‘Shooting Stars’ – Revision Pack

By Carol Ann DuffyName:_________________________

Contents

1) ‘Shooting Stars’ – the poem

2) Summary

3) Key Quotes & Analysis

4) Practice Essay Questions

5) Evaluation Guide

6) Worked Essay plan

7) Suggested Revision Tasks

8) Useful Evaluative Phrases

9) Personal Notes

Shooting StarsBy Carol Ann Duffy

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,

upright as statues, brave. You would not look at me.You waited for the bullet. Fell. I say, Remember.

Remember those appalling days which make the worldforever bad. One saw I was alive. Loosened

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.

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. I heard the click. Not yet. A trick.

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…

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.

SummaryUsing the first person singular a dead Jewish woman speaks to the reader about the atrocity and suffering she and her race have endured at the hands of Nazis, reliving her own death as part of the

Holocaust in the Second World War.

The Title‘Shooting Stars’ is an ambiguous title referring both to the yellow Star of David which Jewish civilians and prisoners were forced to wear as well as the temporary nature of life in the metaphorical comparison of people to meteors that we call shooting stars. The

shooting star is a symbol of fleetingness of life. Just as a shooting star flashes in and out of existence in the blink of an eye so too have the lives of the victims of the holocaust been brutally cut short. A third interpretation is that a heroic person who has suffered a tragic end and is deserving of this ‘star’ in the face of adversity is being shot down.

Poetic Form Six stanza poem, each stanza four lines long. Regular rhythm – standard line lengths – one example of

rhyme in the final stanza.

Narrative PerspectiveThe poem is written in the first person to emphasise the narrator’s feelings. This creates and intimate relationship between poet and reader to increase the emotive effect of the poem. Feelings are the crux of this poem! The speaker is not identified; she is nameless – like so many of the Jewish victims.

Key Quotes & AnalysisBelow is a list of poetic techniques used in ‘Shooting Stars’ by Edwin Morgan.To write about the poem successfully, you should…… understand what these technical words mean and be able to

explain them, giving examples from the poem

be able to explain the effect of the technique in the poem (i.e. what it adds to the reader’s understanding of the poem’s theme)

Technique Example / Explanation EffectTheme Religion

“upright as statues”

“if seas part us”

“Rachel”

“the ancient psalms”

“…Turn theeUnto me with mercy.”

Persecution

Use of pronouns “I”

“You would not look at me”

History

Repetition of “Remember”

“After the history lesson childrenrun to their toys”

Humanity

Theme of religion is integral to the poem as it considers the tensions between Christianity and Judaism.

Visual image of the Jews’ bravery as it implies defence of their faith.

Echoes the idea of seas parting for Moses in the bible.

Jewish biblical name.

Refers to part of the bible. Idea that religion and God have deserted the speaker but at the same time, it is religion that keeps them going.

These last couple of lines reinforce the theme of religion and the pain it can cause.

The Jews were probably the most persecuted race in modern history: hence, poems like this are vital. Sometimes history disappears through textbooks and it is left to art to bring history to life.

Real sense of isolation in the poem through the repeated use of “I” to remind the reader that she stands alone. However, she is also emblematic of her race.

The soldiers – and perhaps the reader – as referred to as “You”. Separates us firmly from the victims.

The idea of “remembrance” is apparent throughout the poem. Remembering war heroes and the stereotypical idea of soldiers is examined.

It could be argued that all history repeats itself and Duffy wants to convey the idea that history must never be forgotten. History lessons appear to be insignificant in this line but Duffy is rallying against this. Children may be taught about the war in school and they may be forgiven for ‘running to their toys’ but there is no excuse for a world that ‘turns in its sleep’, wilfully ignoring the truth of the past.

“They shot her in the eye.”

“young men gossiping and smokingby the graves”

“I heard the click. Not yet. A trick.”

Femininity

Man’s kindness to man: or not, as this poem shows the reader. Human cruelty is explored through this unnecessary brutal act.

The soldiers are portrayed as actively enjoying themselves. This is a double kind of cruelty.

Excessive gratuitous cruelty towards the Jews is evident here. Mental torture is also used through these mind games. How much human dignity can the Jews maintain in these conditions? They are robbed of their humanity as the human condition has sunk to new lows.

The poet adopts a strongly female persona and there is reference to “daughters” and the idea of sisterhood. Use of female names, including biblical ones (“Rachel”) in contrasted to the male soldiers who are depicted as torturers.

Word Choice

Word Choice

“salvage”

The woman’s wedding ring is “salvaged”, indicating that her tormentors value her life less that than the gold ring. She, however values the ring for its symbolic and personal significance and not for the money it will fetch. It is normally only used in the context of rescuing valuable objects from wrecks. By using this word in a human context, Duffy conveys that the woman’s body is in ruins as the result of her ordeal in the concentration camp.

“They break our fingers”Her fingers are broken in order to achieve this salvaging, creating the impression of a scrap heap being picked over.

“Fell.”

The woman addresses her friend, reminding her of how she faced death, how she “Fell”. Simultaneously conjures up the picture of her friend slumping to the ground and also its use as a euphemism in the time of war. To fall in wartime is to die in battle. This is horrific enough but these are defenceless and powerless women who were not even combatants.

“My bowels opened in a ragged gape of fear.”

This deals with the crime of rape and the sheer terror of the woman is conveyed through Duffy’s concentration on its physical effects. “ragged gape” is reminiscent of a screaming mouth which emphasises the horror of the scene. The

word “gape” is often used to describe a facial expression and this make the effacement of the woman’s identify by such brutality even more shocking.

“Sister”

“Tell them I sang the ancient psalms”

“inside the wire”

“…Turn theeunto me with mercy, for I am desolate and lost.”

This takes us back to the interior of the concentration camp when the woman addressed her “Sister”. This is of cultural and religious significance than simply familial.

The speaker addresses the reader directly urging us not to forget the suffering she has endured. The “ancient psalms” are from the old testament and have particular significance for the Jewish community. Many psalms share themes of forbearance and strength in the face of adversity, as well as absolute faith in God as deliverer.

This indicates her bravery and defiance as she is singing songs of her religion inside the concentration camp. She champions the culture she was born into and will not be subject to ‘ethnic cleansing’.

The woman keeps faith with her religion and tradition but her words at the end of the poem articulate the woman’s desperate view of the world. Duffy ends the poem with a quotation suggestible of anything but hope and deliverance.

Lists “…Rebecca Rachel RuthAaron Emmanuel David,”

The list of Jewish forenames, possibly her children or family members, draws attention to their cultural identity and reinforces the idea that there is no need for further identifying marks to be applied to them by the Nazis (link to numbers tattooed on their arms as a form of identification). By proclaiming the names of the dead, their dignity is in some way restored which is in sharp contrast to the way they have been stripped of their dignity by being identified as nameless, just another star bearer. The structure of the sentence is very unusual in that it does not have ant commas between the names. This conveys the feeling that the list is endless and effectively reflects the sheer scale of the number of Jews that died in the Holocaust.

Imagery

“…stars on all our browsBeneath the gaze of men with guns.”

She says there are stars of David tattooed on the prisoners’ foreheads and these provide a shocking image of target practice for the soldiers who will literally be ‘shooting stars’.

“…Mourn for our daughters,upright as statues, brave”

The simile, comparing the female prisoners to statues has two purposes. This further explores the atrocities visited on the victims of war and the heroic bravery of the women who suffered at the hands of the Nazis. Their stoical endurance allowed them to wait for their deaths ‘upright as statues’ but there is a clear implication that they could be frozen in terror.

Euphemism

When you substitute a mild, indirect or vague term for one consider harsh, blunt or offensive.

“After I no longer speak”

The first stanza opens with the words of the victim of the Nazis. This is a euphemistic way of saying that she is dead and the poem reanimates her dead voice. She can speak out forever about what happened as the poem gives her an eternal voice.

Repetition“…I say, Remember.Remember these appalling days which make the worldForever bad”

The woman, whose voice is heard throughout the poem, is empathic about the fact that she wants such atrocity to be remembered. Duffy uses repetition for emphasis but, more subtly capitalises ‘Remember’ at the end of the sentence as she is drawing attention to the vital nature of this memory. Also, there is a crucial need for the whole world to remember in order to avoid a repetition of the Holocaust. However, from the persona’s perspective, there is no redemptive possibility.

Short Sentences and Internal Rhyme

“I heard a click. Not yet. A trick.” The sadistic soldier toys with his victim and the short sentences at the end of the line create tension and a sense of the real experience of the woman and the power wielded by the soldier.

The internal rhyme – “trickled”, “click” and “trick” – rolls easily off the tongue, and recreate the unexpected near silence surrounding the moment. This heightens the impression of mental torture and emphasises the complete contrast with the soldier who can view such an appalling act as a game.

Anaphora“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 world”

This stanza asks us to question how any real normality can return after such horror but also to remember that it does. Anaphora of “After” emphasises that terrible things have actually happened but are almost immediately forgotten. People soon return to normal life “tea on the lawn” just as a “boy” can wash his uniform. Clear sense that memory of “terrible moans” can be washed away and cleansed from the world just as the Jews were ‘cleansed’ from Germany and many other countries.

Symbolism

“Beneath 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.”

“a perfect April evening”

The persona’s hopeless surrender to fear is halted when she glimpses a child through the gap of corpses. The child symbolises hope and innocence, which gives the persona some form of hope for the future. Yet this dies when the soldiers cruelly murder the child. The horrible fate of the child is contrasted with the laughter of the soldiers making the scene more appalling to the reader. These events are no more than amusement for the soldiers, who are intoxicated by the power which expresses itself in sexual attacks and the indiscriminate execution of civilians.

Spring time normally symbolises rebirth, hope and a new lease of life but this is dramatically contrasted with the ultimate loss of life for the prisoners in the ‘final solution’.

Use of Questions

“How would you prepare to die, on a perfect April evening. With young men gossiping and smoking by the graves?”

Stanza four opens posing a question already implicit in the previous stanzas. The speaker addresses the reader directly with this rhetorical question. This engages the reader by helping us imagine how we would have felt in the same horrific circumstances. Again, the suffering of the Jews is contrasted with the carefree attitudes of the Nazi soldiers. “gossiping” reflects their loss of humanity towards the death surrounding them. The fear of rape is now replaced with the fear of being shot.

Time

“…Only a matter of days separateThis from acts of torture now.”

Although it has been over 60 years since the Holocaust, Duffy points out that this is merely a matter of days in the grand scheme of time and history. The immediacy of the acts is also made

apparent and there is a sense that the reader is an eye witness to them. If only ‘days separate’ one atrocity from another, then the passage of years will make the repetition of such events possible.

Alliteration

Ellipsis “sleep the spades shovel soil Sara Ezra…”

The alliteration of sibilants (producing a hissing sound) phonically represents sleeping forgetfulness, while the reintroduction of Jewish forenames reminds us that the Holocaust was real. The alliteration could also reflect the rasping noise of the spades digging up the ground and draws us momentarily back inside the concentration camp.

“Sara Ezra…”

The ellipsis at the end of the stanza is a further stark reminder that list of names could go on and on and almost amounts to another world. There is a depressing presentation if a world that finds it easy to forget.

Practice Essay Questions (Higher)2004 (Q15)Choose a poem in which the poet creates a picture of a heroic or a corrupt figure.Discuss the means by which the personality is clearly depicted.

2005 (Q12)Choose a poem in which a specific setting is strongly evoked.Show how the poet creates this sense of time/place, and discuss the relative importance of the setting to the poem as a whole.

2006 (Q14)Choose two poems by the same poet which you consider similar in theme and style.By referring to theme and style in both poems, discuss which poem you prefer.

2006 (Q15)Choose a poem which explores one of the following subjects: bravery, compassion, tenderness.Show how the poet’s exploration of the subject appeals to you emotionally and/or intellectually.

2007 (Q12)Choose a poem in which there is a sinister atmosphere or person or place.Show how the poet evokes this sinister quality and discuss how it adds to your appreciation of the poem.

2008 (Q13)Choose a poem which is strongly linked to a specific location.Show how the poet captures the essence of the location and exploits this to explore and important theme.

2008 (Q15)Choose a poem in which the speaker’s personality is gradually revealed.Show how, through the content and language of the poem, aspects of the character gradually emerge.

2009 (Q12)Choose a poem in which the poet explores one of the following emotions: anguish, dissatisfaction, regret, loss.Show how the poet explores the emotion and discuss to what extent he or she is successful in deepening your understanding of it.

2009 (Q13)Choose two poems which explore the experience of war.Discuss which you find more effective in conveying the experience of war.

2010 (Q16)Choose two poems in which differing stances are adopted on the same subject.Show how the stances are revealed and discuss which treatment you find more effective.

Evaluation GuideWhen you get to the ‘E’ part of your PCQE paragraph, use this guide to help you evaluate the use of particular techniques.

Worked Essay Plan: Human EmotionStep 1 –

- Identify the key words in the question:

Choose a poem in which the poet explores human emotions.Outline her purpose in writing the piece and go on to explore how it affects the reader.

Step 2 – - Decide how to structure your essay and create a list of

specifics/key points you wish to cover in your essay.- Plan which techniques/key quotes to discuss in each

section.

Human SufferingQuote Points for Evaluation

“Shooting Stars” Ambiguity of title. Describe three different interpretations and relate to suffering of the Jews.

“After I no longer speak” Euphemism. Darkness and horror of Holocaust immediately established.

“…they break our fingersto salvage my wedding ring.”

Connotations of “break”, “salvage”.Symbolism of “wedding ring”

“…Rebecca Rachel RuthAaron Emmanuel David”

Lack of punctuation. Traditional Jewish names

“upright as statues” Simile used to describe determination and fear of victims.

“…Remember.Remember those appalling days which make the worldforever bad.”

Repetition and punctuation. Connect to poet’s purpose, plea to the world and the reader to never forget the suffering.

“Between the gap of corpses I could see a child.The soldiers laughed.”

Symbolism of child, connotations of “gap” and “corpses”. Horror of what took place. Soldiers’ inhumane reactions.

“only a matter of days separate/this from acts of torture now”

Idea of human suffering still existing in present time/war conflicts.

“April evening” “gossiping and smoking by the graves”

Symbolism of season contrasted with cruel inhumanity of soldiers.

“I heard the click. Not yet. A trick” Short sentences. Internal rhyme. Toying with victims.

“After immense suffering someone takes tea on the lawn.”

Anaphora of “After”. Purpose is to show suffering still takes place and his easily forgotten.

NAME THE TECHNIQUE BEING USED EXPLAIN WHAT IS BEING DESCRIBED

E.G.

When talking about ________ Duffy uses [name technique]……When describing ____________ Duffy employs a [name technique]In lines ______ Duffy uses [name technique] when describing _______________The use of [name technique] helps give the reader an impression of ____________

EXPLAIN HOW THE TECHNIQUE WORKS IN THE POEM

E.G.

Word Choice – give connotationsImagery (similes & metaphors) – identify the 2 things being comparedAmbiguous meaning – what are the two possible meanings?Anaphora – explain the effect of the repetitionQuestions – show how the use of questions makes the reader think EXPLAIN WHY THE TECHNIQUE IS USED WHAT DOES IT TELL THE READER ABOUT THE THING

BEING DESCRIBED? REITERATE HOW IT RELATES TO THE QUESTION?

E.G.

What does it tell us about the characters in the poem?What does it add to the reader’s understanding of the whole situation?What does it make the reader think about?What does it tell us about the poet’s message?How does it relate to Duffy’theme?

“sleep the spades shovel soil Sara Ezra…”

Never ending list of names.

“‘inside the wire …strong men wept”

Returns back to concentration camp. Man continues to inflict misery and suffering upon fellow man.

“Turn thee/unto me with mercy for I am desolate and lost”

Line from Psalm 25. Jews look to God to be saved but ignored.

Step 3 – Write an introduction using your Global Statement (Title, Author, General Message) and your Specific Statement (reference to both parts of the task and techniques).

Global Statement‘Shooting Stars’ by Carol Ann Duffy is a shocking and disturbing poem which brings to our attention the persecution and death of the Jewish race during the holocaust, as well as the plight of the world today. Duffy focuses on the suffering and the death of the Jews from the narrative perspective of a dead Jewish woman who describes her misery and torture at the hands of the Nazis.

Specific StatementOf course the emotion Duffy is focusing on is that of human suffering as she tries to recreate the impossible: what it was really like for those involved in the Holocaust. The real purpose of this piece is to show the world what happened and emphasise the importance of never forgetting these victims. Through Duffy uses of word choice, imagery and structure the reader is left horrified and shocked by the sheer suffering of Jews in the Holocaust.

Step 4 – - Deal with each relevant point individually using P.C.Q.E. - After each E, link back to the question key word (“human

suffering”).- Try to back up your points with more than one quotation.- Aim for 8+ P.C.Q.E. paragraphs

POINT + CONTEXT

The poem’s title ‘Shooting Stars’ creates a sense of ambiguity and implies a vast range of human emotions. The poet wants you to consider the connotations of the title and build up expectations, which inevitably are dashed. The title

QUOTATION

“Shooting Stars”

EVALUATE

Has general connotations and these are that of a falling star or perhaps the beauty and brightness of fireworks. However it is not until we reach the actual content of the poem that we realise that the stars in question are those Stars of David, sewn on to the garments of Jews on the order of the Nazi regime.

ADDITIONAL CONTEXT

Duffy establishes the darkness and horror of the Holocaust immediately in the first line of the poem in the phrase

QUOTATION‘After I no longer speak’.

EVALUATE

Here Duffy creates an incredibly strong image of silence and death when the voice has been stilled permanently. The horror is continued in the image created by ‘they break our fingers’ and there is in this the onomatopoeia of the sound of snapping bones as ‘wedding rings’ are ‘salvaged’ for profit. Here again the poet uses the two conflicting images of the wedding band, a symbol of eternal love and theft and profit through death in juxtaposition. Human suffering is immediately introduced in the first stanza to emphasise the sheer misery of surviving in these camps.

Step 5 – - Once you’ve completed the main body of your essay,

write a conclusion summing up your response.- Recap on the techniques you have mentioned and link

back to the question once more.

The poet is an address from woman to woman as men are seen to be the inflictors of the inhumane actions that are the centre of the poem and perhaps she sees the possibility of salvation through women. “Shooting Stars” reanimates voices from the past to demonstrate the extent of human suffering by men and women in the Holocaust and Duffy’s use of word choice, imagery and structure underplays the true sense of torture yet this makes the poem all the more powerful. The Holocaust is repeated all over the world constantly and the voices raised in protest do not seem to be heard. Duffy’s verse is extremely powerful and we wonder why the world does not listen to the lessons of the past for today in the 21st century we constantly read and see of human suffering on a similar if not a greater scale than that of the Holocaust.

Suggested Revision Tasks

Read the poem over several times – learn important lines off by heart (Try sticking key quotes to your fridge, bedroom walls or ceiling above your bed to help you memorise them. Alternatively make them your screensaver or background on your PC!)

Show off to a friend or relative – teach them the poem! Explain to them what it is about and how the techniques you have studied work.

Practise writing P.C.Q.E. paragraphs on key quotes.

Practise writing essay plans. (Introduction, paragraph plans & conclusion, all adapted to fit a particular question)

Choose a question and write a full essay answer. Hand it in for marking and feedback.

Create and revise mnemonics for your key quotes.

Write and memorise an adaptable generic introduction and conclusion.

Create revision cards (ask your teacher for study-cards) for each key quote: draw a picture to go with each quote. Include your mnemonic on each card.

Use the internet to read other critics’ interpretations of the poem. Research Carol Ann Duffy, her life and other poetry.

Useful Personal Response:

The poem makes you feel more involved/strongly about an important period in history.

It is a very emotive poem that elicited a strong personal response in you.

The persona that the poet adopts is striking and memorable.

There is a sense of understatement in the poem that makes it all the more harrowing.

It is a period of history and a subject that should not be forgotten.

Personal Notes

Use this space for any additional notes or ideas you wish to jot down.