Mrs. Midas and Valentine – Structure and form!

1. Mrs. Midas and Valentine – Structure and form! Elaine Ding and David Saunders

2. Mrs. Midas • Complex structure • Uniform and orderly structure • Shows that the poem lacks spontaneity and parallels the lack of passion in the relationship. • Provides and element of nostalgia, as the writer and reader have time to reflect. • Phrases on different lines for emphasis • Enjambment to create flow • Development of different distances • Pace quickens when the husband approaches, and slows down later on, linking to her more positive feelings towards him.

3. Transition from physical feelings in the beginning, to more powerful emotional feelings in the last stanza.

4. Valentine • Clear structure, yet uneven and un-orderly stanza sizes – • Written in first person, addressed to the reader! • single words or phrases form sentences • structure allows readers to assume that the writer is preoccupied by something else. • No time to reflect – structure indicates spontaneity and passion • Seven stanzas represent the different layers of an onion.

5. “Not a red rose or a satin heart” • “I am trying to be truthful” • “Not a cute card or a kissogram” • All break away from typical expressions of love – emphasis by separating them in single stanzas. • All positive and ‘conventional’ aspects of love, and this displays irony, as they are segregated and isolated from the rest of the poem. • Paralleling the experiences of unrequited love.

6. Stanzas represent the various layers of an onion. • In turn symbolizing the many layers of love • Transition from physical aspects to more emotional aspects. • General transition from larger (4-5 line) stanzas, to small (3 line) stanzas – echoing the gradual decrease in an onions size.