War Photographer Flashcards
In summary what is this poem about?
A poem about limitations; the photographer sees horrendous events and cannot intervene
How does the poem begin?
In his darkroom he is finally alone // with spools of suffering set out in ordered rows
Why is the beginning ironic?
He is not alone, he is with all the people in the images. Paradox- Chaos an suffering are reduced to something ordered
What is the significance of the sibilance in the second line?
Accentuates the feeling of loneliness and suggests his thoughts and feelings are sinister
Identify a use of dehumanising language
A strangers features // faintly start to twist before his eyes, // a half-formed ghost
What is the significance of the dehumanising language?
People take photos of them but do not interact with or care for them which means they are just used as objects
How could you connect this poem to exposure?
Sibilance, dehumanising language
Identify the volta, what does this quote reveal?
‘Something is happening’ Ironic because nobody is doing anything to help these people. They are coming to life in the photos however in reality they are dying
Identify a use of fricative language straight after the volta, what does this reveal?
‘A stranger’s features // faintly start to twist before his eyes, // a half formed ghost’ F is a fricative sound which is barely there, it mirrors a last breath, accentuated by the word ‘ghost’ and ‘half formed’ could suggest his body has been mutilated
Identify a flashback in the second stanza and explain what it reveals
‘beneath his hands, which did not tremble then // though seem to now’ Contrast between ‘then’ and ‘now’ reveals his emotions are now different to when he was taking the picture. Then, he was able to turn cold, but now his emotions of guilt have intensified (they develop along with the pictures)
Identify a direct imagery link to Remains which is in the second last stanza
WP -‘how the blood stained into foreign dust’. R -‘his blood shadow stays on the street’ Both soldier’s are reliving the same events- one sees it in a photo and the other when he is out on parole
How could you link this poem to Remains?
Flashbacks, imagery of blood staining, enjambment, dehumanising language
What does enjambment in this poem reflect?
Smooth movement of the aeroplane which contrasts directly with his conflicting thoughts, reveals gradual development of the photo
How does the poem end?
‘From the aeroplane he stares impassively at where // he earns his living and they do not care’ Contrast between ‘he’ and ‘they’ reveals that the people reading the newspaper do not care unlike the poet. Ironic that he is ‘impassive’ (showing no emotion) given how traumatised he is and it is ironic that ‘the readers eyeballs prick with tears’ because they go about their day straight after reading the article
How is the poem structured and why?
Four stanzas of equal length and equal rhyme scheme - it is ‘set out in ordered rows’ which insinuates the care the photographer takes over his work
