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Analysis of Fraud

Synopsis= It is widely believed that Duffy based the poem 'Fraud' on a man name Robert Maxwell, however his prior name was Jon Ludwick Hock. Maxwell managed to carve a new identity for himself in England after moving from Czechoslovakia where he became a largely successful MP and media head. However after his death there was a burst of controversy surrounding Maxwell as it was believed that there was a lot of flaws in his finances, mainly from pensions.

 Key Quotations + Analysis
1.) "I spoke the English"
  • Here the speaker is trying to affirm his English identity, however the deviant grammar contradicts this as no native English person would make this mistake. As a result this error flaws the speakers cover and almost unveils his true identity.
2.) "Politicians in and out of their pram" 
  • This line has a lot of plosive language which can convey the speakers bitterness towards politics, his bitter tone is somewhat ironic as Robert Maxwell himself was a politician therefore it is flawed with hypocrisy as he is somewhat remarking the politicians as childish. 
  • The plosive pattern also increase the pace of which the line is read, this mimics the speaker trying to escape their fraudulent past.
3.) "I paid for a butch and a femme"
  • This line demonstrates that the speaker is capable of using their power and wealth in a sinister fashion such as prostitution. This could furthermore portray the underhand behaviour used by the wealthy which blatantly leads to corruption.
  • "Butch and a femme" are terms often used to describe a stereotype of a lesbian, ironic that these terms are used in a line which has implying connotations to prostitution and a males abuse of power. Could suggest that due to corrupt males society is flawed.
4.) "I gargled my name"
  • The word choice gargle conveys a very disjointed way of communication, this implies that the speaker cannot recall their name fluently as he is drowning in the persona and lies that he has crafted. 
  • Even when the speaker is drowning, they are still trying to convince he reader of this fraudulent identity, even though no one can understand him.
5.) "Bubbles and blood and phlegm" 
  • This phrase is a deviant collocation for the idiom "blood, sweat and tears", this could convey that the speaker believes they have put in enough effort to convince the public of this crafted identity
  • The fact that he incorrectly says the idiom links to the line "I spoke the English" as that was also wrongly said, as a result this further flaws the speakers identity. 

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