THE BRIGHT LIGHTS OF SARAJEVO - TONY HARRISON

Question 1

introduction
what type of poem:
what themes are present:
set in:
effect:

Answer 1

horror
seige, horror, resilience of the human spirit
bosnia
how love can co-exist with war and devastation

Question 2

poem bigins with one word ‘after’

Answer 2

acts as a commencement, as if to show something has already happened before

Question 3

‘queing, dodging and sniping”

Answer 3

shows how they struggle for the simplest of acts

Question 4

“but tonight”

Answer 4

shows contrast between day and night, gives a little bit of hope.makes the reader anxious.

Question 5

how is the writer conveying the dark, somber moods of war:
“shells”
“blood dunked”
broken dead”

Answer 5

show how the city is not a safe place for people to roam.

paints a dark and horrifying image of war and show how thousands of people must have died in the bread shop queue

Question 6

‘clear sky’ juxtaposed with ‘bombers eye’

Answer 6

contrasting.at the mention of a clear sky one would imagine rays of hope.juxtaposed with violence and havoc.

Question 7

The poet uses contrast to present the ideas of romance and so- feelings that are alive and thriving even as there are pangs of fear and despair
flirtatious ploy-

‘To take her hand and lead her away from where they stand on two shell scars ‘.

Answer 7

used to introduce the relationship between the boy and the girl.used intentionally.the word ploy indicates reference to war strategies which contrasts with flirtatious.

here again we can see contrast between the love blooming and the place where a massive bombing took place.this is supported by the next quote which suggests how the couples feelings arise in a place where the damage has been done and the grey water fills the holes.again indicating a grey dark theme.

Question 8

‘To share one coffee in a candle lit café until the curfew’

Answer 8

while these lines seem happy for the couple the writer brings back the theme of war by saying curfew.

the writer has used juxtaposition and contrasts to show the war and the damage it has done to the city.one can only wonder why it is titled”the bright lights of sarajevo”perhaps to indicate that there were no bright lights after all.