Poppies Flashcards
Jane Weir
Context:
1) war
2) status of weir
3) what is armistice day
This poem was written when British soldiers were fighting and dying in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. At the time the Poet Laureate (Carol Ann Duffy) asked a number of writers to write poems to try and reflect the pain caused by deaths in the conflicts. Jane Weir was one of those asked. She wrote this poem, which is set in the present but also reflects on the end of the First World War in 1918 and the beginning of the poppy tradition of remembrance.
Armistice Sunday began in Britain after the end of the First World War as a way of remembering all those who had died in the war. It has since grown into a national act of remembrance for all those who have fought and died in wars.
narrative
first perosn narrative- strong feeling of the mothers emotions
rhyme and rythm
none- sounds like thoughts and memories
sentences + punctuation
long sentences and enjambent show how she loses herself in memories of her son
causera- shows how she has to control her emotions-ultimately unsuccessful as we return to enjambent
order of poem
chronological order interspersed with memories of son- shows how she can never escape her son.
‘i———- war g—–’
Individual war graves
loss is personal, each death means someone will go through immsne pain and suffering- this is not how the people who are making decisions feel
‘b—— of y—— bias’
blockade of yellow bias
feels shut out from her son’s life
alt: the son has been transformed by military ideals
’s——’
‘b——-‘
spasms and bandaged
the violent and graphic imagery hints how she is fearful for her son- worrying
alt= what war will do to you
‘the g—— b——– of your h—’
The gelled blackthorns of your hair
biblical allusion- to Jesus’ curcifixion
Although, it could indicate the bravery of what her son will do, it also shows she is worried of her son’s fate as she believes that he is facing inevitable death, like Jesus- she is scared.
‘g—– my nose’
graze my nose
domestic nature of the mother’s memory emphasises the strength of memories even if the distance between the mother and son is great.
‘the world o——— like a t——- ch—’
The world overflowing like a treasure chest
shows the reality of war from the son’s perspective- all soldiers are filled with false hope.
‘r——– a s— b— from its c—’
released a song bird from its cage
metaphor for her son leaving- shows that she is setting her son free but alternatively could imply that the songbrid will never come back- reinforcing the eternal image of death
‘a s—– d—’
a single dove
dove= peace that the mother longs for- wants war to stop unlike the glorified ideals shown on propaganda
dove= also a symbol for mourning- indicating her son’s potential death
‘p——- v—– c—— on the wind’
playground voice catching on the wind
links her son leaving to going to school- wants to accept it
effects of conflict
impacts those who don’t fight
compare to war photographer
+ leads to inevitable death- blackthorns- JESUS- shows bravery of sacrifice of first like Jesus but really shows inevitability
+ war is unneccesary / overglorified - yellow bias- on face value shows she has been shut out, really shows how the military ideals have made world seem like a treasure chest
+ war is painful on those who don’t fight - causera- tries to control emotions + first person = emotion
+ stressful- fears for her son- dove; peace but also mourning (CONSTANTLY FEARING THE WORST) & also she ‘[hopes] to hear] son’s voice
