Remains- simon armitage

• Theme comparison of remains

  1. effect of conflict
  2. reality of conflict
  3. guilt
  4. memory
  5. individual experience of war
• Poems to compare with remains

  1. charge of the light brigade
  2. war photographer
  3. poppies
  4. kamikaze
  5. exposure
  6. bayonet charge
• Overview of remains

  • narrator recounts the events of him shooting a looter in iraq
  • After accounting the events and returning home, he is consumed by the image of the body and suffers from PTSD
• Title meanings

  1. the memory that remains within him
  2. physical remains of the body
  3. remains of morality with the man who he has become
• Context of remains

  • part of armitages “not dead collection” where he interviewed veteran soldier from gulf war
  • armitage tackles personal matters and is known for his colloquial style poetry
• Form of remains

  • written in 8 stanzas and each one has 4 lines apart from the last
  • half rhyme create a sense of ironic jollity; disrupted by shorter lines to convey pinnacle moments
  • begins in medias res (in middle of action) to show great urgency of matter
• Structure of Remains

  • uses short clauses to mimic natural speech
  • uses conversational asides to establish introspective tone when dealing with guilt
• Language of Remains

  • Enjambment creates suspense throughout poem + highlights natural speech patterns
  • Caesura used to shift setting once narrator has returned home; highlights introspective tone
  • use of colloquialism to highlight realism of sitaution
  • inclusive pronouns used in anecdote to share guilt
• “I see broad daylight on the other side”

  • graphic hyperbole exaggerates the atrocity
  • imagery of light + prepositional phrase; conveys guilt as salvation doesn’t reach him
• “Sun stunned sand smothered land”

  • alliteration and sibilance mimics the sound of shifting sand
  • implies that the sands of time go by yet the guilt he harbours hasn’t left him
• “blood shadow stays on the street”

  • metaphor for his lingering memory; his responsibility regarding the death has left an impact, but not one that is seen
  • repetition of blood in last line establishes his vivid memory of the man’s remains
• “probably armed, possibly not”

  • use of enjambment reflects the assumption made in an urgent matter (behaviour of soldiers in impactful in stressful situations)
  • repition in stanza 6 of the phrase suggests the guilt associated with this irrational decision has followed him home
• Themes/ issues explored in remains

  1. conflict and consequences= poems structure mimics the soldiers experience as it recreates the impact of conflict on an individual rather the parties involved
  2. PTSD= the title reflects the persistent memory of a traumatic incident in which people with PTSD continually revisit in a vivid flashback
• War photographer vs Remains

  • in remains soldier carries instrumental guilt from the effects of war and conflict
  • war photographer is constantly yet indirectly effected by war and conflict