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Poet: Carol Ann Duffy
Poem: Words, Wide Night
Volume: The Other Country
Year: Published/Written in 1990
Comment 8 of 8, added on March 6th, 2007 at 11:19 AM.
I read this poem and copied it down in my diary when I was 16, it had a very powerful impact on me then when I was studying Duffy's work but now that I am older (22) it appears even more profound. The words read like a string of conscious thought, without checking themselves and without artificially making an effort. My favourite part of the poem is the break between the second to last and last line.... 'for I am in love with you and this.....' 'is what it is like' - the lingering feeling inside when reading these two lines together and pausing in the middle encapsulates the true power of love. This is the work of a genius!
Catherine Gaskell
Comment 7 of 8, added on July 31st, 2006 at 2:17 PM.
This poems follows, and breaks, the tradition of renaissance's sonnets such as Sonnet 89 in Astrophel and Stella by Sydney and Shakespeare's Sonnet XXVII. It breaks with the tradition for it is not clear if a man addresses it to a woman or viceversa (actually anyone could address this poem to his/her lover when he/she is far away)and it is not a sonnet, although the poems development is close to that of a sonnet, the first two verse paragraphs (as it is irregular they cannot be called stanzas) present the themes of the poem (solitud, longing for a distant lover, sleeplessness; just the same themes Shakespeare's sonnet deals with) the third verse paragraph develops that themes giving them a turn (lalalala; breaks with the language) and the las pargraph concludes it. Carol Ann Duffy is a great poet, may be the best of her generation; I'm glad she didn't trew it all away becoming Poet Laurate.
Eliud Correa from Mexico
Comment 6 of 8, added on March 30th, 2006 at 3:18 PM.
This poem is so powerful, it makes you want to fall in love. Though with few words and techinques in the poem, the poem is dramatic. Yes, you can sense loneliness and longing in this. I wish someone would send this to me, Duffy you have really touched on the emotion of love-i love this poem!
Nadine from United Kingdom
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I read this poem and copied it down in my diary when I was 16, it had a very powerful impact on me then when I was studying Duffy's work but now that I am older (22) it appears even more profound. The words read like a string of conscious thought, without checking themselves and without artificially making an effort. My favourite part of the poem is the break between the second to last and last line.... 'for I am in love with you and this.....' 'is what it is like' - the lingering feeling inside when reading these two lines together and pausing in the middle encapsulates the true power of love. This is the work of a genius!
Catherine Gaskell