The Topic Of War In The Poems Of Carol Ann Duffy And Robert Bly
The topic of war and death brings with it the emotion of sadness, fear, tension and anguish. Two examples that look at the real sense of war and death are Carol Ann Duffy’s poem, “War Photographer,” and Robert Bly’s poem, “Driving Through Minnesota During the Hanoi Bombings.” Both poems perfectly illustrate the psychological affects of the war and experience of the people who were affected. The writers of both poems have created devastating imagery that is so often true with war. I will analyze and compare both poems, concentrating on structure, tone and imagery to discern the subject matter. Both poems seem to focus on the Vietnam war and examine the impact on individuals during these terrifying times. Since Carol Ann Duffy's 'War Photographer' and Robert Bly's 'Driving through Minnesota During the Hanoi Bombings “were released in the 1980's there are similarities in the way the poets echo the terrible effects of war. Both poems concentrate on the theme of war from different viewpoints rather than the usual.
'Spools of suffering' is an interesting metaphor for the never-ending pain that the photographer is experiencing in his career. The use of the darkroom signifies the darkness and depression that surrounds his job. 'ordered rows' suggests that the photographer is trying to make sense of what is happening. Furthermore, Duffy uses color to describe the anger, rage and blood shed that occurs due to war, 'the only red light is red and softly glows'. Duffy values the experiences of these photojournalists as they record their message with photography and convey the truth of human trial, as she echoes that same experience through the medium of language and written word. She seems to understand the photojournalists anguish as he lays out his work in the dark room. The fact that he has a job to do, rather like her job to write poetry. In comparison, “Driving Through Minnesota During the Hanoi Bombings.” talks of the duty that the Sergeant has and the job he has to play in killing a young boy.
The sergeant said, “I felt sorry for him / And blew his head off with a shotgun”. This style and approach are almost cold and distant, but at the same time recognizes the need to do a job. Similar to the work of the photojournalist when lining his reels of film up in the dark room. It is a clinical style that is necessary by individuals in this career so that they can remain professional whilst under extreme amounts of stress. In both poems, there is a sense of distance needed to be in this line of work. The sergeant, although feeling sorry for the boy, had to remain professional enough to shoot him. Both concentrate on the darkness and deep suffering during turmoil. Duffy deliberately uses full stops to enforce the imagery in the readers mind. Duffy repeats the religious images throughout the poem as the photojournalist lines up his work like a priest and the final stanza uses a phrase from the Bible, 'all flesh is grass'.
Robert Bly's poem focuses on a passenger in a vehicle with his companion, traveling across the beautiful countryside on a summer's day whilst listening to a radio report on the present actions of the Vietnam war. The reader is transported from the brilliant landscapes of 'new grass' to the battle fields of war. Likewise, Duffy also explains the beauty of the landscape though this time, it is 'Rural England' and once again the weather is spoken of. 'Rural England. Home again to ordinary pain which simple weather can dispel'.
All in all, both poets try to demonstrate the horrors of war, but it is impossible to do so. They have an impossible task of conveying the true disturbance and terror associated with war. The photojournalist in Duffy's poem and the passenger in Bly's poem never actually fight in war and are only experiencing it from a distance. Thus, conveying their emotion will never be the same as a soldier fighting on the battlefield. Both poem's look at an individual being killed. In Duffy's it looks at a man's wife, whereas in Bly's it focuses on the young boy having his head blown off. Each poem is quite different in style; In Duffy's poem there are 4 stanzas, 6 lines per stanza and an abbcdd rhyme scheme. Whereas in Bly's poem there is only 1 stanza and no rhyme. Both 'War Photographer' and “Driving Through Minnesota During the Hanoi Bombings,” are written in third person and are fantastic examples of the pain experienced during war.
Works Cited
- Bly, Robert.” Driving Through Minnesota During the Hanoi Bombings.” 20th – Century poetry & Poetics: Poetry edited by Gary Geddes, Fifth Edition, Oxford press,2006, pp. 498-499.
- Duffy, Carol Ann.” War Photographer.” 20th – Century poetry & Poetics: Poetry edited by Gary Geddes, Fifth Edition, Oxford press,2006, pp.708-709.
