The Consequences of Conflict (Poppies)

What Were They Like

• Silence: “There is an echo yet of their speech which was like a song”, “It is silent now”, “laughter is bitter to the burned mouth”

• Pain: “their children were killed”, “All the bones were charred”, “there was time only to scream”

• Nature (Flight/ Change): “delight in blossom…there were no more buds”, “peaceful clouds were reflected in the paddies”, “flight of moths in moonlight”

Poppies

• Silence: “”I listened, hoping to hear your playground voice catching on the wind”, “released a song bird from its cage”

• Pain: “sellotape bandaged around my hand”, “I wanted to graze my nose”, “blackthorns of your hair”

• Nature (Flight/ Change): “released a song bird from its cage”, “a single dove flew from the pear tree”, “the dove pulled freely against the sky”

Differences

• Poppies present the consequences of Conflict as personal, using pronouns such as “you”, “I” and “we”

• What were they like presents consequences of Conflict as general, using pronouns such as “they”, and “there”