Mrs Sisyphus (DP IB English A: Language and Literature: HL): Revision Note

This study guide to Carol Ann Duffy’s poem ‘Mrs Sisyphus’ contains: 

• Overview

• Authorial purpose

• Authorial choices and textual features

• Themes

• Connections to other Duffy poems

Overview

• The poem was first published in 1999 in the collection The World’s Wife

• The collection consists of poems from the perspectives of women connected to, or reimagined from, famous men in myth, history, literature, film and popular culture

• Duffy offers a retelling of their experiences to challenge the dominant male perspective

• ‘Mrs Sisyphus’ gives voice to Merope, the wife of Sisyphus:

  • In the original myth, Sisyphus is punished by the gods for trying to trick them

  • He must forever push a huge boulder up a hill, as it continuously rolls back down when he reaches the top

• Duffy places the figures in a contemporary context to examine marital relationships and male pride

Authorial purpose

• Duffy’s aim with the collection is to challenge dominant male perspectives and narratives

• She offers multiple and complex versions of womanhood

• ‘Mrs Sisyphus’ explores male pride and ambition and its consequences for their wives:

  • The poem mocks an obsession with work at the cost of relationships

  • It gives voice to the female experience of being ignored and alone in the face of this obsession

Authorial choices and textual features

Form 

• ‘Mrs Sisyphus’ is a free verse poem

• It has three stanzas of varying lengths

• There is no regular meter or rhythm

• There is no clear rhyming pattern, but there is some rhyme 

• Some caesura and enjambment change the flow and tempo of the poem

• These elements make the poem feel conversational and direct

Structure

• The title alludes to the wife of a figure in Greek mythology

• The poem alludes to the myth:

  • But it focuses on the wife’s perspective

  • It is set in a contemporary time

• The poem is a dramatic monologue: 

  • The speaker is Merope, the wife of Sisyphus

  • As with other poems in the collection, the female voice and perspective is dominant

Language

• The speaker uses colloquial language throughout

• The poem itself is an allusion to the Greek myth:

  • There is also figures from the Bible and the Arts (Noah and Bach)

  • Duffy suggests these tensions are not confined to one time or place

• The speaker describes her husband with insults and similes

• End alliteration, especially of the ‘k’ sound, enhances the tone of frustration

• The figure of Sisyphus becomes an extended metaphor for male ambition and pride

Themes

The cost of male hubris 

Duffy explores the impact of male hubris on their wives. She uses the figure from Greek myth to highlight how (some) men are obsessed with work duties at the cost of their wives’ happiness. Through the female perspective, this hubris is mocked and scorned while also being called out for resulting in a lack of happiness and true human connection.

Connections to other Duffy poems

When studying Duffy’s poetry, it is important to make connections across her work, as many poems explore similar ideas through different speakers and situations.

Power

Duffy explores the power dynamics embedded in patriarchal norms and the culture that comes from them. She seeks to overthrow or at least prompt us to challenge them by offering alternative, female-based perspectives on well-known tales. Here, the speaker uses sarcasm and disdain to highlight the emptiness of male power. Her voice centres the narrative on her perspective. She powerfully overthrows embedded myths around ambition and work ethics.

Sources:

Duffy, C.A. (1999) 'Mrs Sisyphus', in The World's Wife. London: Picador.