Valentine: Stanza Five and Six

Overview of “Valentine: Stanza Five and Six”

• Stanza five eloquently communicates the speaker’s unconventional declaration of love through the chosen all-encompassing symbol of an onion. The speaker metaphorically likens the moon wrapped in brown paper to the peeling layers of an onion, promising an honest and penetrating love that is as bright and faithful as the moon.

• In Stanza six, the tone verges on pleading, as the speaker invites the addressee to view love through this unconventional prism. They suggest that the romanticised notions of love, often symbolised by the ‘cute card’, carry little truth in them, and their love, symbolised by the ‘fierce kiss’ of the onion, stands for an intense, realistic love.

Evaluation of Language and Imagery in “Valentine: Stanza Five and Six”

• Metaphor is the dominant device employed in these stanzas, as the onion serves as an extended metaphor for love. It symbolises a love that is true, deep and sometimes capable of causing pain, bringing an unexpected but genuine perspective.

• The wordplay in “I am trying to be truthful” implicitly invites the receiver to accept this unconventional symbol of love, which is a reflection of the speaker’s earnestness and sincerity.

• The simile in “It will blind you with tears like a lover” acknowledges the shared vulnerability between lovers, reinforcing the emotional intensity of the relationship.

• The contrasting language of ‘cute’ versus ‘fierce’ further undermines conventional representations of love and emphasises the raw, complex nature of real love.

• Repetition makes the phrase “Not a cute card or a kissogram” resound in the reader’s mind, echoing the speaker’s disdain for inauthentic expressions of love.

Processing the intricacies of these stanzas aids in developing a profound comprehension of the poem’s unconventional expression of love. By focusing on the prominent themes, metaphors and language techniques, a more nuanced understanding can be achieved.