1
Q
“late September”
A
- Word choice, creates a relaxed atmosphere.
- This is a time we can associate with the golden colours of autumn. This also symbolises things coming to an end (their relationship)
2
Q
“a glass of wine.. while the vegetables cooked”
A
This creates a scene of quiet domesticity, very much an ordinary day.
3
Q
“filled with the smell of itself, relaxed, it’s steamy breath gently blanching the windows.”
A
Word choice - ‘filled with the smell of itself and ‘relaxed’ - suggest tranquillity and gratification.
The personification and enjambement - ‘steamy breath / gently blanching the windows’ form a contrast with her husband’s activities in the next verse.
4
Q
“like a brow”
A
- Simile and Personification again. Almost like a caress. Introduces the importance of the sense of touch for Mrs Midas.
5
Q
“snapping a twig”
A
- In the word choice of ‘snapping a twig’ the onomatopoeic ‘snapping’ creates a discordant tone.
- It also has connotations of violence, which shatters the previous relaxed atmosphere.
- This foreshadows the troubles they face.
6
Q
“Now.. visibility poor… the dark of the ground… drink the light of the sky… twig in his hand was gold.”
A
- The first word “Now introduces the narrative.
- The word choice of visibility poor, ‘dark of the ground’, drink the light of the sky’ all suggest foreboding.
- The word dark suggests sinister or ominous, though the twig in his hand was gold’ is a reference to the Midas touch.
7
Q
“we grew Fondante d’Automne and it sat in his palm like a lightbulb.”
A
- The parenthetical of we grew ‘Fondante d’Automne’ reveals her pretentiousness in naming an old variety of French pear. The pear is golden.
- The expression ‘sat in the palm of his hand like a light bulb’ adds humour, reinforced by the minor one-word sentence ‘On.’
- The simile like a light bulb’ compares the pear to a light bulb in gold colour and shape.
8
Q
“Is he putting fairy lights in the tree?”
A
- Humour - the reference to fairy lights: she doesn’t know what is happening she is oblivious to the seriousness of what her husband is doing.
9
Q
“He came into the house. The doorknobs gleamed. He drew the blinds.”
A
- Three short sentences create the impression of Mrs Midas talking to the reader.
- ‘He drew the blinds’ suggests he wants privacy.
10
Q
“You”
A
- The chatty tone continues as this quote addresses the reader
11
Q
“the Field of the Cloth of Gold and of Miss Macready”
A
- Gold is a symbol, ‘the field of the Cloth of Gold’. This reference to a meeting between Henry VIll and Francis I of France near Calais where everything was gold.
- ‘Miss Macready’ (who claimed to be Mrs Midas’ history teacher, teaching about the historic meeting); the now-golden blinds.
12
Q
“like a king on a burnished throne”
A
- The simile of this quote is from Shakespeare’s Anthony and Cleopatra.
- Although these references give authenticity to the poem, they also seem slightly mischievous.
13
Q
“strange, wild, vain.”
A
- The pile-up of adjectives - ‘strange, wild, vain’ - describes his sudden realisation of his unprecedented power and wealth. - However, ‘vain’ also reveals her criticism of her husband.
14
Q
“What in the name of God is going on? He started to laugh.”
A
In line 18, the question expresses her puzzlement, but he only laughs - revealing their contrasting reactions.
15
Q
“I served up the meal. For starters.”
A
- The everyday tone of ‘I served up the meal’ is an apparent attempt by Mrs Midas at normality.
- ‘For starters’ is chatty, but it is also humorous and paronomastic, playing on the colloquial phrase ‘for starters’ and the menu reference ‘for the starter’.
16
Q
“spitting out the teeth of the rich”
A
- The humorous metaphor - ‘spitting out the teeth of the rich’ - suggests that the corn has turned to gold, has become inedible or that his teeth have splintered on the corn.
- This revealing the beginning of the problems brought by his gift’; ‘of the rich’ is used ironically.
17
Q
“toyed”
A
- ‘toyed’ suggests playfulness on Midas’ part, that he has fun in turning everything he touches into gold.
18
Q
“I poured with a shaking hand, a fragrant, bone-dry white from Italy
A
- ‘I poured with shaking hand’ suggests that her anxiety is increasing.
- ‘a fragrant, bone-dry white from Italy’, and the adjectives ‘fragrant’ and ‘bone-dry’ (‘bone’ with its underlying suggestion of death), suggest her pretentiousness.
- Despite being nervous, she cannot resist trying to impress.
19
Q
“glass, goblet, golden chalice, drank.”
A
- By contrast, the seriousness of the transformation of a simple glass into a golden chalice is highlighted by the alliteration of the guttural ‘g’ sound, softened slightly by the alliteration of the rich, liquid ‘I sound.
- This suggests dangerous luxury; ‘golden chalice’ references Macbeth’s poisoned chalice, suggesting that the chalice out of which Midas is about to drink could kill him.
- By placing the word ‘drank’ at the end of the sentence, the line and the verse, Midas’ fate is highlighted.
20
Q
“It was then that I started to scream. He sank to his knees.. I finished the wine.”
A
- The opening explains the result of ‘drank’, it caused her to scream, he sank to his knees - all very dramatic; but first, she ‘finished the wine’, suggesting nervousness or self-centredness.
21
Q
“keep his hands to himself.
“The toilet I didn’t mind.”
A
- The series of short phrases reveals her control over the extraordinary situation with its moments of humorous ordinariness.
- He is made to sit elsewhere, ‘keep his hands to himself’, and she feared what might happen to the cat and the phone.
The humour of ‘The toilet I didn’t mind’ again suggests her love of ostentation.
22
Q
“granted. But who has wishes granted? Him.
A
- The enjambement between verses 5 and 6 contributes to the drama of the story - we want to know what she couldn’t believe.
- The use of antanaclasis of ‘granted’ + ‘granted’ creates a pun, + the rhetorical question implies that, except for ‘Him’, (highlighted by the monosyllabic, one-word, minor sentence) that dreams are naive.
23
Q
“aurum, untarnishable”
A
- She lists the valuelessness of gold; the word choice of the Latin ‘aurum’ (gold) again exposes her affectation while ‘untarnishable’ is neutral in tone.
24
Q
“able to give up smoking for good.”
A
- Her criticism of gold ends abruptly with her contrasting joke about his being ‘able to give up smoking for good’.
25
“seperate beds”
- The minor sentence at the beginning of verse 7 highlights the change in their relationship - they have now separated.
26
“He was below”
They are now physically separate.
27
“You see we were passionate then,”
- When they were previously emotionally, sexually together. "You see' continues the use of chatty informality.
28
“halcyon days; unwrapping each other, like presents, fast food.”
- The image 'halcyon days' signposts a perfect time in the past. ‘unwrapping each other' suggests their close sexual relationship.
- Through the simile 'like presents, fast food' suggests the joy in their relationship, 'presents’ and 'fast food' are by nature transient (consumed quickly), like their relationship; 'fast food' has the connotations of being instant and not very satisfying.
29
“But now I feared his honeyed embrace, the kiss that would turn my lips to a work of art.”
- The conjunction of ‘But' introduces a change in direction.
- Now she fears his 'honeyed embrace, where the double entendre combines the sexual connotations of 'honeyed' along with its now deadly connotations.
- Developed by the last line making clear that his sexual advances could make her beautiful but no longer human.
30
“And”
“heart of gold?”
- The conjunction 'And' not only begins a new sentence but also the new verse.
- Isolating and highlighting the irony: the expression 'heart of gold' is usually complimentary, but here Mrs Midas subverts it: referring to his heart made of gold, implying the difficulties of living with perfection.
31
“I dreamt I bore his child.”
- This dream indicates that she wants a child, representing innocence, the idea quickly contrasted by disturbing images.
32
“like a precious latch, it’s amber eyes holding their pupils like flies.”
- 'its little tongue / like a precious latch', where the enjambement highlights the simile suggesting the child's tongue is hard and latched onto Mrs Midas.
- The 'amber eyes' (golden colour) 'holding their pupils like flies" fossilised in the viscous resin suggests death in life; she cannot have a normal child because of Midas' 'gift'.
33
“My dream milk burned in my breasts.”
- The compound noun 'dream-milk' conveys her longing for a child, while the alliteration of the plosive in 'burned in my breasts' emphasises her frustration.
- The entire dread is a synecdochic representation of her frustration at what his 'gift' has ironically denied her.
34
“streaming sun”
- The personification of the 'streaming sun' is a reminder that she constantly surrounded by gold.
35
“So he had to move out.”
- The declarative sentence 'So he had to move out' marks the finality of their relationship.
36
“We’d a caravan in the wilds”
- Their earlier togetherness, shown by this quote is contrasted with her determination to have him isolated.
37
“I drive him up under the cover of the dark. He sat in the back.”
- 'I drove him' (she is in control), under cover of dark' (he is hidden because she is embarrassed) and 'He sat in the back' are all a measure of how separated they have become.
38
“And then I came home”
- The 'And' isolating and highlighting her determination to be apart.
39
“the woman who married the fool who wished for gold.”
- The alliteration of the 'w', the assonance of the 'o' sound and her use of third person in 'the woman who married the fool / who wished for gold all add to the acrimonious tone.
40
“At first, I visited, odd times, parking the car a good way off, then walking.”
- ‘At first' suggests that her vists tailed off and 'parking the car a good way off' shows her determination to remain distant.
41
“Golden trout… hare.”
“A beautiful lemon mistake.”
“footprints, glistening.”
- Series of images portrays the consequences of his wishes:
- "Golden” asynecdoche for inedible food, such as the hare.
- “ a beautiful lemon mistake” the oxymore ('beautiful and 'mistake') revealing how beauty can be deceptive and useless.
- 'glistening' (gold) footprints by the river could suggest he is trying to get close to nature, trying to feed or wash himself.
42
“He was thin, delirious…”
- The list of adjectives - 'thin', 'delirious' - reveals his deterioration as a result of his 'gift'.
43
“the music of Pan..”
- It is ironic that he hears 'the music of Pan' (the Greek god of shepherds music and nature) as it was also a Greek god who gave him the unlimited wealth which had reduced him to delusion.
44
“Listen. That was the e last straw.”
- 'Listen. That was the last straw' - suggests she cannot cope with his instability.
45
“but lack of thought for me. Pure selfishness.”
- Mrs Midas reveals her self-centredness: 'but lack of thought for me' and the minor sentence 'Pure selfishness' show she thinks only of her own misery and not about what has happened to him.
46
“came down here”
- She ‘came down here' - she has now moved further away from him.
47
“lights, dawn, late afternoon and once a bowl of apples stopped me dead.”
The tone changes: lights', 'dawn' (time of day), 'late afternoon' and the fruit - 'bowl of apples' (Golden Delicious) - all take the reader back to the opening of the poem; 'stopped me dead' suggests she suddenly realises what might have been.
48
“hands, his warm hands on my skin, his touch.”
- The rhythm of the last line is slow, each item on the list expanding on the one
before.
- Through the irony highlighted
by the repetition of 'hands' is farther emphashed by:
- "touch' + his touch', after all, was the cause of the problem.
