all poetry

war photographer author

carol ann duffy

duffy context

she was the poet laureate from 2009 - 2019

inspired by her friends Don McCullin and Phillip Jones Griffiths

they were war photographers who were forced to capture horrific moments for media consumption

born into a strict roman catholic family but rejected it and became an atheist

war photographer context

published in 1985- 20 years after the vietnam war where the poem is set

alludes to the photo of the girl in a napalm attack - photo which caused protests and campaigns against the war

message of war photographer

humankind has become desensitized to human suffering and affects of warzones

wants the audience to take action and realise suffering

themes of war photographer

ptsd / memories of war

internal conflict

desensitization

dissociation

religious imagery

techniques / structure

abbcdd rhyme scheme - ordered chaos

cyclical structure - repetition and futility of his job

volta

sibilance

"as though... he a priest preparing to intone a Mass"

simile

His work is compared to that of a priest spreading the word of god- shows his important mission to preach the truth of warzones

shows how he turned to religion to help him cope

"spools of suffering set out in ordered rows"

sibilance mirroring the repetitive, meticulous arrangement of the canisters of film.

creates a sinister tone

The "ordered rows" may be the photographer's way of getting some order into his life which is usually chaotic and disorderly due to his job.

May also create an image of mass graves, ranks of soldiers creating a symbolic link to the horrors of war which are depicted on the films themselves.

"all flesh is grass"

Biblical reference - human life is transient and brief whereas the word of God is eternal- shows how the public views their life as unimportant

flesh and dead bodies are as common as grass - brutality of war

circle of life

"he has a job to do"

Simple sentence and Ambiguity

Literally refers to the job of developing the photographs but also refers to his overall job of war photography.

Short, simple and blunt: reflecting the blunt, matter of fact approach the photographer has to work with.

justifies not helping those in suffering as it is his "job"

tries to detach his emotions from the task

"solutions slop in trays"

the word "slop" connotes that it is messy, that there is no easy fix to war, the symbolism of the solutions in trays being uncontrollable and messy mirrors the idea Duffy is trying to convey that the war photographer can't control war, despite trying to help there isn't much that can be done by one person

"solutions" refer to how his work could have the power to bring about political change but people "do not care"

sibilance demonstrates harsh and sinister atmosphere

"hands, which did not tremble then // but seem to now"

PTSD

is only now able to process the trauma of what he's gone through

effect of warzones

flashbacks - memories and pictures won't leave his mind

shows how people in warzones can't help or get involved, but those at home can

"fields which don't explode"

juxtaposition of the luxury of rural countries that aren't affected by war and therefore do not care- disgusted and permanently affected by what he's seen

"half-formed ghost"

Metaphor - Image is faint as it is developing so too does a ghost have a fluid shape. Ghost haunts his memories

loss of identity

not remembered - one of the many he was not able to help or save - trauma

"from the aeroplane he stares impassively at where // he earns his living and they do not care"

accusatory tone

cyclical structure- futility and repetition

evokes guilt into the reader

critisizes those who are desensitized by war

who wrote bayonet charge

Ted Hughes

ted hughes context

his father and uncle fought in the war and his whole family was deeply affected by war

never fought in the war

Ted Hughes was brought up in the countryside and had a passion for nature

married to sylvia plath and used animal imagery- part of the hawn in the rain collection

bayonet charge context

published in 1957

set during ww1

ww1 resulted in 20 million deaths, soldiers were told it would be over by christmas and it lasted 4 more years

the public began to question the purpose of war

hughes was inspired by wilfred owen

themes of bayonet charge

animals being the victims of war

futility of war

ptsd

reality of war

desensitisation

impact of war on family

structure

free verse- mimicks the chaotic atmosphere of war

third person- isolates the soldier to show his individual experience and exaggerates his isolation

in media res- chaotic action of war

"suddenly he awoke"

Sounds as if he's in a confused, vulnerable state. The events seem like a nightmare, but this confirms that they're real.

shocking the reader straight into the chaos of battle

"awoke" could mean he has become aware to the reality and futility of war

"patriotic tear that had brimmed in his eye"

conflict of the soldier as he wanted to brave and do what's right and the harsh reality of war and fear which is destroying him

soldiers are placed under the spell of patriotism, honour and pride and war which wear off when exposed to battle

no longer by protected by the safety of propaganda being able to live in denial of the reality of war

"a rifle numb as a smashed arm"

lack of empathy and desensitized to injury

shows how he feels useless and unprepared for combat

feels disconnected to killing and violence, also connotes to him not fully experiencing war

violence makes him feels numb

he feels desensitized, commenting on how was causes soldiers to become tools and killing machines, and how nature is the victim.

"cold clockwork of the stars"

"was he the hand pointing that second?"

allitteration mimicks the sound of cogs

soldiers begin questioning fate and what has brought them to this moment- whether it was fate, choice or forced

their lives are meaningless and soldiers are treated like machines

rhetorical question reflects him questioning the purpose of war

//"threw up a yellow hare"

"its mouth wide, open silent"

hare represents the soldiers unrelenting sufferring

explores the effect on nature and innocent beings

war causes soldiers to revert to their animalistic tendancies and abandon their luxuries

highlights the injustice of war as innocent beings are experiencing pain and violence

"king, honour, human dignity, etcetera // dropped like luxuries in a yelling alarm"

asyndetic listing

honourable and patriotic values are abandoned when faced with the reality of war

his humanity and innocence has left him in order to fight

personification

"his terror's touchy dynamite"

PTSD

his mental health could explode at any time, similar to a battlefield

"he"

3rd person - detatchment from how hughes understands war as he's never been to war

dehumanisation of soldiers and loss of identity

themes

animal imagery

ptsd

power of nature

reality and futility of war

dehumanisation

who wrote the charge of the light brigade?

Alfred, Lord Tennyson

context of tennyson

was poet laureate in order to glorify war and the monarchy

had an unhappy abusive childhood

1850-1892

the crimean war

fought between britain (ottoman empire) and russia

1853-1856

russia lost

unpopular with britain and it was unnecessary and resulted in many innocent deaths

due to miscommnication, soldiers were ordered to ride directly into a valley of russian guns resulting in hundreds of deaths

the war resulted in 300000 deaths total

themes of the charge of the light brigade

patriotism

remembrance and honour

authority mistakes

lack if individualism

structure of the charge of the light brigade

-Rhythm reflects horses hoofs (dactyllic diametre)

-Chronological structure

-No definitive rhyme structure reflects chaos of battle

-negative biblical imagery

-euphamisms and metaphores to disguise the brutality of war

-change in rhythmn, draws attention to leadership mistake

ballard form - story to remember

"valley of death"

biblical reference

metaphor

ironic as it talks about protection from god

low status soldiers were forced to engage in conflict as they were seen as disposable

sybolises the inevitability of war and death

"horse and hero fell"

ambiguity

doesn't explicitly refer to death to avoid presenting the harsh reality of war

falling of soldiers is reflected by the falling of the rhythmn

"mouth of hell"

metaphor/ personification

claustrophobic connotations

alludes to how patriotism is inescapable

alludes to roman soldier curtis who heroically rode into the mouth of hell, sacrificed himself and saved rome

references jesus' sacrifice for our sins

"honour the light brigade// noble six hundred!"

The imperative shows that Tennyson makes a final judgement ordering people that the soldiers and their bravery should be honoured

passion of patriotism

600- dehumanising their individuality

"stormed at with shot and shell"

alliteration

sensory language

sibilance

mimicks the sounds of battle

who wrote kamikaze?

Beatrice Garland

context beatrice garland

written for "fireworks" collection of poems about how mankind has become a threat to nature

When writing the poem Kamikaze, she was inspired into looking into the motivations as to why people wanted to die for their country.

set in ww2 but written in 2013

kamikaze context

- Based on the imagined story of a Japanese kamikaze pilot during WW2- personal and intimate

- Expected to fly suicide missions = dying is the ultimate honor and fulfillment of duty, not dying is cowardly

-those in power thought it was the only way to prevent japan from losing the war- japanese people could never surrender

- 'Conflict is personal as well as national'

- Japan = 'land of rising sun', sun on flag used by military forces

techniques kamikaze

written in third person from the daughters perspective - sense of detachment and separation from the father he was, as though she's telling a story

free verse- how he wants to be free from government control

shift in narration (volta)

each stanza begins with an enjambment until the volta- shows shift in mood replicating how he came back but is still seperated

6 lines per stanza- tight military control

themes of kamikaze

control of those in power

societal expectations of patriotism

internal conflict

conflict between country, patriotism, family, and nature

power of nature

memory

identity

futility of listening to corrupt leaders as JAPAN LOST THE WAR AND SURRENDERED

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

"he" - sense of detachment from his family and the patriotic values of society

he's left with a life of isolation and loneliness despite turning back to have a loving life with his family

ultimate punishment and guilt- he no longer exists as a respectable person

dying with honour would have been better- futility and inevitable fate - suggests how patriotism and conflict denies humanity with enjoyment of life and nature

controlled by indoctrination and patriotism either way

a tuna, the dark prince, muscular, dangerous.

TUNA REPRESENTS THE POWER OF NATURE

Dark imagery.

This hints of the more powerful, even predatory side of nature, and perhaps the darker end to the poem.

Imbalance of power between humanity and nature. Even a kamikaze pilot - the epitome of bravery - sense the danger of it. Pilot (symbol of military power and determination) is not the most dangerous thing in the poem - a fish is! Metaphor - it is a prince - important and significant - deserving of respect and honour (like a soldier) Emphasise its significance by using first punctuation in poem (first full stop) Signal it is deserving of notice.

human life is small and incomparable to the power of nature- it made him turn back

"cairns of pearl- grey pebbles"

Imagery implies a memorial or gravestone, foreshadowing the end of the pilot's life as he knows it.

even though he is alive, just thinking about abandoning patriotism turns him into a ghost

cairn building represents hope and relationships- how he would've been treated if he died with honour.

pearls symbolise purity and innocence- shows how he will die a "good" death if he completes his mission- glamorises the death

"a one way journey into history"

Painful irony to his search for remembrance Sought death to be remembered and immortalised by respect.

knows he's about to die

Metaphor.

This is indicative of the significance of the act and the honour it could bring him forever

"like a huge flag...in a figure of eight the dark shoals of fishes"

simile- flag shows patriotism and honour for his country and how it will last till infinity

could relate to how he will forever be either remembered nobely or forever shunned

infinity of the fishes represent the eternal and all- powerful nature of nature in comparison to the transience of human life.

sibilance creates a soft calming mood and creates the idea of peace and how kamikaze missions will cause peace and the end of war, aswell as the grace of nature

"nor did she meet his eyes"

Wouldn't "meet his eyes" - eyes are the windows to the soul. Doesn't want to see the person he has become - ashamed of her own husband. OR doesn't want to face what she is doing - feels guilty - painful to give up her husband but has no choice because her culture demands it.

loss of identity and shunned forever more

one persons dishonour stains the whole family- government affect.

what is the message of kamikaze?

criticism of war and propaganda-/ war splits families apart / international conflict causes inner conflict

poppies author

Jane Weir

jane weir context

born in 1962

lived in northen ireland during the troubles in the 80s

had two sons

is a textile designer

poppies context

- Published in a 2009 collection of war poems commissioned by Carol Ann Duffy as a response to the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq (exit wounds)

- Addresses female, motherly experience

- Was inspired to write by mothers who had lost sons in wars, particularly SUSAN OWEN (Wilfred Owen - Exposure)

themes of poppies

how conflict affects family and loved ones, government control, memories/ internal conflict, rememberence

techniques

dramatic monologue- emphesizes mother's loneliness

free verse- uncensored, raw emotions

cyclical structure- repeated grief and memories

enjambment- her memories are fragmented as she loses touch with her son, how the mother is breaking

"graze my nose"

"sellotape bandaged around my hand"

juxtaposes motherly affection to violent war imagery- shows how war affects those left behind and prevents normal domestic lives

"i was brave"

- The mother asserting her bravery here and subverts the idea that it's only those who are brave who go to war

- Reminiscent of a solider

- Links the soldier to the mother - shows how those at home are also affected by conflict

"dove pulled freely"

juxtaposition - mum's resistance to letting him go - peace at last

"turned into felt, slowly meling"

textile references, shows how the mother is breaking

Armistice Sunday'

the closest Sunday to November 11th, Remembrance Day, chosen because WWI ended on 11/11/1918; it began as a way of marking the end of the first world war; it was set up to remember the 100s of 1000s of ordinary men who had been killed in war

... poppies had already been placed'

the adverb 'already' suggests that the speaker did not want to see the poppies because they remind her of the loss of her son, who was replaced by a poppy

... poppies had already been placed / on individual war graves' -

while the public lays 'poppies ... on on individual war graves', the speaker suffers alone but there is a suggestion that the ones placing the poppies are also family members of other who have died in the wars

'war memorial' and 'war grave'

perhaps another allusion to Wilfred Owen, who, in his early years, wanted to earn himself an eventual memorial in Westminster Abbey's Poet's Corner; he got the war memorial in Westminster Abbey but Weir suggests that it is in many ways, worthless when compared to the pain the mother feels when she remembers the day he left

steeled the softening / of my face.'

a metaphor illustrating her trying to keep her suffering to herself

slowly melting'

metaphor, expressing her feelings when her son left, suggests she was struggling to hold herself together

threw / it open,'

the verb 'threw' suggests anger, desperation and resignation

intoxicated'

an allusion to the deceptive effects of propaganda, particularly of WW1 and WW2, which painted war as exciting, adventurous and honourable, comparable to '... a shaven head / full of powerful incantations' in Garland's poem 'Kamikaze'

'After you'd gone I went into your bedroom, / released a song bird from its cage'

alludes to Wilfred Owen's very first poem in the selection 'On my Songs', which was, the nineteen-year-old Owen explained to his mother, about his hoped-for 'flight... from overbearing elders'

paper red'

syntactic inversion emphasises that the poppy worn on Remembrance Day is nothing but a piece of paper in red colour, a piece of propaganda that does nothing to ease the suffering of grieving mothers, and in fact intensifies the pain when they remember that their sons were tricked into war and sacrificed their lives for futility

'I wanted to graze my nose / across the tip of your nose, play at / being Eskimos like we did when / you were little'

she remembers how she had to resist treating him like a baby because to her, he was always her baby, even when he became an adult; ironic because he was naive was to the realities of war when he left

I listened, hoping to hear / your playground voice catching on the wind'

the ending of the poem suggests that the speaker is struggling to let go of her son, and there is no end in sight for her grief

Title

may refer to the remains of the dead man, the remains of the haunting memory or the remains of his own life that is riddled with guilt.

colloquial language

'legs it' and 'mates' is colloquial language- the poem is anecdotal and gives sense the speaker is directly telling us his story.

'On another occasion'

suggests this account is not the only unpleasant account the soldier has in his memory

'Well myself and somebody else and somebody else'

the soldiers are nameless and in many ways identical. the use of somebody else suggests that these could be any men, as if the soldiers are as disposable as the looter they have killed. the lack of names makes them anonymous and perhaps suggests that this is the way they are regarded by others.

'are all of the same mind'

the soldiers work under orders as if they have been trained/ programmed to behave in this way and don't think as individuals.

tenses

shifts from past to present tense in the first stanza, this adds immediacy to the narrative.

'rips through his life'

theme of life and death- life for the looter is instantly and brutally ended. the way the speaker sees broad daylight on the other side suggests the speed that life can be taken

'probably armed, possibly not'

relates to the theme of guilt - the speaker is haunted by guilt - this phrase is repeated in the poem, emphasizing the speakers sense of discomfort at having killed another human being.

brutal depiction of killing

'rips through his life' and 'sort of inside out'- brutal depiction of the killing- conveys the disturbance and trauma he feels.

reference to Macbeth

'Sleep' and 'my bloody hands'- alludes to Shakespeare's Macbeth- references to sleep and bloody hands. 'Macbeth doth murder sleep' and 'out damned spot'.

the soldiers disregard for human life

'tosses his guts back into his body'- the soldiers have a disregard for human life.

form

the poem is a monologue and has the feel of fast paced natural speech. no regular rhythmic pattern and there's enjambment between stanzas- adds a sense of someone telling a story naturally.

last stanza

2 lines- stands out- emphasizing that the speaker cannot rid himself of the memory. could imply disintegration in the speakers state of mind.

context

the reference to 'desert sand' in this poem suggests that it reflects the experiences of soldiers in the Gulf war.

theme of conflict

conflict - 'sent out' suggests the speaker is engaged in combat in another country under orders- it is dry and dusty, reminding the reader of images of war.

what are the themes in Remains?

effects of conflict

reality of conflict

memory

guilt

individual experiences

emigree author

carol rumens

carol rumens context

borrn in london- loved it

not an emigree

was inspired by everyone she met

written in the 90s during many civil wars eg, el salvador, guatamala, liberia

leaves the person and cities anonymous to capturer the universal experience of emigrants having to leave their country

the emigree context

- Travelled widely in war-torn eastern European countries

- Inspired by people forced to flee these countries

- Rejecting dictatorship and oppressive state control

- Bases on people emigrating from countries like Russia or the Middle East where people are fleeing corruption and tyranny, or those countries change in their absence to some from of dictatorship.

from the collection "thinking of skins" which focuses on political consciousness and the relationship between identity and culture

title

the contrast between the english "the" and the french "emigree" shows the theme of identity and feeling torn between places

conflicting cultures and identities

themes in the emigree

Loss and absence

memory

identity

individual experience

powerlessness of emigrants

power of memories

effects of war

internal conflict

futility of war and leadership

message of the emigree

emigrees lose their identity and the effects of war stick with you

its not just soldiers that are affected by war

structure of the emigree

first person- isolation and dissociation

no uniform rhythmn- feels lost away from her country, shows chaos in a city without a stable government

enjambment- fragmented state of mind and separation from her city

caesura- broken memories and disconnection

elipsis- power of memories, able to retirn to her childhood like a story

motif of sunlight- epistophe

gustatory imagery

shows how her memories of the city are clear and pure

romanticising the city in a heavenly light

similarly to the sun- her love for her country is permanent is permanent and never- fading

"there once was a country... i left it as a child"

-Ellipses creates a caesura, indicating flashback/memory.

-Once suggest that the place is now forgotten so it is idealized and she is clinging to a memory

-fantastical, idealised tone

-may be romanticising it using a childish view, unreliable memories

"it may be sick with tyrants"

subjunctive case

Personification of the city.

Emphasises the strength of her dislike for the people currently controlling the city.

"may" - in denial

cannot imagine her city being anything but perfect

"but i am branded with an impression of sunlight"

''but'' shows that she's confident in her opinion, metaphor ''branded'' suggests that it doesn't matter what people tell her about her home she will always have positive memories and hope ''branded'' could suggest that there's a sense of unease, undertone of pain. syntax- ''branded'' comes before ''sunlight'' and gives us negative connotations. ''branded'' means you are marked suggests that it could be hurting her.

feels conflicted but will forever love her country, no matter how much it hurts her to love it

"child's vocabulary i carried here"

she has brought her home language with her

the narrator has missed out on her childhood so she carries her child-like naivety with her