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ICSE Class 10 Answered

please teach me after belheim poem line by line including figures of speech
Asked by ushanihar12 | 22 Feb, 2019, 03:21: PM
answered-by-expert Expert Answer

‘After Blenheim’ by Robert Southey is an anti-war poem that centres around one of the major battles of eighteenth century – the Battle of Blenheim. Written in 1796 in the form of a ballad, it offers deep insights on war and its consequences.

Through a conversation between an old farmer, Kaspar and his grandchildren, Wilhelmine and Peterkin the poet gradually reveals the scene of a former battlefield. The war caused huge devastation and thousands of casualties. But Old Kaspar seems to have an unconcerned attitude towards this as he claims that ‘it was a famous victory’ and ‘things like that must be’. His gruesome descriptions, followed by his casual sayings create an effect of irony. It is ironic that it was a great war but no one knows why.

The poem begins by picturizing a vivid scene of a summer evening. It is the time when most people return from work. The days are long and tiring in summers, and the sun sets late in the evening. An elderly farmer named Kaspar sits in front of his cottage watching his grandchildren Wilhelmine and Peterkin at play on the lush green field.

As Wilhelmine was playing, she saw her brother Peterkin rolling something ‘large, smooth and round’ which he had found beside the river. Meanwhile Kaspar was sitting around observing his actions. Out of curiosity, Peterkin takes that ‘something’ to his grandfather, wanting to know about it.

The elderly Kaspar took that round thing from the boy, who was left in anticipation. After a brief look at it, the old man shook his head with a sigh and found it to be a skull of some ‘poor fellow’ which refers to a soldier who had died in the war – in the Battle of Blenheim – ‘in the great victory’.

The Battle of Blenheim lead to the death of thousands of soldiers whose corpses lie deep scattered in the field. Further, Kaspar relates how he had found many such objects while plowing the fields. The ‘great victory’ refers to the triumph in the battle which also happens to be an example of sheer patriotism. Kaspar believed that the soldiers sacrificed their life for the country and did not die in vain. Their death served the purpose of victory in the battle.

Hearing about the battle, the children were restless to know more about it. For them the battle seemed to bring thrill and excitement along with certain amazement. Little Wilhelmine was so curious to know about the war and the reason behind it that it reflected in her eyes gleaming for a wonder to unfold.

Kaspar tries to answer the questions posed by his grandchildren by telling them this piece of information. The interesting point to note here is – he doesn’t know the reason behind the war. He remembers what everybody told him – the victory was famous, and he repeated it to himself time and again and put some belief in the words.

At this juncture of the poem ‘After Blenheim’, Kaspar recollects from the past, some of the scenarios of the war. He begins by remembering his father who lived in a small village of Blenheim near a river. The French wrecked havoc in the village and burnt homes of several innocent people to the ground. Consequently, the villagers were forced to migrate in search for shelter. The young Kaspar along with his parents fled to a different place but could not find a home because of the impending war. They had to roam from one place to another seeking rest.

In the next stanza, the poet describes the severity of battle. ‘Fire’ and ‘sword’ are symbols of man’s cruelty for man. They represent destruction, death and horror. ‘Wasted’ is an emotionally charged word. It conjures an image of a land raped of any use, purpose and dignity. It shows both the futility of war and its power to destroy. The image of mother and baby killed in war here makes us see battle as catastrophic of both present and future. It powerfully evokes the death of innocence. Whether he believes it or not, Kaspar has resigned to the inevitability of death.

The poet goes on to depict the terror of war. When the battle was over, thousands of dead bodies of soldiers lay rotting in the field. There are some sound effects in this stanza helped by the assonance of ‘shocking’ and ‘rotting’ and the alliteration in the first line. Combined, they give greater resonance to the horrendous image of death. The scene of ‘rotting’ reduces dead men to carrion. An emotive, vivid word, it shows how war not only takes away life but also dignity and humanity.

The Duke of Marlbro & Prince Eugene representing Britain won the battle which lasted for days. Here Kaspar praises the Duke and the Prince for having defeated the French and bringing glories to the nation.

A confused Wilhelmine exclaimed that it (war) was a ‘wicked’ thing and wondered how her grandpa could sing praises of such a bloody war. Again, Kaspar quotes that it was a ‘famous victory’.

Victory has many fathers but defeat is an orphan. Staying true to these words, many people praised the Duke for having won the war and Kaspar recalls this with some delight. Peterkin then anticipated on the very purpose of war and what it led to. What good did it do? But the old man did not have any answers to such questions. All he knew was that it was a famous victory.

The poet again repeats the line “But ’twas a famous victory”. This line is an epitome of irony. The war was fought over a trivial dispute but costed lives of thousands and thousands of soldiers. The only thing inevitable in a war is destruction of life and property. Victory cannot bring back all the lives which were lost during the war. Hence, the poet questions the purpose and need of war. Thus the poem ‘After Blenheim’ successfully conveys his message – war is futile and should be avoided.

Answered by Snehal Naik | 22 Feb, 2019, 10:02: PM
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