Remain - Simon Armitage✔️ Flashcards
Significance of it being written as a dramatic monologue and in present tense?
Uses present participles such as ‘legs it’, ‘tosses’ and ‘are’ - gives a sense that the account is from memory (possibly a flashback) - suggest the writer is dealing with PTSD and trying to process the events
How does the poem begin?
Poem opens in media res - serves to confuse the reader as they initially don’t know what’s going on - mirrors the confusion of the soldiers who are not emotionally prepared - reflects the chaos and unpredictable nature of war
Significance of “on another occasion we get sent out”?
The speaker implies it is a typical operation in the life of a soldier and is the reality they have to deal with on a day to day basis - anonymity of “we” unknown soldiers - sense many experience this
Significance of the ending?
structure of the stanza length breaks down (final stanza is only 2 lines long) - could mirror the soldiers breakdown during war - the line ‘his bloody life in my bloody hands” indicates he feels responsible for the mans death aswell
How does the ending somewhat link to Macbeth?
line ‘his bloody life on my bloody hands’ links to Macbeth ‘all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand’ - both texts blood is used as a symbol for guilt - it is the guilt that is haunting the soldier
Evidence the speaker feels responsible for the mans death?
Suggested through the reference to ‘hands’ which serve as a symbol of guilt - line “his bloody life in my bloody hands” indicates he feels his death is a result of his actions - and are stained with the mans blood - metaphor for guilt
How do we get a sense the writer is trying to share the blame?
speaker starts trying to excuse what he did and share the blame with others - reflected through the phases “myself and somebody else and somebody else” and “all three of us” - this could be the interpreted as the speaker trying to ignore or ease his guilt
How does the theme of guilt and blame shift?
At the start the speaker begins trying to excuse what “all three” did - could be the interpreted as the speaker trying to ignore his guilt - towards the end of the poem he accepts his role and responsibility for the actions and blames himself entirely
How does Armitage use enjambments to cause tension and build up to violent imagery?
Uses enjambments such as “and I swear/ I see every round as it rips through his life” to build up a violent imagery - enjambments occurs at a key moments and breaks up the sentences about death and suffering - suggesting that the pain he witnessed breaks him just as it breaks the structure
How is caesuras used and what are their effects?
Caesura seen in line “Then I’m home on leave. But I blink” provides finality - going home should be the end of his memory of the event and the extent of its impact on him - however the ‘but’ at the start of the second sentence shows how war continues to impact him even when he has escaped however it is more phycological rather then physical impact now
Language to suggest that the soldier have become desensitised to war and dead bodies?
Use of colloquial language such as ‘so’, ‘I swear’, ‘legs it’ and ‘mates’ which is used when referring to the dead bodies suggest that the soldier have become deadened to the harsh realities of war
How is the idea ‘tools of war’ presented through language?
Soldiers seen as loosing their individuality and humanity highlighted with ‘three of a kind’ and ‘are all of the same mind’ shows that war has made all the soldiers trained to think the same way - soldiers are also are “sent out” by some higher force who cares little about the phycological damage inflicted upon the soldiers
Significance of “probably armed,possibly not”
Suggests there’s a slight chance that he could have been innocent and not a threat “probably “comes first because this is what he wants to believe as it provides justification for his actions - throughout the poem he feels the killing was unjustified and how he feels guilty - cyclical structure showing how he is forced to keep coming back to this question
What is the rhyme scheme in the poem
has no set rhyme scheme - Instead it’s written in free verse, and for the most part mimics the patterns of everyday speech. The poem doesn’t feel overly literary or poetic, but rather like an ordinary person telling a story - which could show how this is quite a common experience amongst soldiers
First and last line?
-“on another occasion, we get sent out”
- “his bloody life in my bloody hands”
