“Mrs Midas” is a poem written by the contemporary Scottish poet Carol Ann Duffy, the former Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom. The poem alludes to the Greek myth of King Midas, who was granted a wish to have everything he touched turn to gold. The poem, however, tells this well-known story from the perspective of Midas’s wife, using humor and wit to explore the foolish nature of greed, the historical erasure of women’s experiences, and the consequences of selfishness within a relationship. “Mrs Midas” was included in Duffy’s 1999 collection The World’s Wife and reprinted in her New Selected Poems 1984-2004.

• Read the full text of “Mrs Midas”

• “Mrs Midas” Summary

• “Mrs Midas” Themes

  • 

    The Erasure of Women's Experiences

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-66
  • 

    Materialism and Greed

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 9-66
  • 

    Relationships and Loneliness

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-12
    • Lines 21-30
    • Lines 37-54
    • Lines 61-66

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “Mrs Midas”

  • Lines 1-6

    It was late ...
    ... snapping a twig.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 7-12

    Now the garden ...
    ... in the tree?

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 13-18

    He came into ...
    ... started to laugh.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 19-24

    I served up ...
    ... golden chalice, drank.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 25-30

    It was then ...
    ... believe my ears:

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 31-36

    how he’d had ...
    ... smoking for good.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 37-42

    Separate beds. in ...
    ... work of art.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 43-48

    And who, when ...
    ... the streaming sun.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 49-54

    So he had ...
    ... off, then walking.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 55-60

    You knew you ...
    ... the last straw.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 61-65

    What gets me ...
    ... stopped me dead.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 65-66

    I miss most, ...
    ... skin, his touch.

    

    

    

    

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• “Mrs Midas” Symbols

  • 

    Gold

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Lines 9-12: “that twig in his hand was gold. And then he plucked / a pear from a branch. – we grew Fondante d’Automne – / and it sat in his palm, like a lightbulb. On. / I thought to myself, Is he putting fairy lights in the tree?”
    • Line 13: “The doorknobs gleamed.”
    • Lines 14-16: “He drew the blinds. You know the mind; I thought of / the Field of the Cloth of Gold and of Miss Macready. / He sat in that chair like a king on a burnished throne.”
    • Line 20: “Within seconds he was spitting out the teeth of the rich.”
    • Line 24: “golden chalice”
    • Lines 32-34: “Do you know about gold? / It feeds no one; aurum, soft, untarnishable; slakes / no thirst.”
    • Lines 34-35: “I gazed, entranced, / as the blue flame played on its luteous stem.”
    • Line 39: “the tomb of Tutankhamun.”
    • Lines 41-42: “his honeyed embrace, / the kiss that would turn my lips to a work of art.”
    • Line 44: “heart of gold”
    • Lines 45-48: “his child, its perfect ore limbs, its little tongue / like a precious latch, its amber eyes / holding their pupils like flies. My dream milk / burned in my breasts.”
    • Lines 55-58: “Golden trout / on the grass. One day, a hare hung from a larch, / a beautiful lemon mistake. And then his footprints, / glistening next to the river’s path.”
  • 

    The Pear Tree

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Line 6: “He was standing under the pear tree snapping a twig.”
    • Lines 9-10: “And then he plucked / a pear from a branch.”
  • 

    The Light Bulb

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Line 11: “it sat in his palm, like a lightbulb. On.”
  • 

    The Corn/Gold Teeth

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Line 20: “Within seconds he was spitting out the teeth of the rich.”
  • 

    The Golden Chalice

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Lines 23-24: “then watched / as he picked up the glass, goblet, golden chalice, drank.”
  • 

    The Child

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Lines 44-47: “I dreamt I bore / his child, its perfect ore limbs, its little tongue / like a precious latch, its amber eyes / holding their pupils like flies.”
  • 

    The Glade

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Lines 49-50: “So he had to move out. We’d a caravan / in the wilds, in a glade of its own.”
  • 

    The Bowl of Apples

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Line 65: “once a bowl of apples stopped me dead.”

• “Mrs Midas” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

  • Allusion

    

    

    

    

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    Where allusion appears in the poem:

    • Line 15: “Field of the Cloth of Gold,” “Miss Macready”
    • Line 39: “tomb of Tutankhamun”
    • Line 59: “music of Pan”

  • Imagery

    

    

    

    

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    Where imagery appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-4: “I’d just poured a glass of wine, begun / to unwind, while the vegetables cooked. The kitchen / filled with the smell of itself, relaxed, its steamy breath / gently blanching the windows.”
    • Lines 9-11: “And then he plucked / a pear from a branch. – we grew Fondante d’Automne – / and it sat in his palm, like a lightbulb. On.”
    • Lines 19-20: “For starters, corn on the cob. / Within seconds he was spitting out the teeth of the rich.”
    • Lines 34-35: “I gazed, entranced, / as the blue flame played on its luteous stem.”
    • Lines 38-39: “He was below, turning the spare room / into the tomb of Tutankhamun.”
    • Lines 44-47: “That night, I dreamt I bore / his child, its perfect ore limbs, its little tongue / like a precious latch, its amber eyes / holding their pupils like flies.”
    • Lines 55-58: “Golden trout / on the grass. One day, a hare hung from a larch, / a beautiful lemon mistake. And then his footprints, / glistening next to the river’s path.”

  • Repetition

    

    

    

    

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    Where repetition appears in the poem:

    • Line 6: “He,” “pear,” “twig”
    • Line 9: “twig,” “gold”
    • Line 10: “pear”
    • Line 13: “He”
    • Line 14: “He ”
    • Line 15: “Gold”
    • Line 16: “He”
    • Line 18: “He”
    • Line 21: “He”
    • Line 22: “He”
    • Line 24: “he,” “golden”
    • Line 25: “He”
    • Lines 31-32: “Look, we all have wishes; granted. / But who has wishes granted?”
    • Line 32: “gold”
    • Line 34: “He”
    • Line 38: “He”
    • Line 44: “gold”
    • Line 49: “he”
    • Line 53: “gold”
    • Line 55: “ Golden”
    • Line 58: “He”
    • Line 66: “hands,” “hands”

  • Simile

    

    

    

    

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    Where simile appears in the poem:

    • Lines 4-5: “So I opened one, / then with my fingers wiped the other’s glass like a brow.”
    • Line 11: “it sat in his palm, like a lightbulb. On.”
    • Line 16: “He sat in that chair like a king on a burnished throne.”
    • Lines 40-41: “unwrapping each other, rapidly, / like presents, fast food.”
    • Lines 45-47: “ its little tongue / like a precious latch, its amber eyes / holding their pupils like flies.”

  • Metaphor

    

    

    

    

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    Where metaphor appears in the poem:

    • Lines 2-4: “The kitchen / filled with the smell of itself, relaxed, its steamy breath / gently blanching the windows.”
    • Line 20: “Within seconds he was spitting out the teeth of the rich.”
    • Lines 38-39: “He was below, turning the spare room / into the tomb of Tutankhamun.”
    • Line 42: “the kiss that would turn my lips to a work of art.”

  • Pun

    

    

    

    

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    Where pun appears in the poem:

    • Lines 3-4: “its steamy breath / gently blanching the windows.”
    • Lines 31-32: “we all have wishes; granted. / But who has wishes granted?”
    • Lines 37-38: “I put a chair against my door, / near petrified.”
    • Lines 43-44: “And who, when it comes to the crunch, can live / with a heart of gold?”
    • Line 65: “once a bowl of apples stopped me dead.”

  • Irony

    

    

    

    

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    Where irony appears in the poem:

    • Line 17: “The look on his face was strange, wild, vain.”
    • Line 20: “Within seconds he was spitting out the teeth of the rich.”
    • Lines 32-53: “Do you know about gold? / It feeds no one; aurum, soft, untarnishable; slakes / no thirst. He tried to light a cigarette; I gazed, entranced, / as the blue flame played on its luteous stem. At least, / I said, you’ll be able to give up smoking for good. / Separate beds. in fact, I put a chair against my door, / near petrified. He was below, turning the spare room / into the tomb of Tutankhamun. You see, we were passionate then, / in those halcyon days; unwrapping each other, rapidly, / like presents, fast food. But now I feared his honeyed embrace, / the kiss that would turn my lips to a work of art. / And who, when it comes to the crunch, can live / with a heart of gold? That night, I dreamt I bore / his child, its perfect ore limbs, its little tongue / like a precious latch, its amber eyes / holding their pupils like flies. My dream milk / burned in my breasts. I woke to the streaming sun. / So he had to move out. We’d a caravan / in the wilds, in a glade of its own. I drove him up / under the cover of dark. He sat in the back. / And then I came home, the woman who married the fool / who wished for gold.”
    • Lines 57-60: “And then his footprints, / glistening next to the river’s path. He was thin, / delirious; hearing, he said, the music of Pan / from the woods.”
    • Lines 62-63: “I sold / the contents of the house and came down here.”

  • Parataxis

    

    

    

    

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    Where parataxis appears in the poem:

    • Lines 13-14: “He came into the house. The doorknobs gleamed. / He drew the blinds.”
    • Lines 29-30: “I locked the cat in the cellar. I moved the phone. / The toilet I didn’t mind.”

  • Asyndeton

    

    

    

    

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    Where asyndeton appears in the poem:

    • Line 17: “strange, wild, vain”
    • Line 21: “the knives, the forks”
    • Line 24: “glass, goblet, golden chalice, drank”
    • Lines 33-34: “aurum, soft, untarnishable; slakes / no thirst”
    • Lines 41-42: “But now I feared his honeyed embrace, / the kiss that would turn my lips to a work of art.”
    • Lines 44-47: “I dreamt I bore / his child, its perfect ore limbs, its little tongue / like a precious latch, its amber eyes / holding their pupils like flies.”
    • Lines 53-54: “I visited, odd times, / parking the car a good way off”
    • Lines 58-59: “He was thin, / delirious; hearing”
    • Line 66: “his hands, his warm hands on my skin, his touch.”

  • Enjambment

    

    

    

    

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    Where enjambment appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “ begun / to”
    • Lines 2-3: “kitchen / filled”
    • Lines 3-4: “breath / gently”
    • Lines 7-8: “way / the”
    • Lines 9-10: “plucked / a”
    • Lines 14-15: “of / the”
    • Lines 23-24: “ watched / as”
    • Lines 26-27: “wine / on”
    • Lines 27-28: “sit / on”
    • Lines 33-34: “slakes / no”
    • Lines 38-39: “room / into ”
    • Lines 43-44: “live / with”
    • Lines 44-45: “bore / his”
    • Lines 45-46: “tongue / like”
    • Lines 46-47: “eyes / holding”
    • Lines 47-48: “milk / burned”
    • Lines 49-50: “caravan / in”
    • Lines 50-51: “up / under”
    • Lines 52-53: “fool / who”
    • Lines 55-56: “trout / on”
    • Lines 59-60: “Pan / from”
    • Lines 61-62: “greed / but”
    • Lines 62-63: “sold / the”

  • Assonance

    

    

    

    

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    Where assonance appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “wine”
    • Line 2: “unwind,” “kitchen”
    • Line 3: “filled,” “with,” “smell,” “itself,” “breath”
    • Line 4: “gently,” “blanching,” “windows”
    • Line 14: “blinds,” “mind”
    • Line 25: “scream,” “knees”
    • Line 38: “room”
    • Line 39: “tomb,” “Tutankhamun”
    • Line 40: “unwrapping,” “rapidly,”
    • Line 42: “kiss,” “lips”
    • Line 44: “bore”
    • Line 45: “ore,” “limbs,” “its,” “little”
    • Line 46: “eyes”
    • Line 47: “like,” “flies”

  • Consonance

    

    

    

    

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    Where consonance appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “wine”
    • Line 2: “unwind,” “while,” “cooked,” “kitchen”
    • Line 3: “filled,” “smell,” “itself,” “relaxed”
    • Lines 3-4: “its steamy breath / gently blanching”
    • Line 4: “windows,” “So,” “one”
    • Line 5: “with,” “fingers wiped,” “brow”
    • Line 6: “was standing,” “pear,” “tree,” “snapping,” “twig”
    • Line 43: “comes,” “crunch,” “can”
    • Line 44: “dreamt,” “bore”
    • Line 45: “child,” “perfect,” “ore,” “limbs,” “its,” “little,” “tongue”
    • Line 46: “like,” “precious,” “latch,” “its,” “amber ”
    • Line 47: “holding,” “pupils,” “like,” “flies,” “My,” “dream,” “milk”
    • Line 48: “burned,” “my,” “breasts,” “woke to,” “streaming,” “sun”

  • Alliteration

    

    

    

    

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    Where alliteration appears in the poem:

    • Line 3: “smell,” “steamy,” “breath”
    • Line 4: “blanching”
    • Line 9: “plucked”
    • Line 10: “pear”
    • Line 11: “palm,” “like,” “lightbulb”
    • Line 15: “Miss Macready”
    • Line 19: “corn,” “cob”
    • Line 22: “where,” “wine”
    • Line 24: “glass, goblet, golden”
    • Line 25: “started,” “scream,” “sank”
    • Line 28: “his hands,” “himself”
    • Line 39: “tomb,” “Tutankhamun”
    • Line 41: “fast food,” “feared”
    • Line 45: “limbs,” “little”
    • Line 46: “like,” “latch”
    • Line 48: “burned,” “breasts,” “streaming,” “sun”
    • Line 52: “woman”
    • Line 53: “wished”
    • Line 55: “getting,” “Golden”
    • Line 56: “grass,” “hare hung,” “larch”
    • Line 57: “lemon”
    • Line 58: “glistening”
    • Line 64: “lights,” “late”
    • Line 65: “miss most”
    • Line 66: “his hands,” “his,” “hands,” “his”

• “Mrs Midas” Vocabulary

  Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

  • Midas
  • Fondante d'Automne
  • Field of the Cloth of Gold
  • Miss Macready
  • Vain
  • Chalice
  • Aurum
  • Untarnishable
  • Slakes
  • Luteous
  • Tomb of Tutankhamun
  • Halcyon
  • Ore
  • Latch
  • Caravan
  • Glade
  • Larch
  • The Music of Pan
  • (Location in poem: )

• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Mrs Midas”

  • Form

  • Meter

  • Rhyme Scheme

• “Mrs Midas” Speaker

• “Mrs Midas” Setting

• Literary and Historical Context of “Mrs Midas”

• More “Mrs Midas” Resources

  • External Resources

    • Biography of Carol Ann Duffy — Read more about Carol Ann Duffy’s life and work at the Poetry Foundation website.

    • The Original Myth of King Midas — Read the original myth of King Midas, part of Ovid’s Metamorphose.

    • Feminist Revisionist Mythology — Read more about the movement to rewrite and reimagine traditional myths, stories, and fairy tales from a feminist perspective in this article from the World Heritage Encyclopedia.

    • Interview with Carol Ann Duffy — Watch an interview Carol Ann Duffy from the day she became Poet Laureate of the UK. In the interview, Duffy discusses what it means to be the first woman and first openly LGBTQ writer to be Poet Laureate, and why she considers poetry to be the “music of humanity.”

    • The Poet Reads Her Poem — Listen to Carol Ann Duffy talk about The World’s Wife and read “Mrs Midas” aloud at the 2013 Singapore Writers Festival.

  • LitCharts on Other Poems by Carol Ann Duffy

    • A Child's Sleep

    • Anne Hathaway

    • Before You Were Mine

    • Circe

    • Death of a Teacher

    • Demeter

    • Education For Leisure

    • Elvis's Twin Sister

    • Eurydice

    • Foreign

    • Havisham

    • Head of English

    • In Mrs Tilscher’s Class

    • In Your Mind

    • Little Red Cap

    • Mean Time

    • Medusa

    • Mrs Aesop

    • Mrs Darwin

    • Mrs Faust

    • Mrs Icarus

    • Mrs Lazarus

    • Mrs Sisyphus

    • Originally

    • Penelope

    • Pilate's Wife

    • Pope Joan

    • Prayer

    • Pygmalion's Bride

    • Queen Herod

    • Quickdraw

    • Recognition

    • Salome

    • Standing Female Nude

    • Stealing

    • The Darling Letters

    • The Dolphins

    • The Good Teachers

    • Thetis

    • Valentine

    • Warming Her Pearls

    • War Photographer

    • We Remember Your Childhood Well

    • Work

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