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Poets write in order to deepen their understanding of the

world they live in.

Poetry is a creative outlet in which poets are able to record their


thoughts, make sense of a situation and to present a specific
viewpoint on global issues. Hence, through the use of poetry and
poetic techniques, they are able to deepen their understanding of
the world they live in. This is clearly apparent in the poems
Katrina and Homecoming by Bruce Dawe.
Poetry helps make sense of a situation by using figurative
language to grasp a deeper meaning. In the poem Katrina,
Dawe does not understand why this is happening to him,
suggesting that life is unexpected and he has no choice but to
accept it. He states that he had in mind a prayer, but only this
came, which emphasises that only through poetry can he
express his feelings and come to terms with what is happening.
Dawe has already lost faith in God as he writes we are getting in
early showing that they have already started the grieving
process even though Katrina is still alive.
The use of the metaphor black velvet of death and the simile of
your life shines like a jewel depicts the contrast between her life
and her brothers while showing how precious a life is. He uses
emotive language and metaphors including bowed legs,
dummy taped in your mouth and the karate-blow to highlight
her vulnerability and weakness, her final breath, the intensity of
the situation and how helpless the parents are. Thus, as a result
of poetry, Bruce Dawe is able to accept and make sense of the
situation while understanding that the world is unexpected,
people should accept things they cannot change and essentially
enjoy life.
Bruce Dawe uses vivid visual and aural poetic techniques to raise
global issues and construct his own attitudes towards war.
Through the poem Homecoming he conveys his feelings about
the world and how it should be. There is repetition of the suffix
ing in bringing, zipping describing the dehumanising nature of
the process of packing the bodies up while establishing irony.
These verbs suggest life but the body concealed in the bag is
cold and lifeless. Repetition is used to highlight the brutality of
war and the loss of the soldiers identity. Dawe feels that
wherever war is, it is pointless, destructive and causes emotional
damage to family and friends. This is seen through the phrase
ridiculous curvatures, suggesting that war is ridiculous and
useless as it is a struggle for power and land (curvatures).

To highlight the impacts of war, Dawe uses imagery and a simile,


Telegrams tremble like leaves from a wintering tree and the
spider swings in his bitter geometry. Personification of the
telegrams trembling indicates the burden they carry to the
families. The leaves from a wintering tree is a powerful image as
it provides a snapshot into the immense number of lives lost and
the brutality of war. The spider in its bitter geometry may imply
that the web is the aftermath of war, it reaches all countries and
everyone as there is no escape from grief.
The paradox theyre bringing them home now, too late, too
early implies that the chance for life has past. However, it was
also too early, as their life had just begun. Dawes use of poetic
techniques in the poem strips war of its wrongly honorary
position and concludes that war is not beneficial or useful in any
way. Hence, poetry expresses a specific perspective on the world
and also suggests how it should be, in turn deepening the not
only the poets understanding of the world but also the reader.
Therefore, using poetry and poetic techniques, Bruce Dawe is
able to convey his viewpoint on global issues and come to terms
with a situation while deepening his understanding of the world
he lives in.

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