Bayonet Charge

Question 1

“suddenly he awake and was running- raw/ In raw-seamed hot khaki”

Answer 1

“suddenly he awoke”

• adverb creates panic, a fast pace
• in media res- we experience the action with the soldier
• demonstrates how unpredictable war is
• juxtaposition between peace and action is harrowing for the soldiers

“raw”

• repetition of simplistic language
• experience is so horrific that there is an inability to express it

Question 2

“bullets smacking the belly out of the air”

Answer 2

• personifcation and onomatopoeia
• describes the impact of the sound of the shots
• suggests even the air is being damaged and torn apart

Question 3

“the patriotic tear that had brimmed in his eye”

Answer 3

juxtaposition between “patriotic” and “tear”

• implies that there is a societal pressure to put yourself through such a traumatic experience
• this gives the idea that patriotism only leads to misery

“brimmed”
this verb describes a struggle to show emotion- further revealing the pressure on the soliders in war

Ted Hughes may be critisising patriotic values as he had seen the lasting effects of war on his father

Question 4

“the patriotic tear that had brimmed in his eye”

Answer 4

juxtaposition between “patriotic” and “tear”

• implies that there is a societal pressure to put yourself through such a traumatic experience
• this gives the idea that patriotism only leads to misery

“brimmed”
this verb describes a struggle to show emotion- further revealing the pressure on the soliders in war

Ted Hughes may be critisising patriotic values as he had seen the lasting effects of war on his father

Question 5

“sweating like molten iron from the centre of his chest”

Answer 5

simile
-“sweating” suggests that there is panic and stress

the comparison of sweat and molten iron implies that he is burning and his sweat (fear) is weighing him down

• his efforts (sweat) have become weapons in the war, like the iron used to make swords.
• futility of war- the soldier’s efforts only continue a vicious cycle

Question 6

“King, honour, human dignity, etcetera/Dropped like luxuries”

Answer 6

“etcetera” downplays the value of these concepts- they were the reason the soldiers went to war in the first place
-also suggests that there were endless reasons to go to war- but they had been decieved

• similie “luxuries”
• hard to give up as they kept determined throughout the war
• they are frivolous once experiencing the reality of war

-ultimately war is futile as the soldiers lose everything including their values to just gain nothing