Mametz Wood

Question 1

Mametz Wood — Context:

Answer 1

• Owen Sheers grew up in Wales
• Mametz Wood was the scene of a battle during the Battle of the Somme in WWI.
• Soldiers of the Welsh Division were ordered to take Mametz Wood, with the generals thinking it would only take a few hours. It ended up lasting 5 days and there were 4,000 casualties, with 600 dead.
• The Welsh succeeded but their bravery was never truly acknowledged.
• Sheers visited Mametz Wood on the 85th anniversary of the battle, which inspired him to write the poem. He was struck by how remnants of the battle (wire, shells, bone) were still rising to the surface.

Question 2

Mametz Wood — Structure:

Answer 2

7 tercets.

The lines are uneven, emblematic of the uneven ploughed field/chits of bone rising from the ground.

Question 3

Mametz Wood — Rhyme:

Answer 3

No set rhyme scheme.

But there is a clear rhyme in the final stanza – “sung” and “tongues”. This gives a sense of closure at the soldiers being recognised and their deeds acknowledged.