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Evaluate how Duffy includes a range of devices
to present her theme of the role of women in
history in “Sub”.
What associations do you
have with the word “sub” ?
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How is the speaker’s narrative standpoint
different from the other poems in the
collection? What is this form of poem
called?
What are the effects upon the reader?
The speaker highlights to challenges faced by women:
1. male dominated society
2. motherhood not regarded as an achievement
3. women expected to do the same things as men but with added difficulties
(e.g. periods)
4. isolation when entering masculine cultures
All the things/achievements mentioned have all been done by men, Duffy is
arguing that women could have done the same (whilst also going through
periods etc) but have been denied the opportunity
The woman in the poem is unnamed = represents all women Title:
Subsitute like in a football game
or
Subordinate which means lower in rank or position
Structure/Tone:
Tone = more upbeat in terms of the first section of the collection, perhaps
because it is coming towards the middle of the collection/end of the first
section - suggests a celebration of female achievement except it isn't
because none of the things in the poem were achieved by women
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mx3AecF
3ImI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nROtVX05So
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RaXPdSaN
pyY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwZb2mqI
d0A
Enjambment
emphasises skill and
flair
Alliteration suggests
confidence and
determination
I came on in extra time in ’66, my breasts
bandaged beneath my no.13 shirt, and put
it in
off the head, the back of the heel, the left
foot
from 30 yards out, hat trick. If they’d
thought
the game was all over, it was now.
Famous commentary,
the male voice,
reinforced by the
elliptical style
throughout the poem.
Caesura
expresses
approval of
commentator –
or selfsatisfaction
Parenthetical and seemingly
casual reference to being a
woman gives the reason for
being excluded, but Duffy
suggests, subversively, that
it is the reason for the
player’s success
Dactylic rhythm
(1long, followed by 2
short syllables) gives
sense of energy and
movement
I felt secure
as I danced in my dazzling whites with the Cup –
tampon – but skipped the team bath with the
lads,
sipped my champagne in the solitary shower
as the blood and soap suds mingled to pink.
They sang my name on the other side of the
shower.
Pronouns emphasise
the separation
between the speaker
and the team
Sibilance emphasises
her isolation, together
with the image of the
shower
In groups, discuss one of the following aspects of
the poem. Then annotate an A3 copy . Each group
has 5 minutes on each aspect, then passes the
copy on to the next group to read the notes and
add any of their own. When the copy goes back to
the first group, one student recaps on the best
ideas to the group as a whole:
 The references to proper nouns and to jargon
 Enjambment
 The shape and length of the stanzas and lines
 Sound patterns
 References to exclusively female characteristics
Complete the following statements:
It could be argued that “Sub” is typical of the
collection because...
However, others might argue that it is unlike
other poems because...
Complete worksheet 2: Planning an essay:
Getting comparison in there. (AO3)