lament - gillian clarke

• 'the green turtle'


  starts with a powerless creature, it represents nature as a whole which can't defend itself from man
• 'eggs laid in their nest of sickness'


  implies they are corrupted by man from birth
• 'funeral silk'


  alludes to US soldiers who are buried in their flag, the bird is covered in oil and will kill it
• 'veil of iridescence'


  the oil sounds beautiful and pleasant yet it is murderous
• 'the ocean's lap with its mortal stain'


  juxtaposition: water should be cleansing but it has a stain
• 'ahmed'


  worked against saddam hussein's regime and had to choose between two countries
• 'gunsmith, armorer - boy fusilier, farmer's sons'


  juxtaposition between innocents and professionals
• 'who joined for the company - in it for the music'


  conveys how young, innocent men were manipulated by propaganda and poisoned by human power
• 'the missile's thunder'


  personification represents its noise and how it echoes and reverberates, creating a long-term impact
• 'veiled sun'


  alludes to mass fires which cover the sun
• 'burnt earth'


  gives a post-apocalyptic feel after the desire for power
• 'the blazing well'


  although everything is on fire, the present tense verb suggests there is a chance of salvation if we act now
• 'the ashes of language'


  ends with a sombre image of all that will be remembered of humans: we've destroyed everything by our greed
• title

  an expression of grief towards things affected by war