Valentine By Ken Lee. Hook .

Valentine

By Ken Lee

Hookhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4VVrl3Cqio

Not a red rose or a satin heart. 1

I give you an onion.

It is a moon wrapped in brown paper.

It promises light

like the careful undressing of love. 5

Here.

It will blind you with tears

like a lover.

It will make your reflection

a wobbling photo of grief. 10

I am trying to be truthful.

Not a cute card or a kissogram.

I give you an onion.

Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips,

possessive and faithful 15

as we are,

for as long as we are.

Take it.

Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding-ring,

if you like. 20

Lethal.

Its scent will cling to your fingers,

cling to your knife.

Valentine

Not a red rose or a satin heart.

I give you an onion.It is a moon wrapped in brown paper.It promises lightlike the careful undressing of love.

Here.It will blind you with tearslike a lover.It will make your reflectiona wobbling photo of grief.

I am trying to be truthful.

Not a cute card or a kissogram.

SimileSymbolMetaphorImageryDictionOxymoronHyperboleProsodicEnjambmentPersonification

I give you an onion.Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips,possessive and faithfulas we are,for as long as we are.

Take it.Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding-ring,if you like.

Lethal.Its scent will cling to your fingers,cling to your knife.

SimileSymbolMetaphorImageryDictionOxymoronHyperboleProsodicEnjambmentPersonification

Valentine Form• 7 Stanzas• No pattern in lines (1-6)• No order of syllables (2-10)• 5 Cases of Enjambment• No frequent Rhyme• Internal• Cross• Tone: Imperative and Passionate

• Free Verse (Not a Sonnet)

Literal Meaning

• Does not like traditional Valentine gifts

• Provides an Onion as a valentines gift for the lover

• The Onion cause crying

• Onion slices turn into wedding rings

• How the scent of an onion can stay on the lips and fingers

Figurative Meaning

• Defying Traditional love symbols

• Redefining love symbols

• Onion = Shows both sides

• Red Roses = Shows the Utopic side

• Actual symbol of love

• Love has two sides

Symbolred rose (Line 1)satin heart (Line 1)cute card (Line 12)Kissogram (Line 12)

Onion (Line 2)

Moon (Line 3)

Figurative Language“like the careful undressing of love.” (Line 5)

“It will blind you with tearslike a lover.” (Line 7-8)

“moon wrapped in brown paper.” (Line 4)

“It will blind you with tears” (Line 7)

“Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips,” (Line 14)

“Its scent will cling to your fingers,” (Line 22)

“It promises light” (Line 5)

Imagery“It is a moon wrapped in brown paper.” (Line 3)

“It will blind you with tears” (Line 7)“It will make your reflectiona wobbling photo of grief.” (Line 9-10)

“Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding-ring,” (Line 19)“Its fierce kiss will stay on your lips,” (Line 14)“Its scent will cling to your fingers,” (Line 22)

Enjambment

“possessive and faithfulas we are,” (Line 15)

“Its platinum loops shrink to a wedding-ring,if you like.” (Line 19)

“It promises lightlike the careful undressing of love.”(Line 4)

“It will blind you with tearslike a lover.”

Diction“Here.” (Line 6)“Take it” (Line 18)

“Blind” (Line 7)

“Tears” (Line 7)

“Reflection” (Line 9)

“Wobbling” (Line 10)

“Loops” (Line 19)

“Lethal” (Line 21)

Oxymoron“fierce kiss” (Line 14)

Prosodic

“I am trying to be truthful.

Not a cute card or a kissogram.” (Line 11-12)

Discussion QuestionIs there another object that could represent Valentines better than the onion, why?

Is the Onion an accurate symbol for valentines, why?

Would the meaning of the poem change if it was written like a traditional love poem?

How does this poem relate to Billy Bibbit’s love for Sandy?

Websites Consulted• Cover Page: http://olivemasen.blogspot.com/• Gave my wife or girlfriend a terrible gift: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4VVrl3Cqio• Peeling Onion: http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=47883&cn=91• Biting Onion: http://www.dreamstime.com/stock-photography-biting-onion-image550022• Holding Onion:

http://www.policymed.com/2009/05/peeling-the-onion-cardiologist-look-at-coi.html• Smelly Onion: http://max.wilsonsd.org:8080/Clip_Art/Pmpa2/food/food/page_bc.htm• Rings: http://www.redbookmag.com/love-sex/blogs/aaron-traister/husband-wedding-ring• Sliced Onion: http://www.theardentcook.com/crispy-fried-onion-rings-and-company/• Blurry Image: http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/File:Rainbow_Dash's_blurry_vision_S2E16.png• Fierce Kiss: http://www.wikihow.com/Kiss-Passionately• Red Rose: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Small_Red_Rose.JPG• Moon: http://www.space.com/55-earths-moon-formation-composition-and-orbit.html