Poetry

The World's Wife

The World's Wife

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-08-24 06:54:14
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Carol Ann Duffy
  • ISBN：1509852662
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Summary

Who？ Him。 The Husband。 Hero。 Hunk。
The Boy Next Door。 The Paramour。 The Je t'adore。

Behind every famous man is a great woman—and from the quick-tongued Mrs。 Darwin to the lascivious Frau Freud， from the adoring Queen Kong to the long-suffering wife of the Devil himself， each one steps from her counterpart's shadow to tell her side of the story in this irresistible collection。 Original， subversive， full of imagination and quicksilver wit， this is Carol Ann Duffy at her beguiling best。

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Reviews

Zey B ，

The first poem from this collection that really caught my eyes was "Thetis"。 It kept reminding me of this specific part of "The Song of Achilles":"He waited for her to emerge from the slate-coloredwaves， hair black and long as a horse’s tail。 Then he seized her， holding ondespite her violent struggles， squeezing until they were both exhausted，breathless and sand-scraped。 The blood from the wounds she had givenhim mixed with the smears of lost maidenhead on her thighs。 Herresistance mattered no l The first poem from this collection that really caught my eyes was "Thetis"。 It kept reminding me of this specific part of "The Song of Achilles":"He waited for her to emerge from the slate-coloredwaves， hair black and long as a horse’s tail。 Then he seized her， holding ondespite her violent struggles， squeezing until they were both exhausted，breathless and sand-scraped。 The blood from the wounds she had givenhim mixed with the smears of lost maidenhead on her thighs。 Herresistance mattered no longer: a deflowering was as binding as marriagevows。The gods forced her to swear that she would stay with her mortalhusband for at least a year， and she served her time on earth as the duty itwas， silent， unresponsive， and sullen。 Now when he clasped her， she didnot bother to writhe and twist in protest。 "The thing about this collection is that you can't really enjoy it's poem without a little bit of knowledge about the backgrounds of it's characters。 so I had to gain a little bit of knowledge about some of them whom I didn't know enough about and this process was really pleasant for me。some of my favorites lines from this collection:From "Mrs Midas":[Midas was famous for his ability to turn everything he touched to gold。 This was his wish which also turned out to be his curse。]"You see， we were passionate then，in those halcyon days; unwrapping each other， rapidly，like presents， fast food。 But now I feared his honeyed embrace，the kiss that would turn my lips to a work of art。"From "Mrs Faust":"C’est la vie。When I got ill，it hurt like hell。I bought a kidneywith my credit card，then I got well。I keep Faust’s secret still –the clever， cunning， callous bastarddidn’t have a soul to sell。"From "Queen Kong":"When he died， I held him all night， shaking himlike a doll， licking his face， breast， soles of his feet，his little rod。 But then， heartsore as I was， I set to work。He would be pleased。 I wear him now about my neck，perfect， preserved， with tiny emeralds for eyes。 No manhas been loved more。 I’m sure that， sometimes， in his silent death，against my massive， breathing lungs， he hears me roar。"From "Medusa""A suspicion， a doubt， a jealousygrew in my mind，which turned the hairs on my head to filthy snakes，as though my thoughtshissed and spat on my scalp。My bride’s breath soured， stankin the grey bags of my lungs。I’m foul mouthed now， foul tongued，yellow fanged。There are bullet tears in my eyes。Are you terrified？"From "Salome":"I’d done it before（and doubtless I’ll do it again，sooner or later）woke up with a head on the pillow beside me – whose？ –what did it matter？Good-looking， of course， dark hair， rather matted;the reddish beard several shades lighter;with very deep lines round the eyes，from pain， I’d guess， maybe laughter;and a beautiful crimson mouth that obviously knewhow to flatter 。 。 。which I kissed 。 。 。Colder than pewter。Strange。 What was his name？ Peter？" 。。。more

Ross Holmes ，

Some solid poems in here， but many of the parts are better than the whole。 "What if [famous mythological figure] had a wife who hated him" is fertile ground for a poem or two but very tiring as an entire collection with little variation in tone; a previous critical review was right that that there's a lot of missed potential for writing about historical femininity here， and not much engagement with the themes of the myths in question， just a very similar put-upon wife archetype projected onto ea Some solid poems in here， but many of the parts are better than the whole。 "What if [famous mythological figure] had a wife who hated him" is fertile ground for a poem or two but very tiring as an entire collection with little variation in tone; a previous critical review was right that that there's a lot of missed potential for writing about historical femininity here， and not much engagement with the themes of the myths in question， just a very similar put-upon wife archetype projected onto each one regardless of the myth's content。 （Madeline Miller's "Circe" succeeds emphatically at doing something like what this collection attempts）But， full disclosure， I read most of the book with a more critical eye than usual because the barely-even-subtextual smug transphobia of "Mrs。 Tiresias" soured me on it just a few poems in。 Mrs。 Tiresias is， ironically， one of the more well-constructed and thematically subtle poems， but that success in craft is in service of something that gives away Duffy's priorities in a pretty distasteful way。 。。。more

Pollyanna ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I loved this collection so much。 I’ve wanted to read the full works since I studied a few of the poems in sixth form， the concept of feminist retelling of mythology， fairy tales and history interested me。 Reading them now， I still love them。 The ones I liked， I loved every part。 The ones I didn’t， faded into the background for me。Favourites: Mrs Darwin， Ann Hathaway， Mrs Aesop， Frau Freud， SalomeMrs Aesop“Slow but certain， Mrs Aesop， wins the race。 Asshole”Mrs Darwin“Went to the Zoo。I said to Hi I loved this collection so much。 I’ve wanted to read the full works since I studied a few of the poems in sixth form， the concept of feminist retelling of mythology， fairy tales and history interested me。 Reading them now， I still love them。 The ones I liked， I loved every part。 The ones I didn’t， faded into the background for me。Favourites: Mrs Darwin， Ann Hathaway， Mrs Aesop， Frau Freud， SalomeMrs Aesop“Slow but certain， Mrs Aesop， wins the race。 Asshole”Mrs Darwin“Went to the Zoo。I said to Him-Something about that Chimpanzee over there reminds me ofyou”Ann Hathaway“My living laughing love- I hold him in the casket of my widow’s head as he held me upon that next best bed” 。。。more

Abbie ，

maybe this should be one of the canonical texts of humanity

Sarah Reynolds ，

well known tales/rhymes given their own feministic twist， not sure I agree with some of the messages in the twists adopted but certainly amusing。

Fatima Sheriff ，

Quite fun concept， light to read and some aspects reminded me of the savagery of The Bloody Chamber

Suzi King ，

Having read it at school， I wanted to reread it as an adult and got a whole new outlook from it。 As with Handmaid's Tale， it takes you time to appreciate the themes and language。 Absolutely love it Having read it at school， I wanted to reread it as an adult and got a whole new outlook from it。 As with Handmaid's Tale， it takes you time to appreciate the themes and language。 Absolutely love it 。。。more

sansksksksk ，

fucking INCREDIBLE poetry

Camilia Carbonnelle ，

One of my favourite poetry books because it is so well written but surprisingly easy to read since it is modern poetry。 This feminist book explores the power women hold that is unspoken of in classic literature/modern society。 She adds a contemporary twist on classic stories/ folk-tales/ Greek mythology and focuses on the women's perspective and her position in power， which I am in LOVE with。 The main massage: there is a great women hiding behind every man One of my favourite poetry books because it is so well written but surprisingly easy to read since it is modern poetry。 This feminist book explores the power women hold that is unspoken of in classic literature/modern society。 She adds a contemporary twist on classic stories/ folk-tales/ Greek mythology and focuses on the women's perspective and her position in power， which I am in LOVE with。 The main massage: there is a great women hiding behind every man 。。。more

Eleanor ，

This is a difficult collection to rate because I think some poems really stand out - Thetis， Anne Hathaway， Salome， Eurydice and Demeter all spring to mind - and some are just iconic - Mrs。 Darwin and Mrs。 Icarus for example - but others are just a bit eh。 Maybe it's because I'm less familiar with the narratives of the men or women talked about so I don't get the subtleties， but I just felt like some weren't really doing anything interesting。 This is definitely one to take your time with because This is a difficult collection to rate because I think some poems really stand out - Thetis， Anne Hathaway， Salome， Eurydice and Demeter all spring to mind - and some are just iconic - Mrs。 Darwin and Mrs。 Icarus for example - but others are just a bit eh。 Maybe it's because I'm less familiar with the narratives of the men or women talked about so I don't get the subtleties， but I just felt like some weren't really doing anything interesting。 This is definitely one to take your time with because the 'strong woman reclaiming sex' trope can get old quite quickly。 Although I think Duffy is wonderful in some of her lines， a lot of these poems say something very similar and I just got a bit bored by the end。 I see how the sex aspect is part of the point but sometimes I felt it wasn't necessary。 I'll be returning to my favourites but I don't see myself tackling this collection in its entirety any time soon。 。。。more

andy ，

little red cap supremacy ！！this started off very strong and i enjoyed poem after poem until i just，， wasn't as excited about the poems anymore？i loved the concept of viewing female characters from myths and stories through a feminist lens。 i loved how the author weaved these metaphors into her own experiences with men。 she successfully pulled off not making it feel repetitive every time。in the end it came down to personal enjoyment & also me being dumb and not understanding the context behind so little red cap supremacy ！！this started off very strong and i enjoyed poem after poem until i just，， wasn't as excited about the poems anymore？i loved the concept of viewing female characters from myths and stories through a feminist lens。 i loved how the author weaved these metaphors into her own experiences with men。 she successfully pulled off not making it feel repetitive every time。in the end it came down to personal enjoyment & also me being dumb and not understanding the context behind some of the female characters referenced bc i was not familiar with the stories。very good tho。 little red cap remains one of my favorite things i've ever read。 。。。more

Lukerik ，

Short poems， but working together as a book， not just a collection。 Some amazing descriptions and moments when the language is like a horse that Duffy is making show-jump。

Anna Hevron ，

The World’s Wife reawakened my adoration of poetry。 There’s nothing better to stimulate the mind than a brilliant lyric， especially one that is entirely relatable。 Among my favorites were Little Red-Cap， Thetis， Pygmalion’s Bride， Mrs。 Rip Van Winkle， and Mrs。 Beast。 But Duffy really shows her brilliance in Anne Hathaway: “My lover’s words were shooting stars which fell to earth as kisses on these lips; my body now a softer rhyme to his， now echo， assonance; his touch a verb dancing in the centr The World’s Wife reawakened my adoration of poetry。 There’s nothing better to stimulate the mind than a brilliant lyric， especially one that is entirely relatable。 Among my favorites were Little Red-Cap， Thetis， Pygmalion’s Bride， Mrs。 Rip Van Winkle， and Mrs。 Beast。 But Duffy really shows her brilliance in Anne Hathaway: “My lover’s words were shooting stars which fell to earth as kisses on these lips; my body now a softer rhyme to his， now echo， assonance; his touch a verb dancing in the centre of a noun。 Some nights， I dreamed he’d written me， the bed a page beneath his writer’s hands。” 。。。more

Bruna Ceotto ，

10/10 recomendo

Kaya ，

Brilliant！ Perhaps too brilliant for me as half of these poems went right over my head。 I consulted with Wikipedia and Genius throughout my reading which became such a chore。 I think this is a book I would've enjoyed more in a group setting to better digest with fellow readers。 Carol Ann Duffy imagines the thoughts of the wives of the men who are considered "great" for their work， be it in the field of science or literature。 She also examines wives from Western history， folklore and mythology， g Brilliant！ Perhaps too brilliant for me as half of these poems went right over my head。 I consulted with Wikipedia and Genius throughout my reading which became such a chore。 I think this is a book I would've enjoyed more in a group setting to better digest with fellow readers。 Carol Ann Duffy imagines the thoughts of the wives of the men who are considered "great" for their work， be it in the field of science or literature。 She also examines wives from Western history， folklore and mythology， giving them a voice in a more contemporary setting。 The poems in The World’s Wife are bold， critical， sexual and forthright。I'd file this one under 'too-much-and-not-in-the-mood' but will definitely revist it mainly for the cutting satire of the angrier poems that make this such an entertaining collection。 。。。more

Smiley ，

Wow。 Carol Ann Duffy never fails to astound her readers。 I love her style， the pacing， the dramatic monologues， bringing mute， neglected women from traditional tales or history， to life。 With all the wit， sarcasm， humour one could want。 The result is refreshingly cheeky and absolutely surprising。If you don't believe it， just read this:Mrs Darwin7 April 1852Went to the Zoo。I said to Him—Something about that Chimpanzee over there reminds me of you。And my favourites in this collection are Penelope Wow。 Carol Ann Duffy never fails to astound her readers。 I love her style， the pacing， the dramatic monologues， bringing mute， neglected women from traditional tales or history， to life。 With all the wit， sarcasm， humour one could want。 The result is refreshingly cheeky and absolutely surprising。If you don't believe it， just read this:Mrs Darwin7 April 1852Went to the Zoo。I said to Him—Something about that Chimpanzee over there reminds me of you。And my favourites in this collection are Penelope and Demeter。 Wait， how could I have forgotten Thetis， Medusa， Mrs Icarus， Eurydice！DemeterWhere I lived – winter and hard earth。I sat in my cold stone roomchoosing tough words， granite， flint，to break the ice。 My broken heart –I tried that， but it skimmed，flat， over the frozen lake。She came from a long， long way，but I saw her at last， walking，my daughter， my girl， across the fields，in bare feet， bringing all spring’s flowersto her mother’s house。 I swearthe air softened and warmed as she moved，the blue sky smiling， none too soon，with the small shy mouth of a new moon。 。。。more

Erin ，

seminal literature in the ‘girl boss’ compendium

Jill Waddell ，

I’ve taught Duffy’s poetry for years and hoped I would really enjoy this。 I understood her intended feminist message but， for me， it became repetitive and contrived。

Jesse Shankly ，

This has no right to be as funny as it is。 7/10

Mrs D。 J。 Knapp ，

Very clever。 Everyone has their favourite poem。 Mine was The Devils Wife。 The Kray sisters came a close sect

Daisy Reeves ，

Excellent。

Shannon Rose ，

4。5*It was so great to read these poems so soon after finishing Greek Myths as a few are poems retelling some of the most famous myths and stories from the female perspective。 I loved how dark， sassy， and sexy some of these poems were。 Overall a really enjoyable read for me and one I can definitely see myself returning to。

Jaime ，

4。5/5This was absolutely fascinating。 Normally I would be opposed to reading poetry through audiobook but Carol Ann Duffy's voice captivated me so much that it really worked for me。 4。5/5This was absolutely fascinating。 Normally I would be opposed to reading poetry through audiobook but Carol Ann Duffy's voice captivated me so much that it really worked for me。 。。。more

Zoë ，

A gift for our paper wedding anniversary， I finally got around to reading this volume of poetry from the excellent Carol Ann Duffy。 Duffy plays with myth， legend and poetic styles to tell the stories of the oft-overlooked women through history and legend; and also views some famous narratives through a gender-flipped lense。 While a classical education makes this work a little more accessible， Duffy also takes in Bible stories， film characters and blends historic events with fiction across time a A gift for our paper wedding anniversary， I finally got around to reading this volume of poetry from the excellent Carol Ann Duffy。 Duffy plays with myth， legend and poetic styles to tell the stories of the oft-overlooked women through history and legend; and also views some famous narratives through a gender-flipped lense。 While a classical education makes this work a little more accessible， Duffy also takes in Bible stories， film characters and blends historic events with fiction across time and space。 A darkly comic work but tragedy and melancholy also run through many of the poems。 I read many of these poems out loud and recommend this collection for anyone looking for something that will gently provoke thought and occasional wry laughter。 。。。more

Shreyashi ，

4/5I listened to the audiobook for The World's Wife on my daily calming walk。 It was a superb companion and gave tons of food for thought。 This is the first time I have picked up a poetry book since high school so I won't be the best person to critique the poems by any chance。 But I can say this- Duffy's poetry is complex and the imagery can be quite vivid and in some cases sinister， in a good way。 I definitely enjoyed listening to it。 I feel like it would have been better to physically read the 4/5I listened to the audiobook for The World's Wife on my daily calming walk。 It was a superb companion and gave tons of food for thought。 This is the first time I have picked up a poetry book since high school so I won't be the best person to critique the poems by any chance。 But I can say this- Duffy's poetry is complex and the imagery can be quite vivid and in some cases sinister， in a good way。 I definitely enjoyed listening to it。 I feel like it would have been better to physically read the poetry for discussing and critiquing purposes but for enjoyment purposes listening was a nice way to enjoy some of Duffy's poetry。As a newbie to the poetry world， it's quite a complex start with the imagery and what is known as classic voice is used as opposed to what you find in more modern poetry。 The classic voice gives another dimension to the poetry and more profound meaning and the interpretation though can be subjective it's more honest and soul-bearing than what the "hiding behind words" that I have experienced with more modern works claiming to portray their personal experiences。 All-in-all， Duffy's poetry has all the key elements in there with lots of dark humour which made me chuckle at times！ I would definitely recommend that you listen and read The World's Wife， it's enjoyable and honest and rather funny！ Happy Reading xx 。。。more

Carolt_reads ，

I read this book in my “Reading like Danielle Galligan aka Nina Zest”！！ Check it out for my full thoughts:https://youtu。be/gzXCJOJz0kI I read this book in my “Reading like Danielle Galligan aka Nina Zest”！！ Check it out for my full thoughts:https://youtu。be/gzXCJOJz0kI 。。。more

Jennifer ，

High four stars， really great theme。

A Z ，

The poem "Mrs。 Darwin" would've singlehandedly set this collection at the forefront of all the books of poetry I've ever read， but then the rest of the poems are also amazing， which is great！ Carol Ann Duffy is right next to Alice Notley in my opinion。 The poem "Mrs。 Darwin" would've singlehandedly set this collection at the forefront of all the books of poetry I've ever read， but then the rest of the poems are also amazing， which is great！ Carol Ann Duffy is right next to Alice Notley in my opinion。 。。。more

Lyryreads ，

Was drawn to this because I thought the concept was so brilliant。 Definitely were a number of poems that just kinda passed me by but also some real hard hitters。

Georgia ，

just girlbosses girlbossing it！

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The World's Wife

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The World's Wife&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The World's Wife&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0