Kamikaze Flashcards
1
Q
What is Kamikaze about?
A
- A daughter is reflecting on the life of, and her relationship with her father who was a Kamikaze pilot in the Second World War
- Her father turned back & did not carry out his suicide mission
- Upon returning he was shunned by & cut off from his community
- He was shamed for cowardice & not dying in support of his country
2
Q
What is the contextual significance of Beatrice Garland?
A
- British Poet
- Thus, she was not writing based on her own experience
- This is typical of her work, as it often involves immersing herself within someone else’s perspective
3
Q
What is the contextual significance of Japan?
A
- Japan’s military attitudes were founded on codes of honour & self sacrifice
- These stemmed from the tradition of the samurai warrior, making the sword a pertinent symbol within the poem
4
Q
What quote reflects patriotism, honour & shame?
A
- “like a huge flag”
- simile
- describes the movement of fish
5
Q
How does “like a huge flag” reflect patriotism, honour & shame?
A
- Allusion to the flag of Japan -> even nature is viewed through a patriotic lens
- Patriotism defined their whole world view & society were marionettes of traditional socio-political beliefs
- A marionette is a puppet on strings
6
Q
How does “like a huge flag” alternatively reflect patriotism, honour & shame?
A
- Alternatively, the waving of a flag is reminiscent of an act of surrender
- This dichotomy of meaning explores the pilot’s, internal divisions, as he is driven by apparent patriotism & a yearning to concede
- Dichotomy meaning a division between two opposing things
7
Q
What quote reflects conflicted identities?
A
“full of powerful incantations”
8
Q
How does “full of powerful incantations” reflect conflicted identities?
A
- The poem’s soundscape is punctuated by fricative ‘f’ sounds
- Possesses undertones of aggression
- This aggression is conflicted, in one sense it explores the aggression that a soldier entering a war must exhibit, but alternatively could also be aggression towards his leaders who have been brainwashed into completing the suicide mission
9
Q
What are the two pieces of form in the poem?
A
- Perspective shifts
- Sestets
10
Q
Why has Garland used perspective shifts?
A
- Kamikaze falls within the category of war poetry that explores the experience of those left behind, the people that didn’t fight
- Although it is written from the daughter’s perspective, the third-person narrative establishes a sense of detachment
- This mirrors both the detachment the daughter feels from her father & the detachment those left behind feel from the soldiers who experienced the war first-hand
- The reader is prompted to pity this unexpectedly obscure narrative to describe what would typically be an intimate relationship- the negative effects of war endured socially, politically & emotionally for generations to come
11
Q
Why has Garland used sestets?
A
- The poem is divided into sestets (stanzas of 6 lines) which can be grouped in two
- The first 5 describe the story of her father’s mission, it moves linearly & enjambment is common which creates a sense of speed & momentum
- Yet, the final two stanzas explore his return, this compresses the years after his return to be far shorter than his flight that would’ve happened within minutes or hours
- The seriousness of his decision within that one moment cut his life short
12
Q
What is the structural significance of the lack of rhyme scheme?
A
- The absence of rhyme presents the poem in a prosaic manner (unpoetic it the way it was written)
- This serves to mimic it being told orally as a story to the daughter’s children, it also strays from any romantic flourishes that could glorify the notion of war
- It is told simplistically & factually to allow emotion to shine through & make shifts such as the change in perspective more apparent & unsettling
