Poppies - Jane Weir

Question 1

Which of these words best describes how the speaker is feeling?
A. worried
B. angry
C. confident

Answer 1

A. The speaker is worried — her son appears to have joined the army.

Question 2

Give two examples of sensory language used on the poem.

Answer 2

The speaker describes how she “ smoothed down” her son’s collar and says that she wanted to “graze” her nose “across the tip” of his nose — both used the sense of touch.

Question 3

What does Weir’s use of caesurae suggest about the speaker?

Answer 3

The use of caesurae creates breaks in the lines giving the impression that the speaker is pausing, as if she’s trying to stay in control and stop her emotions running away with her.

Question 4

Explain how Weir’s description of the poppy in the fast stanza reflects the speaker’s emotional state.

Answer 4

The poppies petals are described as “spasms of paper red”. The word “ spasms” have connotations of pain and injury, suggesting that the speaker is worrying about her son being wounded in war, and hinting at her emotional suffering.

Question 5

The speaker describes how she removed cat hairs from her son’s blazer using some “Sellotape bandaged around” her hand. What effect do you think this image might have on the reader?

Answer 5

The phrase “Sellotape bandaged around my hand” makes the reader think about how domesticity are war connected. Weir achieves this by juxtaposing the image of an ordinary, domestic item like Sellotape being used to remove cat hairs from clothing (itself a very domestic activity) with the image of a bandage, which is associated with injury and war. This might help the reader to sympathise with the speaker, as it shows that the suffering caused by war is felt by those at home as well as those who are fighting.

Question 6

How does the use of voice affect the reader?

Answer 6

The poem uses the first person to give the reader insight into the speaker’s emotions. Weir’s use of the first person creates a sense of intimacy, as if the reader is hearing the speaker’s private fears. This encourages them to sympathise with her.

Question 7

Give an example of a metaphor. What is the effect of the metaphor?

Answer 7

“a blockade / of yellow bias binding” (lines 5 - 6). The metaphor suggests there is a barrier between the speaker and her son, and the use of the military word “blockade” emphasises the poem’s references to war.

Question 8

How does the opening establish the speaker’s feelings?

Answer 8

Weir uses imagery to establish the speaker’s anxiety and refers to poppies, “war graves” and Armistice Sunday — images that have connotation of remembrance and loss.

Question 9

How does Weir’s use of sound convey the speaker’s emotions?

Answer 9

Weir uses repeated sounds to reflect the speaker’s emotions. The description of the speaker pinning a poppy on a “blockade” of “bias binding” around her son’s “blazer” uses the plosive ‘b’ sound to suggest that she is upset, perhaps trying not to cry. However, when describing the domesticity of the relationship, Weir uses soft, sibilance sounds (e.g. “smoothed down your shirt’s”) to evoke the speaker’s tenderness towards her son.

Question 10

The speaker says she went into her son’s bedroom and “released a song bird from its cage” (line 24)
What do you think this symbolises?

Answer 10

Could be a metaphor for the speaker letting her son leave.

Question 11

How does the son’s perspective of the world differ from the speaker’s?

Answer 11

The speaker feels anxious about her son going into the world but for her son it appears to be full of possibilities. Weir uses the simile “overflowing / like a treasure chest” to convey the son’s sense of excitement about the future and its opportunities.

Question 12

Find a quote which shows that the speaker hid her feelings from her son before he left.

Answer 12

“steeled the softening / of my face” (lines 10 - 11). This suggests that the speaker was hardening her emotions and putting on a brave face as she said goodbye to her son.

Question 13

What does the structure of the poem tell the reader about the speaker’s relationship with her son?

Answer 13

The structure emphasises the speaker’s maternal connection to her son. Weir mixes the speaker’s memories of her son as a child with memories of him leaving, making the time frame of the poem slightly ambiguous. This reminds the reader that although the speaker’s son is grown-up, he is still her child, which deepens the sense of loss.

Question 14

Why do you think Weir chose not to use regular rhyme or rhythm in the poem?

Answer 14

The lack of regular rhyme scheme or strict rhythm allows the poem to reflect the natural rhythms of speech. This gives the reader the impression that the poem is presenting the speaker’s own thoughts and fragmented memories, making the poem feel more personal. The lack of strict form and rules reflects how emotions and loss are beyond our control — they do not follow rules.