GCSE English Literature- Anthology Poetry Form and Structure

War Photographer F&S

• rigid form / closed form- tight form of 4 stansas with 6 lines- contrasts the chaos of war with the calm at home

• Cyclical structure- ends by returning to warsone, shows futile repetition of past mistakes and lack of change from photographers work due to nonchalant audience.

• Constant ABBCDD rhyme scheme- photographers lack of power to change things

Remains F&S

• 8 stanzas, first 4 stanzas is the soldier describing shooting the looter, while last 4 stanzas about after effects

• mostly irregular rhyme scheme but contains rhyme dotted throughout the poem- to show Tromans’’ inability to express his thoughts as he is trapped in his own memories due to his PTSD.

• monologue- spoken to a silent listener, suggests his confessional state, as he reflects on his mistakes- inner turmoil

• Free verse- barrage of thoughts entering his mind, unable to process it.

• Media res- reflects unpredictability of war as the reader is in a state of confusion, much like soldiers when they are in a warsone being fired upon.

• Enjambment- mimics mental brokenness, shakiness of voice, changes in time as he recalls memories.

• Anecdotal tone- confessional state as Tromans is admitting to his mistakes

Ozymandias F&S

• Petrachan sonnet- 14 lines that usually raises a problem then resolves it

• Enjambment- show relentless passage of time

• Caesura- indicate ephemeral nature of human power

Kamikaze F&S

• 7 stansas of 6 lines each

• It is simple to read, allowing sadness to be understated but to shine through- could reflect the tight control of the military, not only one pilots but on those back home

• Focus of poem shifts from pilot in plane to return home

• No regular rhyme

• Begins as 3rd person, like a report, almost as if someone is retelling a story, with parts being read in first person.

• Very long sentences

Poppies F&S

• dramatic monologue- the speaker uses a second person narrative to directly address their son, however he never replies, implying he is no longer there, creating a sense of death and loss.

• Second person narrative- creates sympathy for the mothers who lose their children at war.

• The poem contains a recurring motif through the dove- symbolising the son

Charge of the Light Brigade F&S

• 6 verses- each verse represented 100 men of the light brigade, with the last three verses representing the men who died (300 men).

• Dactylic dimeter- represents sounds of war drums or horses used in battle

Bayonet Charge F&S

• 3 stanzas

• no rhyme scheme

• media res- used to show the shock experienced by soldiers in WW1 (shell shock)

• enjambement used to show the nonstop firing of bullets in the battlefield

Exposure F&S

• Rigid form of 8 quatrains- reflects strict military hierarchy and the orders given from the top; differences in power

• Caesura- the sounds of war

• Enjambment- nonstop firing of bullets/weather

• ABBAC Half rhyme at the end of each line

London F&S

• Dramatic monologue- FP narrator speaks about the suffering he sees

• Unbroken ABAB rhyme scheme- echos the relentless misery in the city

• Regular rhythm- reflect sound of his footsteps as he walks around describing sights

• First 2 stansas focus on people he sees and hears, places blame in stansa 3 and shifts to the affected people in stansa 4

• 4 stansas of 4 lines each

The Prelude F&S

• First person narrative – creates a sense that it is a personal poem. 

• Enjambment

• The regular rhythm and enjambment add to the effect of natural speech and a personal voice.

• The extract can be split into three sections, each with a different tone to reflect his shifting mood

My Last Duchess F&S

• Dramatic monologue- speaker used to reveal more about their personality than they realise

• Fixed Iambic pentameter- reflects Duke’s controlling and possessive attitude towards women/his wives

• Rhyming couplet- creates an ongoing effect from the Duke’s control

Storm on the Island F&S

• No rhyme scheme- omnipotence of nature

• Controlled rhythm- human power resisting powers and chaos of storm

• Some half rhyme- partial organisation

• Cyclical structure- preparation for storm to fear of storm in the end

• Lack of stansas could suggest the neverending barrage of atoms and their inability to combat the weather

• Blank verse

• Present tense

• First person perspective- Conversational tone

• First eight letters of poem title spell out ‘Stormont’- Irish houses of parliament

• Extended metaphor (conceit)- storm as a metaphor for the troubles 

• Lots of enjambment- fears

Tissue F&S

• Last line significant - one line, different from rest

• 9 stanzas of 4 lines with a single line stanza ending the paragraph

• Free verse- reflecting unpredictability of life

• Little rhyme- sometimes over multiple stanzas

• Enjambment

• Opening 3 stanzas- power of paper- describes how paper can record history and shape lives

  • Use of paper in history

  • Second a a book

  • Third is a certificate

• Middle 5 stanzas- fragility of human power- human made structures contrasted with the natural world, where everything will eventually break down, just like paper

• Closing stanzas- freedom and change- hopeful tone, embracing change and encouraging flexibility like paper to live freely

• Paradox of paper as fragile, temporary and unimportant but controlling our lives

The Emigree F&S

• Anecdotal tone

• Predominantly in free verse

• No rhyme, no rhythm

• Juxtaposition

• Anaphora of “they”

• Dramatic monologue- told like a story

• Recurring motif “sunlight” ending every stanza

• Ellipsis 

• Caesura

• enjambment

Checking Out Me History F&S

• Free verse

• Dramatic monologue- recalling the stroy about the speaker (Agard)’s history

• irregular AAAA BBBB rhyme scheme

• Phonetic spelling “dem”, “me”- spelled out the way Agard wants the reader to read it- reflects the Caribbean dialect, which opposes the British education

• First Person perspective- supposed to be read by Agard himself, who was performative

• Inconsistent structure

• Enjambment- rejection of formal British English to oppose the colonial rule, as well as the overflowing expression and passion

• Anaphora of “dem tell me”- the misleading history taught by the British, dominating his life, dominating the lines in the poem

• No punctuation- causes the poem to be read like a song, opposing the system by using incorrect spelling which resists the formal British English and almost mocks them.

• Dual structure- Italicised writing is used to make those areas more important and to stand out to the readers. Italicised areas have light imagery to suggest that he has gained some knowledge that is useful to him when understanding his history, used to recall the stories of lesser-known figures in history that Agard wasn’t taught