Analysis of First Love

Synopsis= Duffy focuses this poem on the impact that is left after going through a first love and the surreal feeling of falling in love that takes over a persona briefly. It is clear to see in this poem that the speaker is now disconnected from their first love but the memories of it are reflected on nostalgically and with pleasure

Key Quotations + Analysis=

Waking, with a dream of first love forming real words,

as close to my lips as lipstick, I speaker your name,

after a silence of years, into the pillow, and the power

of your name brings me here to the window, naked,

to say it again to a garden shaking with light.

This was a child's love, and yet I clench my eyes 

till the pictures return, unfocused at first, then

almost clear, an old film played at a slow speed.

All day I will glimpse it, in windows of changing sky, 

in mirrors, my lover's eyes, wherever you are.

And later a star, long dead, here seems precisely

 the size of a tear. Tonight, a love-letter out of a dream

stammers itself in my heart. Such faithfulness.

You smile in my head on the last evening. Unseen

flowers suddenly pierce and sweeten the air.

1.) "Stammers itself in my heart. Such faithfulness"

• A "stammer" could mimic the movement of a butterfly which alludes to the speaker having feelings of butterflies in their stomach, this is quite a childish form of imagery which further emphasises the feeling of being young and finding your first love.
• However a "stammer" could also mimic a speech stammer which could imply that the speaker is lost for words, either in happiness of sheer love or in despair after breaking up with their first love. This could further accentuate the fact that the speaker has been left lost for words and they don't know what to say.
• "Stammer" and "faithfulness" are contradicting word choices as "stammer conveys an inconsistency whereas "faithfulness" is a consistent and persistent emotion, this could convey the speakers inner conflict of trying to cope with their first love.

2.) "A star, long dead" 

• This line could portray that the love and initial spark between the speaker and their first love has fizzled out, however when a star bursts we can still see them in the sky for millions of years later, this could imply that the memories and the connection made between the couple are still apparent and hold a huge influence over the speaker.
• A star is often a symbol of guidance which could portray that the speakers first love has been beneficial to them as it has been a guiding light on how they act within future relationships

3.) "Unseen flowers suddenly pierce and sweeten the air"

• Here Duffy could be critiquing the stereotypical association of love and flowers in this line as she is implying that they are commercial and temporary which therefore conveys the message that your first love is supposed to be only temporary as its purpose is to teach a lesson.
• It is significant to note the positioning of the words in this line, as the word choice "pierce" comes before "sweeten" this could mimic the process of the speakers heartbreak, the piercing emotion of sadness initially came to the speaker when they parted, but from a retrospective perspective the speaker reminisces on the experience with happiness, despite the sadness associated with it at the time.  
• "pierce" is a specific verb choice that connotes to something bursting, this could represent that your first love signifies the bursting of your childhood innocence. "Sweeten" further displays the bittersweet feeling of your first love.

4.) "changing sky" 

• This line could mimic the speakers varied and conflicting emotions that they felt as they endured their first love, adds emphasis to the emotional turmoil that people go through when they first fall in love. 
• "Sky" has an allusion to fate which suggests that it is not "written in the stars" for the speaker to stay with her first love, instead her fate has altered and she desires different things as she gains maturity.
• It could also suggest that despite everything in the speakers life changing over time, the memory of her first love is fixed and never alters

5.) "I clench my eyes til the pictures return" 

• This line signifies that it is difficult for the speaker to retrieve these memories, perhaps because it is so long ago but maybe more so because it is painful for her to reminisce. This is further supported with the verb choice "clench" which is a forceful verb, suggesting that the speaker has to force herself to look back but it hurts to do so. 

Links to Other poems= 

Valentine= Both speakers demonstrate a realistic perception of love and thoroughly convey all the emotions associated alongside it