Writing About Poetry
Stealing
Introduction
• Poem’s title in inverted commas:
‘Stealing’
• Poet’s name: Carol Ann Duffy
• Respond to wording of the task
• Briefly (two or three lines) explain
what happens in the poem
• Display an understanding of the
poem
• Mention the techniques used by
Duffy, which you will be discussing
Narcissistic, violent, uncaring; the narrator of
Carol Ann Duffy’s dramatic monologue
‘Stealing’ is most certainly an unpleasant
character. The narrator, apparently in
response to a question, recounts his
various thefts, particularly focusing on the
theft of a snowman. In the snowman he
sees the coldness and loneliness of his own
position. Through the narrator’s monologue,
Duffy reveals the psychology behind the
crimes. I intend to examine Duffy’s use of
techniques such as enjambment, imagery
and symbolism to present the psychology of
this unpleasant character.
Topic Sentences
• Clearly state what the
paragraph will be about
• Can link back to the previous
paragraph
• In the poem’s first stanza, Duffy
establishes connections
between the narrator and the
snowman.
• Despite the narrator’s crimes
being restricted to theft, the
threat of violence runs through
the poem.
Analysis
• Identify techniques
• Explain how they work.
• Do not simply repeat the
quotation
Techniques
• Imagery, symbolism, word
choice, enjambment,
onomatopoeia, half-rhyme,
internal rhyme, personification,
imagery, simile, metaphor,
repetition
The narrator sees similarities between the
snowman and himself:
“I wanted him, a mate
With a mind as cold as the slice of ice
Within my own brain.”
The personification of „mate‟, which is a halfrhyme with „mute‟ in the previous line,
suggests that the narrator is viewing it as an
almost human companion. This emphasises
the narrator‟s isolation from other people
and the loneliness he experiences as a result
of this.
The narrator details a number of other
thefts, which seem almost pointless:
‘
I joy-ride cars
To nowhere,
Enjambment is used by Duffy here to mirror the
action being described. This is a technique
used by the poet throughout this dramatic
monologue. This depicts the narrator’s desire to
break out from the boredom, loneliness and
frustration they feel. However, the word choice
of ‘nowhere’ suggests the futility of these
attempts to escape through stealing, implying
that such actions fail to offer escape for the
narrator.
Conclusion
• In conclusion, overall
• Duffy/ the poet through her
depiction of an unpleasant
character illustrates . . .
• I found her use of . . . To be
particularly effective . . . .