Higher English - "Valentine"

Themes of "Valentine"

the difference between traditional love and what love actually is

Stanza one/two:

"Not a red rose or a satin heart"
"I give you an onion."
"It is a moon wrapped in brown paper."
"It promises light like the careful undressing if love"

Stanza three:

"Here."
"It will blind you with tears like a lover"
"It will make your reflection a wobbling photo of grief"

Stanza four/five:

"I am trying to be truthful"
"Not a cute card or a kissogram"

Stanza six:

"I give you an onion."
"Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips, possessive and faithful"
"as we are, for as long as we are"

Stanza seven:

"Take it."
"Its platinum loops will shrink to a wedding ring, if you like"
"Lethal."
"its scent will cling to your fingers, cling to your knife"

"Not a red rose or a satin heart"

Word choice: The poem starting with the negative "Not" instantly shatters the readers expectations of a love poem

"I give you an onion."

Juxtaposition: an onion is a mundane and unpleasant gift compared to the previously mentioned gifts

"It is a moon wrapped in brown paper"

Metaphor: the moon has romantic connotations but also madness and obsession
Word choice: "brown" is a mundane colour that is not traditionally associated with love

"It will blind you with tears like a lover"

Simile: "like a lover" suggest that love can also bring pain and can make you cry

"It will make your reflection a wobbling photo of grief"

Metaphor: "wobbling photo" suggest instability and imperfection
Word choice: "grief" suggests sadness and death

"Not a cute card or a kissogram"

Echos the first line emphasising the notion that she is not giving her lover a traditional gift

"Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips"

Word choice of "fierce" has connotations of aggression which contrasts with "kiss" which is meant to be kind and loving, conveying darker emotions

"possessive and faithful"

Word choice: "possessive" suggests controlling and jealousy where as "faithful" suggest loyalty and devotion

"Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding ring"

Metaphor: suggests marriage requires adjustment that restricts a person mentally and physically

"Lethal."

Minor sentence: emphasises and reinforces the notion that love can be genuinely harmful and even fatal

"cling to your fingers, cling to you knife"

Repetition: repetition of "cling" emphasises the grip love has on a person
Word choice: "knife" suggests violence