bayonet charge Flashcards
what is the overall theme of bayonet charge and when is it set
set in ww1 and the experiences of the soldiers in the trenches
what was Ted Hughes main purpose when writing it?
to highlight the brutality of life in the trenches and warn future generations
what does the free verse structure of the poem suggest?
the sense of chaos and unpredictability, mirroring the battlefield
what do the varying line lengths throughout the poem suggest as well as enjambment and caesuras
change in speed of the solider as he runs through the trenches and reacts to changes in the environment as well as his panic and the chaotic nature of war
did ted hughes fight in the war?
no, he grew up in the post war era and therefore heard stories and saw firsthand the effects that conflict had on people and families
what does the symbolism of the ‘yellow hare’ represent and how does it relate to hughes’s education?
he studied mythology
the hare represents the soldiers stricken comrades
what does the consonance ‘hot khaki, his sweat heavy’ suggest about the soldiers?
that they felt a sense of urgency or perhaps they were tired (h sound sounds like ahead breaths) which shows how physically draining war can be
what does the zoomorphism of the soliders, such as ‘crawled’ and ‘it’ suggest about their physical state
they are just trying to survive like animals and they are hurt and weak and showing desperation. may also show childlike characteristics and how they are still reliant on mother nature, which could emphasise the huge physical and emotional pressure put on soldiers at a young age
‘his terrors touchy dynamite’
what does the concluding line and metaphor suggest about how the soldiers are viewed by military leaders or themselves?
soldiers see themselves as a weapon to be used, dehumanised and discarded, rather than treated like a person, used for physical labour. the alliteration of the letter ‘t sounds like a ticking timer, suggesting they are close to their timer going off and being killed in battle, or from the physical impacts
