In winter semester, I took ENGL 366, Studies in Poetry. We focused mainly on the postmodern era. At the end of the semester, I wrote a paper on Adrienne Rich, analyzing the use of environmental feminism, mostly from her book of poetry Diving into the Wreck. 

Likely prompted by the experience of reading Adrienne Rich with this lens, my reading of Carol Ann Duffy’s Standing Female Nude has occurred with the strong assumption that she is attempting the same feminist narrative that Rich achieved. This may or may not have been the poet’s intent, in Duffy’s case. I have found plenty of instances in which I believe Duffy also uses the environment to further her own feminist arguments, whether or not they are perfectly similar to Rich’s.

In “The Dolphins,” for instance, Duffy uses the idea of dolphins alienated from the sea, in which Rich’s wreck is found, to make a point that may be about patriarchal restriction and isolation of some demographic–perhaps Duffy herself, or women in general.

In “Muted Colors,” Duffy uses language that evokes images similar to what Rich uses to write in Diving into the Wreck. In my essay last semester, I cited Rich writing about thunder and lightning in her poem “Waking in the Dark.” Duffy writes with similar words, “…Muted colors/ alter gradually as clouds stir shape, till purple rain/ or violet thunderstorm shudders in the corner of my eye” (Duffy). Both poets seem to use thunder and the color purple to suggest some feminine power.

I think it might be interesting to explore the link between Adrienne Rich and Carol Ann Duffy’s poetry further, as their language and ideology really does seem similar.

Sources:

Duffy, Carol Ann. Standing Female Nude. Proquest LLC, Cambridge eng., 2000. Web.

Image:

Wikipedia contributors. “SS Thistlegorm.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 8 Oct. 2017. Web. 12 Oct. 2017