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Analysis of The Biographer

Synopsis= Duffy centres this poem around the life of a biographer, it is clear to see that the speaker lives a life full of resentment and shame towards themselves for not living a life similar to the ones they are employed to write about. 

 Key Quotations + Analysis 
1.) "Because you are dead" 

  • It is significant that Duffy opens the poem with this line as it signifies that the biographer only becomes relevant after the death of someone who lived a life worth writing about. This enforces the nihilistic attitude of the speaker and sets the tone for what the speakers self perception is. 


 2.) "Green and crimson and gold" 

  • The wallpaper is described by the speaker into such great detail, implies that the speaker knows everything about their subjects life but they will never know that the biographer existed.
  • Green has connotations of envy which clearly relates to the speakers jealousy, crimson is a deep red which alludes to anger and rage that the speaker feels towards them self. Finally crimson and gold are very regal shades which connotes that the speaker feels that everything about their subject is superior to him.  


 3.) "The first four words I wrote were your name"

  • This signifies that the subject of the biography is at the forefront of the biographers mind, they attempt to submerge them self into the other persons identity in order to forget about their own life. This line reinforces the significance of the other person in comparison to the biographer.


 4.) "Shadow"

  • The light is on the person they are writing about as the biographer sheds light on their life, therefore the word choice shadow implies that no one is bothered about the biographers life. Shadow also conveys darkness, signifying that the biographer lives a sombre life. 
  • The fact that the word choice shadow is repeated implies the monotony of the biographers lifestyle, he is stuck in a loop of being a shadow as it is only way of making ends meet.


 5.) "When he was a boy" 

  • Duffy chooses to disconnect the speaker from them-self by using third person narrative, this could be because the speaker is ashamed to associate himself with his identity as it is nothing in comparison to the live's of the people he writes about.
Links to Other Poems

  • Captain of the 1964 Top of the form team= Both speakers show self resentment, in 'Captain' this bitterness is towards their present self whereas the speaker of the Biographer shows hatred towards both their past and present.
  • Fraud= In Fraud the speaker attempts to carve a new identity to better them selves and their position within society, similar to the speaker of the Biographer whom tries to replicate the identity of the person they are writing about as they are ashamed of their current identity.

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