, childhood,…show more content… She writes in conversational everyday language, which makes her poems appear simple, yet easily allows the reader to visualize. Regarding her writing style, Duffy creates modern variations of the more traditional poetic forms. She makes regular use of dramatic monologue through her examination of different identities and voices, she often also uses the sonnet form. Her approach is often serious yet humorous. (British Council 2011)
The first poem to be studied is Beachcomber. Beachcomber was published in Duffy’s 1993 work Mean Time, as are the following two poems we shall look at. A number of Duffy’s poems seem to explore many experiences from childhood, as she reminisces over them as an…show more content… Perhaps this is because a person’s youth can never be relived. Throughout the poem it asks the reader would or could you change anything if you were given the opportunity. Duffy writes the poem in the form of a dialogue; this technique is used in a variety of Duffy’s poems. In this poem the dialogue takes place between an old person and a narrator. As we read the poem the old person never seems to reply, but seems to follow the narrator’s instructions. This technique allows Duffy to talk straight to the reader, who is being asked to take part in questioning his or her own childhood memories.
The beginning of the poem takes on a sarcastic almost ironical approach, “If you think till it hurts you can almost do it without getting off that chair” this is addressed to the person who has become older mentally as well as physically. “Prompt of a word” signifies the way in which a single word can trigger an abundance of