Why, why, why Delilah?

How does Delilah fit in with constructivist feminist ideas, and essentialist feminist ideas? Can men ever be gentle, not destructive? Knowing what we know about women's portrayal in the Bible, what can Carol Ann Duffy teach us in 'Delilah'?

'Medusa' and aporia

What is aporia? How does this relate to Carol Ann Duffy? Funny you should ask, actually.

The Bible in 'The World's Wife'

The Bible, central to our culture (arguably). Certainly the most quoted text in the West - even now. Why does Carol Ann Duffy use Biblical characters? Find out here.

Mrs Tiresias - gender, sexuality and constructivism

Yes, I could have chosen a snappier title! But where else are you going to find Helene Cixous theories about the limitless power of female sexuality, Greek mythology, T. S. Eliot, Lacanian psychoanalysis and modern poetry? The answer, of course, is in 'Mrs Tiresias'.

Punctuation and 'The Devil's Wife'

This (slightly more professional) podcast is a concentration on punctuation in 'The Devil's Wife'. It touches briefly on form and structure, but it's really a heads-up about punctuation, which has such an important part to play in adding meaning to a poem. 'The Devil's Wife' is a masterclass in the mutation of form over several cantos (parts of the poem). Enjoy!

Intertextuality (and 'Mrs Midas')

Intertextuality and 'Mrs Midas'

This is a word that many people in English Literature and cultural studies speak of, but one that is very difficult to explain. Why does one poet quote a line from another poet? Isn't that just copying? Well, no; not really. Listen to this for the reasons why.

How do 'Mrs Darwin' and 'Mrs Icarus' fit in?

'Mrs Darwin' and 'Mrs Icarus' are not the world's greatest poems (dare I suggest?), but they do have textual relationships with the rest of the poems in the book. They are expolred briefly, here.