Bayonet Charge

Question 1

“Suddenly he awoke and was running — raw”

Answer 1

• The abrupt awakening of the soldier in media res signifies the sudden immersion into the chaos of war.
• It portrays the rawness of fear and the disorientation experienced in battle.

Question 2

“Bullets smacking the belly out of the air —

He lugged a rifle numb as a smashed arm;”

Answer 2

• Hughes personifies the bullets as violent and terrifying, attacking the air, suggesting that nature is also a victim in war.
• The increasing weight of the soldier’s rifle, described with a powerful simile, symbolises his changing feelings towards war.

Question 3

“The patriotic tear that had brimmed in his eye

Sweating like molten iron from the centre of his chest,—”

Answer 3

Hughes explores the idea of the loss of patriotism via the “patriotic tear”, suggesting that the sense of loyalty and idealism the soldier previously is now felt painfully, metaphorically “molten ore”.

Question 4

“In bewilderment then he almost stopped —”

Answer 4

• Hughes illustrates the soldier’s existential crisis amidst the chaos of battle.
• The soldier’s momentary halt reflects his confusion as he questions his purpose in the war.

Question 5

“Threw up a yellow hare that rolled like a flame

And crawled in a threshing circle, its mouth wide

Open silent, its eyes standing out.”

Answer 5

The image of the terrified hare symbolises the innocent victims of war, highlighting the brutality and devastation inflicted upon both humans and the natural world.

Question 6

“His terror’s touchy dynamite.”

Answer 6

• The soldier’s anxiety is likened to volatile dynamite, emphasising the explosive nature of fear in combat.
• It underscores the psychological toll of war on individual soldiers.

Question 7

“Was he the hand pointing that second?”

Answer 7

• The soldier questions his role in the grand scheme of war, pondering the arbitrary nature of his actions and the forces that dictate them.
• Hughes critiques the dehumanisation of soldiers.

Question 8

“King, honour, human dignity, etcetera

Dropped like luxuries in a yelling alarm”

Answer 8

• Hughes portrays the soldier’s abandonment of lofty ideals in the frantic pursuit of survival.
• This highlights the harsh reality of war, where ideals crumble in the face of immediate peril.

Question 9

“… his foot hung like

Statuary in mid-stride …”

Answer 9

• The soldier’s halted movement, likened to a statue, symbolises the profound existential crisis he faces in the midst of battle.
• Hughes critiques the senselessness of war and the loss of agency experienced by soldiers.

Question 10

“To get out of that blue crackling air”

Answer 10

• The soldier’s desperate desire to escape the chaos of battle is vividly depicted by Hughes.
• The imagery of “blue crackling air” conveys the visceral intensity and danger of warfare.