Poetry - the man he killed Flashcards
(13 cards)
What are the linked poems and how are each connected?
Both The Man He Killed and The Charge of the Light Brigade explore the theme of war but in different perspectives. Hardy presents the futility of war through a soldier’s regretful reflection on killing a man who he could’ve been friends with. However, Tennyson glorifies the bravery and duty of soldiers who follow orders despite facing certain death, highlighting patriotism and honour.
Who’s the author?
Thomas Hardy
What’s the overall idea?
It explores the futility and absurdity of war by portraying a soldier’s reflection on killing another man, who was not fundamentally different to each over and, under different circumstances, could have been friends.
When was it written?
1902 - after the 2nd Boer war.
What’s the narrative perspective and why?
The dramatic monologue allows the poem to focus on the soldier’s individual experience of killing and the emotional consequences of his actions.
What’s the rhyme scheme and why?
ABAB rhyme scheme showcase how he has no control over his own actions.
What is the form?
Dramatic monologue. The poem follows a quatrain structure (four-line stanzas). The poem’s form allows for a conversational tone, as if the speaker is recounting his experience to an audience.
What’s the context?
Hardy explored the futility of war and was inspired by the 2nd Boer war. He was an anti - war poet from Dorset.
We should have sat us down to wet right many a nipperkin
This introduces the dramatic monologue, giving the poem a conversational feel. This magnifies the similarities between the opponents and how we have never considered the lives of the “enemy”. (difference)
But ranged as infantry
The mood rapidly shifts into something more sinister. It dehumanises the soldiers as they are used as tools to continue the war. The conjunction “but” jolts the reader back to the reality of war and makes them question if any man really had choices in war. (similarity)
killed him in his place
Represents the unsettling simplicity of war, suggesting its almost natural to the soldiers. It also alludes to their lack of control as they couldn’t think, only shoot. The anonymity of the soldier furthers the idea they are just tools used in war.
I shot him dead because - because he was my foe
Hardy cleverly uses repetition of ‘because’ to indicate the soldier’s doubt because to the audience, it sounds like he was stuttering. The caesura with a dash highlights his thought process, his mind questioning why he shot the man. He simply repeats what he has been told by senior officers, magnifying his loss of control and the futility of war.
No other reason why.
This short sentence magnifies the futility of war. EMBED THIS QUOTE.
