They focus on the "years" after the war and how farmers found fragile remains of "wasted young" leading to the narrator to reflect on their death.
What does the 4th stanza represent?
Brings the reader to modern day, "even now" the earth is healing from the horrors.
What do the last 3 stanzas represent?
They are written "this morning" and create a sense of immediacy around the horrific discovery of a mass grave- a reminder that war is forever present in our history.
The poem is written in tercets (3 line stanzas).
What do the tercets represent?
A delicate balance between life, death and nature.
Sheers wrote the poem in 3rd person to employ a sense of detachment and distance.
Owen Sheers uses enjambment with and between stanzas which could reflect the slow unearthing and passing of time as the pieces are dug up, creating a reflective tone.
