Carol Ann Duffy

Comparing ‘Comprehensive’ and ‘Mrs Tilcher’s Class’, by Carol Ann Duffy (Selected Poems).

I am going to be comparing two of Carol Ann Duffy’s poems from her book called ‘Selected Poems-by Carol Ann Duffy’.
These poems are called ‘Comprehensive’ and ‘Mrs Tilcher’s Class’.
The first poem ‘Comprehensive’ is about seven different voices talking about their life and of their school life. But I find the title ‘Comprehensive’ to be quite ironic as it isn’t necessarily focusing thoroughly on Comprehensive schooling.
The poem focuses and discusses different children’s lives and backgrounds.
We can also observe the limited understanding the children in the poem have of other cultures apart from their own. We also see their tendency to mock and use racial vocabulary against the other cultures introduced throughout the poem verses. Throughout the poem also see the ways in which children’s aspirations for their future and their ambitions throughout life. By this I mean that some aspire to do things such as ‘get married and emigrate to Australia’ and ‘ I have hope and am ambitious’, when other’s have views such as ‘I’m going to the army, no choice really’. This puts forward to us that through comprehensive schooling many children have different views and ambitions through life. The disturbing side of this poem is some children’s views on religion on different cultures and religions and the way they treat other people is diabolical.
During the first stanza we see that there is disappointment and homesickness from this child and we see that his/her defiantly prefer their hometown to the country of England. In my opinion I believe that this could be something to do with the racial attitude the British children have towards the different races and cultures of the world.
During the second stanza we see a child with a totally different lifestyle. Many describe this kind of child as a ‘thug’. The type of child who is ‘common’, ‘aggressive’ and uses quite violent vocabulary....