Poppies context

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Created by
Lily Herring

Cards (9)

  • Poppies was written by Jane Weir
  • Poppies is about the world wars and was part of a collection of 21st century war poems commissioned by Carol Ann Duffy in 2009.
  • Jane Weir is a writer and textile designer who grew up in Manchester and Italy, along with living in Belfast.
  • The form is a first person narrative with no regular rhyme or rhythm making the speakers thoughts sound like memories.
  • The poem has a chronological structure however the time frame is ambiguous as memories of her sons childhood are intertwined with memories of him leaving and are not clearly distinguished.
  • War imagery symbolises the sons new identity.
  • Domestic imagery reminds the reader of the sons past identity with his family.
  • The mystery of whether her son is alive or not helps emphasise the mothers fear and feelings of loss while contrasting the feelings of freedom her son may hold about leaving home.
  • The theme of conflict is also shown in Exposure. The theme of family identity and conflict is also shown in Catrin. The theme of memory is shown in The Prelude. The theme of loss is also shown in What Were They Like?.