power and conflict flashcards

what poems explore patriotism?

bayonet charge

charge of the light brigade

kamikaze

what poems explore power and order?

kamikaze
exposure?
charge of the light brigade

what poems explore uselessness (powerlessness)

bayonet charge

exposure

what poems explore relationships?

poppies

kamikazew

what poems explore trauma?

remains

war photographer

what poems explore nature?

kamikaze

exposure

what poems explore reality of conflict

bayonet charge

remains

war photographer

exposure

(contrasting to charge of the light brigade)

patriotism in bayonet charge

patriotic tear

king, honour, human dignity, etcetera

patriotism in charge of the light brigade

honour, honour the noble six hundred

sabre stroke shatter’d and sunder’d

patriotism in kamikaze

sunrise

samuri sword

head full of powerful incantations

power and order in kamikaze

enough fuel for a one way journey into history

dark prince

power and order in exposure

wind’s nonchalance

merciless iced east winds that knive usc

power and order in charge of the light brigade

someone had blunder’d

uselessness in bayonet charge

like a man who has jumped up in the dark and runs

he lugged a rifle numb as a smashed arm

uselessness in exposure

what are we doing here?

but nothing happens

relationships in poppies

released a songbird from its cage

hoping to hear your playground voice catching on the wind

relationships in kamikaze

till gradually we too learned to be quiet

he must have wondered which had been the better way to die

bringing their father’s boat safe

in a figure of eight

trauma in remains

blood-shadow

. But I blink

the drinks and drugs won’t flush him out

his bloody life in my bloody hands

trauma in war photographer

spools of suffering set out in ordered rows

(Belfast. Beirut. Phnom Penh)

stares impassively [..] they do not care

nature in kamikaze

cloud-marked mackerel, black crabs, feathering prawns

nature in exposure

all their eyes are ice

crickets jingle [..] innocent mice rejoice

merciless iced east winds that knive us [..] wind’s nonchalance

reality of conflict in bayonet charge

yellow hare that rolled like a flame

stumbling across a field

his sweat heavy

reality of conflict in remains

legs it up [..] letting fly

probably armed, possibly not

reality of conflict in war photographer

ordinary pain

running children in a nightmare heat

reality of conflict in exposure

we cringe in holes

reality of conflict in Charge of the light brigade (contrasting point)

Valley of Death

Jaws of Death

Mouth of Hell

what is Bayonet Charge about?

Stressful reality of War
Importance of survival
Lack of emotion, nihilism

Ted Hughes didn’t serve in the war but his father did.

He lived in the North where schemes were set up to recruit soldiers by peer pressure

what is Poppies about?

Addresses the grief that parents face when their children go to war

From a woman’s perspective showing maternal love

1st person - more intimate

Jane Weir wrote it to commemorate those who lost their lives in war from a more loving perspective, allowing the reader to sympathise more

What is The Charge of the Light Brigade about?

glory of men’s sacrifice

but also effect of 1 mistake on the masses and amount of needless sacrifice

Alfred Lord Tennyson didn’t go to war and only read about it

Less emotive and death is more sanitised in this poem

What is Exposure about?

Criticises British army’s unprepared approach to war

Title is a homophone: exposing truth about war, dying from exposure to wind

Wilfred Owen served in the war so its more personal and a dramatic monologue

What is Remains about?

Dramatic monologue exploring PTSD
We should do more for soldiers to help them adjust after their return from war

Simon Armitage talked to people who served in war and used their experiences to write this poem

What is War Photographer about?

War Photographers bring images from the war to the public and help them visualise the horrors of war
Morally challenging as they can’t do anything to help and just have to watch
Carol Ann Duffy had 2 friends who were War Photographers

What is Kamikaze about?

A pilot who is ostracised by his family when he chooses not to complete his mission

Beatrice Garland wrote it to criticise patriotism and was inspired into looking into the motivations as to why people wanted to die for their country

all kamikaze quotes

Sunrise [..] samurai sword

Enough fuel for a one way journey into history

Fishing Boats strung out like bunting

In a figure of eight

Remembered how he and his brothers [..] bringing their father’s boat safe

Cloud-marked mackerel, black crabs, feathering prawns [..] dark prince

He must have wondered which had been the better way to die

Till gradually we learned to be silent

all Remains quotes

Probably armed, possibly not

Legs it up [..] letting fly

Tosses his guts into his body

Blood-shadow

. But I blink

The drinks and drugs won’t flush him out

His bloody life in my bloody hands

all War Photographer quotes

Spools of suffering set out in ordered rows

Belfast. Beirut. Phnom Penh

Ordinary pain

Rural England [..] children running in a nightmare heat

A stranger’s features faintly start to twist before his eyes [..] half-formed ghost

Foreign dust

Stares impassively [..] they do not care

all Poppies quotes

Disrupting a blockade

Yellow bias binding around your blazer

Steeled the softening of my face

All my words flattened, rolled, turned into felt, slowly melting

Released a songbird from its cage

My stomach busy making tucks, darts, pleats

Hoping to hear your playful voice catching on the wind

The dove pulled freely [..] wishbone

all Bayonet Charge quotes

He lugged a rifle numb as a smashed arm

Patriotic tear

King, honour, human dignity, etcetera

He almost stopped

Like a man who has jumped up in the dark and runs

Yellow hare that rolled like a flame

all Exposure quotes

Silence, sentries whisper, curious, nervous

But nothing happens

What are we doing here?

Sudden successive flights of bullets streak the silence

We cringe in holes

All their eyes are ice

Crickets jingle [..] innocent mice rejoice

Doors are closed

Merciless iced east winds that knife us [..] wind’s nonchalance

all Charge of the Light Brigade quotes

Rode the 600 [..] but not, not the 600 [..] left of them, left of 600 [..] honour, honour, noble 600

Into the Jaws of Death, Into the Mouth of Hell

Someone had blunder’d

Volley’d and thunder’d, storm’d

Valley of Death

Half a league, half a league, half a league onward

Sabre stroke shatter’d and sunder’d