English - Power And Conflict poetry 📗 Flashcards
Who is the poet of the poem ‘Ozymandias’?
Percy Bysshe Shelley
What is the significance of the title ‘Remains’ by Simon Armitage?
It refers to the lasting impact of violence and war on individuals
In ‘Exposure’ by Wilfred Owen, what is the main focus of the poem?
The harsh realities of war and the suffering endured by the ambitious soldiers
What are the main themes in Ozymandias?
• The inevitable decline of those in power
• Power of nature is incomprehensible
• Criticism of tyranny
What does the inscription on the pedestal in Ozymandias say?
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings; Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
What is the significance of the broken statue in Ozymandias?
It symbolizes the transience (fleeting nature) of power and how egotism eventually humbles you
What is the setting of Ozymandias?
A desert landscape with a broken statue
What does the word ‘visage’ mean in the context of Ozymandias?
Face or facial expression
What historical figure inspired the character of Ozymandias in the poem?
Ramesses II, an Egyptian pharaoh
Key quotes in Ozymandias
• ‘I met a traveler’
• ‘sneer of cold command’
• ‘colossal wreck’
• ‘lone and level sands stretch far away’
• ‘the hand that mocked them’
Who is the author of the poem ‘London’?
William Blake
What are the main themes of the poem ‘London’?
• Social injustice
• The effects of industrialization (nature disrupted)
• Loss of innocence
What does the repeated word ‘charter’d’ in the poem ‘London’ suggest?
Control and restriction is widespread
What is the significance of the ‘blackening church’ in the poem ‘London’?
Represents the corruption and hypocrisy of the church
What does the ‘mind-forg’d manacles’ in the poem ‘London’ symbolize?
Mental imprisonment and oppression
What is the tone of the poem ‘London’?
Melancholic and critical
What historical context influenced the writing of the poem ‘London’?
• Corruption of the church and monarchy
• Industrialisation
• French Revolution
Key quotes in the poem London
• ‘chartered Thames does flow’
• ‘mark in every face I meet’
• ‘every infants cry of fear’
• ‘mind forged manacles’
• ‘blackening Church appalls’
• ‘runs in blood down Palace walls’
Caesura meaning
Punctuation in the middle of a line
Enjambment meaning
When the lines run on
What to analyse about a poem’s structure
• The title
• Rhyme scheme
• Punctuation
• Caesura
• Enjambment
• Stanza length
Who is the author of the poem ‘The Prelude’?
William Wordsworth
What are the main themes of ‘The Prelude’?
• Power and beauty of nature (concept of the sublime)
• Power of memories and how it affects present understanding
• Connection between place and identity (existentialism)
In what form is ‘The Prelude’ written?
Epic poem/autobiographical poem
What is the significance of the boat in ‘The Prelude’?
Symbolizes the journey of life and personal growth
Where is the setting of ‘The Prelude’?
The Lake District in England
What is the role of memory in ‘The Prelude’?
Memory serves as a powerful tool for reflection and self-discovery
What is the tone of ‘The Prelude’?
Reflective and introspective
What literary movement does ‘The Prelude’ belong to?
Romanticism
How does ‘The Prelude’ explore the concept of the sublime?
Through descriptions of nature and moments of awe-inspiring beauty
Existentialism meaning
Have ideas greater than yourself that make you question your purpose
Key quotes in The Prelude
• ‘I unloosened her chain’
• ‘led by her’
• ‘huge peak, black and huge’ (Volta)
• ‘there hung a darkness, call it solitude’
• ‘no pleasant images of trees’
Who wrote My Last Duchess?
Robert Browning
Key themes in the poem My Last Duchess
• Corrupt power of humanity
• Inferiority of women
• Tyrannical leadership
Significance of the title ‘My Last Duchess’
It denotes a patriarchal society where women are inferior and men are entitled
Why is Fra Pandolf’s name repeated in My Last Duchess?
The duke repeats the artist of the painting’s name to show off revealing his egotism
What does the curtain symbolise in My Last Duchess?
• Used as a metaphor for death
• Represents the duke’s controlling and possessive nature
• He pulls it aside to reveal his dead wife’s portrait showing his manipulation over her image and memory
Key quotes in the poem ‘My Last Duchess’
• ‘The curtain I have drawn for you’
• ‘gift of a 900 years old name with anybody’s gift’
• ‘I choose never to stoop’
• ‘then all smiles stopped together’
• ‘ master’s known munificence is ample warrant’
• ‘Notice Neptune taming a sea horse’
Which poems can you compare with for the theme power and control?
• Ozymandias
• London
• My Last Duchess
• The Prelude
Who wrote Charge of the Light Brigade?
Lord Tennyson
What literary time period was My Last Duchess written in?
• Written in the Victorian Era
• Set in the Renaissance era
• Browning does this to disguise his criticism of society and make his message more convincing
When was the Battle of Balaclava? (Crimean War)
1854
Big ideas in Charge of the Light Brigade
• Mankind is its own enemy (futility of war)
• Heroism and valour of the soldiers
• Criticisms of those in power
• Camaraderie (close trust between those sharing same experience)
Key quotes in Charge of the Light Brigade
• ‘Half a league, half a league, half a league onward’
• ‘Theirs not to make reply’
• ‘Into the valley of Death rode the six hundred’
• ‘Cannon to the right of them, Cannon to the left of them’
• ‘When can their glory fade?’
• ‘Rode the 600’ (repeated)
What form was the poem ‘My Last Duchess’ written in and what’s its signinficance?
• Dramatic monologue (poem revealing speaker’s inner thoughts)
• Shows self obsession and narcissism
• Only one voice (voice of a male) is heard demonstrating patriarchy
• Written in iambic pentameter
• Controlled flow of words mirror the duke’s control over his wife
Why was the Charge of the Light Brigade written?
• Lord Tennyson commemorates the courage of the soldiers
• A miscommunicated message led to a charge from the light brigade against the advantaged Russians
• Form of propaganda
Who wrote the poem Exposure?
Wilfred Owen
What time period was Exposure written in?
1917
World War 1
Shellshock meaning
Trauma caused by conflict
Big ideas in the poem Exposure
• Futility of war
• Nature is the real adversary
• Soldiers’ isolation and despair
• Harsh reality of war
Key context about Shelley
• Romantic poet
• He advocated social change
• Opposed those in power
What is the structure of the poem Ozymandias and how is it significant?
• Written in sonnet form (only 14 lines) to show transience of human achievement compared to vastness of nature and time
• Caesura is used through out to resemble the breaking of the statue reminding us that nature is more powerful
• Enjambment is used throughout to highlight how nature is infinite
Key context about William Blake
• Founding father of Romantic poetry
• Believed in social equality
• ‘London’ is part of a collection called ‘Songs of Experience’ (lost innocence due to corruption)
• Challenged authority of the Chruch and monarchy
What is the structure of the poem London and how is it significant?
• Title is the capital city showing how corruption is a widespread problem
• Consistent rhyme scheme/ stanza length representing class system structure and how everyone is affected by it
• Enjambment demonstrates how social injustice keeps going on unsolved
Key context about Wordsworth
• Romantic poet
• Disagreed with industrialisation and those in power
• Supported French Revolution
What is the structure of the poem The Prelude and how is it significant?
• Written in the form of an autobiographical poem
• Enjambment is used throughout denoting human inability to fully comprehend nature and is always being discovered
• Doesn’t have a fixed rhyme scheme showing how our perception of things from memory doesn’t always stay the same
• Composed of different stanza lengths which portrays the different views towards nature in this poem
Key context about Browning
[might come soon]
What is the structure of the poem My Last Duchess and how is it significant?
• Written as 1 long stanza which could show how the male voice is dominant in this poem and society
• Enjambment is used portraying the duke’s manipulation of the duchess throughout her lifetime and after her death too
Key context about Lord Tennyson
[might come soon]
What is the structure of the poem Charge of the Light Brigade and how is it significant?
• The use of enjambment represents the legacy the soldiers left
• Caesura is rarely present which suggests the determination and resilience of the soldiers
• Inconsistent rhyme scheme represents miscommunication from those in command
Key context about Owen
• Fought in the trenches in WW1
• Suffered from shellshock
• Used poetry as a way of processing the horrors of war
What is the structure of the poem Exposure and how is it significant?
• The title shows how nature exposes the true side of war
• Caesura portrays the lack of confidence from the soldiers and how theyre at breaking point
• Consistent stanza length shows the endless nature of war and how it’s also futile
Key quotes in the poem Exposure
• ‘Our brains ache in merciless iced winds that knife us’
• ‘we keep awake because the night is silent’
• ‘poignant misery of dawn’
• ‘but nothing happens’ (repeated)
• ‘for love of God seems dying’
• ‘burying party’ (frost)
What are the similarities between the poems that explore power and control?
• Corrupt nature of human power
• Tyrannical/egocentric leadership
• Fleeting nature of power (finite)
What are the differences between the poems that explore power and control?
• Just ‘The Prelude’ and ‘Ozymandias’ explore nature’s infinite power over humanity’ vulnerability
• ‘My Last Duchess’ focuses on mysogyny and the patriarchy
• ‘London’ and ‘Ozymandias’ discretely criticises society (particularly against monarchy and church while avoiding persecution)
Who is the poet of Bayonet Charge?
Ted Hughes
Key context about Ted Hughes
• Father fought in WW1 and became traumatised
• Hughes wanted to highlight the brutality of war to honour his father
Big ideas in the poem Bayonet Charge
• Man is the real enemy
• Futility of conflict
• Brutal reality of war
• Nature remains unchanged
When was Bayonet Charge written?
• Published in 1957
• Set in WW1
How does the title ‘Bayonet Charge’ challenge traditional war heroism?
It depicts soldiers as frightened and instinctual rather than glorified heroes revealing war’s true horrors
What does the metaphor ‘cold clockwork of the stars’ in Bayonet Charge convey?
• Demonstrates themes of fate and the mechanised nature of war which suggests a lack of human control and futility
• Could also dehumanise the soldiers to machines who are beginning to lose their feelings, hope and loyalty
Key quotes in the Bayonet Charge
• ‘Suddenly he awoke and was running’ (medias res)
• ‘Bullets smacking the belly out of the air’
• ‘A rifle as numb as a smashed arm’
• ‘cold clockwork of the stars’
• ‘king, honour, human dignity etcetera’
What is the structure of the poem Bayonet Charge and how is it significant?
• Enjambment is used to portray the futility of war and endless violence
• Shrinking stanza lengths could denote how the soldiers’ loyalty are shrinking
What poems can you compare for the theme power and conflict?
• Charge of the Light Brigade?
• Exposure
• Bayonet Charge
Who wrote Storm on the Island?
Seamus Heaney
When was Storm on the Island written?
1966
Key ideas in Storm on the Island
• Negative experiences bring people together (camaraderie)
• The revolt of nature against humanity
• Humanity’s vulnerability
Why was Storm on the Island written?
Heaney uses a storm in Ireland as a microcosm of the conflict and political unrest between the Catholics and Protestants
Key quotes in Storm on the Island
• We are prepared: we build our houses squat
• There are no trees, no natural shelter
• [the sea] exploding comfortably
• Bombarded by the empty air
• It is a huge nothing that we fear
‘We are prepared: we build our houses squat’ (Storm on the Island analysis)
• ‘We’ repetition creates sense of community
• ‘squat’ suggests deliberate measures taken to ensure houses are low and withstand winds
• Could resemble natures authority and dominance over humanity
• Or also that humility is the way to resist conflict
‘[The sea] exploding comfortably’ (Storm on the Island analysis)
• Oxymoron
• Could represent confusion and unrest posed by nature
• ‘Exploding’ suggests violence and destruction
• ‘comfortably’ suggests ease and tranquility
• Emphasises nature’s dominance and how it can bring destruction without difficulty
• Could also allude to how conflict has become normal part of life in Ireland
Structure in Storm on the Island
• The title contains the word Stormont which is the Irish Parliament
• May depict the presence of chaos in the political system
• Island is homophone for Ireland and is microcosm of the conflict
• Caesura suggests division between nature and humanity
Who wrote War Photographer?
Carol Ann Duffy
When was War Photographer written?
• 1985
• Shortly after the end of the Vietnam War
Why was War Photographer written?
• Duffy criticises the wilful ignorance of society to those suffering in war
• Puts daily complaints into perspective
Key ideas in War Photographer
• The brutal realities of war
• The indifference (apathy) of society and its desensitisation
• Ethics of photography (respecting victims being shared)
Key quotes in War Photographer
• spools of suffering set out in ordered rows
• All flesh is grass
• Fields which don’t explode beneath the feet
• Hundred agonies in black and white
• Eyeballs prick with tears between the bath and pre lunch beers
‘spools of suffering set out in ordered rows’ (War Photographer analysis)
• Metaphor: ‘Spools of suffering’ refers to the film rolls captured and how it presents the tangibility of the calamity
• ‘Ordered rows’: Contrasts the chaos of the laid dead bodies in the war
• Could denote the photographer’s attempt to make sense of the horrors he has witnessed considering the overwhelming force it can have
‘Hundred agonies in black and white’ (War Photographer analysis)
• ‘Hundred agonies ’: Metaphor for how suffering is widespread
• War is real and can affect any of us
• ’Black and white’:
• Denotes unambiguous portrayal of the truth
• War shouldn’t be romanticised/ glorified but given more serious awareness
• Could also symbolise how the victims tend to be forgotten as the colour of pic is absent
Structure of the War Photographer
• Consistent rhyme scheme denotes the adamance of society to remain apathetic to these matters
• Enjambment is used to demonstrate how war is endless and futile
Who wrote The Emigree?
Carol Rumens
When was The Emigree written?
1993
Why was the Emigree written?
It explores the emotions of a child forced to leave their homeland highlighting the power of memory and relationship between identity and culture
Big ideas in The Emigree
• Memory holds the power to shape your identity and perception of world
• Challenge of adapting to a new life in exile
• Human tendency to cling to ideal, positive memories despite being faced with truth (ignorance/ innocence)
Key quotes in The Emigree
• There was once a country
• I am branded by an impression of sunlight
• The child’s vocabulary I carried here
• It tastes of sunlight
• My city hides behind me
‘It tastes of sunlight’ (The Emigree analysis)
• Rumens uses an epistrophe (anaphora but at end)
• The metaphor emphasises how memory of old country brings freedom
• Memory has also blinded her with utopian view
• Evokes a sense of childhood innocence and wonder
‘My city hides behind me’ (The Emigree Analysis)
• Her city is no longer visible to her but now hides behind
• Though she can’t see it, she acknowledges it still exists and it underscores how it’s still a part of her identity
• The city hiding evokes a sense of loss and contributes to sense of displacement
• Could also suggest it’s a burden that the speaker carries with her and is hurt not having access to it
‘That child’s vocabulary I carried here’ (The Emigree analysis)
• Evokes emotional resonance with homeland and also innocence to having idealised memories of it
• ‘carried’ emphasises the portability of language and culture. Connection with home continues to endure
• ‘child’s’ may also indicate a barrier in new environment and difficulty to integrate if she’s not fluent in local language
Structure in The Emigree
• Caesura resembles the conflict within her country
• No rhyme scheme could suggest discomfort in new city
Who wrote Remains?
Simon Armitage
Why was Remains written?
• Written as part of documentary
• Focused on impact of war on returning soldiers
• Raises awareness about PTSD and lack of treatment to support soldiers
Big ideas in Remains
• Torment posed by guilt and moral ambiguity
• Dehumanising effects of conflict
• Memories of war’s trauma lingers
• Fragility of mental health
Key quotes in Remains
• Tosses his guts back into his body
• Probably armed, possibly not
• drink and drugs won’t flush him out
• when I close my eyes, dug in behind enemy lines
• his bloody life in my bloody hands
‘Tosses his guts back into his body’ (Remains analysis)
• Detached tone in this quote suggests emotional numbness and familiarity with its frequency
• Graphic nature contributes to the soldiers’ lingering trauma that stays with him (also implying guilt)
• The casualness of ‘tosses’ underscores dehumanising effect of war
• ‘Guts’ indicates that the man has been reduced to a collection of body parts
• Emphasises the realism of brutal death and confronts the reader with wars horrors
‘his bloody life in my bloody hands’ (Remains analysis)
• Acts as a parallel to Macbeth denoting his guilt
• ‘bloody hands’ may indicate soldier’s feeling of responsibility for death and is a symbolic stain on consciousness
• Seeing the blood also denotes PTSD and how the memory is intrusive/persistent
• Blood also symbolises loss of innocence as hands are no longer pure
• Short sentence emphasises finality and inescapability of solider’s situation
Structure in Remains
• Caesura denotes mental breakdown
• Enjambment resembles permanent marks that war leaves on an individual
Who wrote Poppies?
Jane Weir
Why was Poppies written?
• It depicts a mother remembering her son when he was a child
• She yearns for him as he’s away at war
• Poppies explores the pain of loss
Big ideas in Poppies
• Memory preserves the tangibility of one’s presence
• The ambiguity of war
• Experiencing loss places a weight on emotions
Key quotes in Poppies
• Spasms of paper red
• Sellotape bandaged around my hand
• All my words flattened, rolled, turned into felt, slowly melting
• Your playground voice catching on the wind
‘Spasms of paper red’ (Poppies analysis)
• ‘Spasms’ denotes pain and injury
• Also reflects lack of control and mother’s feelings of helplessness
• ‘red’ evokes the violence and bloodshed in war
• ‘paper’ connotes with fragility suggesting how vulnerable the young soldier is being sent to conflict
‘All my words flattened, rolled, turned into felt, slowly melting’ (Poppies analysis)
• Suggests the forceful suppression of mother’s feelings
• Emotions are overwhelming
• Also suggests mothers grief has become so intense it’s numbed her so can’t express it
• ‘Felt’ connotes with padding and insulation
• Demonstrates loss of voice and inability to express emotion
‘your playground voice catching on the wind’ (Poppies analysis)
• ‘playground voice’ denotes childhood innocence and starkly contrasts with the harsh reality of war
• ‘catching on the wind’ portrays the fleeting nature of childhood memories
• Also portrays son’s vulnerability in war scene with his voice intangible and inaudible
• Even evokes a sense of loss as the sons’s voice is no longer physically present - emphasising the separation their separation and mums longing for return
• Poignant reminder of the human cost of war
Structure in Poppies
• Use of enjambment reflects the mothers relentless desire for son
• Use of caesura may portray the mothers struggle to articulate her grief
Who wrote Tissue?
Imtiaz Dharker
Why was Tissue written?
• Dharker criticised human attitude towards life and argues our main objective is to gain power
• She explores the complexities of identity and challenges stereotypes
What role does the extended metaphor play in Tissue?
Tissue paper is used as an extended metaphor for life to show that although fragile, humans have power to change things
Big ideas in Tissue
• Transience of human existence
• Fragility of power
• Our identity has been corrupted with material pursuit
Key quotes in Tissue
• Paper that lets the light shine through
• If buildings were paper I might feel their drift
• might fly our lives like paper kites
• raise a structure never meant to last
• turned into your skin
‘Paper that lets the light shine through’ (Tissue analysis)
• Extended metaphor of paper represents human fragility
• Imagery implies paper is thin enough to let light shine through
• Demonstrating that books (especially religious) have the power to change the world
• The light could be a metaphor for God
‘Might fly our lives like paper kites’ (Tissue analysis)
• Paper under the force of wind is vulnerable and prone to tear just as how humanity is under the mercy of nature’s power
• Flying a kite involves surrender as wind dictates the kite’s path mirroring human experience of navigating life’s uncertainties and lack of control
• Simile could also emphasise freedom
and that there’s liberty in letting go of our selfish desire and instead embrace life’s fluidity
• A kite’s flight is also temporal and may be establishing the fleeting nature of existence
‘turned into your skin’ (Tissue analysis)
• Skin is subject to aging and equating it with paper suggests the fragility of human existence
• Emphasises idea that just as paper documents records, skin also holds records of our lives through wrinkles and scars
• Use of direct address ‘your skin’ invites us to reflect on our own fragility and remind us how our vulnerability/ humanity is shared
Structure in Tissue
• Enjambment reflects paper’s fluidity and ability to bend just like human ability to change norms
• One line stanza at end promotes how unique each of us are and our special identities
Who wrote Kamikaze?
Beatrice Garland
Why was Kamikaze written?
• Japanese kamikaze pilots flew manned suicide missions during WW2
• Daughter reflects on society’s disowning of father after not completing mission
Big ideas in Kamikaze
• Conflict between personal desire (to live) and national duty
• Nature’s power over human conflict
• Identity’s direct correlation with honour
• Psychological toll of war
Key quotes in Kamikaze
• a shaven head full of powerful cantations
• one way journey into history
• strung out like bunting (party decor)
• dark prince, muscular and dangerous
• which had been the better way to die
‘a shaven head full of powerful incantations’ (Kamikaze analysis)
‘shaven head’:
• Signifies dedication to duty and willingness to sacrifice
• Removal of hair also represents relinquishing of identity
‘powerful incantations’:
• Represents desperate attempt to find meaning and solace in terrifying situation
‘one way journey into history’ (Kamikaze analysis)
‘one way’
• Could suggest the nature of suicide mission and no anticipated return
• Symbolises irreversible nature of war
• Once on this path there’s no turning back, so potential for loss is immense
‘journey into history’
• Suggests loss of individual identity
• National duty overrides personal desire
‘dark prince, muscular and dangerous’ (Kamikaze analysis)
• Represents the foreboding the backlash pilot would get if he returns
• Also reveals the aggression/ violence within human nature
Structure in Kamikaze
• Kamikaze is Japanese for divine wind
showing how the pilot goes against the nature of Japanese tradition
• No rhyme scheme portrays the rebellious nature of soldier
Who wrote Checking out me history?
John Agard
Why was Checking out me history written?
It criticises the British education system and how the colonised were forced to learn British history
Big ideas in Checking Out Me History
• Importance of reclaiming marginalised histories
• Identity derived from history
• Resistance against oppression
Key quotes in Checking Out Me History
• Dem tell me (repeated)
• Bandage up me eye
• Dem tell me bout 1066 and all dat
• But now I checking out me own history
• I carving out me identity
‘Dem tell me’ (Checking Out Me History analysis)
• ‘Dem’ represents dominant white force eg teachers and historians that have shaped the system
• Emphasises the idea of being subjected to a predetermined version of history
• Acts as a recurring refrain and creates a stark contrast with where he reclaims history (eg Nanny and Mary Seacole)
Structure in Checking Out Me History
• Alternating stanzas present the conflict between imposed and reclaimed histories
• Lack of caesura displays the domination of the British system over ethnic minorities
