Vergissmeinnicht by Keith Douglas: GCSE

Vergissmeinnicht by Keith Douglas 1942

Three weeks gone and the combatants gone
returning over the nightmare ground
we found the place again, and found
the soldier sprawling in the sun.

The frowning barrel of his gun
overshadowing. As we came on
that day, he hit my tank with one
like the entry of a demon.

Look. Here in the gunpit spoil
the dishonoured picture of his girl
who has put: Steffi. Vergissmeinnicht.
in a copybook gothic script.

We see him almost with content,
abased, and seeming to have paid
and mocked at by his own equipment
that's hard and good when he's decayed.

But she would weep to see today
how on his skin the swart flies move;
the dust upon the paper eye
and the burst stomach like a cave.

For here the lover and killer are mingled
who had one body and one heart.
And death who had the soldier singled
has done the lover mortal hurt. 

Context:

Keith Douglas was an English poet born on January 24, 1920 in Kent. He attended school at Christ’s Hospital and later studied at the Oxford University. During his early life Douglas was already gaining recognition for his poetry, however, it is his war poetry that received the most attention. He enlisted at the start of the Second World War and was posted to the Middle East where he took part in the Battle of El Alamein. Vergissmeinnicht was written in response to Douglas’ experiences in that battle. The photograph of Steffi is real and can be viewed on line. He was later deployed to Europe and took part in the D Day invasion of Normandy. He was killed in action a few days after landing in France. Despite being a dutiful soldier he thought conflict was destroying his humanity and this is evident in the cold and callous voice of the narrator in Vergissmeinnicht.

Structure:

Six stanzas, each having four lines (quatrains).At first inspection the form appears regular – even four line stanzas, which are at odds with the bleak chaotic scene within. On closer inspection the rhyme scheme falls into a different pattern to break this regularity – half rhymes, spoil and girl and para rhymes, heart and hurt add discomfort and discord.

The narrator reveals details piece by piece. At first the reader does not know whether the narrator is seeking out a friend or foe – adds tension and drama. The juxtaposition of the narrator’s callous action with the grief experienced by Steffi, while he is glad to see his enemy abased, Steffi would weep.  In contrast, the narrator knows his own reactions are distorted and by the final stanza his attitude has become softer and more reflective. At the end he acknowledges that his enemy had a life and loved ones back home and that his death has caused mortal hurt in Steffi.

Meaning:

Three weeks after a horrendous battle, a soldier seeks out his dead enemy and gloats over his death.

Language:

First stanza

Metaphor of nightmare ground sets the scene by suggesting that the battle that happened three weeks ago hardly seems as if it could have real.

The noun “soldier” tells the reader that the narrator and his companions were looking for a particular man. The personal reason for finding him becomes clear in the second stanza but the sibilance “solder sprawling in the sun” emphasises narrator’s hatred for dead enemy.

Second stanza

Personification of “frowning” barrel of the gun suggests disapproval and wariness. The simile “like the entry of a demon” shows why he hates to the soldier so much – supernatural force due to the intensity of the pain and suffering he caused.

Third stanza

The use of the imperative “Look” makes the reader jump to attention and echoes his own military orders as the reader learns of his sweetheart back home.

Fourth stanza

Juxtaposes decaying body with weapons lying nearby which are still hard and good - highlights fragility of the human body and life itself.

Fifth stanza

Narrator presents several gruesome images to describe corpse in detail. The simile “burst stomach like a cave” suggests that the body has become carrion and something has eaten his internal organs. The narrator appears to relish this horrific sight – an almost inhuman response that depicts his level of hatred.

Final stanza

At the end the narrator becomes more reflective and acknowledges that his enemy is human too.

Revision questions for Vergissmeinnicht:

1. Why do you think Keith Douglas wrote this poem?
2. How is personification used to communicate his main message?
3. Find and discuss three other examples of imagery that you think are used effectively, using PEE paragraphs.