Summary
Summary The Woman Who Shopped by Carol Ann Duffy
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- AQA
In depth consolidation of the poem :)
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the woman who shopped💌 DUFFY’S MESSAGE & INTENTIONS:
criticism of capitalist culture - buying into commercial dream
prioritising her desires before her relationships
pre-disposed to be exploited
‘THE GOSPEL TRUTH’ -
and to be commodified because of gender
Addiction is self-destructive
she embodies capitalism / consumerism and sinful.
SUMMARY
Duffy explores the stereotype of a shopaholic woman
takes the exploration to new extremes
character of the poem becomes a shop herself
simultaneously points to the commercialization of women
Duffy argues that women are made into commodities
both literally within prostitution + also within a society that is every embodying a capitalist reality
comments on the objectification of women using an extended metaphor
a woman made into a shopping centre as its basis
Duffy begins w/ the character of the nameless shopaholic
the woman who shopped 1
, exaggerating traits until every moment of her life is consumed by shopping
clear break in the middle of the poem
Duffy using the pause to move from a realistic depiction of the woman’s life
towards an extended metaphor of the woman actually embodying the shop
divide marked w ‘***’
by the end of the poem,
Duffy uses euphemism to suggest that the woman had become a prostitute to pay for her expensive tastes,
bartering her body in exchange for goods
CONTEXTS WIDER READING
advertisement aimed to show women that shop make capitalism is the defining ideology is the modern-day
them happier
some of the most powerful countries' economies
capitalism perpetuating that women are vulnerable based upon this
and shopping is what they need
Duffy discusses how people believe women fit
Medusa into our capitalist societies
beautiful demigod daughter of the primordial stereotype of a shopaholic woman to define her
sea-gods Phorcys and Ceto central character
high-priestess of the wisdom/war goddess Duffy laughs at this ridiculous depiction,
Athena exaggerating a satirizing its creation
Zeus impregnated Medusa in a temple of Athena the constant process of buying reflects on
- a powerful Greek goddess consumerism, how people always desire the next
best thing
^this unholy act in the temple of a virgin goddess
so enraged Athena that she put a curse on Duffy also comments on women's bodies
Medusa to rid her of her beauty - Athena turned
how they are seen as a commodity that is bought
Medusa into a figure of horror, a Gorgon with
and displayed like trophies
venomous snakes instead of hair
between 3% and 16% of the population may suffer
anyone who locked gaze with Medusa was
from shopping addiction
turned into stone
with women (6%) being more affected than
symbolises the exploitation of beautiful women
men (5.5%)
but had power
shopping addictions also affects university students
and people from higher-income countries more than
lower-income countries
Hu and Jasper (2004)
discovered that women often plan their
purchases, and would take into account
subjective and objective information
the woman who shopped 2
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