Lesbian Obsession in Carole Ann Duffy's Selected Poems

Abstract

This research observes Carole Ann Duffy's selected poems as a lesbian point of view with its focus on female characters and rejection of essential notion of heterosexuality. It further tries to analyze how the rejection of heterosexuality in the text projects the female emancipation from unequal gender roles with the discussion of women's writing, queer theory and Lesbianism. Lesbianism is the sexual and romantic desire between females. Lesbianism is often referred as female homosexuality. The term lesbian is frequently used as a synonym for homosexuality. Thus, the major concern of this research is to mark the female independence through the lesbian relationship which through the character-sketch of the speaker and her relation with male and female differently.

Duffy has earned her reputation as major British poet and activist since 1980s. Most attention has been paid to her extraordinary poems and prose. However, the issue of lesbianism has seldom been focused on or fully discussed. In her collected poem entitled "Warming Her Pearl" the narrator engrossed with her mistress and wants to have sexual relation and when her mistress dance with the tall man she is burned. She thinks about her mistress undress and lying down naked on the bed. Carole Ann Duffy, in her poem "Valentine" challenges the traditional way to giving the gift in the Valentine’s Day except giving the red rose she wanted to give onion for her sweet heart. Duffy’s writing mainly defends upon the thought, emotion, feelings and desire of lesbian or third sexes and revolting against this domination by mainstream of the society.