The Dolphins || by - Carol Ann Duffy

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The Dolphins | by - Carol Ann Duffy
Carol Ann Duffy 1955 is a very famous Scottish poet and playwright. For years she has been teaching poetry in Manchetts Metropolitan University. For her deep understanding of literature. She was appointed as the British Poet Laureate. In 2009 thus, she became the first women and also the first Scot to have held this position. Ever since she starter writing she wrote on mature topics.

         Born in a Roman Catholic family she had very strict upbringing which didn't allowed her to simply imagine things without any limits of morality. However she stood and right from her childhood high school days  becoming intensely interested for critical writing.

        When she was 15 , she had already became a regular writer of poems even published many. In 1974 she started getting lot of attention for her writing at the Liverpool University. In 1983 she won the National poetry competition. Here after she never looked back and continuously went further to write more and publish them.

Her collection includes "Standing Female Nude(1985)", "Selling Manhattan(1987)", meantime (1993) and "Feminine Gospels"

       Duffy works explores both everyday experience and the rich fantasy life seen around in the world. She writes about love and understanding. In her poems we find lot of discussion on life as seen through the eyes of justice and kindness. She is mostly interested in discovering the beauty of life in normal experience. Of late she has advocated for all kind of campaigns against the oppression , exploration , gender biased and against violence. Such is her courage that she expresses openly without the fear of being rejected or isolated. Many have called her love for humanity. She has won so many awards and honor to mention her in detail. But one thing that declares her valuable today is the award of 'Dane' of the order of the British empire in 2015.


The Dolphins | by - Carol Ann Duffy

        The poem "The Dolphins", is a well known poem on the theme of lack of freedom and oppression. Many have written many poems on freedom but this one is certainly a big different from them. Not only does it have the guts to challenge humanity for its cruelty towards wildlife entities but it also takes up the idea of talking about freedom at a different level together.

        Generally we understand freedom it looks as if only humans have the previlage of having freedom for themselves. in this regard many organisations and laws have been formulated and made , but hardly anyone is effective in this regard. Duffy takes up this issue just because she believe  in the freedom is there for everybody a everybody has the right to utilise it.

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        In this poem , she has written about the dolphins living in an entertainment park, confined in a small pool. They are metaphorically representatives of all the wildlife living the cage life. The poem is written in a dramatic monolog . The Dolphins speak for everyone suffering in similar situation they as deliver reading speech. Narrating the various aslectsnof life. The poem is divided into four stanzas with no particular rhyme scheme. Each stanza has six lines.

         The first stanza starts with A very serious and the most important statement, 'The world is what you swim in, or dance it is simple'. The poem as is mentioned earlier a dramatic monologue and the dolphins address in the whole world the humans also. First they make a very beautiful statement that the simplest thing about our world in about that we are all here swimming or dancing. Metaphorically it implies our existence and how we all are busy with all kinds of activities. We have many expectation regarding this world of art. World is all source of thing happening around what is however most important is enjoying what we do in our individual social human identities. Duffy basically tries to assert that everybody is born to be free and our freedom must not be curtailed or robbed of us because in freedom we rejoice in being born here. Having made this very important statement the dolphins how was suddenly changes their narrative by telling us just contrary. Despite the fact that we all were born free we are not free today. This is where the dolphins represent the voice of every creature that dwells upon the Earth without their due freedom. Duffer symbolises this issue of taking away freedom from wildlife creatures by making the dolphins speak for everyone. In the poem here the dolphins are situated in a pool of an entertainment water park. In the Modern Times humanity for the personal and selfish benefits have exploited these beauties of wildlife by artificially getting some space among human beings. This is done for making a survey of them without realising the injury that causes.


The Dolphins | by - Carol Ann Duffy

" we are in our own elements but we are not free,
 outside this world you cannot breathe for long.
 The Other has many shaped
 The Other movement for my thoughts
 and also mine there is a man and there are hoops ring
there is a consent flowing guilts"

       In the above extract from the poem it is evidently clear how the creature of wildlife are exploited and tortured. The dolphins do accept that they are in their elements they know that they do their best. But hard reality stands at very cruel suggesting how they are not free there and some basic fundamental observation is the dolphins would like us to make first it lets us of character which every creature is born with.   The dolphins, fish from the deep sea is are put into a small water body artificially created.

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Related : B. Wordsworth          Then they are try to thrive an act like human beings for humans it looks a great show of discipline and wonder. But in doing this they practically forget that they are destroying the naturalness of the creature of wildlife. The man standing outside guide their thought and an attractions. They are labelled to jump through rings. It literally makes them slaves. They are tormented if they are not able to perform their best duffy wants us to realise how terrible it would be for such creatures when they are not able to follow their trainer or their master. The dolphins just becomes thing object that do not have their will our freedom this is a constant guilt they suffer from.
In the second stanza the dolphins speak about the realities of their existence when they speak about their unique presence. No one can deny this truth that every creature of the Earth is round differently and thus behaves and acts distinctly. The dolphins where never born for dumping through hoops. There dumping in the hope seas is certainly natural to them but here it is enforcement. In avoid open seas they were free to swim and dance. They never felt lonely neither did they fell enslaved. David blessed because they were happy but now they were not place because they are not happy as their torture over here.


" we have found no truth in this water
 no explanation trouble in our fresh
we were blessed and now we are not blessed...
 there is no hope."

The Dolphins | by - Carol Ann Duffy

        Having said this letters not forget that the dolphins do not belong to the pools in an extract Park. They were never born for it. Besides they cannot perhaps understand why they should have been at mercy of human being bleeding for food and rest. Because this depends on the level and quality of their performance defeat focuses on this cruel issues which in humanly harnesses some wildlife creatures just because they are considered to be very close to some understanding due to cerebral growth. The poem clearly indicates this fact when the poet shows the relocation of dolphins. Far from the wild open areas they have been brought to a small pool. They have been forced to translate and transform man controls and they always like to be at the top of it always.

         It is indeed are very disappointing truth that man loves being at the top of our relationship with nature and wildlife creatures. Over the years release  the intensity of this problem. God has created a beautiful world and he never proposed the authority of man over wildlife creature. Herbal incense man has selfishly tried to acquire all that is in nature. There is this misplaced face that man is the sole proprietor of everything. He forgets again that he gets the pure identity of nature around us.

        In the third stanza there is Emphasis of what has been mentioned in second stanza. Repair just discussing a while ago how the dolphins are no longer blessed because a curse has come upon them. The irony is that human beings mistakenly conclude their love for us in this fashion. They think they are caring for us. But they do not recognize what we are. Wildlife clear creatures are totally different to human beings and this love for wildlife should not end up with training dolphins inputs but allowing them to be what they are in their own natural habitat.



" and now we are no longer blessed,
 for the world will not depend to dream in,
 the other knows and out of love reflects me for myself."

        The post again gets back to The entertainment park where she wants us to see clearly the life of Dolphins. On the surface , scenario looks nothing more than a simple act but dolphins. Jumping and somersaulting , flipping and flappering , splashing and spraying of waters. Everything seems too normal to be called cruel. He poem gives a interesting example to proov it. The dolphins tells us how they balance a coloured ball all day before the show is ended. This life becomes mechanical. There is nothing genuine in what they do. In fact they are at their worst ever circumstances. Trying to proov their existence. Earlier their silver skin flashed in the brightness of the sun among the waves and current of the sea. Unfortunately, the fact is just a memory for them now. As they try to survey amidst these human made challenges.
The fourth stanza starts to show how dismal it is for them at the end of the day. Tired of balancing a coloured ball day in and day out, the dolphins have very sad story to tell us. It is a tragedy that wildlife creatures have to be there for human entertainment without at all being shown any concern. Justice is what they seek. They demand human understanding from a civilised world which knows it's duty and responsibilities. It is an irony that man has to misuse gods wonderful creature initialising them for their personal benefits.


The Dolphins | by - Carol Ann Duffy

"The moon has disappeared
We circle ... On a single note.
Music of loss forever ... There is aplastic toy.."

        At the end of the day , when the moon DISAPPERS , there is nothing which is different for the dolphins. The day had been hard and tiring. But, there doesn't seem to be any reason for joy thereafter. They aren't independent having completed the days job. They circle round and round in the pool and slowly disappeared in the depth of the pool. T music is still the same. This music has controlled them. For already many days and months. It does not give them sense of freedom but puts them into. It is pittybthatbthey will have to be like this for many days tillmthey are exhausted to death.

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        Duffy very poignantly related the story of dolphins. This has been symbolised as Music of Loss. The dolphins hears this as they live performing various acts. Besides they do not experience any love from the man who gives them plastic toy to play.


"There is no hope we sink to the
 limits of this pool until the whistle blows.
There is a man and our mind knows
We will die here."

         To conclude , let's observe the above lines from the text. The story indeed seems endless because the man doesn't seem to recognise his mistakes. So, there is no hope of getting any sympathy for them. The dolphins clearly states they they will die in this confinement. Duffy this calls for human sensation to save wildlife its creatures.

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The Dolphins | by - Carol Ann Duffy
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