Shooting Stars

Notes on poem and

critical essay advice

Shooting Stars – key features of form and why used.

Dramatic Monologue – Duffy adopts persona of a Jewish prisoner so that she can better understand what these women endured during WWII to help prevent such horror being repeated in today’s society. Makes it easier for us to identify with character. Conveys first-hand experience = thoughts and feelingsUse of first person narration (‘I’) – third person narration is detached, we can’t identify with a specific person as he/she is used – more anonymous, first person makes us aware that we are focusing on a specific person, their thoughts/emotions/ plight and helps bring more gravitas to the woman’s suffering. Duffy is giving this woman a face/individuality/identity when ironically the Nazis see her only as part of a collective identity – Jewish.

Use of present tense/second person (you)

Present tense – whole point of poem is to make us aware we cannot forget the Holocaust otherwise such horrors could be repeated. She doesn’t use past tense as it locks these events in the past. Present tense gives events sense of immediacy and confronts us with the horror. It makes it appear as if these events (rape/torture etc) of the women are happening as we read poem – horrific/deeply unsettling – also suggests this is still occurring throughout the world today.Link with second person – puts us in the camp/situation of the women and asks how we would feel – prevents us from being passive as we almost find ourselves in the camp looking on in the situation (and almost participating by failing to prevent it) and forces us to be more active in finding solutions to these issues in today’s society.

Shooting Stars

Significance of the title:

The title has multiple meanings which engage the readers’ emotions and convey the horror of the situation:

1. Shooting of the Jews adorned with the Star of David – had to wear on their clothes to identify them as Jewish – they were seen as having no individuality – see poem.

2. Metaphoric comparison of the Jews with meteors called shooting stars, which are beautiful and unique, but also short-lived.

3. Sarcastic reading = reference to the Nazis themselves. This reading implies that the soldiers were ‘stars’ at shooting the Jews.

Rebecca Rachel RuthAaron Emmanuel David, stars on all our browsbeneath the gaze of men with guns.

After I no longer speak they break our fingersto salvage my wedding ring. Rebecca Rachel RuthAaron Emmanuel David, stars on all our browsbeneath the gaze of men with guns. Mourn for our daughters,

Use of first person - First person is more direct – it engages the readers’ emotions more effectively than the use of a detached narrator who simply recounts events. It brings the situation to life; makes it seem more real to the reader (makes events of poem more disturbing/immediate). This helps us to realise the suffering which was caused.

Use of present tense (‘speak’, ‘break’ etc.) makes us feel as if this is just taking place, which again increases the horror, revulsion and pity etc. we feel. Suggests torture, rape, murder etc. is experienced by many women today = D’s main point women are still suffering/being oppressed we have learnt nothing from the past.

‘our’ suggests the number of sufferers – Duffy wishes to convey that this is not an unusual/individual occurrence – there were countless sufferers during WWII punished for their cultural/religious identity.

‘break our fingers’ – shows they are holding hands to offer one another solace/comfort – reveals their compassion/gentility despite the atrocity/violence they are enduring.

‘Salvage’ – interesting lexical choice - usually means to save something of value from a wreckage. Here, this word shows the brutality of the woman’s persecutors as it suggests they value the ring more than her life. They value material goods over the lives of others. Duffy uses contrast to compare the gentle nature of the Jews vs. the brutality of Nazis.

Use of personal possessive pronoun – emphasises how little the women have – no identity, no freedom, and her the ring = symbol of love/marriage/connection with another is taken due to the small monetary value the Nazis will gain from it – the women are left with nothing of their own.

All Jewish names. Names identify people. These names identify them as being Jewish so draws attention to their cultural ID which sentences them to death. Their names separate them from everyone else – the Nazis see them as Jewish and not as individuals and that is why speaker gives us their names – so they have a voice/ are not forgotten = Duffy’s point in writing poem.

Lack of commas – suggests more names to come and so more people will suffer because of their cultural identity – this continues today 9/11 etc.

Star of David metaphorically described by D as being tattooed on prisoners’ foreheads as if a target for the soldiers who will be doing the shooting – again builds on idea that their religious/cultural identity marks them for death.

Again D suggests their personal identity (earlier use of names) has been erased as to the Nazis they are all marked by the same symbol. Only identity = Jewish.

D’s uses of alliteration – furthers the contrast between the Nazis/Jews: the soft ‘b’ sound is used for the Jews, whereas the harsh ‘g’ sound is used to describe the Nazis (guns = violent). Shows the nature of each: the Jews are gentle people who are victimised; the Nazis are the harsh, brutal oppressors.

‘beneath the gaze’ = suggests superiority of Nazis – consider Jews beneath them. Suggests the Jews are passive/can do nothing to escape the men deciding who will be next to die – standing regarding women with guns.

‘No longer speak’ pretends to be dead to survive or shocked into silence by what she has experienced or already dead and Duffy is reanimating her to give her the voice/life that was taken from her?

Daughters (poem is about male aggression, so poet’s sympathies are obviously with women). Women have sons who go on to perpetrate this – that’s why she says to mourn for them.

Mourn for the daughters,

upright as statues, brave.

upright as statues, brave. You would not look at me.You waited for the bullet. Fell. I say Remember.Remember these appalling days which make the worldfor ever bad. One saw I was alive. Loosened

Use of simile compares the women to statues. It tells us that they are brave because like statues the women don’t move. Even when they are facing death, they stand upright and do not flinch or cower. It may also tell us of the fear the women experience. They may not be able to move through fear – they may be petrified. (Petrified = from the Greek word for stone. Its literal meaning is ‘turned to stone’. Statues are often made of stone so this is an effective comparison).

Use of second person – who is ‘you’? – soldier? Another Jew? Or us? Duffy could be blaming us for doing so little to help those who suffer today – and here suggests our complacency in doing nothing and almost watching passively without care as others suffer – ‘waited for the bullet’/ ‘would not look at me’ – through our own guilt/lack of action to prevent/or even acknowledge how these women suffered? Suspense/tension – fellow Jews know what will occur but are powerless to prevent it – enhances their suffering/pain.

‘Fell’ - Image of her slumping to the ground after the shot.Connotations (suggestions) word implies: to ‘fall’ in wartime. Those who died (soldiers in battle) Jews too were innocent victims of the war.

Duffy as a feminist focuses on women’s plight during WWII – most war poetry focuses on the men who died on the battle field. She sees the women as just as courageous/noble and is shocked at how they have been forgotten.

‘Remember. Remember’ - Repetition for emphasis and intensity.At start and end of line – to stress it. Important words go there.Duffy is emphatic (forceful) about the fact she wants such an atrocity remembered. She doesn’t want people to forget what has happened in the past, and what suffering could again occur in the future if we fail to be tolerant of other races/religions etc.

The ‘R’ is capitalised for emphasis too.

Duffy’s whole purpose in writing this poem is for us to understand how such horrors have occurred and how if our actions/views on others do not improve, people will continue to survive.

‘make the world forever bad’ – even if we pretend/fail to acknowledge such events occurred, the world will forever be tainted by power/prejudice unless we use our understanding of the past to help prevent such suffering from being repeated.

Impersonal – shows they (Nazis) are without identity to the Jews as the Nazis all treat the Jews in the same way – torture/afflict pain etc. It is just another soldier who will cause more suffering.

Use of enjambment – carries on to next line/stanza – Nazi soldier is taunting his victim and starts slowly loosening his belt – she knows she will be raped and he does this to increase her fear. Use of enjambment – slows down rhythm as eye travels to the next line and we can imagine this poor women waiting for the inevitable (as we passively read to see what is happening) to occur knowing she is powerless to help it. D is deliberately graphic here so we can not shy away from seeing what the women endured. Again we are implicit in this woman’s suffering as the present tense draws us in to the event as it occurs – deeply traumatic and disturbing to the reader which is what D wants – to shock us in to action.

Remember these appalling days which make the world forever

bad.

Between the gap of corpses I could see a child.

his belt. My bowels opened in a ragged gape of fear.Between the gap of corpses I could see a child.The soldiers laughed. Only a matter of days separatethis from acts of torture now. They shot her in the eye.

‘Ragged’ – this lexical choice suggests extreme violence (a ragged edge is the result of ripping vigorously) here applies to the woman’s flesh which is ripped apart in the brutality of the rape – deeply harrowing for us to think about and D is deliberate in upsetting us here so we don’t easily forget the aggression of this image.

‘gape’ - facial expression – disbelief, surprise. Metaphorically it is applied to her bowels here, and not her face. No face is mentioned here. Suggests she is faceless to him, one of many, not an individual. Her identity has been erased. He has done this to many women and causes him no shame/guilt etc – deplorable how the women’s suffering is meaningless as they do not view them as individuals.

A gap in traffic suggests traffic is busy; gap will only last a second.

As the child is in the gap of corpses it suggests there are many corpses and the child will be one soon confirmed in ‘They shot her in the eye’ – statement – lack of emotion attached to it – the Jews have seen this happen so many times before, they have had to shut down emotions to enable them to cope – again applies to us here – seeing the same event occur repetitively in today’s world (e.g. war, famine etc.) it can fail to register an emotion – D wants to be overwhelmed with sorrow and pity every time it occurs so we see and empathise with each individual who is in pain.

Children symbolise/represent hope/life/vitality etc. – they can grow up to make a difference in the future. Here this child’s life is cut short which again suggests D’s doubts of a brighter and more tolerant society.

Lack of emotion from the soldiers over their action which is echoed in D’s short sentence /casual tone– she doesn’t need to elaborate on how she feels towards the soldiers’ actions – she has been so shocked by the Jews’ suffering that she too has been emotionally deadened by the repetition of the atrocities.

Again factual statement conveying the inevitable – D and the reader know that the women will encounter constant torment from the Nazis until death. Death almost appears a comfort – see stanza 5.

Only a matter of days separatethis from acts of torture now.

My bare feet felt the earth and urine trickleddown my legs until I heard the click. Not yet. A trick.

How would you prepare to die, on a perfect April eveningwith young men gossiping and smoking by the graves?My bare feet felt the earth and urine trickleddown my legs until I heard the click. Not yet. A trick.

Use of rhetorical question/ second person - invokes the reader directly. It places us right there in the horror of the situation and asks us to consider how we would face death – again puts us in a very uncomfortable position as D is asking us how we would try to cope in this situation/environment – again to provoke us in to reaction – wanting us to avoid intolerance in the present.

April Easter Crucifixion Jesus’ sacrifice to save mankind. Speaker in the poem wants us to remember to prevent it happening again. Duffy believes Jews/these women died in vain because we haven’t learnt from it.

Contrast of April and Death. Spring symbolises new life etc. and by contrasting with the women’s imminent deaths it strengthens the emotion and makes it more poignant/powerful.

Evening – day coming to a close symbolises the lives of the Jews within the camp coming to an end = certainty with which this will occur – night must come etc.

D further exemplifies the cruel and sadistic nature of the Nazis who remain unaffected by the torture they have inflicted on the Jews.

Suggests sensitivity of the Jews – in touch with their surroundings/God etc.

Use of ‘bare’ – suggests vulnerability of the Jews – exposed/unprotected etc. which mirrors their position in society/the world during this time.

Bodily functions – highlights the extremity of the woman’s terror – again here the Nazi soldier taunts his victim by making her think the gun is loaded.

‘Not yet’ – again she knows and we too are aware that she will be shot.

The impression of mental torture the woman suffers is emphasised by the short sentences and the end of the line. Full stop = strong punctuation mark – creates a pause and creates tension and a real sense of the experience of the woman.

Internal rhyme – ‘click’ and ‘trick’- This echoes the pauses created by the full stops, and recreates the near silence the woman would have experienced as she waited to hear the click of the gun. (onomatopoeia)

The soldier takes sadistic pleasure from toying with his victim.We naturally feel intense sympathy for the Jews and hatred towards the Nazis.

After the history lesson children run to their toys the world turns in its sleep

After immense suffering someone takes tea on the lawn,After the terrible moans a boy washes his uniform.After the history lesson children run to their toys the worldturns in its sleep the spades shovel soil Sara Ezra…

The first four stanzas are horrific due to the description of the action, but stanza 5 is perhaps even more horrific because of the juxtaposition of the horrific with the domestic. This contrast serves to heighten the horror of the situation (could compare with April/death of stanza 4). The reader feels sympathy and pity for the Jews. It is horrific because it draws our attention to the way these atrocities have become commonplace (parallels obviously with today)

e.g. ‘After the terrible moans a boy washes his uniform’ suggests rape or murder has just taken place (‘terrible moans’ of anguish/distress). The soldier casually washes his uniform which shows his lack of guilt/anxiety over what he has just done etc.

D uses parallelism/parallel sentencing to convey that the event has been forgotten by the world in general – ‘after’ suggests time has passed since these events which makes it easy for us to ignore what has happened. Duffy is trying to create awareness to make us remember (compare with repetition of ‘remember in stanza 2.) parallelism = sentencing / repetition = word choice (could link to use of present tense)

Contrast between the horrific and the domestic – clearly alludes to the rape (‘terrible moans’) and torture (‘immense suffering’) thus D poignantly depicts how commonplace these events have become and again the lack of remorse/guilt in the Nazis (could compare with stanza 1, 3, 4 etc.) – these truly abhorrent actions again provoke us to contempt/anger for the perpetrators.

Again suggests it could be anyone as we know this torment was not an isolated case – compare – ‘one’ / ‘they’

Interesting lexical choice – why do you think D uses here? What does it suggest about this boy soldier who has committed rape? Is D trying to reduce his culpability?

Suggests through lack of education/guidance this boy is emulating those around him as children/teenagers do – has no suitable role model amongst the Nazis and subsequently he is doomed to repeat their atrocities.

Likewise D suggests that we are doomed to repeat the errors of the past if we too do not have better education/guidance (link to next line of stanza)

Links to idea of ‘boy’ soldier in previous line and shows the extent of the damage ignorance can cause – boy knows no other way to treat these prisoners so this propagates the violence – it keeps continuing as it does today through lack of understanding of different cultures/religions.

‘the children’ here are us or today’s children who despite knowing about WWII prisoner camps still ‘run to [our] toys’ after hearing about them (‘the history lesson’) as we are more focused on the triviality of our own lives rather than the profundity of others’ suffering. D continues to bring us directly in to the poem to force us to analyse/contemplate our own actions/ignorance so we are no longer complacent.

Continues previous idea – idea of sleep = lack of attention/forgetfulness over what has occurred in the past – ‘turns’ – almost shunning those who have suffered by metaphorically turning our backs on them and we are therefore not honouring/respecting their memory.

Continued in next line where D personifies the shovels – shows again the lack of feeling attached to the burial/deaths as have occurred so many times before and this is exemplified by the shovels digging the graves on their own Creates deep sympathy for the innocent Jews

Alliteration - repeated ‘s’ sound (soft) reinforces the idea of sleepy forgetfulness. ‘sh’ sound (harsh) to help us remember what occurred – the reality of it is disturbing and this is why we strive so vehemently to avoid/ignore it.

Again D forces us too to see them as individuals rather than as a collective identity which is how the Nazis too see them – we often think of the 5-6 million Jews who perished but perhaps never truly think about the lives of the victims each as an individual. Lack of commas again to show they are not divided up as individuals but rather only ever seen as a group/one identity.

Ellipsis (…) incomplete sentence: suggests list of dead could go on and on unless we put an end to such prejudice/ suggests they have been forgotten and were never known as individuals so the list of all those who died can’t be completed (mass graves/incineration/lack or destruction of records etc.)

Again lack of punctuation esp. lines 3-4 speeds up the rhythm of the poem to echo how frequently these events occurred and again shows how rapidly lives can be lost through failing to accept other cultures/ one race believing themselves to be more dominant etc.

Tell them I sang the ancient psalms at dusk

inside the wire and strong men wept. Turn thee

unto me with mercy, for I am desolate and lost.

Sister, if seas part us, do you not consider me?Tell them I sang the ancient psalms at duskinside the wire and strong men wept. Turn theeunto me with mercy, for I am desolate and lost.

Rhetorical question/ second person – we should all consider each other even if we are far apart/ a different race/culture/religion – (again note how D is directly appealing to women here to remember each other so women are treated as equal to the men who fell during the war. )

(Also ‘seas part us’ metaphor for being separated/marked apart from rest of humanity because of religion/time etc) but D forces us to see that this does not give us an excuse to forget.

‘them’ – everyone who’s left (fellow Jews to affirm their faith.) It is likely this also applies to the Nazis as the woman wishes them to know that despite everything they have not beaten/subdued her spirit/taken her faith/religion – clearly D demonstrates these women to be just as brave as the soldiers who lost their lives for their country/beliefs and thus they deserve to be as honoured/remembered as the men.

Psalms songs from Old Testament. Jews believe only in the Old Testament. Usually psalms were about tolerance, strength and absolute faith in God as deliverer (to deliver them from evil). Thus, psalms have a particular significance for Jewish prisoners.

If you’re singing a football song – what does it assert? – who you support- so it’s something about your identity. Nazis wanted to wipe out Jews – leave no trace of them/obliterate their identity. Therefore, she is singing something that asserts her identity, who she is – this has not been conquered shows bravery, defiance, championing the culture she was born into.

‘dusk’ (compare with ‘evening’ stanza 4 – dusk = ending of the day = symbolises another life is about to end – again suggests endless cycle of suffering, death etc.

role reversal - culturally it’s more accepted when women cry. Men are the ones who are meant to be brave, but here they are crying. It’s the women who have the strength here shows Duffy’s admiration. Also shows the extremity of the suffering that it even brings strong men to tears.

Comes from the psalms: ‘turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate and afflicted’ again suggests remembrance.

D’s purpose in writing the poem is confirmed here - returns to the plea for remembrance (turn to me, look at me, remember me).

Key themes explored in ‘SS’

• Brutality and suffering of war

• Intolerance/Prejudice

• Oppression of women by men

Purpose of the Critical Essay

• A DISCURSIVE essay on a text

• Presenting an ARGUMENT – a clear line of thought which is linked throughout and is fully developed.

• Asserting your genuine personal response/interpretation of the text.

• Conveying a CLEAR FOCUS and fully addressing the task – not everything you know or can remember about the text. If you do not answer the ? – the essay will not achieve a pass.

Features of a Critical Essay• Don’t forget that you are presenting an ARGUMENT so you will use the same techniques as in discursive writing:

- Introduction which clearly introduces your line of argument.

- Clear and fully developed points.

- Justification using evidence (textual evidence such as quotations) and explanation.

- Clear structure which helps develop argument – topic sentences, sub-conclusions, linking, transitional markers.

- Conclusion which sums up your argument.

Assessment of a Critical Essay

The assessment criteria is divided into 4 main areas:

• UNDERSTANDING

• ANALYSIS

• EVALUATION

• EXPRESSION

UNDERSTANDINGDisplay an UNDERSTANDING of WHAT the text is about.

THIS INCLUDES: WHAT happens in the text (understanding of the key aspects and main issues of the text)

• WHAT the text is about (THEMES and Writer’s PURPOSE – what are they saying about the themes, what are the messages to the reader about the Human Condition?)

Your Understanding of the texts is vital because if you don’t fully understand the text then you cannot go on and analyse and evaluate effectively.

ANALYSISIdentify and ANALYSE HOW the writer achieves certain effects and their overall PURPOSE.

THIS INCLUDES: • Identifying TECHNIQUES the writer uses and explaining their effects.• Selecting key quotations and textual evidence and explaining why they are importance in the text – what is their effect, what do they show?

Although you will be looking at individual techniques and focussing on specific aspects of the text to analyse their immediate effects, it is also crucial that your Analysis has a more holistic dimension to it, looking at the overall effect of all the techniques and HOW they help the writer achieve their OVERALL PURPOSE – this will be linked to the focus of the task.

EVALUATIONEVALUATE HOW EFFECTIVE the techniques used by the writer are in achieving their intended effect and overall purpose.

THIS INCLUDES: • Assessing the effectiveness of the techniques and the text as a whole and giving a genuine personal response.

• Using evaluative language: successfully, clearly, cleverly, is effective in…

Even though you must give a personal response, remember that it is a formal essay so you should not write ‘I think…’

EXPRESSION

• Your expression should be formal and varied and you should use technical language competently.

You must take responsibility for any areas of weakness and try to address these by asking for advice or resources to help you.

•Expressing yourself well in an essay requires good writing skills: word choice, sentencing, punctuation, spelling and paragraphing are all important. It also refers to your use of appropriate critical terminology, e.g. reference to characterisation; setting; the use of rhyme.

Critical Essays:

• Focus on the question as fully as possible.

• Select relevant quotation and analyse fully (the analysis here is the working out in maths.)

• Always write in present tense (the text still exists).

• Use varied and sophisticated vocabulary/sentencing.

• Fully evaluate what the writer/poet/playwright is doing, why and how this is effective (e.g. 1st person instead of 3rd person narration in ‘SS’?)

• Link to key themes and the purpose of writer/poet/playwright – shows a full and comprehensive understanding of the key features of the text.

2003, Q14

Choose a poem in which the poet has created a perfect blend of form and content.

Show how the poet achieves this and discuss how it adds to your appreciation of the poem.

Answers to questions on poetry should address relevantly the central concern(s)/theme(s) of the text(s) and be supported by reference to appropriate poetic techniques such as: imagery, verse form, structure, mood, tone, sound, rhythm, rhyme, characterisation, contrast, setting, symbolism, word choice…

The Critical Essay Structure

INTRODUCTION

The function of the introduction is to clearly introduce the topic of the essay and set up the line of argument.

KEY COMPONENTS:

• Title of the text, name of writer and type of text

• Introduce focus of essay (the line of argument) – do this by referring to the task/ use the key words of the ?• Outline the areas the essay will cover – character, setting etc. (this ensures you have task and how to approach clear in your mind.

• Use evaluative/emotive words (e.g. poignantly, harrowing etc)

Introduction

Carol Ann Duffy’s evocative and brutal poem ‘Shooting Stars’ is the horrific account of a Jewish woman about to be killed by Nazi soldiers in World War II. Duffy’s use of the dramatic monologue form in harmony with key features of content reinforces her message that we should remember the atrocities committed against the Jews during WW2.

Main Argument

You should ALWAYS clearly plan out the aspects of the text that you are going to deal with in the main argument before you start writing. Your argument needs to be clear, logical and well thought through.

Consider:

• What is relevant to the task

• The key points you want to make in each section

• What quotations or textual evidence are you going to use to illustrate your points.

• The appropriate order of the points/paragraphs

• How you are going to link the points/paragraphs together.

•Varied and complex sentencing:

•e.g. typical topic sentence (too basic/can become repetitive)

Duffy uses imagery to convey the horrific torture of the Jewish women by the Nazis.

Through clever and extensive use of imagery, Duffy harrowingly depicts the torture the Jewish people endured within the camps.

Poignantly, the poet exemplifies the barbarity of the Nazis towards the Jewish, through the horrific and graphic imagery employed.

Quotation Layout (you can use a mixture of both methods):

If 2 lines or more or if simply too difficult to integrate:

Poignantly, Duffy exemplifies the barbarity of the Nazis towards the Jewish, through the horrific and graphic imagery employed. The atrocities committed are described in vivid detail:

‘One saw I was alive. Loosenedhis belt. My bowels opened in a ragged gape of fear.’

The graphic and brutal nature of a rape is expertly conveyed here through the use of enjambment. By….

Remember to drop down a line and separate out the quotation by indenting it slightly. DO NOT indent the analysis that follows – it is not a new paragraph (just drop to next line and continue writing next to the margin.

Or integrating: (tip - use a conjunction)

Duffy poignantly portrays the brutality of the Nazis by depicting the graphic rape of one of the prisoners, and the fear and torment she endured as ‘[her] bowels opened in a ragged gape of fear.’ Thus, …

Duffy highlights to the reader the consequences of forgetting the past which has ultimately made ‘the world forever bad,’ as we cannot hope to avoid the repetition of such atrocities, without, fully understanding why they occurred.

Remember to use square brackets to help integrate your quotations more easily. Use […] if you miss any words out

The title of the poem ‘Shooting Stars’ creates many images in the reader’s mind. It could mean the shooting of the Jews, adorned with the Star of David, or could have a much deeper meaning. Imagine the beautiful but ephemeral burst of light flying through the midnight sky and you have Duffy’s metaphor for life itself. The shooting star is beautiful and unique, but it is also dying. Duffy portrays the life of the world itself as a short blast of passion and light, which all must come to an end. The title reinforces the fact that any death, no matter how dramatic or small, is still heroic and brave.

•Strengths?

•Areas to improve?

The title of the poem ‘Shooting Stars’ creates many images in the reader’s mind which Duffy cleverly employs to suggest the heroism of the Jews. Although on a literal reading the poet suggests the sadistic shooting of the Jews, adorned with the Star of David, there is a more profound meaning also implied. Imagine the beautiful but ephemeral burst of light flying through the midnight sky and you have Duffy’s metaphor for Jewish life during WWII: the shooting star is beautiful and unique, but it is also dying and thus the poet portrays the life of the Jews as a short blast of passion and light, which tragically comes to a premature and brutal end. Subsequently, the deaths of these peaceful and noble Jews are made all the more deplorable due to the violent and horrific manner in which they were obliterated.

The poem begins: ‘After I no longer speak, they break our fingers to salvage my wedding ring.’ The image in the reader’s mind is horrific. The word ‘salvage’ shows the brutality and greediness of the Germans who did this to her. This line is written in the present tense, bringing the events of the Holocaust closer to us and shocking us greatly with how this woman’s fingers were broken, whilst she was actually still alive.Duffy cleverly conveys the bravery and noble heroism of the Jewish woman as she ‘no longer speak[s],’ wishing not to give any satisfaction to the soldier who has broken ‘[her] fingers to salvage [her] wedding ring.’ Here we understand that despite the savagery of this act, this woman stands brave and resolute determined not to show her pain. This brutal act juxtaposed with the pathetic greed of the soldier exemplifies the magnitude of the woman’s suffering as he ‘salvage[s]’ the only possession she has left. Poignantly, Duffy’s lexical choice here reflects the true horror of the situation as ironically ‘salvage’ means to save something of value, and here the most valuable asset of all, this woman’s identity, valour and courage are being vehemently denied.

But this poem is not just the tale of the persona’s acts of bravery. She is unnamed and therefore, for me she could be any one of the six million Jews who died in the Holocaust. This is a sad reminder of all the people who died. The persona comes across as a heroine, for me, because she attempts to give the reader a sad but important reminder. She lists the names: ‘Rebecca Rachel Ruth Aaron Emmanuel David.’ The lack of any punctuation reminds the reader that these lists go on and on, and that the people who died were not just statistics, they were real people who lived and breathed.

However, the poet does not solely focus on the persona’s acts of bravery, rather she is making a more universal statement; the Jew experiencing such torment is unnamed and therefore, for me she could be any one of the six million Jews who were annihilated in the Holocaust. Through the list of names ‘Rebecca Rachel Ruth Aaron Emmanuel David’ and the lack of any punctuation, Duffy skilfully reminds the reader that these lists were never ending, and that the people who died were not just statistics, they were real people who lived and breathed. She therefore wishes us to honour all the brave and courageous individuals involved, as if we fail to acknowledge and respect all the lives that were tragically destroyed, we are failing to honour their memory appropriately.

ConclusionThe conclusion should bring the essay to a close and sum-up the argument in an assertive, clear and concise way.

The conclusion is very similar to the introduction in some ways:

• Re-state Title, Type and author of text

• Clear reference to the task

• Re-assert argument with particular focus on task and overall purpose of the text (Evaluative stance)

There should be NO new points of analysis or any quotations in the conclusion

Conclusion

Duffy creates an intense and uncomfortable mood in order to stress to the reader the atrocities and reality of war from the Jewish woman’s point of view. The speaker recites the deplorable events vividly and thus Duffy ensures that they remain imprinted in our minds, so that we are better aware of the failings of the past, and subsequently better prepared to avoid such horrors reoccurring in the future.

Conclusion

‘Shooting Stars’ is a story of heroic life being destroyed, but it is a poem with a difference. It does not tell the fanciful tales of the glory of war, it tells it like it is. It tells of the real heroic people of the world, the innocent blood of women and children pooling on the ground in countries such as Iraq and Bosnia. Duffy lets us know that these events are still going on but ‘the world turns in its sleep’ as if we do not care and have forgotten these terrible events. Yet, as Duffy says we must ‘Remember’ and her haunting words from the grave will never be forgotten. We will not forget.