Exposure Flashcards
(13 cards)
1
Q
Who was Exposure written by?
A
Wilfred Owen
2
Q
What is the structure of exposure?(3)
A
- Eight stanzas of five lines
- ABBAC rhyme scheme
- Cyclical structure
3
Q
What do the eight stanzas of five lines show?
A
- Cyclical and repetitive structure - endless suffering and waiting endured
- Final line is often blunt or empty - mental and emotional collapse of the soldiers
4
Q
What does the ABBAC rhyme scheme show?
A
- Uses near-rhymes(knife and knives)
- Reflects unease and disorientation of war
- Builds anticipation
5
Q
What does the cyclical structure show?
A
- Mimics the mental state of the soldiers
- Stuck in a loop of misery and decaying slowly
6
Q
What are the themes of this poem?(3)
A
- Misery and futility of war
- Nature as the true enemy
- Psychological effects of war
7
Q
How is the theme of misery and futility of war explored?
A
- “What are we doing here?” contemplate whether their suffering is in vain
- “nothing happens” emphasises futility and stagnation
8
Q
How is the theme of nature as the enemy explored?
A
- Soldiers’ vulnerability is contrasted with the resilience of the natural wolrd
- Weather causes more damage to soldiers than combat
9
Q
How is the theme of psychological impact explored?
A
- Soldiers experience fear, confusion and despair
- Seek solace in memories and dreams but there is no escape from the horrors of battle
10
Q
“Our brains ache in the merciless iced east winds that knive us”
A
- Sibilance mimics sharp, slicing sound of the wind - physically painful and haunting
- Personification of the wind as a violent attacker - nature is aggressively hostile
- “our” creates unity among soldiers and shared suffering
11
Q
“Less deadly than the air that shudders black with snow”
A
- Personification of the air “shudders” - nature is traumatised
- “Black” associated with death, “snow” is expected to be associated with peace and beauty
- Expected associations with reality inforces the distorted, hopeless world the soldiers live in
12
Q
“Slowly our ghosts drag home”
A
- Metaphor - soldiers are already like ghosts - dehumanised and drained
- “Drag” implies exhaustion and hopelessness as if returning home has lost its meaning
- Survival doesn’t feel like living anymore
- Hollow and despairing tone
13
Q
What is the context for this poem?
A
- Wilfred Owen fought in WW1 - exposes the harsh realities of war
- Critiques how soldiers were neglected and left to suffer and die because of the brutal conditions
- Gives poem a raw, authentic voice speaking for psychological trauma
