The Manhunt edexcel 4-The-Poetry-Anthology

The Manhunt

In the Edexcel GCSE English Literature exam, you will be asked to focus on one poem, printed in full, and compare it with another poem in the Relationships Anthology. You will not have access to this comparison poem because it is a closed book exam. 

To answer the question, you will need to remember key aspects of the comparison poem, such as its meaning, its main ideas and the poet’s message, as well as how the poet conveys their ideas through the poetic devices, language and form they use.

Below is a guide to Simon Armitage’s celebrated poem ‘The Manhunt’, from the Edexcel Relationships Anthology. It includes:

• Overview: a breakdown of the poem, including its possible meanings and interpretations

• Writer’s methods: an exploration of the poet’s techniques and methods

• Context: an exploration of the context of the poem, relevant to its themes

• What to compare it to: ideas about which poems to compare it to in the exam

Overview

To answer an essay question on any poem it is vital that you understand what it is about. This section includes:

• The poem in a nutshell

• A “translation” of the poem, section-by-section

• A commentary of each of these sections, outlining Simon Armitage’s intention and message

‘The Manhunt’ in a nutshell

‘The Manhunt’, written by the poet Simon Armitage, explores intimate romantic relationships. The poem focuses on the impact of war and how grief creates distances.

‘The Manhunt’ breakdown 

Lines 1–2

“After the first phase,

after passionate nights and intimate days,”

Translation

• The poem begins by referring to a period of time that has ended

• The phrase “first phase” has military connotations (like the “first phase” of battle)

• The second line refers to the loving reunion between the speaker and a returned soldier

Armitage’s intention

• Armitage introduces the theme of time in the first line

• The poem’s first lines suggest a loving relationship

Lines 3–4

“only then would he let me trace

the frozen river which ran through his face,”

Translation

• The speaker says that it was “only” after this that they were able to touch his face:

  • The word “trace” implies a gentle, stroking movement

  • This suggests that regaining real intimacy between the pair took a long time 

• The metaphor of a “frozen river” alludes to the man’s painful, repressed feelings:

• It implies that silenced emotions can be seen in his facial expressions

Armitage’s intention

• Armitage introduces the emotional distance between the pair 

• The soldier appears hesitant about intimacy, but the speaker is relieved and keen to rediscover their loved one

Lines 5–8

“only then would he let me explore

the blown hinge of his lower jaw,

and handle and hold

the damaged, porcelain collar-bone,”

Translation

• The speaker repeats “only then” to signify the amount of time that had to pass before the soldier allowed real closeness between them:

  • The verbs “explore”, “handle and hold” suggest physical intimacy 

• The soldier’s injured body is described as a “blown hinge” and “damaged, porcelain” to remind the reader of tangible, physical objects like a plate

Armitage’s intention

• Armitage stresses the physical nature of the relationship to draw attention to the way the soldier’s physical injuries have affected the man’s emotions

• Here, the close connection between physical and emotional love are highlighted

Lines 9–12

“and mind and attend

the fractured rudder of shoulder-blade,

and finger and thumb

the parachute silk of his punctured lung.”

Translation

• These lines continue describing the way the speaker cares for the man:

  • The speaker’s movements are gentle and careful and imply tenderness

• The soldier’s injuries are described metaphorically with military references to a damaged boat (“a rudder”) and a “parachute”

Armitage’s intention

• Armitage depicts a tender moment in the relationship using present tense verbs that highlight the sensual nature of the relationship 

• The vivid metaphor draws parallels between the way the soldier was injured and the terrible damage this has done to his body:

  • The image of “silk” being “punctured” contributes to a sense of the man’s fragility 

Lines 13–16

“Only then could I bind the struts

and climb the rungs of his broken ribs,

and feel the hurt

of his grazed heart.”

Translation

• These lines describe the speaker exploring the man’s body from his “ribs” to his “heart”

• The speaker describes the man’s heart as “grazed”, which implies physical scarring 

• Using imagery of climbing a ladder (“climb the rungs”) implies a slow struggle:

  • This also, perhaps, implies the man’s height and stature 

Armitage’s intention

• Armitage refers to physical injuries such as “broken ribs”, but also to a “grazed heart” to convey ideas about the lasting emotional effect of war

Lines 17–18

“Skirting along,

only then could I picture the scan,

the foetus of metal beneath his chest

where the bullet had come to rest.”

Translation

• The speaker continues describing the gradual exploration of the man’s chest: “Skirting”

• They refer to a “scan” or x-ray that shows where a bullet landed

• These lines describe the remnants of a bullet inside the man’s chest 

Armitage’s intention

• Here, Armitage makes explicit reference to war by describing where the man was shot

• Describing the bullet as a “foetus of metal” references an unborn baby, perhaps alluding to the impact of war and emphasising the idea of his fragility or vulnerability 

Lines 19–23

“Then I widened the search,

traced the scarring back to its source

to a sweating, unexploded mine

buried deep in his mind, around which

every nerve in his body had tightened and closed.”

Translation

• These lines increase the poem’s pace as the speaker describes reaching the man’s head, his “mind”

• The phrase “widened the search” suggests that simply identifying physical injuries is not enough to regain intimacy in the relationship:

  • By tracing the “scarring” back to its “source” the speaker will help him recover

• The descriptions imply the man represses his thoughts and memories

Armitage’s intention

• Armitage describes the depth of the man’s pain and his nerves (his mental health)

• He explores post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its impact on relationships

Line 24

“Then, and only then, did I come close.”

Translation

• The poem ends as the speaker draws a conclusion about how to get “close” to the man

• They say that exploring his mind (his thoughts and feelings) brings a closer connection than exploring his physical injuries 

Armitage’s intention

• Armitage ends the poem with an emphatic statement to provide resolution

• The poem parallels physical intimacy alongside emotional intimacy to show the damaging effects of war

Writer’s methods

Although this section is organised into three separate sections – form, structure and language – it is important to take an integrated approach, focusing on the main themes and ideas of the poem and then evaluating how Armitage’s choices of language, structure and form contribute to these ideas. In essence, how and why the poet has made the choices they have when exploring their intentions and the message of their poem 

Focusing on the poet’s main ideas, rather than individual poetic techniques, will gain you more marks in the exam. In the below sections, all analysis is arranged by theme, and includes Armitage’s intentions behind his choices in terms of:

• Form

• Structure

• Language

Form

The form of ‘The Manhunt’ conveys the poem’s ideas about how trauma can impact a romantic relationship. Armitage depicts intimate moments between a soldier, returned from war, and their partner, the speaker, and the slow process of trying to reconnect.

Structure

The structure of the poem represents the slow and tender journey the speaker takes as they explore the soldier’s physical injuries.

Language

The poem combines physical imagery with metaphor to examine the close relationship between bodily injuries and emotional trauma. The poet illustrates the strength of love in the relationship with sensory descriptions.

Context

Remember that context doesn’t mean providing additional factual information about a writer or a text. Examiners repeatedly state that they are not looking for biographical information about Simon Armitage or facts unrelated to the themes and ideas the poet explores in ‘The Manhunt’, but rather information that will help to explain the poet’s ideas and perspectives in the poem. 

 This section has therefore been divided into two relevant themes that Armitage explores:

• Complex love

• Intimate relationships

Complex love 

 The poem, ‘The Manhunt’, written by British poet Simon Armitage, is taken from a 2007 television documentary and a collection called The Not Dead:

• The documentary and poetry collection explores soldiers’ experiences in the Iraq War and, particularly, their struggles returning to civilian life at home

• In particular, the series of poems raises awareness of the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD):

  • Armitage draws attention to how this disorder impacts many soldiers and other individuals who have served in military conflict zones

• The poem ‘The Manhunt’ examines the complex process of a traumatised soldier and a loved one trying to regain intimacy

• Armitage’s poem describes the symptoms of this disorder, such as isolation and anxiety:

  • The title suggests a man who is lost, someone who people are looking for, reflecting the distance in the relationship, and the soldier’s isolation

  • The poem describes symptoms of anxiety in the man’s “tightened” nerves

  • Armitage illustrates the man’s hesitance to open up and reveal his feelings as a result of conflict: his face is a “frozen river”

• The poem uses a semantic field related to the military:

  • The man’s mind is compared to “a sweating, unexploded mine”, implying repressed trauma from war

Intimate relationships 

• Simon Armitage, who was previously Poet Laureate, often writes about intimate moments within relationships to bring relatable experiences to life

• In the collection The Not Dead, the poem ‘The Manhunt’ is called ‘Laura’s Poem’:

  • The poem’s speaker represents Laura, the wife of Eddie Beddoe, who was a peacemaker in the 1990s Croat-Bosniak conflict

  • Eddie Beddoe was shot three times, causing severe injuries to his face and body

  • ‘The Manhunt’ describes a tender and patient lover who cares for a soldier’s damaged body after his return from war

• But while Armitage bases the poem on a real person, the poem’s depiction of an intimate moment between lovers can be considered universal

• The poem is a poignant depiction of a speaker wishing to help their lover heal:

  • Intimacy