war photographer: Carol Ann Duffy

context of war photographer?

Scottish poet, in 2009 became first woman to hold poet laureate, wp published in 1985, conversations with 2 war photographers, horrors of war, people treated as abstract images, Vietnam war photo

themes:

-effects of conflict

-reality of conflict

-memory

-anger

-guilt

-individual experiences

theme: effect of conflict

-charge of the light brigade

-exposure

-bayonet charge

-remains

-poppies

-kamikaze

theme: reality of conflict

-charge of the light brigade

-exposure

-bayonet charge

-remains

theme: memory

-prelude

-my last duchess

-remains

-poppies

-emigreé

-kamikaze

theme: anger

-london

-checking out me history

theme: guilt

-remains

theme: individual experiences

-london

-prelude

-bayonet charge

-remains

-poppies

-emigreé

-kamikaze

language, structure, form

religious bibical references

similes

irony

emotive metaphors

plosives (B and P)

sibilance

4 stanzas equal length

internal rhyme scheme

enjambment - gradual reveal of photograph as it develops

focus on actions + thoughts -> change is specific to death -> how work is perceived

quotes: ' ... he is finally alone'

darkroom

hints at subject matter of photographs, his purpose is dark, juxtaposes the isolation he feels vs chaos of war

quotes: ' his ... which did not tremble then '

hands

irony as he did not feel the horror of war (calm in the face of horror) but now they affect him

quotes: ' blood ... into foreign dust. '

stained

'Stained' lasting trauma of war and soldiers due to unnamed in wars so therefore are forgotten

quotes: ' all flesh is ... .'

grass

bible reference 40:6 human life is temporary

quotes: ' spools of ... in ordered rows. '

suffering

reels of soldiers are described like soldiers or rows of war graves (metaphor) - (paradox) chaos + suffering are reduced to something ordered physical reminder of suffering

quotes: ' only ... is red and softly ... as though this were a ... and he is a priest preparing to ... a mass. '

light, glows, church, intone

simile, seriousness of his work, solemn act almost like a funeral mass (graveyard) parallel - priest and war photographer both exposed to pain, death + suffering, -> ironic could begin to question God

quotes: ' Belfast. Beirut. Phnom. Penh. '

plosive sounds - breaks soft mood like gunfire, names places where wars have happened + mini short plosive sounds

quotes: ' the readers ... prick with tears '

eyeballs

metaphor suggests that their thoughts/ tears are metaphorical/ inhuman, not truly affected by photos, only physical response or tears and don't have a genuine response

quotes: ' tears' 'beers'

internal rhyme, tears are replaced with beers, short duration of pain

quotes: ' from the ... he stares impassively at where he earns his living and they do ... care. '

aeroplane, not

returns to war zone, cyclical, sense of futile repetition of past mistakes, work of the photographer hasn't changed anything -> ambiguous refers to anyone and they don't care about suffering

impassively: not showing or feeling emotion

quotes: ' he has a job to do. '

short simple sentence, monosyllabic words, he has to put his emotions aside like other soldiers

quotes: ' rural england . '

soft sounds contrast with place names in stanza one as they all experienced war

quotes: ' running ... in ... heat. '

children, nightmare

reference to Vietnam war, tragedy of war

quotes: ' something is ... . '

happening

Volta (turning point) short simple sentence switches to personal cost of war, remembers a specific death

' a stranger's ... faintly start to twist ... his eyes, a half ... ghost '

features, before, formed

metaphor, focusing on one photo makes it personal and emphasises the real suffering of war but suggests his body has been mutilated, photograph is developing

' a ... agonies in ... and white '

hundred, black

emotive metaphor, describes the photos confirms and solidifying the suffering they show

' Sunday's supplement '

plosive + sibilant sounds, readers spits the words out, may hint at the impact of war is useless and not worthy of a main feature in a newspaper