Poetry: Lament

Question 1

Lament

Repetetitive Pattern at the start of every stanza

Answer 1

’ For the’ - at the start of every stanza
- establishes the extent of the mourning and damage as it is repeated so many times
- this makes it seem like there has been infinite amounts of damage done

Question 1

Lament

Progression of Lament from Start to finish

Answer 1

Start of the poem:
‘For the green turtle with her pulsing burden:’
the end of the poem:
‘For vengeance, and the ashes of language’

• as the poem progresses there is more death and the consequences of war go from being relatively small to extreme
• presents how war is uncontrollable and extremely destructive

Question 2

Lament

Description of Cormorant (bird) after the war

Line 4

Answer 2

’ the cormorant in his funeral silk/ the veil of iridescence on the sand’
- visual imagery using positive/good/luxurious material silk to reveal something lethal/bad
- deathly image of funeral gives hopelessness to cormorants situation
- historical context, crude oil spills in Iraq

Question 3

Lament

Language Destruction

Line 21

Answer 3

‘the ashes of language’
- end of the poem, no more words to describe war
- war has used up all the grief of the people
- ‘Ashes of Language’ presents on apolapytic tone to war and how it can destroy everything even words

Question 4

Lament

Description of the effect of the war on the ocean

Line 7

Answer 4

‘For the ocean’s lap with its mortal stain’
- ‘mortal’ in this context means deadly presenting how the effects of war are irreversible
- Furthermore it personifies the ocean making the reader empathise with it

Question 5

LAMENT

Description of the oil in the sand

Line 5-6

Answer 5

‘the veil of iridescence on the sand,the shadow on the sea’
- shadows are black they block the sun from the sea, so the air is black with smoke - LNK to 700 oil well set alight in Kuwait
- shadow - you cant run away from you shadow emphasing the extent of waste and destruction

Question 6

Lament

Describing numerous number of animals that have been affected by war

Line 13-15

Answer 6

‘For the hook-beaked turtles,
the dugong and the dolphin,
the whale struck dumb by the missile’s thunder’
- shocking imagery of a creature that is smart and normally sings being ‘struck dumb’
- A list of multiple,innocent animals here siggests there are far more species that she can mention emphasing the extent of the damage on nature

Question 7

LAment

turtle start of the poem

Line 1

Answer 7

‘pulsing burden’
- continous verb ‘pulsing’ has connotations of life through the rhythm of heart beat builds a sense or urgency. ‘burden’ adds conflict
- images mirroring our responsibility but also to the environemnt.
- -personification of the turtle makes it more emotuve

Question 8

Lament

When the author describes the different people that are involved in the war

Line 10

Answer 8

‘the gunsmith and the armourer’
- juxtaposition of both ends of the war
- gunsmith makes weapons, armourer defends against weapons
- damaging to all sides

Question 9

Lament

Description of the natural features of the earth

Line 20

Answer 9

‘Scalded Ocean’, ‘Blazing Well’
- Juxtaposition of water and fire show how war is unnatural as it causes the clashing of nature