Sunny Prestatyn

Theme:

This poem is quite comical to begin with, however Larkin moves to sinister the most defaced the poster becomes. Themes in this poem include graffiti and rebellion but also the sexism of women displayed in the image.

Content:

The poem is about a poster being vandalised, the holiday pin-up is defaced and abused so much that the poster is covered by a cancer poster in the end.

Analysis:

• The poem starts with a quotation from an advert, 'Come to Sunny Prestatyn', a common pin-up holiday poster that appealed to people so much they would visit the location for a holiday. 'Sunny' implies cheerful, happy and optimistic place. The coastal scene with a 'hotel with palms' and 'hunk of coast', is overexaggerated but an attractive paradise. This is the dream life for people that want an escape, however Prestatyn is overshadowed with a poster of 'pin-up'.
• The presentation of the woman is made her into perfection, focussing on her sexuality to promote Prestatyn. 'Tauntened white satin' shows off her figure, and Larkin degrades the woman he sees. Her 'thighs' and 'breast-lifting arms' make the girl seem sexy and suggestive, she sells the holiday with her beauty.
• The poster is described to be 'slapped up', rude and violent, or like 'slapping' on makeup which makesher seem fake, her beauty abused by just being chucked up without care. Larkin contrasts the idyllic world of advertisement, that the sexualised images of women create violence amongst men as they fight for these ideals and this perfect image is nothing more than an unattainable dream.
• After the humourous opening, the poem becomes darker in the second stanza through humour. The defacing of the poster is cheap, child-like and rude. People seem to have enjoyed defaced her, violation and physically abusing it. 'Scored well in' and covered in 'scrawls' makes the opinion of the poster uncared for, it is systemtically destroyed from head to toe. 'Scored' could be like the men have won the woman, or like it's been cut with a knife. This is sinister, in a hated manner it becomes disturbing and violent. The perfect face is ruined by 'snaggle-toothed' and 'boss-eyed' with 'huge tits' and a 'fissured crotch'', almost as if the woman has been raped.
•  Larkin balances on humour and disgust, the lighthearted tone of the poem makes him seem jokey. The final stanza of the poem includes 'she was too good for this life' and that she 'asked for it', as if something a sex attacker would say to blame the woman. Larkin jokes about the crude doodles, there is no value to her beauty. The defacing of this poster could seem as if the men are just displaying the honest truth, that the posters are fake and not what real woman look like.
• The poem concludes with an image of death, the defaced poster is replaced with 'Now Fight Cancer is there'. This is poster is more respected, no sexist attitde that can be viewed when men feel okay to deface a woman valued only because of her looks and Larkin would care less however they wouldn't deface a disease, charity poster. This poster will last longer, and it fits better into society because the escape from reality is gone and the brutal reality would be understood rather than the perfection.