Remains Flashcards
what is the poem about?
a group of soldiers shoot a man who’s running away from a bank raid, they weren’t sure whether the man was armed or not but they couldn’t risk it
‘On another occasion’
sounds like one in a series of stories
‘probably armed, possibly not’
doubt, contrasts strongly with the definite action that follows
‘all’ ‘all three’ ‘three’ ‘all’
repetition sounds like he is keen for the reader to know that it wasn’t just him, hints that he feels guilty
‘it rips through his life’
violent metaphor contrasts shockingly with the colloquial style of the first two stanzas
‘broad daylight on the other side’
grotesque, exaggerated image - he says he can see straight through the bullet holes in the man’s body
‘sort of inside out’
almost childish description of the man’s body - seems unable to process it in an adult way
‘tosses’ ‘carted off’
two very casual, cold actions - no respect for the dead man, makes it sound as if the body is a piece of rubbish
‘end of story, except not really’
the speakers mood changes, shows that its over but he cant stop replaying it in his head so it will stay with him for life
‘sleep’ ‘dream’
short words, separated from the rest of the line by caesurae sounds like gun shots
‘dug in behind enemy lines’
metaphor, compares the memory stuck in his mind to a soldier in a trench
‘sun-stunned, sand-smothered’
‘sunned’ ‘smothered’ shows how the place is affected by war, sibilance slows the pace and reflect the speaker’s lack of clear thought
‘his bloody life in my bloody hands’
bloody - double meaning, the man’s blood, swearing in anger
what themes are in the poem?
effects of conflict, reality of conflict, guilt
effects of conflict in ‘Remains’?
memories of conflict have a deep psychological impact on the soldier, the final stanza of the poem in made up of only two lines rather than the normal four - the disruption of the poem’s form mirrors the soldier’s breakdown
