Nostalgia by Carol Anne Duffy
Nostalgia:
Background:
Swiss Mercenaries came down from the mountains to fight on behalf of European rulers in Distant Lands. Many of these mercenaries suffered from nostalgia. * Nostalgia was believed to be a medical disease. * Symptoms included anorexia, bouts of weeping and even suicide attempts. * For years, people believed only the Swiss were prone to it. * In 1688, Hofer suggested it was “a cerebral disease of essentially demonic cause” * In 1732, Scheuchzer said it was due to “a sharp differential in atmospheric pressure causing excessive body pressurization, which in turn drove blood from the heart to the brain, thereby producing the observed affliction of sentiment” * Military physicians believed it was caused by the constant sound of cowbells which damaged brain cells and the eardrum.
FLIRTY:
Form:
* The first two stanzas are nine lines each, and the last one is ten. This shows their life has changed, in the last stanza, the mercenaries are trying to grasp hold of the past, and although they are close with their memories, they cannot make it the same. * Enjambment is used to confuse the meaning of certain lines in the poem (e.g. second stanza, line four). Enjambment also shows how the mercenaries constantly think about their past. * Caesura breaks up the lines, which shows the mercenaries are being cut off from their homes. * Long sentences show life seems to go on and on without any excitement or difference.
Language:
* The memories are described very vividly, and although they are contrasting, they are all said in one sentence.
“in the dwindling light of the plains, a particular place - where maybe you met a girl, or searched for a yellow ball in the long grass, found it just as your mother called you in” * The memories are not concrete, but they have very concrete adjectives to go with them, this shows how clearly they see it. * Meeting a girl is normally one of the key memories someone would
Background:
Swiss Mercenaries came down from the mountains to fight on behalf of European rulers in Distant Lands. Many of these mercenaries suffered from nostalgia. * Nostalgia was believed to be a medical disease. * Symptoms included anorexia, bouts of weeping and even suicide attempts. * For years, people believed only the Swiss were prone to it. * In 1688, Hofer suggested it was “a cerebral disease of essentially demonic cause” * In 1732, Scheuchzer said it was due to “a sharp differential in atmospheric pressure causing excessive body pressurization, which in turn drove blood from the heart to the brain, thereby producing the observed affliction of sentiment” * Military physicians believed it was caused by the constant sound of cowbells which damaged brain cells and the eardrum.
FLIRTY:
Form:
* The first two stanzas are nine lines each, and the last one is ten. This shows their life has changed, in the last stanza, the mercenaries are trying to grasp hold of the past, and although they are close with their memories, they cannot make it the same. * Enjambment is used to confuse the meaning of certain lines in the poem (e.g. second stanza, line four). Enjambment also shows how the mercenaries constantly think about their past. * Caesura breaks up the lines, which shows the mercenaries are being cut off from their homes. * Long sentences show life seems to go on and on without any excitement or difference.
Language:
* The memories are described very vividly, and although they are contrasting, they are all said in one sentence.
“in the dwindling light of the plains, a particular place - where maybe you met a girl, or searched for a yellow ball in the long grass, found it just as your mother called you in” * The memories are not concrete, but they have very concrete adjectives to go with them, this shows how clearly they see it. * Meeting a girl is normally one of the key memories someone would