Bayonet charge

• "Suddenly he awoke and was running":- Bayonet Charge


  • "Suddenly" - Media res, sharing the real experience of a soldier. Connotes shock and disorientation.
  • "Awoke" - Connotes peace and that the soldier was dreaming. Fantasy of war.
  • "Running" - Juxtaposes with "Awoke." Connotes fear and panic.
• "Bullets smacking the belly out of the air.": Bayonet Charge


  • "Bullets" - War hurts, destroys everything. Attacking nature and the enemy.
  • "Smacking" - Onomatopoeia, personification. Violent imagery.
  • "The belly out of the air" - Inversed roles, connotes trauma and confusion.
  • Sibilance between "bullets" and "smacking" connotes that war is never ending.
• "King, honour, human dignity etcetera, dropped like luxuries.": Bayonet Charge


  • "King, honour, human dignity" - Reasons people want to join the army/ways people are persuaded to join the army.
  • "Etcetera" - Listing, loyalty to the country, connoting patriotism. Colloquial language connoting the speaker is careless and hopeless.
  • "Dropped like luxuries" - Fragility. "Luxuries" connotes something that isn't required so it won't protect him, making war futile.
• Bayonet Charge - Form:

  • Free verse/inconsistent rhyme scheme - Suggests that the speaker has no control over his actions, showing the futility of war.
• Bayonet Charge - Language:

  • "Suddenly" "Running" "Bewilderment" "Plunged" "Dropped" "Terror"
  • Lexical field of panic and chaos.
  • The writer uses language to show what the reality of war is like when the write uses a lexical field of chaos to describe the war.
• Bayonet Charge - Structure:

  • Beginning: Use of media res shows the confusion created by war, and the chaos people have to face.
  • End: The speaker realises that pride and reason for fighting in a war means nothing, represents that patriotism has been destroyed by war, leaving only trauma and fear.
• Bayonet charge - Themes:

  • Negative portrayal of war.
  • Reality of war
  • Futility of war