Poetry is known to stimulate powerful responses in readers. Examine your reactions to these poems. How do they make you feel and why? Analyse the link between the various techniques used by the poets and your personal response.

GCSE Literature Coursework—Poetry

Poetry is known to stimulate powerful responses in readers. Examine your reactions to these poems. How do they make you feel and why? Analyse the link between the various techniques used by the poets and your personal response. Use detailed references to the poems to support your comments.

Reactions: #1Reader feels disturbed; unsettled, because (No more Hiroshimas) d and u poet speaks about relics of the attack that remind us people were the victims of these attacks, not just buildings or far—off governments or high-flown principles (The Day After) d and u reader does not know who is right and who is wrong—what should the Americans have done rather than cause so much suffering? Was there another way to end the war? Could the countries have worked something out? (Monuments of Hiroshima) u only was a ‘wooden box’ too much to ask for? We should give the victims of the attacks some more substantial monuments, something that respects their courage or at least their individuality—makes reader think (Ghosts, Fire, Water) d and u the reader almost feels scared, frightened of the ghosts, who are reaching out their hands and blaming us, and he/she wants to run away, or find some excuse for the bombings, but cannot… reader also wants to deny that he/she ever stopped “loving others”, but cannot… These poems make the reader feel unsettled. In “No More Hiroshimas”, the poet describes Hiroshima as “…a town like any other//Ramshackle, muddy, noisy…”. This makes the reader feel bad, and wonder why, if Hiroshima was so ordinary, it had to be destroyed. It makes the reader question how random the attacks that day were, and how much was planned. The poet also speaks of relics of the attack with great vividness and descriptive language: “The bits of burnt clothing,//The stopped watches, the torn shirts.//The twisted buttons…”. These relics are all to do with people; i.e., they are clothes or shoes or jewellery. The poet uses this vibrant imagery to remind us people were the victims of these attacks, not just buildings or far-off governments or high-flown principles. The reader realizes how inhumane the attack on Hiroshima was. In “The Day After”, the reader feels uncertain because the poet has left him/her ‘sitting on the fence’, unsure of whom is right or wrong. Edward Lowbury describes Hiroshima’s pain with such intensity one cannot help but feel for the people—yet he also tells the reader “…every scar of it’s their fault…”.

#2Reader feels sad, because (No more Hiroshimas) The bomb left an ordinary, run-of-the-mill town in pieces; killed its people, destroyed its beautiful landmarks, and above all, saw that Hiroshima would, in a way, never heal (poet implies that Hiroshima has tried to get back to normal, but they have not succeeded—the people are still suffering from shock, unhappiness, only “a kind of life…” goes on) (The Day After) In the end nobody wins, whichever way people choose to go—if the Japanese give in they lose face, if they don’t more people die; this power should not be held in anyone’s hands but God’s (Monuments of Hiroshima) the victims of the attack lost in all senses—their country lost the war, their hometown lost its beautiful buildings, trees, etc, they lost their families, they lost their histories, they lost their very own lives, and on top of this, they did not even have individual monuments to their deaths—only a tower of peace, a hall of peace… (Ghosts, Fire, Water) humanity can be so stupid!—if all of us could “love one another”, there would never be war, never be racism, never be segregation, never be disagreements…there would never have been something as hurtful as an atomic bomb, and Hiroshima would be a very different place today. It is sad that it takes something so dreadful to make us remember that old commandment. It is sad that we still haven’t learnt.

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#3 Reader feels pain, because PEOPLE were hurt physically and emotionally, —but esp. physically—the poet describes specifically the pain suffered by victims (“…the blasted boys crawled home…to bleed and slowly die.”) (The Day After) Poet uses so many negatively connotated words to do with death and physical pain—doom, shivers, die, defeated, torn, mutilated, fights, hacked, scar, blind, dumb, helpless, reality, blinds, nakedness, shame, hate…--very vivid, painfully realistic images (Ghosts) many vivid, very painful images (”..Their agony appears. Like ash they are blown and blasted on the wind…their shapes are torn….”) The poems cause the reader to suffer with Hiroshima. The poets describe the physical and emotional pain of the victims so expressively the reader can understand perfectly the way the victims must have felt. The poets specifically describe the pain suffered by victims: “…the blasted boys crawled home…to bleed// And slowly die.”. Kirkup uses evocative words like ‘bleed’ and ‘die’ to help the reader understand the pain—for these are words people can all identify with. Blood relates to physical injury, which is something everyone has experienced somehow. Death is a very real possibility for everyone, and something the world must face every day. Lowbury also uses powerful words related to death and physical pain in “The Day After”. Words like “…doom…agony…torn…mutilated…blind…helpless…” bring to mind glaringly realistic images of tortured, anguished people. There are many clear images to help the reader understand how the ghosts felt when the bomb fell: ”…Their agony appears…their shapes are torn…their flame-cracked flesh writhes…no easy music in their silent screams…” The reader hopes that Hiroshima will never again experience such pain.

#4 Reader feels guilty, because (The day after) The poet makes the reader feel as if not just America but mankind is responsible for the bomb (“…if God had nothing to do with it, extinction is the least price man can pay.”) (Monuments) “Monuments of Hiroshima” makes the reader feel guilty or not so much guilty but uncomfortable, for the poet, very subtly, asks the reader why no one recognized the individuality of those who died. The reader feels like he/she should do something about these unrecognized souls—feels like something should have been done long ago, feels like we are forgetting how unlucky these people were and how much they deserve that little bit of recognition, at the very least. (ghosts) the poet also makes the reader feel as if he/she is responsible, because, he asks the ghosts to “Forgive us…” and he writes that “Their shame is ours.”. .the poet makes the reader feel responsible for the unsatisfied ghosts (“Their voices call to us, in pain and indignation: ‘This is what you have done to us!’”…”Forgive us…”)

#5 Reader feels scared, because (No More) the poet transports the reader back to right after the bomb fell with vivid descriptions and imagery—the reader wonders where the “…bits of burnt clothing…” came from, and the “twisted buttons…” and “The white blouse polka-dotted with atomic rain, indelible…’ but especially the “…cotton summer pants the blasted boys crawled home in to bleed, and slowly die.”(The day after) frightened the poet has a very severe verdict for man—extinction—the reader wants to deny this verdict, justify the Americans, protest his/her innocence… The reader feels frightened of the ghosts in “Ghosts, Fire, Water”, because they blame the reader for what happened (“Their voices call out to us, in pain and indignation: ‘This is what you have done to us!”). The reader wants to run away, or find some excuse for the bombings, but cannot… James Kirkup uses strong, repetitive language to emphasize how much pain the ghosts suffered, and this makes the reader feel even guiltier. The reader also wants to deny that he/she ever stopped “loving others”, but cannot…for the poet himself seems to believe that the reader, perhaps the world, is responsible for the ghosts of Hiroshima, for he writes: “Forgive us…” and “Their shame is ours”. “Ghosts, Fire, Water also makes the reader feel uncomfortable because it is talking about something abstract, unreal, almost frightening—ghosts—and this in itself makes the reader feel frightened.

James Kirkup’s “No More Hiroshimas” and “Ghosts, Fire, Water”, Edward Lowbury’s “The Day After” and D.J. Enright’s “Monuments of Hiroshima” are four moving, incredibly powerful war poems. Like a lot of war poems, they are not pleasant to read, and they do not cause the reader to feel good. They only encourage one to think, maybe even to understand how futile war is. The poems have different tones and styles, and bring to the reader many ideas and emotions regarding the attack at Hiroshima during World War 2. “No More Hiroshimas” is a portrayal of the town after the attack. “The Day After” is a harshly realistic depiction of the people of Hiroshima after the attack. “Monuments of Hiroshima” is a much quieter poem that questions how we should treat the people who died. Finally, “Ghosts, Fire, Water” is a collection of images of the ghosts of those who died.

The poems are heartbreaking, and cause the reader to feel sad. This is because the bomb left an ordinary town in pieces. It killed many people, destroyed beautiful landmarks, and above all, caused a wound that in a way never healed. Kirkup uses negatively connotated words to hint that Hiroshima has tried to recover and return to everyday life, but has not succeeded (“…Awful emptiness…jaded Christmas frippery…dingy…deserted…”). The people are still suffering from shock and grief, and only “a kind of life…” goes on. The reader feels especially sad for Japan when Lowbury describes how she is “[t]orn between saving face and body…” and both are “…mutilated beyond recognition…”. The poet uses this symbolism to show how Japan was unwilling to back down and ‘lose face’, yet also unwilling for more people to die. The symbolism and the duel meaning of the phrase “[t]orn between saving face and body…” emphasize Japan’s losses and increase the reader’s sympathy. After reading “Monuments of Hiroshima”, the reader feels especially sorry for the victims of the attack. The reader realizes how much they lost—their families, their histories, their very own lives, and especially their individuality—they did not even have a simple coffin. Enright mentions their monuments: “A Tower of Peace, a Hall of Peace, a Bridge…” to show just how little recognition they received. The memorials are simply general reminders of what happened and do not honour the individuals who died. It is also sad that it took something so horrible to remind us of the old commandment: “Love one another [as I have loved you.]” (“Ghosts, Fire, Water”). Sadly, people still haven’t learnt.

These poems also cause the reader to feel guilty. Lowbury holds not just America but mankind responsible for the bomb. “…If God had nothing to do with it, //Extinction is the least price man can pay.”. Lowbury increases the guilt by illustrating Hiroshima’s pain with strong, emotive language: “Who will break this terrible silence?…seems less than a dream…” Enright asks the reader why no one recognised the individuality of those who died. The reader feels like he/she should have done something about these unrecognised souls. Did they not deserve some recognition? Kirkup makes the reader feel partly responsible for the bomb because he asks the ghosts to “[f]orgive us, that we had to see your passion to remember…”. The poets uses personification to give the ghosts voices with which to blame us. “Their voices call to us, in pain and indignation: ‘This is what you have done to us!’”. Kirkup also uses strong, repetitive language to emphasize how much pain the ghosts suffered, and this causes the reader to feel even more guilt. The poems cause the reader to feel almost responsible for the attack.

The poems can also upset and scare the reader. The poets use vivid imagery to transport the reader back in time, to right after the bomb fell. The reader wonders where the “…bits of burnt clothing…” came from, and “The white blouse polka-dotted with atomic rain, indelible…” but especially the “…cotton summer pants the blasted boys crawled home in to bleed, and slowly die.” These objects remind the reader of the horror of that day, and personalise the tragedy. In addition, the reader feels revulsion when Lowbury details the pain of the people: “...in the agony of death still torn, contorted…such nakedness that shame itself could not look on…”—he uses such poignant language, one cannot help but see, feel the agony. Lowbury also has a very severe verdict for man—extinction—and death is something many people fear (“…if God had nothing to do with it//Extinction is the least price man can pay.”). The reader also feels terrified of the ghosts of Hiroshima because they blame the reader for what happened (“Their voices call out to us, in pain and indignation: ‘This is what you have done to us!”). The reader wants to avoid reality and find some excuse for the bombings, but cannot. The poems also make the reader feel uncomfortable because they talk about something abstract and unreal—ghosts. Perhaps it is understandable that one feels afraid when the poets describe war.

After reading the poems, the reader feels subdued. He/she can partially grasp how grave the situation was. The poets use short, contemplative sentences to touch the reader and leave them with something to think about: “Remember only these. They are the memorials we need.” The reader feels subdued when Lowbury illustrates Hiroshima’s terrible pain: “…the doom of war…shivers over these // Unwilling…to die…searching us with sickening clarity…” Words like “…doom…agony…torn…mutilated…blind…helpless…” bring to mind glaringly realistic images of tortured, anguished people. These remind the reader how fortunate he/she is, to be alive and free from intense suffering. Enright uses balanced rhythm and rhyme to portray the dead people of Hiroshima: “Little of peace for them to rest in, less of them to rest in peace: //Dust to dust a swift transition, ashes to ash with awful ease.” The poem ‘flows’ off the tongue smoothly and reflects the ease with which the people were killed. This encourages the reader to consider the sanctity of life and how much people are worth. Do we deserve to enjoy life when so many never will?

These are war poems, and they are sombre and perhaps somewhat disheartening. They are also very important and meaningful, for they remind people of a time when countless numbers were hurt and killed. The poets use emotive language and moving descriptions to shock, scare and sadden the reader. More importantly, the poets encourage the reader to feel determined the world will never kill so many again. I think this was the poets’ intention. They wanted to show everyone how much unhappiness stemmed from war. They wanted to warn the world never to go to war again. They wanted the world to remember Hiroshima and how much she suffered, for if we remember we will never repeat the mistake.

They write in the hope that we will always remember. Let us do so.