the manhunt Flashcards
what is the connotations of the poem?
it sounds like he is being chases- he is being chased by his PTSD
what are the child-like connotations of the poem?
name of a children’s game- deliberate- the wife is trying to rediscover her man- to hunt/ find the man she fell for and the man he was before the war
what was the poem originally going to be called?
“Laura’s poem”
how many couplets are there?
13 couplets
is there a rhyming pattern?
a vague one- it is inconsistent- gives the poem a fragmented feel- to represent how their relationship has been
what is the reason for using couplets?
to show its a relationship- couples-pair
what is the initial romantic imagery juxtaposed by?
the violent imagery
what is the romantic imagery being juxtaposed by the violent nature a metaphor for?
the relationship’s dual nature
what perspective is the poem from?
the wife’s
what does the poem being from the wife’s perspective do?
invites empathy for both parties by providing a close description of the damage done to the soldier and the effect this has on those close to him
what does “passionate nights and intimate days” show?
reminiscent of a honeymoon period- euphoric early stage of a new relationship
what has happened to the speakers relationship with her husband?
it has changed- it has been redifined
what position has the soldier attempted to adapt to?
the discharged soldier assumes the position of a new lover after returning from war- the implication being that the subject’s experiences have changed him so much- he has become a different person
what is symbolic about her being able to “feel the hurt” of his heart?
the speaker is being allowed inside the emotional source of his pain and is able to empathise with her
how does the poem begin?
“After the first phase, after passionate nights and intimate days”
how does the beginning of the poem read as?
reads like a traditional love poem- written in trochee
what do the first syllables in the first 2 lines of the poem do for the poem?
gives the feeling of a continuous motion- head over heels feeling in the early stages of a relationship
“only then would he let me trace…
the frozen river which ran through his face”
what is the “frozen river”?
gives the image of a glacier- the stress and worry of his time in the military has caused deep lines- like a ravine on his face
“the blown…
hinge of his lower jaw”
what does the “blown hinge of the lower jaw” suggest?
suggests the door of a house being blown by a bomb- the invasion of warfare into a domestic setting- just like how his domestic relationship has been interrupted by his scars of warfare
what is the double meaning of the “blown hinge of the lower jaw”?
could be a physical description or a metaphor
could be a metaphor for how her partner has become extremely tight-lipped and monosyllabic or
he does not want to speak about his feelings
what is significant about a “blown hinge” not being able to keep a door shut?
the inability to function echoes the soldiers inability to block out the trauma he experienced in combat- which has now invaded the speaker’s home life
“and handle and hold…
the damaged porcelain collar-bone”
“and finger and thumb…
the parachute silk of his punctured lung”
what does the word “puncture” in “punctured lung” suggest?
makes the parachute useless- suggesting the soldier’s inability to escape from the horrors of combat
what is the symbolism of the wife using the word “silk” to describe her man?
describes her man using adjectives that have a beauty, yet a delicacy to them
what could the “parachute silk” link to about his occupation?
could be hinting at her husband’s military occupation of being a RAF piloy
“only then could I…
bind the struts and climb the rungs of his broken ribs”
what is the significance of the lung being made out of “parachute silk”?
parachute silk is extremely strong, yet finely woven
the comparison evokes the contrast between the tough outer persona often expected from military people and the soldier’s fragile mental state
what are other examples of hints to his occupation?
“struts” “rungs”
what are the comparisons she makes to her man like?
they are all manufactured items, rather than organic, living things- allusion to the idea that her partner has become mechanical- perhaps he has a robotic mannerism
“the foetus…
of metal beneath his chest”
what could the “foetus” be referencing to in regards of life?
the impact of the man being shot is compared symbolically to the process of childbirth- narrators way of highlighting the life- changing impact on the wound
what could the “foetus” be referencing in terms of his pain?
foetus- will grow and develop- his pain and mental torment may grow even more
“where the bullet…
had finally come to rest”
what does “where the bullet had finally come to rest” mean?
the bullet caused pain everywhere in his body- finally decided to remain in his chest
“then I…
widened the search”
what kind of feel does “then I widened the search” have?
a military feel
where is the source of the soldiers’ damage found?
“buried deep in his mind”
what does the most significant scarring being “buried deep in his mind” convey?
the most significant scarring is mental
every nerve in his body has “tightened and closed” around the “unexploded mine” of his neurosis
what is the nerves functions?
to convey impulses to and from the brain
the key pathways to communicate within the soldier have been impeded and inhibited by his experiences- reflect the limited capacity to communicate with his wife
what does “sweating unexploded mine” convey?
his pain could explode at any minute and they could lose all of the progress they have made
“then, and only then…
did I come close”
what does “sweating, unexploded mine” also convey?
a piece of war has travelled back to his civilian life
if stored incorrectly, dynamite begins to sweat nitro-glycerine- its explosive component- this crystallises on the surface and can be detonated with one gentle touch- her touch could let it off one day
what does the verb “sweating” convey?
heightens the sense of danger and volatility present in his mind and body
he is on the reactive sense rather than civilian life
what does the imagery of warfare and mechanics do for the poem?
it is directly associated with brokenness- suggesting that those who come into contact with war are likely to be damaged by it
inanimate objects describe part of the soldiers’ body- make his body unfamiliar and inanimate
the soldier is passive as he lays there- his wife is active
what does the passivity of the soldier link to?
the numerous broken elements with which he has returned from the war- which have paralysed him
