Remains

Question 1

Quote 1 “I swear I see every round as it rips through his life-“

Answer 1

“swear” implies confidence
enjambment emphasises the chaos of war and also feels somewhat conversational which adds to the first person narrative perspective
“rips” creates violent and graphic imagery which highlights the horrors of the visual image he can see
“his” personal pronoun
hyphen creates a pause and implies reminiscing on memories
“life” destruction of life relates to Armitage’s values as a Pacifist.

Question 2

Quote 2 “And the drink and the drugs won’t flush him out-“

Answer 2

“And” implies ongoing mental agony that he cannot escape
“drink…drugs” plosive alliteration presents it as harsh and implies that he isn’t coping
polysyndetic listing implies he has tried many methods of relief
“flush” is dismissive and symbolic of the derogatory things he has seen and shows he has become desensitised to war
hyphen is repeated

Question 3

Quote 3 “His bloody life in my bloody hands”

Answer 3

“his” possessive pronoun and “hands” are symbolic of responsibility
repetition of “bloody” emphasises the harsh memory and reality and has a double meaning as an expletive (which shows his struggle to cope, relating to the theme of guilt) and that he killed someone
“my” biographical poem based on a real veteran’s account of the Gulf War from an interview for a 2007 film
final stanza has 2 lines to emphasise it is a memory he cannot forget