Summary
Summary AQA GCSE poetry "Remains" explained and analysed
"Remains" by Simon Armitage from the aqa gcse power and conflict cluster analysed and explained
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Context: Simon Armitage, a famous UK poet, addresses modern issues of PTSD and mental illness in soldiers directlyin ‘Remains’ which is based upon an interview with a soldier who served in Iraq. Written from the perspective of a
soldier stationed in Iraq or Afghanistan (or any warzone) the poem reflects modern societies’ experiences of war and,
in particular, the issue of post-traumatic stress and mental illness that is very common in soldiers who struggle to
come to terms with some part of their duty. As in the poem, this is normally a horrific memory of killing or being in
danger and causes flashbacks, depression and sometimes suicidal tendencies.
Remains by Simon Armitage
Homophone meaning both Colloquialisms create an informal tone
the dead and the adding to the sense of a realistic and true
memories left behind story
On another occasion, we get sent out
Anecdotal language with a to tackle looters raiding a bank. Doubt is highlighted by the aside 'possibly
matter of fact tone, not', ‘possibly’, a modal verb suggests an
And one of them legs it up the road,
suggesting this is one in a attitude of nonchalance which undermines
series of events/stories probably armed, possibly not. the severity of the statement. If he wasn't
armed, should he have been shot? The
Repetition suggests he speaker has the power to decide
needs the reader to
Well myself and somebody else and somebody else Enjambment speeds up the
know it wasn't just him -
suggests he feels guilty pace reflecting the
are all of the same mind, Sudden violence
spontaneity of the event
disrupts the casual
Analogy with the card so all three of us open fire.
tone
game (Poker) implying Three of a kind all letting fly, and I swear Poetic voice switches to singular
that everything about
personal pronoun 'I' - this is now more
this event was down to
personal
chance.
I see every round as it rips through his life – Graphic hyperbole exaggerates
the lack of honour in this killing.
Repetition emphasises I see broad daylight on the other side.
Violent metaphor contrasts
the visual horror of the
So we’ve hit this looter a dozen times shockingly with the colloquial style
scene
of the first two stanzas
and he’s there on the ground, sort of inside out,
Plural pronoun - back to
shared responsibility Vocabulary choices, ‘looting’ and ‘inside out’ dehumanise the looter. It is a childish
description of the body. Either the speaker is unable to process his memory in an adult
way or it's to make the victim appear more like an object than a recently living person
Colloquialism - as if
recalling a night out pain itself, the image of agony.
Violent killing juxtaposed with relaxed
with the lads, a social
One of my mates goes by tone. 'tosses' and 'carted' are casual
event. Sharp contrast
cold actions suggesting no respect for
with the horror of the and tosses his guts back into his body. the dead man - suggests the body is
previous line
just rubbish
Then he’s carted off in the back of a lorry.
Summary: The poem is written from the perspective of a soldier stationed in a war zone. They are on patrol and come across
some bank robbers. One of the looters appeared to possibly have a gun so they open fire. The rest of the poem is looking at the
long term impact of this event on the solider, even a long time after he cannot leave the memory behind and carries this dead
man with him in his mind. The title is a homophone meaning both the dead man and the memories left behind. It is initially set
in a warzone and looks at conflict in a direct way. However, it also looks heavily at the after effects of conflict and the long term
effects on the people involved. Power is partly shown in this as well; firstly the soldier's power over life and death but later the
power over their own memory and experiences. Mental health and morality are also key themes in ‘Remains’ with links to PTSD
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