War Photographer Flashcards
Why does Carol Ann Duffy present the photographer as relieved to be alone?
Because he needs time to digest what he has witnessed.
‘All flesh is grass’ means…
…life is fragile. It can come and go.
The photographer arranges the photographs into ‘ordered rows’ because…
…he wants to bring order to the chaos he’s seen.
Why does Carol Ann Duffy describe the image of the dying man as ‘a half-formed ghost’?
Because the image is slowly developing in front of him, the man is now dead so seems like a ghost and the photographer finds the image haunting.
Why does the photographer describe his job as doing ‘what someone must’?
He feels that the world must learn of the horrors of war.
He feels he has a responsibility.
What is the theme of the poem?
Isolation and Suffering
What effect does the religious imagery create?
Conveys his dedication to his occupation
Shows how he is too often exposed to life and death
Carol Ann Duffy compares the photographer to a priest because…
…she thinks photographs can carry a message like a mass.
What is the colour of the light in the darkroom and what does it connote?
Red - connotations of blood and pain
Which quote shows our increasing indifference to the victims of conflict?
Which quote shows our increasing indifference to the victims of conflict?
He goes home to what?
He goes home to what?
What does Duffy mean by ordinary pain?
People out of war have it easy
oxymoron
The imagery of ‘fields that don’t explode…running children’ shows
what he has seen is stuck in his memory
What are the four focus points of the poem?
1) The photographer
2) The images of war zones
3) The lack of care of those living a safe life
4) Brief reflection of the nonchalance (lack of interest or empathy) towards the suffering
What rhyme scheme does the poem follow?
and what does it reflect?
ABBCDD
reflects The photographer’s futile attempt to establish order in a chaotic and distressing situation
Give examples of images of pain in the poem:
“Running children in nightmare heat”
“Cries of this man#s wife”
“Blood-stained”
“Fields which don’t explode beneath feet”
Give examples of images of comfort in the poem:
“Rural England”
“Ordinary pain which simple weather can dispel”
“Sunday supplement”
“Eyeball’s prick with tears between the bath and pre-lunch beers”
What poems could you compare to War Photographer on the theme of reality of conflict?
Remains
Bayonet Charge
Poppies
What poems could you compare to War Photographer on the theme of conflicting emotions?
Kamikaze
Remains
The Emigree
What quote is designed to make the reader understand the intensity of suffering caused by the war?
A hundred agonies in black and white”
What quotation uses sibilance and why?
“Spools of suffering set out in ordered rows”
The photographer is trying to make sense of something so horrific, which is emphasised by the sibilance
What quotation is also a quote from the bible and means that human life is temporary?
“All flesh is grass”
