power and conflict poetry

bayonet charge quotes

“suddenly he awoke and was running raw”- first line

“his sweat heavy”

“bullets smacking the belly out of the air”

“He lugged a rifle numb as a smashed arm”

“the patriotic tear that had brimmed in his eye sweating like molten iron from the centre of his chest

stanza 2

“In bewilderment then he almost stopped”

“In what cold clockwork of the stars and the nations”

“his foot hung like statuary”

stanza 3

“king, honour, human dignity, etcetera dropped like luxuries”

“His terror’s touchy dynamite”

bayonet charge context

• 20th century english poet, known for focus on nature, violence+ elemental forces of life

• not soldier himself, but influenced from experiences of his father, fought in WW1

• inspired by WW1 trench warfare, reflecting the confusion + terror + dehumanisation soldiers felt'

• published 1957, reflects post war attitudes+ disillusionment with patriotic ideals

bayonet charge structure

• freeverse, irregular line lengths, no consistent rhyme scheme- mirroring chaos+ unpredictability of battle

• 3 stanzas, each focusing on soldier’s emotional journey

kamikaze context

• Beatrice Garland is a contemporary British poet.

• The poem explores Japanese Kamikaze pilots in World War II, who undertook suicide missions by flying planes into enemy ships.

• Cultural honour and family shame play key roles — in Japanese society, it was considered honourable to die for the emperor.

• Garland, who is also a psychologist, explores psychological conflict, identity, and the power of choice.

kamikaze quotes

"a one-way journey into history"

"he must have looked far down / at the little fishing boats"

"green-blue translucent sea"

"flashing silver as their bellies / swivelled towards the sun"

"and though he came back / my mother never spoke again / in his presence"

"they treated him / as though he no longer existed"

kamikaze structure

• Written in free verse with no set rhyme scheme or consistent line length, reflecting the personal and emotional nature of the story.

• It starts in third person, but transitions to the daughter’s voice, suggesting a generational and emotional distance.

• Use of enjambment conveys the fluidity of thought, like memories or waves, and shows the natural, inevitable flow of life.

• The shift from the narrative of the mission to the daughter's commentary adds a layer of reflection and judgement.

kamikaze key themes

Duty vs. Morality

The pilot must choose between nationalistic honour and personal conscience.

The Power of Nature

Nature helps him reflect on life’s beauty and the value of survival.

Family and Rejection

Although he chooses life, he is punished with social and familial exclusion.

Cultural Expectations

Explores how societal pressures can override personal morality.

Legacy and Memory

The poem questions what it means to be remembered — hero, coward, father?

checking out me history context

• The poem critiques how the British education system neglects Black and Caribbean history, instead prioritizing Eurocentric figures.

• Agard draws on his Caribbean heritage, exploring issues of identity, resistance, and colonial legacy.

• Part of the AQA Power and Conflict cluster, though it focuses on cultural conflict rather than war.

checking out me history quotes

"Dem tell me / Dem tell me / Wha dem want to tell me"

"Bandage up me eye with me own history / Blind me to me own identity"

"Nanny / see-far woman / of mountain dream / fire-woman struggle"

"Toussaint / a slave / with vision / lick back / Napoleon"

"I carving out me identity"

"Florence Nightingale and she lamp" vs. "Mary Seacole... healing star / among the wounded"

checking out me history structure

• Free verse with irregular rhyme, punctuation, and spelling to reflect the poet’s voice and dialect.

• Alternates between:

  • Italicised stanzas – celebrating Black historical figures (e.g., Nanny de Maroon).

  • Non-italicised stanzas – mocking whitewashed British history (e.g., "Dick Whittington").

• Use of phonetic spelling (“dem”, “me”) reclaims Creole/Caribbean identity.

• The lack of punctuation is a form of rebellion against imposed linguistic rules, asserting freedom of expression.

the emigree context

• The Émigree explores the experience of an émigrée—a female speaker who has been forced to leave her homeland.

• While the country is not named, it represents any place affected by conflict, tyranny, or exile, giving it universal relevance.

• Rumens is interested in memory, identity, and the personal cost of political displacement.

• The poem reflects on the romanticised view of a lost homeland, even when the reality may be far more complex.

the emigree quotes

"There was once a country... I left it as a child / but my memory of it is sunlight-clear"

"It may be at war, it may be sick with tyrants"

"I am branded by an impression of sunlight"

"They accuse me of being dark in their free city"

• "My city takes me dancing through the city / of walls."

• "I comb its hair and love its shining eyes."

the emigree structure

• Written in free verse: no fixed rhyme or rhythm, which mirrors the lack of stability in the émigrée’s life.

• Consists of three stanzas of increasing complexity, reflecting the deepening conflict and tension.

• Enjambment conveys the flow of thought and memory.

• The poem moves from nostalgia and beauty to a darker, more threatening tone, reflecting the conflict between memory and reality.

poppies context

• Poppies was written in 2009, commissioned by Carol Ann Duffy for a collection marking Armistice Day.

• It explores the personal and emotional cost of war, especially from the perspective of a mother left behind.

• Weir was inspired by both her experiences as a mother and her background in textiles, which influences the poem’s domestic imagery.

• The poem doesn't mention a specific conflict — it represents the universal impact of war on families.

poppies structure

• Written in free verse with enjambment and caesura, mimicking natural speech and emotional reflection.

• Told in first-person, from the perspective of a mother.

• The structure is non-linear, moving between past and present, representing the disorientation of grief and memory.

• No fixed rhyme scheme: reflects emotional instability and vulnerability

poppies quotes

“i was brave as i walked with you to the front foor”

“The world overflowing like a treasure chest”

“before you left, i pinned one onto your lapel”

“I listened, hoping to hear your playground voice catching on the wind”

“sellotape bandages around my hand”

“released a songbird from it’s cage”

“steeled the softening of my face”

poppies themes

• loss and grief

• memory and time

• war + domesticity

war photographer context

• Carol Ann Duffy, UK Poet Laureate (2009–2019), is known for tackling political and emotional themes.

• War Photographer (1985) is inspired by real war photographers, particularly Don McCullin and Philip Jones Griffiths, who documented war zones like Vietnam and Cambodia.

• The poem criticizes public apathy toward global suffering and explores the emotional toll on those who witness war firsthand but remain outsiders.

• Duffy raises questions about morality, voyeurism, and the responsibility of the media.

war photographer structure

• Regular structure: 4 stanzas, each 6 lines (sestets), with a consistent ABBCDD rhyme scheme — conveys control vs. emotional chaos.

• The order and formality reflect the photographer’s attempt to impose order on horror.

• Use of enjambment suggests overflowing emotion and fragmented thought.

• The speaker is third-person, observing the photographer, which emphasizes detachment — mirroring the public’s indifference.

war photographer quotes

“A hundred agonies in black and white”

“All flesh is grass”

“He has a job to do”

“He stares impassively at where / he earns his living and they do not care”

The reader’s eyeballs prick / with tears between the bath and pre-lunch beers.”

“His hands, which did not tremble then / though seem to now”

war photographer themes

• Effects of War

• Detachment and Isolation

• Conflict Between Duty and Emotion

main themes

• Power of Humans. Abuse of power

• Power of Nature. As the enemy

• Effects of Conflict. On those who fight

• Reality of Conflict. Horror of war as it happens

• Loss and Absence. Loss of people and places

• Memory. Haunting effect

• Identity

kamikaze quotes for memory

“he must have looked far down / at the little fishing boats strung out like bunting” -pilots memories of home, family, peace

“remembered how he / and his brothers waiting on the shore”- remembers childhood experiences, innocence, bonding, love- memory of love and life overcame war ideology.

“he must have wondered / which had been the better way to die”- memory of his cultural sacrafice vs his own memories of peace and happiness

power of nature in kamikaze

“green-blue translucent sea”-vivid, peaceful imagery contrasts sharply with war and destruction, “Translucent” suggests clarity, purity, and beauty—emphasising the calming, emotional power of nature.

“dark shoals of fishes / flashing silver as their bellies swivelled towards the sun”- Sensory and visual imagery highlights the natural world’s movement, beauty and energy.

“cloud-marked mackerel”-“Cloud-marked” evokes the idea of sky blending with sea, showing how vast and interconnected nature is.

loss and absence in kamikaze

“he must have wondered / which had been the better way to die”- inner conflict, final line, Though he chose life over death, he experiences emotional and social death—his family rejects him.

“they treated him / as though he no longer existed”-He is alive, but socially erased. Highlights the shame and silence imposed by societal expectations, particularly in wartime Japan

“only we children still chattered and laughed / till gradually we too learned / to be silent” -The children gradually lose their innocence, learning to imitate the adult world’s silence and shame.