bayonet charge

• The poem is about a nameless soldier going over the top in the trenches. Soldiers

  would have bayonets attached to the end of their rifles and would use them to stab

  enemy soldiers.
• The nameless soldier in the poem seems to become more a

  weapon than a man, rushing toward the enemy. It is not clear at the end whether

  he dies but there is definitely a change in him.
• the nameless soldiers actions are very raw and primal,

  much like an animal, suddenly pausing, preparing to react. The poet, Ted Hughes,

  was a former RAF serviceman and includes a great amount of natural and historical ideas

  in his poems and he often looks at man’s impact on nature.
• The poem clearly is set around conflict in that it is a soldier rushing out of the trenches on the attack. However the poem also

  looks at ideas like transformation, humanity and nature (in the form of the yellow hare and green hedge).
• In the poem the

  solider is almost more machine or animal than human and this is reflected in the power themed words used to describe him.
• There are three stanzas and the work is largely blank verse with no set structure. In part the different lines help

  show the pace of the charge, sometimes fast, sometimes stumbling. Towards the end it picks up speed, perhaps as he approaches his

  destination or doom.
• The poet uses a lot of enjambment and caesuras to give a bizarre and erratic speed to the poem. This helps again

  give a structure to the speed of the charge but also the confusion and intensity of the battle with explosions and gunfire as well as the

  jumbled thoughts of the soldier.
• There are parts of this poem which make us think more of a hunt or animals than humanity. The charge

  to the ‘green hedge’ seems to be more the action of an animal bolting in a field rather than soldiers

  charging a trench. 
• The inclusion of the yellow hare is also powerful, we see the soldier in a moment of

  confusion, not sure why he is there and what he is doing, the hare seems to spur him on, either because

  he does not want to be a coward or because it reflects a brief moment of man and nature connecting

  before war once again breaks it.
• -The poem explores a soldiers charge through a mix of

  physical and emotional exploration.
• The language of the poem seems to juxtapose natural

  animal images and human machine, they are at conflict.
• The mix of caesura and enjambment in the poem adds a

  chaotic tone to show the confusion of war and the inner

  turmoil of the soldier.
• key quote 1- "Stumbling across a field of clods towards a green hedge

  That dazzled with rifle fire, hearing

  Bullets smacking the belly out of the air"
• key quote 1- the verb "stumbling" makes the soldier seem clumsy and disorientated, he was thrown into the battle unprepared, and we don't know if he's stumbling because he's injured, tired or weak.
• key quote 1- the imagery of "a field of clogs" describes how the battle field has been damaged by war, emphasising how brutal war is
• key quote 1- the soldier is going "towards a green hedge", the colour imagery of "green" has connotations of life and purity, as if he is running towards Mother Nature for salvation, he is looking for untouched nature amongst a ruined landscape or, metaphorically, a symbol of hope amongst the surrounding devastation- the enjambment that follows this shows that hope is short lived
• key quote 1- the hedge is "dazzled with rifle fire" is the only indication of an enemy being present, making the war seem more frightening and unpredictable. The use of religious imagery of the word "fire" portrays how the soldier is suffering, as fire is associated with hell and suffering
• key quote 1- the personification of the bulletin "smacking the belly out of the air" emphasises how even the bullets are violent and terrifying as they're even attacking the air, highlights how the soldier cannot escape war
• key quote 1- the word "smacking" is onomatopoeic and evokes the readers senses so the reader can hear the punishment. Additionally, the words "bullets" and "belly" provide bilabial plosive alliteration which creates a harsh and aggressive tone, also mimics the sound of the soldiers beating heart, highlighting his fear, alternatively, it could also be mimicking an explosion and the soldiers fear of one happening.
• key quote 2- "The patriotic tear that had brimmed in his eye

  Sweating like molten iron from the centre of his chest,-"
• key quote 2- the "tear" could be due to physical pain, or because of the psychological toll of war. Hughes has labeled the tear as "patriotic" symbolising that the soldier was unable to see the realities of war because he was blinded by false expectations
• key quote 2- the past tense ("had") reveals that the soldier once believed in the propaganda, but now he understands that it was all a lie, and his is losing his patriotism (love for his country). the "centre of your chest" is where your heart is, where all your love comes from, this emphasises that the solider is losing his love for his country
• key quote 2- the tear is also described as "Sweating like molten iron from the centre of his chest" , the simile shows how the soldier is losing his patriotism, and he has become dehumanised. Then there is a juxtaposition between the Psychological brainwashing and the visceral physical reality of war
• key quote 3- "In what cold clockwork of the stars and the nations

  Was he the hand pointing that second?"
• key quote 3- he is saying that the war itself is because of hostilities between nations/countries and he is nothing more than a tool of war, and without soldiers like him, war cannot function. But they get exploited by much larger and more powerful forces
• key quote 3- Hughes uses chremamorphism ("clockwork" , "hand") to highlight how soldiers are objectified and replaceable. Moreover, by using time as a symbol, Hughes suggests that the soldier is conscious of his limited time
• key quote 3- the rhetorical question creates a very reflective tone as if He's considering his position and purpose in this war as he is Realising his urge to protect his country is not going to be returned and that His country won't protect him
• key quote 3- the guttural alliteration in "cold clockwork" creates a harsh, aggressive sound emphasising his suffering
• key quote 4- "Threw up a yellow hare that rolled like a flame And crawled in a threshing circle, its mouth wide Open silent, its eyes standing out"
• key quote 4- the use of colour imagery and the hare being "yellow" has connotations of happiness and hope, but the hare looks like it's on fire, so all hope has been demolished
• key quote 4- the imagery of the hare "crawling", makes it seem innocent and powerless and helpless, like a defenceless baby. The hare is then "thrashing" as if it is injured, with its "mouth wide" emphasising how intensely the hare is suffering that it looks like it's about to die from its injuries, and the circular motions give the impression that the hare is trapped. All of this represents how both the hare and the soldier are caught up in a deadly situation in someone else's battle.
• key quote 4- the Dying hare could be a metaphor for the soldiers that died on that very battlefield Or for devastating impact war has on the natural world. Further reinforced by the enjambement, which breaks up the line, the same way war has broken the soldier. The hare could be a reflection of the soldier.