Poppies Flashcards
Who wrote poppies?
Jane weir
What is poppies about?
A dramatic monologue about a mother who has to say goodbye to her son who is joining the army
How does poppies begin?
A mother noticing 3 days before remembrance day that people had already begun laying poppies on graves of dead soldiers
“Three days before Armistice Sunday and poppies had already been placed”
How is ambiguity shown in poppies?
Ambiguity - the quality of being open to more than one interpretation
We do not know if the narrators son is dead or perhaps still at war
Poppies looks at the effects of war from the perspective of who?
People who are not themselves at war
How is poppies presented as a dramatic monologue?
The poem focuses on a single person giving a speech to a silent listener. But the speaker is not the poet. Weir is writing from the perspective of someone else.
Who is poppies addressed to?
The speakers son, the soldier. Through personal pronouns,’you’ we never hear from the person spoken to
Where does the mother follow a dove to?
A war memorial. She leans on it, hoping to hear her sons voice
“Later a single dove flew from the pair tree”
“I listened, hoping to hear your playground voice catching on the wind”
What gives the audience a sense of loss from the mothers perspective in poppies?
Dramatic monologue form highlights the fact that the son is not there.
Why does poppies lack organisation?
Because the mother is completely absorbed with the terrifying thoughts of her son
Poppies is written in free verse. What does this mean?
It does not rhyme and has no regular rhythm
What does the chaotic structure of poppies represent?
Reflects the chaotic impact of confluct on those at home
What quote from poppies shows the speaker being brave?
“I was brave as i walked with you”
The mother asserting her bravery here subverts the idea that its only those who go to war who are brave
What quote from poppies gives the speaker a domestic, motherly image?
“Smoothed down your shirts upturned collar”
This may be the last time she can do this for her son
Poppies
What does “spasms of red paper” suggest?
Spasms - violent, uncontrollable action
Paper - fragile, breakable. Used to write letters
Red - blood, war, but also love
