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“Havisham” is a poem by Scottish author Carol Ann Duffy and explores many different themes
throughout
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Havisham, who was left at the altar by her fiance and has since spiraled into insanity
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Throughout the poem, the reader sees how the loss of her fiance
has impacted Havisham's daily life and her mental health
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Duffy conveys Havisham's conflicting emotions feelings through juxtaposition and the
contrasting images Havisham has of her would be husband
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The harsh ‘b’ sound is rough and further promotes the genuine passion behind the
love/hate mentality has towards him
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“Loves hate behind a white veil”
The phrasing suggests that Havisham has a desire for a domestic married life, however, is left
only with pain and madness which she tries so desperately to mask with a symbol of happiness,
such as the veil
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The theme of identity is much more thoroughly explored within Duffy’s work, especially
Havisham
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“Spinster”
Duffy conveys the persona as brutally honest and sarcastic
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The persona calling herself a spinster is
harsh, given that she was meant to marry someone, this emphasises the effect of the break up
on Havisham’s personality as she has allowed herself to become consumed by the title she has
been mocked with
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Havisham is not only bitter but also in constant despair both due to madness and loneliness
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“Trembling”
This proves the extent of the insanity that Havisham has fell into as she is constantly shaking
and unable to act in a normal human behaviour
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Her physical
state matches her mental stability here as both have been destroyed
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Havisham has lost the ability to form coherent sentences and has instead been reduced to
animalistic noises
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Havisham has become so consumed by the idea of revenge that she no longer possesses her
own identity; it is instead replaced by a inhuman insanity that she no longer has control over
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It encompasses the reasons for
Havisham's descent into madness and how loss impacted her life and sense of self
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This is
also quite sarcastic as while the change to her life was sudden, her spiral into insanity was slow
and painful
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Havisham reflects on the hope she had for a normal domestic life, and the pain she feels as she
believes she was robbed of that possibility
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‘Bursting’ is
used ominously here as Havisham's mind and life have already been destroyed in her own
eyes
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This also proves the extent of mental
instability Havisham experiences at the changes in her life
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The reader is directed to the of the start of the poem so they are fully reminded of the gravity of
Havisham's situation
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To conclude Havisham is a thought provoking poem in which Duffy is able to explore the true
extent of the human psych, especially through the development of themes such as conflicting
emotions, identity, and change

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