Bayonet Charge Flashcards
(30 cards)
“Bullets smacking the…
belly out of the air-“
“he lugged a rifle…
numb as a smashed arm;”
“patriotic…
tear”
“A yellow hare that rolled like a flame…
and crawled into a threshing circle”
‘King, honour,…
human dignity, etcetera”
Who wrote this poem ?
Ted Hughes
What does this poem seem to about ?
A recount of one of his fathers stories at war
What did Ted Hughes do in the army ?
He was an RAF mechanic
What does the title ‘ Bayonet charge ‘ suggest ?
. Proper strategy
. Exciting and full of action
. Sword and the front of the gun
“Suddenly he awoke …
And was running “
What does the phrase ‘ Suddenly he awoke and was running ‘ suggest and what technique is used ?
In media res . Suggests that he is in a confused and vulnerable state . We are immediately thrown into the poem , just like he is thrown in to action .
What does the repetition of ‘ raw ‘ mean ?
Shows his discomfort / maybe as raw as in inexperienced / doesn’t feel like a soldier ?
What does the phrase ‘ Bullets smacking the belly out of the air ‘ suggest and what technique is used ?
Personification of the air shows the power of the bullet . ‘Smacking ‘ is also a violent verb
What does ‘ sweating like molten rock ‘ suggest and what technique is used ?
Patriotic ideals have turned to pain and suffering , its leaving him . Simile
What phrase pauses the action ?
‘In bewilderment then he almost stopped ‘
What technique is used in the phrase ‘ In what cold clockwork of the stars and the nations ‘ and what does it suggest ?
Metaphor , ‘ cold clockwork ‘ , harsh ‘c’sounds and shows that the government don’t care about them
‘In what cold clockwork …
Of the stars and the nations ‘
What does the phrase ‘ Was he the hand pointing to that second ‘ mean ?
Second hand on a clock is just like him , he doesn’t have control anymore
What is another quote that shows his lack of control . Starts with ‘ He was running like a man who has jumped up in …
The dark and runs listening between his footfalls for the reason of his still running ‘
At line 15 , what technique is used that ends his internal thought process ?
Caesura
What technique is used in the phrase ‘ Then the short slashed furrows threw up a yellow hare ‘ suggest ?
Sibilance shows a pace change and adds to the sounds of bullets
What does the repetition of ‘ green hedge ‘ in the poem suggest ?
Natural elements have become dangerous and just juxtaposes to war in general
’ King , honour , human dignity, etcetera . This is a list of what ?
Reasons some people might go to war . ‘Etcetera’ shows the lack of importance of it .
What does ‘ dropped like luxuries ‘ suggest ? . This comes right after ‘ King , honour , human dignity ‘ .
He throws them all away , he realises that it doesn’t matter anymore , it just matters to survive
