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Summary sub poem analysis
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Refers to England’s win in theWorld Cup Final. The game went to
extra time.
The feats of men’s sporting
Sub achievement mentioned are
discussed more widely and
respected more highly by so many,
so the speaker inserts themself into
She has to disguise herself I came on in extra time in '66, my breasts the narrative, perhaps to point out
as a male in order to be bandaged beneath my no.13 shirt, and put it in that women’s achievements are
able to play in sports as off the head, the back of the heel, the left foot never spoken about as reverently.
sports are considered to from 30 yards out, hat-trick. If they'd thought
be a traditionally male- the game was all over, it was now. I felt secure This may be a reference to
dominated field. as I danced in my dazzling whites with the Cup – menstruation adverts which
tampon – but skipped the team bath with the lads, emphasise the ability to do
While the squad’s actual sipped my champagne in the solitary shower anything whilst on your
as the blood and soap suds mingled to pink.
number 13 was period, providing the message
goalkeeper Peter Bonetti, They sang my name on the other side of the steam.
that nothing can stop you.
the number is likely used
to suggest the The caesura used here could
‘misfortune’ of being born show the separation between
Pink is a traditionally feminine As the narrator is a
a woman in a world that the woman and the rest of the
colour – could suggest her woman, she is being
tends to favour men. men within the poem.
femininity is embedded in her marginalised and
biology excluded from
Her breasts being
celebrating with “the
‘bandaged’ could refer
lads”.
both to hiding her
womanhood, which many
women do in many
industries by dressing and
behaving similarly to their
male counterparts, and to Sub begins with the personal pronoun ‘I’, instantly focusing the poem on Duffy’s
the fact that they see the own experiences, placing the feminine perspective at the forefront of the narrative.
breasts as a wound, as Yet, even within her excellent performance in the football match, she was only
something that damages permitted on within ‘extra time’, signalling how even as she reconquers history for
their prospects and women, she is only permitted lesser roles.
hinders them.
The syntax of the opening line also places ‘my breasts’ at a focal point, the meter of
the line falling upon the word ‘breasts’. This, too, places the feminine experience in
plain sight, Duffy making clear the female body in her narrative depiction of a new
history.
After the match, a tone of melancholy sets into the poem, Duffy not celebrating
‘with the lads’, instead of washing in the ‘solitary shower’. The sibilance across these
words carry the melancholy of the stanza, furthering the depressing depiction of
this post-victory celebration.
Again, Duffy references the female body, blood from her period mixing with ‘soap
suds’ and transforming the color to ‘pink’. The feminine connotation of ‘pink’ being
built from the mixture of water and blood, an undeniable sign that the female body
is present and will not be hidden
, Could be inferred as a double meaning; came on to the
pitch and came on her period.
This would reflect Duffy’s subtle hints of womanhood
used throughout the poem and how it doesn’t stop her
from achieving massive feats.
Could be inferred as a
Came on too in the final gasps of the Grand Slam clincher, double meaning; came
scooped up the ball from the back of the scrum, ran on to the pitch and
like the wind, bandaged again, time of the month came on her period.
This makes further likewise, wiggled, weaved, waved at the crowd, slipped
reference to like soap through muddy hands, liked that, slid
menstruation, This would reflect
between legs, nursing the precious egg of the ball, Duffy’s subtle hints of
emphasising then flung myself like breaking surf over the line
femininity. The womanhood used
for the winning try, converted it, was carried throughout the poem
suppression of this is shoulder high by the boys as the whistle blew.
symbolised through and how it doesn’t stop
They roared my name through mouthfuls of broken teeth. her from achieving
the bandages.
massive feats.
Duffy similarly exists within great moments of history, playing rugby and filling in for Ringo in The Beatles. Yet,
within these images, it is only the ‘final grasps’ of the match and as the ‘drummer’, the musician typically at
the back of the stage – always present, but never featured. Duffy wrestles with this idea, performing
fantastically but without receiving all the praise she should – representative of the female experience.
All the while, Duffy references the semantics of fertility, carrying the rugby ball like a ‘precious egg’. While
having to achieve greatness, she has to also balance the needs and demands of her body, an added
disadvantage that men do not have. While the first stanza’s bleeding was hidden from the ‘lads’, the ‘broken
teeth’ of the rugby boys is on plain view, the disparity between how male and female injury is treated
revealing a bias in society. Men are allowed to look damaged and broken, while women must conceal and
bleed behind closed doors.
Internal rhyme scheme
Ringo had flu when the Fab Four toured Down “drummer” and “bummer” –
Under. Minus a drummer, the gig was a bummer gives a sense of fun – she
till I stepped in, digits ringed, sticked, skinned, enjoys saving the day and being
in a Beatle skirt, mop-topped, fringed, to wink the centre of attention
at Paul, quip with John, climb on the drums,
clever fingered and thumbed, give it four to the bar,
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