Detailed analysis of Little Red Cap

 

What is it?
An autobiographical dramatic monologue which details the coming of age of a young girl Subverts the piece of “Little Red Riding Hood” by reversing the power imbalance between the wolf and Red as she matures It explores many themes in the anthology, such as maturity, oppression and liberation, which makes it a suitable start to the anthology
What is the modern day context?
Duffy’s personal life and her first husband (Jackie Kay) who was 15 years older than her, and she eventually realised the relationship was inappropriate 15 years older than her = tried to be seductive, did not stay together As a young woman ⇒ she was really in love ⇒ only sex/poetry
Thesis: Makes a point about how women can empower themselves as time progresses. Although they may be attractive to certain types of men at their youth, as they mature – they can be better than aggressive and boring old men whilst challenging a patriarchal society.
Point	Explanation	Evidence
Initial innocence and naivety	Holophrase (one word sentence) and caesura Rhyme – suggests innocence, joyful, youthful nature, upbeat Legal age for sex (16) “Babe” – girly, property of men Contrasts with the internal rhyme of “paw” and “jaw” of men ⇒ animalistic features, predatory nature	“Sweet sixteen, never been”
	Love for poetry and attraction Words were truly alive ⇒ metaphor, liveliness, satisfaction “Warm, beating, frantic” – asyndeton, she is overwhelmed by the complexity and wonder Rhythm of heartbeat, full of life and warmth ⇒ excitement, thrilling sensation, passion Speeds up the pace of the poem She feels empowered “winged” ⇒ freedom Upon introduction – she is in awe, but is not satisfied at the end	“Warm, beating, frantic, winged”
	HOWEVER… I made sure he spotted me Subversion ⇒ she lured the wolf for poetry? ‘The wolf, I knew, would lead me deep’ ⇒ she is manipulative, she is one step ahead ⇒ imperative “Gold book”s = like a gold digger ⇒ she exploits men for something
All women start off as being naive and innocent, excited at what they can get from being with men, until they realise they can achieve more.
Characterisation of the wolf = representative of all men in the literary world	It is attractive Sexual and impulsive curiosity “What big eyes he had! What teeth!” ⇒ direct play on the real story ⇒ subvert the story because Little Red liberates herself and doesn’t get eaten. Limited vocabulary ⇒ childlike nature Exclamation ⇒ slows down the pace of the poem, she is in awe “Here’s why. Poetry” ⇒ hypophora, short syntax, confident and assertive Books on a single line	“What big eyes he had! What teeth!”
	It is violent and sinister “Dark tangled thorny” place ⇒ semantic field of dread, darkness, evil (adjectives) “Eyes of owls” – she is away from home, but judged by society, eying her every move (even in the night), no privacy ⇒ nocturnal animals “Ripped” “snagged”, “Scraps”, harsh plosive sounds suggest the violent nature of the wolf’s treatment Sexual experience, euphemistic ⇒ loss of virginity and identity in the process ⇒ loses a bit of RED lol . .. .	“Dark tangled thorny” “Eyes of owls” “Ripped” “snagged”, “Scraps”
	It is boring Season after season, same rhyme, same reason Internal rhyme highlights the repetitive nature, which fuels her desire to escape Her initial attraction to the poetry and literature is boring, trivial, she has moved on ⇒ she is more than he can offer Shift in tone throughout the stanzas “Greying” “Howls” ⇒ unpleasant, desperate, growing old, lack of life and rejuvenation	“Season after season, same rhyme, same reason” “Greying” “Howls”
Men are unlikeable, superficially attractive but eventually, women see through the shallowness. Duffy can get a better life elsewhere, she can write her own stories. She does have to go through some difficulties though.
Growth in maturity and coming of age of Red	Symbolism White dove ⇒ white is pure, dove is innocent, religious connotations of peace and hope Doves are free and independent ⇒ to be dead shows her complete loss of childhood naivety Colour white is repeated in the last stanza “virgin white” of grandmother’s bones ⇒ completely different, unpleasant imagery Perhaps she is reminiscent of her Grandma’s inability to escape the wolf, which makes her growth in maturity so much more powerful for the reader “Stained red” ⇒ he left a mark in her life	White dove, one bite, dead.
	Violent nature which is downplayed by the language Willow wept, salmon lept, wolf as he slept Sleep, most innocent and vulnerable “To see, to see, to kill” ⇒ experimentation turns into actual action when she is aware of exactly what she is doing There is a growing buildup/progression, as the objects she cuts gets larger and fuller with life Rhyme suggests the trivial, equal nature of objects, lack of remorse towards the wolf/image of her husband One chop, scrotum to throat Graphic, vivid picture Similar to the “one bite” of the dove ⇒ as if Red mirrors the actions of the wolf	“To see, to see, to kill” Willow wept, salmon lept, wolf as he slept “One chop, scrotum to throat”
	Literary growth Structure = free verse ⇒ little internal rhyme or poetic structure Each stanza has enjambment which increases the flow of the poem, it is quite an exciting one = exciting journey of liberation “Mushroom stoppers the mouth, birds are the uttered thought of trees” ⇒ these images are like examples of where Duffy provides her own vivid descriptions, shows HER BIRTH AS A WRITER and POET after 10 years OR could also be the fact that decay (mushrooms, virus, bacteria) will stop the mouth from producing poetry ⇒ she has to get away Last line “Flowers, singing, all alone” Happy, sweet, pure, she is independent Emerges as a mature individual Demeter starts (anthology may be cyclical) ⇒ great link between start and finish.
After women have been empowered, men have been challenged in their traditional roles (and may even be seen as oppressed by some), and a woman finds her independence
Conclusion: She overcomes what her grandmother did not ⇒ progressiveness of the feminist movement and how literature can be written by women ⇒ challenge the patriarchal society. Encapsulates ALL aspects of the World’s Wife Naivety and innocence of females Mistreatment by males Subversion of roles ⇒ Red becomes the aggressor In the end, they achieve independence through self-realization and self-fulfillment Nice start to WW, as Demeter ends with a girl coming out with flowers.