the Manhunt Flashcards
who wrote the Manhunt?
simon Armitage
where is Simon Armitage from?
Britain
what does Simon Armitage’s poems often talk about?
social issues
who’s perspective is the Manhunt written from?
Laura Beddos- her first person
context and meaning of the Manhunt?
-the poem explores the impact that war has on soldiers
-about Eddie Beddos who was returning from the Bosnian war
-the narrator is exploring the physical and mental issues of her husband as a result of war
-poem is intimate and private but ultimately reveals that the narrator cannot understand what the soldier actually went through
why is the use of first person important in the Manhunt?
-creates an intimate and private feel
-create a divide between the narrator and her partner- as she cannot fully access his thoughts and experiences
why is the use of pairs of verbs important in the Manhunt?
as it takes the reader along a journey of exploration as the poem goes on.
-the narrator is trying to categorise all of Eddie Beddos changes that war brought
-present the patience of the narrator and the effort they are trying to make
finish the quote, ‘handle and?
hold
what category does the quote ‘handle and hold’ fall under?
-its a pair of verbs
finish the quote, ‘mind and…
attend
what category does the quote ‘mind and attend’ fall under?
its a pair of verbs
analyse the pairs of verbs- “handle and hold” and “mind and attend”?
presents the delicacy with which the narrator is touching their husbands body
analyse the final line of the Manhunt- “only then did I come close”?
shows that the narrator will never fully understand what the soldier went through and makes it more tragic
what does Simon armitage use to show machine imagery?
metaphors that present the soldier’s body as machine
finish the quote- “ fractured, rudder…
of shoulder blade’
finish the metaphor- “the parachute silk…
of his punctured lung’
finish the to quote- a sweating,…..
unexploded mine buried deep in his mind’
what does machine imagery in the Manhunt do to the soldier and why?
it dehumanises him as it makes it seem that war has made him into more of a machine than a person
the war imagery is also used to make the soldier seem like a war zone with all his injuries
analyse the quote “a sweating, unexploded mine buried deep in his mind’
suggests that even the slightest change could set off an explosion
how is mental health presented in the Manhunt?
it gives the poem a dangerous edge as it implies that the soldier may fall apart
-the narrator takes extra care to not set off the bomb. one wrong move could end their intimacy.
finish the quote, “after passionate nights and intimate days….
only then did he let me trace the frozen river that ran through his face”
analyse the quote “after passionate nights and intimate days”?
-even though the couple have shared “passionate nights and intimate days” the narrator is still unable to touch her partners scars- complex
-Shows vulnerability of these injuries and that they need a new kind of intimacy that the couple didn’t have before
finish the quote-“feel the hurt…
of his grazed heart”
analyse the quotation “feel the hurt of his grazed heart”?
-line explores how the narrator feels her husbands emotional pain as well as his physical pain
finish the quote- “i traced the scarring back to its source, to a sweating…
unexploded mine, buried deep within his mind”
analyse the quotation “i traced the scarring back to its source, to a sweating unexploded mine, buried deep within his mind?
Armitage combines the wife’s exploration of her partners physical and emotional scars until she reaches the “mine” in his mind.
war imagery is used to highlight how fragile her husbands state is
