What does the title ‘The World’s Wife’ suggest to you? Do you recognise it from anywhere? It’s a British idiom or saying – “I imagine the world and his wife will be there” – meaning a great many people will be present. Notice the man is the world and the woman is just an addition – notably one owned by him!

The World’s Wife by Carol Ann Duffy Who is Duffy? What do you already know about her?

Background The World’s Wife was first published in 1999 (pre 9/11 era) Duffy challenges the idea that women were/are solely ‘wives’. She argues that by defining them as such then they lose their identity*. In the collection the women can be good or bad. The point is that they exist in their own right, with their own identities.

Major Themes/Ideas All poems are dramatic monologues. Speakers are primarily the wives of well- known male figures, be they real, fictional, mythic or biblical. Pay attention to the tone of the poems.

Sample: “Mrs. Darwin” 7 April 1852 Went to the Zoo. I said to Him— Something about that Chimpanzee over there reminds me of you.

Who am I?