remains - simon armitage Flashcards
what is remains about?
- based on a soldiers experience from serving in iraq
‘probably armed, possibly not’
- expecting violent
- sees the looter as a threat
- almost justifies the violence that is to come
- judgement, leans towards negative
- conditioned to prepare for the worst
‘are all of the same mind’
- licensed to kill
- programmed
- all are trained the same
- outnumbers opposition, has the power
- all have similar traumas due to experienced
‘as it rips through his life’
- incredibly traumatic
- shock and horror is numbed through adrenaline
- dysphemism
- harsh, aggressive, brutal
‘carted off in the back of a lorry’
- life is worthless
- taken carelessly
- dehumanises
- connotations of dead meat
‘ i walk right over it week after week’
- not registered what has happened
- numb to any emotions
- in denial
- cannot accept what has happened
- unfathomable
how is the looter portrayed to the readers?
- negative connotations
- criminal
- lawless
- desperate
how is the soldier portrayed to the readers?
- heroic
- brave
- selfless
- loyal
what are the main themes in the poem?
guilt - speaker is haunted by taking another man’s life, as he may have been innocent. discomfort shown through repetition
conflict - the speaker is acting under orders and is engaged in combat in another country. dry and dusty, creating an image of a war zone.
life and death - the looter is killed by rounds of bullets that the group of soldiers sent into him. instant and brutal.
how does simon armitage present conflict in this poem?
- unjust, looter may have been unarmed and therefore not a treat
- speakers experience seems to go unnoticed, he is offered no help or support for the trauma he suffers.
explain the form and structure of this poem
- 8 stanzas
- title refers to remains of a dead man
- has the feel of a fast paced natural speech
- enjambment is used to add to the sense of natural story telling
explain the language used in this poem
- colloquial language, ‘mates’ and ‘legs it’ are used throughout
- imagery is graphic, poet does not spare the reader of any details
example questions
how does S A present war in remains?
how does S A represent guilt in remains?
how does S A present conflict in remains?
‘dream and he’s torn apart by a dozen rounds’
- caesura used to give reader a pause to reflect
- loses everything in that moment
- haunted by memories
‘he’s here in my head when i close my eyes’
- will never forget
- will hold guilt
- inescapable
- strong memory
- replays memory over and over again
