Feminist Poetry - Carol Ann Duffy

Carol Ann Duffy was “the first woman, the first Scot and the first openly gay poet” to be appointed as the British Poet Laureate from 2009 to 2019 (“Duffy Reacts “).

Carol Ann Duffy

I enjoy Duffy’s work due to its focus on women and feminist ideologies. I think in her poetry, Duffy’s aim is to rewrite preestablished narratives such as the tale of Red Riding Hood as seen in her poem “Little Red Cap”, my favourite of her poems. Her poetry gives a voice to otherwise voiceless women from history and fairy tales. This feminist standpoint is one that has been criticised in the past. Though critically acclaimed, Carol Ann Duffy's work has incited mixed reactions specifically in online discussion forums that I’ve perused. Notably, these sources are not reputable or respected they are simply conversation spaces. However, when reading through as one discussion board titled “the student room”, words such as "misandrist", "sexist", and "bigoted" are frequently associated with Duffy and her work. Some go so far as to label the poet a “feminazi” who is pushing "female supremacy", and one commentor remarked that “if a man were to write about women in the same manner as she [Duffy] does about men collectively he would undoubtedly be called a misogynist!” ("Is Carol Ann Duffy Sexist?").

Though I disagree with the above sentiments I can understand why some readers, specifically male readers, might interpret Duffy’s work as misandrist in some capacity. For example, in her poem Little Red-Cap, the man is presented as a wolf. The male figure of the poem is portrayed as a savage beast who preys upon not just a woman, but a child. One can understand how this could be interpreted as perpetuating hate against men. Similarly, in the poem, Queen Herod, when attaching titles to men, Duffy includes words such as "adulterer, bigamist/ the wolf, the rip, the rake, the rat” (Duffy, p.160). In the sixth stanza of this same poem, Duffy includes the lines; "ride East from here/ and kill each mother's son./ Do it./ Spare Not one." (Duffy, p.161). Duffy is certainly critiquing the opposing gender, even going so far as to suggest murdering them. While it is possible to interpret some of Carol Ann Duffy’s work as misandrist, to do so would be to misunderstand her intentions and aims in my opinion.

I don’t believe Duffy centres intentional bigotry towards men in her poems. She is writing about the oppression of women at the hands of men not to offend men or demonise them but to foreground female narratives and amplify female voices. In Little Red-Cap, the female protagonist must leave childhood behind, step into her womanhood and claim her own sexuality, thus ending the cycle of male domination; “As he slept, one chop, scrotum to throat, and saw/ The glistening, virgin white of my grandmother’s bones” (Duffy, p. 158). The image of the “virgin white” bones in the wolf's

stomach alludes to a crueller fate previously experienced by the other victimised women. These are the voiceless women whose stories were consumed by men. It is these women and their stories whom the protagonist is saving and whom Duffy writes for. Little Red-Cap places women in control of the narrative and allows her to stand and speak independently. This is shown in the poems concluding line; “Out of the forest, I come with my flowers, singing, all alone” (Duffy, p.158). Not only has the narrator bested the beast, but she emerges into her womanhood with flowers in hand, conjuring an image of walking down the aisle not to a waiting groom but her own personal freedom.

Ultimately, Carol Ann Duffy’s poetry is not an attack on men. Her work amplifies women’s voices and portrays the struggles endured by women often at the hands of men. Male narratives dictates so much of history, and through her work, Duffy subverts this to bring female narratives and perspectives to the forefront. Duffy’s deconstruction of patriarchal perceptions does not negatively impact men but, instead, highlights issues and problems they perpetuate. To label her work as misandrist or sexist is unfounded and comes from a place of defensiveness and a fear of accountability. Her work should be taken as criticism and learned from; to label it as hateful means her overall message of female empowerment and feminine narratives are being misunderstood and ignored. Carol Ann Duffy’s poems prioritise women’s voices and emphasizes women and feminist rhetoric.

Online Reading of Little-Red Cap;

Click Me

Works Cited

Duffy, Carol Ann. New Selected Poems 1984-2004. Picador.

“Duffy Reacts to New Laureate Post.” BBC News, BBC, 1 May 2009, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8029388.stm.

"Is Carol Ann Duffy Sexist?". The Student Room Online Discussion Board, 2012, https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1854874.