belfast confetti[1]

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Belfast Confetti Belfast Confetti Learning Objective To learn how to identify key features of a poem and use these to inform interpretations. AO1 (select and evaluate textual detail to illustrate and support interpretations) AO2 (explain how language, structure and form contribute to writers’ presentation of ideas and themes) Bitesize Resources http://www.bbc.co.uk/sc hools/gcsebitesize/engl ish_literature/poetryco nflict/

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Page 1: Belfast confetti[1]

Belfast ConfettiBelfast Confetti

Learning ObjectiveTo learn how to identify key features of a poem

and use these to inform interpretations.

AO1 (select and evaluate textual detail to illustrate and support interpretations)AO2 (explain how language, structure and form contribute to writers’ presentation of ideas and themes)

Bitesize Resourceshttp://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetryconflict/

Page 2: Belfast confetti[1]

Belfast Confetti by Ciaran Carson

Where is this?

When do you see this?

KeywordEuphemism: A mild / inoffensive word/phrase which replaces a more unpleasant or harsh one.

Page 3: Belfast confetti[1]

Belfast ConfettiThe capital city of Northern Ireland

where most of the ‘troubles’ took place

Ironic use of the term ‘confetti’ that is associated with celebration, subverted to describe the debris from the bomb

Euphemism for miscellaneous objects that were thrown during street riots (nuts,

bolts, nails etc)

Ironic that ‘confetti’ usually symbolises a

union of two people in love. Here small pieces

of metal symbolise ‘discord’ and a

fracturing of society.

Page 5: Belfast confetti[1]

The PoetPoet Ciaran Carson was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in 1948. He suggests two influences on his poetry: his bilingual upbringing, and an unusual alertness to language. He shows language being used to enforce, to spy, and - broken into its almost meaningless constituent parts - to commit physical violence, when the bomb in 'Belfast Confetti' is loaded with not only ironmongery but "a fount of broken type."

Violence, or its effects, often makes an appearance in Carson's poetry, whether this is found in historical warfare or the more recent conflicts of Northern Ireland. Indeed, Carson's use of the street names of Belfast that allude to these battles - "Balaclava, Raglan, Inkerman, Odessa Street" - underlines the violence of the Troubles.

Page 6: Belfast confetti[1]

'The Troubles'Carson was a young man in Belfast when the Troubles began in 1969. ‘The Troubles’ refers to almost 30 years of violence between the Nationalists (mainly Roman Catholic) who wanted independence from the UK and the unionists (mainly Protestants) who believed in strengthening the political ties between Northern Ireland and Britain. Armed paramilitarygroups, including the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA),made Belfast a terrifying place to live between 1969 and 1997and much of the violence took place around the ProtestantShankill Road and Catholic Falls Road areas. The Britishgovernment claimed that its forces were in Northern Ireland to keep law and order, but Irish republicans objected strongly to the presence of the British soldiers.

Page 7: Belfast confetti[1]

Investigate and Annotate

Identify the poet’s use of the features below and consider the intended/potential effect on

the reader:

1.Punctuation2.Structure3.Form4.Techniques5.Meaning6.What is the poem’s form, structure and meaning?

Page 8: Belfast confetti[1]

MeaningThe poem is written in the first person, giving a dramatic

description of what it felt like to be caught up in the

violent riots in Belfast in the 1970s. In the aftermath of an

IRA bomb, there is chaos and the ‘riot squad’ moves in. In

his confusion and terror the poet cannot find his way

through the maze of Belfast streets that he usually knows

so well. He’s stopped and interrogated by British soldiers,

but is unable to communicate with them to answer their

questions. Nothing makes sense to him anymore.

Page 9: Belfast confetti[1]

Use of lists conveys a sense of panic

Suddenly as the riot squad moved in it was raining exclamation

marks,Nuts, bolts, nails, car-keys. A fount of broken type. And

the explosionItself - an asterisk on the map. This hyphenated line, a burst

This links to ‘next to of course’ as both poems show unusual variation of form, language and use of punctuation.

Thrown into the middle of the action, reflecting the persona’s experience.

Punctuation

metaphors

to visualise

the sense of

alarm to the

reader

The whole poem is an extended metaphor for the way that violent conflict destroys language.

Page 10: Belfast confetti[1]

Continual references to punctuation.

Trying to escape but cannot. Suggests confusion, shock and disbelief.

of rapid fire …I was trying to complete a sentence in my head, but it kept

stuttering,All the alleyways and side streets blocked with stops and

colons.

Fast paced/’urgent’ language contrasts with

the careful use of language in ‘The Right

Word’.

Reflects

the sound

of gun fire

and also

the

speaker's

fear.

Page 11: Belfast confetti[1]

I know this labyrinth so well - Balaklava, Raglan, Inkerman,

Odessa Street -Why can’t I escape?Every move is punctuated. Crimea Street.

Dead end again. Knows thearea but stilltrapped, again suggesting shock and confusion

Implie

s

violence

and

hesitatio

n

This links with ‘’next to of course’ as they both emphasise the pointlessness of conflict/war through creativity of punctuation and syntax.

Belfast street names

Ambiguity

Page 12: Belfast confetti[1]

Unanswered

questions show the

confusion of the

persona – unable to

answer even the

simplest of

questions

Punctuation metaphor emphasises the feeling of fear and confusion

A Saracen, Kremlin-2 mesh. Makrolon face-shields. Walkie- talkies. What isMy name? Where am I coming from? Where am I going?

A fusillade of question-marks.

This links to ‘The Right Word’ as both show doubt, use of language and the poet's struggle to describe conflict. Both poets show concern with what role a poet can actually play in times where violence, not dialogue, is seen as a solution. The words that are their tools seem to fail them.

Posing of questions suggests a

lack of resolution

or conclusion

to the conflict

Page 13: Belfast confetti[1]

Key Features

Structure 2 stanzas- Stanza 1 = past tense; describes the violence and

effects of being caught in the conflict.- Stanza 2 = present tense; brings the narrator back to

what is happening and what he is experiencing.

Form First Person Narrative and free verse poem

Language Techniques enjambement, metaphor, extended metaphor, lists

Page 14: Belfast confetti[1]

Questions

1. Explain the effect of irregular line lengths and incomplete sentences?

2. Explain why you think the language changes from past to present between the 1st and 2nd stanza. Why has the poet done this?

3. What does the speaker suggest about himself in the poem?

Page 15: Belfast confetti[1]

Further Questions1. Ciaran Carson states the importance of poetry telling a story.

What is the story that he tells in this poem?2. What do you understand by the title of the poem? Is the title

ironic?3. Consider the list of street names. Can you see any

significance to their names?4. Consider the length of the lines of the poem and how they

change. Why do you think Ciaran Carson writes in this style?5. What different emotions come across in the poem?6. How does Carson build up a sense of panic and claustrophobia?7. How is the craft of creating a poem mirrored in the events of

the story of the poem?8. Why does the poem finish with three questions?