Nettles

English Poem- Nettles

Device
Quote
Evaluation
Line 1:
Metaphor and
Repetition
“nettle bed” and
“nettle”
The metaphor of “nettle bed” symbolises both the glee and misery the son with experience throughout his life. The sonnet form of this poem links to the theme of love that the father has for his son and his determination to protect him from the threats of the world that the son is powerless to.
Line 2:
Military metaphor
“green spears”
The militaristic metaphor and the war like imagery used throughout the poem shows the constant violence, forming and image of a battle that will or has taken place. The regular rhythm creates a marching image which links to the militaristic metaphor and gives a steady beat to the poem which symbolises that the father is constantly at a battle with life to protect his son.
Line 3:
Military metaphor
“regiment”
The repeating of the war imagery again symbolises that the father is trying to protect his son from the battle of life. Additionally there is a tone of control and order due to the rhyme scheme and the repetition of military images which symbolises the fathers desire to protect his son.
Line 6 and 7:
Alliteration and
Juxtaposition
“blisters beaded” and
“tender” “raw”
The use of plosive alliteration links to an onomatopoeic sound suggests the explosion of blisters and may symbolise the explosions that the father endured during a war. The emphasis on the words “tender” and “raw” stresses the child’s vulnerability and stresses the pain that the child will suffer throughout his life.
Line 8:
Emotive language
“watery grin”
The emotive language stresses the strong father and son’s relationship and the child’s bravery to overcome life’s difficult situations. This is a narrative poem by a father’s personal anecdote about his son which links to the theme of a father and son bond and the father’s realization that he cannot protect his child.
Line 9:
Alliteration
“hook and honed the blade”
The addition of the rhythm pattern in this line suggests the father’s pointlessness of the father’s battle, which is also suggested in the final line. It also stresses the father’s determination to eliminate the sons suffering in his life.
Line 10:
Verb and
Onomatopoeia
“slashed”
The angry tone in this line stresses how much the father craves to protect his child. The rhyme scheme is also broken in the line to include the description of the father “lashing in fury.” Highlighting this part of the narrative adds to the symbolism of the father battling an unbeatable force.
Line 13:
Motif of death

“funeral pyre”
“fallen dead”
The fabled allusion refers to how soldiers were sent off after death and creates a mocking tone
Line 15:
Parallelism and
Military imagery
“my son” and
“sharp wounds”
The parallelism and military imagery in the last line reflects on the larger importance of the event. The phrase “My son” is repeated at both the start and end of the poem to stress how helpless he is. It summarises the fathers realization of his powerlessness to protect his son from the tortures of life as it remains outside of his control no matter how hard he tries to control it, he will always remain defeated.