Sunday 15 May 2011

Invasion - Choman Hardy

The poem is read by an unknown speaker to an unknown listener.


The speaker does not refer to themself directly, instead focusing upon the ominous 'them' in the first half of the poem, and the inclusive 'we' in the second half. 


The use of 'them' is unsettling, especially in the first two lines. The idea of unknown people coming out of the 'mist' suggests that they are not open or clear about their intentions, but are instead shady characters. Therefore, we could read the 'mist' as a metaphor for the uncertainty that the townsfolk felt.


The use of 'we', on the other hand, appeals to the reader as they are put into the position of the unknown listener. Therefore, we react as the listener would, with uncertainty, worry and pessimism. This pessimism is built up by a knowing tone in lines such as 'We will lose this war'.

  • Can you find any other metaphors?
  • How else does the writer portray the approaching soldiers in a negative light?

13 comments:

  1. could 'Invasion' be about someone who has experienced war enough to know the protaoalls of what will happen, as it is being written as though it is a list, like a narrator who narrates what is about to or is happening.

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  2. That is an interesting point, Ayesha. Maybe she/he is looking back on the event. Perhaps the narrator is reliving it, wishing they could have forseen the events? Indeed, the calmness of the narrative suggests that it was not composed or performed in a state of panic.

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  3. The soldiers are portrayed in a negative light when the writer says "In their death bringing uniforms" It suggests that the soldiers should be feared and are represented like the Nazi's. This gives an edgy effect on the reader :) x

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  4. The poem starts very fast "soon they will come" then it slows down and become fast again, this could represent the speakers breathing as she is panicking because the soldiers are coming and she is scared. :)

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  5. An interesting take on the poem, Callum. Well done!
    How does the punctuation or structure help develop this speed?

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  6. Looking at the structure, there is clearly a relative arrangement as menstioned, which give's a certain speed to the peom Invasion exercised by the persona. For example, the enjambment in relation to punctuation which is used in a rant mixed with feelings and thoughts. Also there is the usage of dash(-) which helps slow down the reader at that point and emphasises the hopelessness felt by those invaded. All this creates that speed within the peom.

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  7. i dont get this poem what actually the poet is telling about invasion can you give me some good points please i need it for my assessment!:)

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  8. what is the structure of this poem??can u give me some details please
    thanks

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  9. hi i am not from your school but i have my exam in 9 days, i am wondering how the punctuation or structure does help develop the speed as i cant quite understand how it does...any ideas? thanks.

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  10. Thanks for your questions, I think the comment from 'Wise Lord', above, will help you with your punctuation, Elliot.

    Anum, I'm afraid you'll have to speak to your teacher; answering such a big question will take me all night!

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  11. thanks for this! helped me alot, brilliant website!

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  12. To Elliot, I am doing GCSE this year and I am not quite sure that I understand everything about the poem but I can give you some ideas . This poem is basically about the conflict between Kurdish people and Iraqi soldiers . There are lots of language features which describes about the situation, like personification, alliteration (boiling blood), enjambmentetc

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  13. The ideas on here are all fabulous. I have noticed that in the third stanza, there is mention of 'confronted by young men' and 'our young men'. These quotes show that there is some confrontation between the soldiers and the civilians. The way that they will combat this tension is to send: fathers, brothers, nephews, uncles and sons to defend their area. The word 'young' is repeated twice to show that even though the men are 'young', they can fight and defend their territory against the pessimistic soldiers mentioned earlier in the poem. Young is also repeated to show that even the young are some of the bravest of soldiers. Hope this help with word analysing.

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