Poppies Flashcards
What is Jane Weir communicating about conflict in ‘Poppies’?
Sad many parents have to watch their children go off to war
Worry loved one might lose life
Devastating impact on family of soldiers
What is the structure used in “Poppies”?
Dramatic monologue - imagined mother soldiers
Time sequence - flashback, mysterious change
Narrative
Explore grief & worrying reflecting on last time she saw him
She’s not in stable frame of mind
What are the techniques used in “Poppies”?
Metaphor - “released a song bird from its cage” - shows extreme release of emotion (weeping)
Metaphor - My stomach busy making tuck, darts, pleats” - knitting imagery suggests nervousness/anxiety
Simile - “the world overflowing like a treasure chest” - opportunities her son has, his excitement
Simile - “like a wishbone” - her reflective nature
What is the rhythm/rhyme used in “Poppies”?
Free verse - mimicking raw emotions & unstable frame of mind she’s in (chaotic)
Caesuras - “flattened, rolled, turned into felt” - slow & reflective
Enjambment - 2nd stanza
What is the imagery used in “Poppies”?
Visual (military uniform) - “spasms of paper red, disrupting a blockade” - militaristic, her anxiety/insecurity over potential death (like blood)
Tactile - “graze my nose” - reminiscing on son’s youth
Tactile - “run my fingers through the gelled blackthorns” - closeness & motherly nature
What is the vocabulary used in “Poppies”?
Verb - “intoxicated” - uncertain meaning - is it good he’s excited?
Lists can’t think of what to say, what she’s not wearing - unstable frame of mind
