AQA English GCSE
Poetry: Power and Conflict
Kamikaze - Beatrice Garland
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KAMIKAZE
Beatrice Garland
Brief Summary
The poem Kamikaze explores a daughter’s reflection on her connection and relationship to her
father who was a Kamikaze pilot in WWII and decided not to complete his suicide mission. It
follows her train of thought as she thinks about the journey her father would have made to go on
the mission and she relates her father’s experience to the natural beauty of the world. It also delves
into the situation which occurred when her father returned home and was shunned by his family
due to the cultural expectations placed upon them in Japan.
Synopsis
● Daughter is recounting the journey of her father as he
flew on a kamikaze mission
● Remembering the father setting off and the things he
took
● She is telling the story to her children
● Father looks at the sea and the village – boats and
fish act as symbols
● Father remembers his childhood on the beach with
his brothers (waiting for their father)
● Switch to daughter’s perspective / narrative – interject
that that is the children’s grandfather
● Memories of the grandfather bringing home fish
● Switch to daughter’s perspective
● Remembers her father returning and being rejected
by the community
● Remembers being forced to reject him herself
● Leave with the question of whether he should have
died
Context
Beatrice Garland (1938 - )
Garland includes John Donne, John Clare and Seamus Heaney as some of her writing inspirations,
and has won prizes for her poetry. When writing the poem Kamikaze, she was inspired into looking
into the motivations as to why people wanted to die for their country.
Kamikaze Pilots
During WWII, Japanese kamikaze pilots flew manned suicide missions into military targets (e.g.
ships), using planes filled with explosives. Soldiers and pilots were taught it was the only way to
change the direction of the war (Japan losing), and they had to take part in this last resort. Very
well trained pilots would volunteer to die, but towards the end of the war the military would have to
recruit people and shun those who refuse.
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Kamikaze pilots were named after a typhoon that wiped out enemy ships in the 13th century, which
has a link to nature being the true source of power. Japanese culture was very patriotic, and the
military would focus on fighting and dying for your country, with the sentiment that it was better to
be killed than be named a coward
Japanese culture during the war was very honour based, with people being taught that one
person’s dishonour will stain their whole family, and emphasizing the importance of being brave
and honourable comes before everything else.
From the collection “The Invention of Fireworks” (2014)
The collection was shortlisted for the 2014 Forward Prizes for the Best First Collection, which
shows it had a very good reception in the literary world. Overarchingly, the poems explore life and
death within the natural world. They also investigate how in the twentieth century, mankind
becomes a threat not just to nature but to itself as well. It looks at human turbulence and how we
should seek solace in the power of nature, as a reminder that an otherwise bleak life still
possesses beauty.
Kamikaze
Whilst the poem was written in the 21st century, it is set against the backdrop of WWII and the
extreme conflict which was taking place at the time. The war creates an ideal backdrop to explore
other forms of conflict:
● The conflict between individuals in Japan and the societal expectations placed upon
them. These expectations were immensely strict as the Japanese regard honour to be
incredibly important.
● The conflict within families due to the
pressure put on them by society and in
the case of Kamikaze pilots, the military.
● The conflict between nature and man
The poem also explores the futility of avoiding a
fate set out for you by an authority or
government. In this case the kamikaze pilots’ fate
was formed in the military when they were
instructed to go on suicide missions in the name
of their country.
The poem has a very intimate tone as the
Garland works to contrast both the speaker and the daughter’s voices, which sometimes merge
into one. This ensures the readership are aware that it is a very personal story and narrative being
imparted in the poem.
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Kamikaze
Her father embarked at sunrise Japan is known as the
land of the rising sun.
Embark means to get on
with a flask of water, a samurai sword
but also to begin
something – he is
in the cockpit, a shaven head beginning a new chapter
of his life – both choices
lead to a type of death
full of powerful incantations
Painful irony to his search He is under the spell of
for remembrance
Sought death to be and enough fuel for a one-way patriotism and propaganda
Not making his own
remembered and decisions – his decision
immortalised by respect. journey into history would be to keep living
but half way there, she thought,
recounting it later to her children,
he must have looked far down
at the little fishing boats
Connotations of peace and
tranquillity in the colour
celebrating the honour he strung out like bunting on a green-blue imagery. Doesn’t want to
will bring to his deny himself – nor those
community
translucent sea he will kill – the beauty of
nature and the beauty of
life. Associating nature
with precious possessions
and beneath them, arcing in swathes
Figure of eight the like a huge flag waved first one way
symbol for infinity. This
may be used to imply the
eternal nature of nature – then the other in a figure of eight,
continue indefinitely -
nature is infinite in the dark shoals of fishes
comparison to the
transience of humanity,
Sibilance implies a sense
and life is brief, transient flashing silver as their bellies of grace and
and precious. War and peacefulness, as well as
honour will be forgotten –
nature will remain. Nature swivelled towards the sun suggesting an elegant and
graceful tone, also works
is more powerful than to increase the pace to
mankind. make the poem sound
more emotional.
and remembered how he
and his brothers waiting on the shore
Stacks of pebbles that How leaving the family in
mark graves, shows the
built cairns of pearl-grey pebbles order to provide for them
father is starting to was something required by
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consider the every generation, just in
consequences of death to see whose withstood longest different capacities. The
and reminds readers that father feels a responsibility
all the beauty of nature is to return to them. This is a
undermined by the role the turbulent inrush of breakers selfless reason to return,
he’s about to play– will rather than just a fear of
lose his ability to enjoy death.
nature
bringing their father’s boat safe
Nature’s beauty is
precious and valuable Repetition of safe – it is
Life is valuable and safety and life he is
sacred – shouldn’t be - yes, grandfather’s boat – safe focusing on
ended prematurely
Nature presented as to the shore, salt-sodden, awash
powerful
with cloud-marked mackerel,
black crabs, feathery prawns,
the loose silver of whitebait and once Imbalance of power
between humanity and
nature. Even a kamikaze
a tuna, the dark prince, muscular, dangerous. pilot – the epitome of
bravery – sense the
danger of it. Pilot (symbol
of military power and
Wouldn’t “meet his eyes” determination) is not the
– eyes are the windows And though he came back most dangerous thing in
to the soul. Doesn’t want the poem – a fish is!
to see the person he has my mother never spoke again Metaphor – it is a prince –
become – ashamed of important and significant –
her own husband. deserving of respect and
Doesn’t want to in his presence, nor did she meet his eyes honour (like a soldier)
communicate with him – Emphasise its significance
distance herself from him by using first punctuation
and the neighbours too, they treated him
as her daughter will. Thus in poem (first full stop)
the impact of conflict is Signal it is deserving of
ongoing – passed down as though he no longer existed, notice.
from generation to
generation. OR doesn’t
want to face what she is only we children still chattered and laughed
doing – feels guilty –
painful to give up her
husband but has no
choice because her Learning about cultural
culture demands it. till gradually we too learned values
to be silent, to live as though
Both options offer a kind By living he traded this for
of death and this line being forgotten and
implies that soldiers are he had never returned, that this ignored. Story is not told
controlled by by historians but by a
indoctrination and was no longer the father we loved. daughter who never knew
propaganda, and used as him – the whole poem is
tools of the government. speculative. Suggests the
Written in a detached And sometimes, she said, he must have father physically survives
third-person viewpoint wondered but dead to the community
which might suggest the and society he returned to
speaker doesn’t agree
with this cultural view. which had been the better way to die.
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The title “Kamikaze”
Perspective
Kamikaze shows the impact that war has on those left behind. The reader is viewing conflict
through the eyes of someone left behind, someone trying to understand the motivations of their
father, to understand what made him go to war and what made him come back from it.
The poem is written from a daughter's perspective in the third person. This narration creates a
sense of detachment which reflects the distance the speaker feels from her father’s life as she
grew up not knowing him.
Shifts in narrative perspective
The shift in narration from third person to first person when the speaker discusses her father’s
return acts as the volta.
was no longer the father we loved.
And sometimes, she said, he must have wondered
which had been the better way to die.
This signifies a dramatic shift from external to internal and
shows the impact that war has had on her. This is a personal
moment and memory, so deserves a personal and subjective
perspective.
The final line returns to the third person: “he must have
wondered which had been the better way to die”. The detached
tone from the beginning of the poem returns but this time to signify
that she is detached from the culture which gave him the option of
dying as a Kamikaze pilot. Alternatively, it could be a desire to detach herself from her father.
Structure
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The structure reflects the theme of conflict within the poem:
● The poem is structured into tightly controlled stanza lengths of 6 lines, which perhaps
reflects the order and obedience expected of a soldier.
● This structure is juxtaposed and undermined by the free verse and enjambment.
ENJAMBMENT | Sentence which runs over multiple
lines.
The attempts of freedom within the confines of the strict stanza structure suggests her father had
his own desires, roles and individuality within the constrictions put in place by the Japanese
government.
The free verse and enjambment could also show that he is starting to doubt his obedience and
realised he wants to pursue the freedom and beauty of life unrestrained. This reminds the reader,
and perhaps society, that the soldiers depicted in the poem are still individuals. This structural
juxtaposition also could reflect the conflict between military commitment and cultural pride, and
desire for life and freedom.
Last word
Garland selects the word “die” as the last word of the poem, which creates a sense of futility and
inevitable fate: the soldier was destined to die one way or another. The reader is also forced to
reflect on their own mortality and life which will end
the same way as the soldiers. In a more
overarching societal application, the writer may be
suggesting that conflict and patriotism denies
humanity the enjoyment of life and nature.
Language and Themes
Conflict vs Identity
Conflict between identities (such as father and
soldier) is established in the first two lines of the poem. There is immediately a contrast between
title “kamikaze” and “her father”.
● “kamikaze” establishes his role as a soldier and Japanese suicide pilot.
○ This portrayal is reinforced by choice of possessions: a flask of water and samurai
sword, showing him to be practical and nationalistic.
● The reference to “her father” humanises him and shows that he has a life outside of his
mission and matters to people.
○ The contrast between being a kamikazee and father shows the reader the
conflicting roles of the man; he can either live with his family or die for his country.
The sad irony that in choosing his family he is ultimately rejected by them (they “live
as though he never returned”)
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Patriotism
The patriotism of kamikaze pilots is enforced by the patriotic imagery which is littered throughout
the poem. The speaker states “her father embarked at sunrise”, here the reader is reminded
that Japan is known as the land of the rising sun. Except instead of this being a new day full of
hope he is potentially heading towards his
death. Moreover, “embark” means to get on but
also to begin something, the father is beginning
a new chapter of his life through rejecting his
role as a kamikaze pilot.
The speaker sees patriotism within nature,
such as the fish which are “like a huge flag”.
This simile shows that the father and his family
are indoctrinated by Japanese culture and
societal norms which is why he believes dying is
the right thing to do. This illustrates to the reader
how patriotism is so powerful it can control how a person acts and how they choose to die.
This identity as a patriotic soldier shifts to that of a father as he appreciates the beauty of nature
and the beauty of life and decides to reject death. He provided “feathery prawns” and “cloud
marked mackerel”, and these adjectives link grandfather’s provision of food to family.
Alternatively, it can be argued that the adjectives “cloud-marked” and “feathery” have angelic
and heavenly connotations which suggest that whilst the father has rejected death, the concept
of it is now present forever in the family’s life.
The speaker’s father also feels a need to provide for his family by returning to them. However, his
duty according to society is to provide his family with honour
not sustenance, and unfortunately this can only be achieved
through death
Roles of Soldier vs Father
These are established at the start, as the transition from
soldier to father is shown. There is a danger of patriotism in a
soldier and the poem shows how this leads to his death not
literally but metaphorically. HIs death would have given him
eternal glory in the eyes of society, however through choosing life his honour has metaphorically
died.
Theme of “Those Left Behind”
There is a shift in narrative perspective (Volta), when the narrative changes to her personal
experience of war and its effects. Here, the poem is written from a first person perspective – it is
personal to her and her experiences, as one of those left behind by soldiers going to war.
The speaker is experiencing loss when remembering her father, as though he died, which displays
the far reaching effect on multiple generations. Even in the poem the speaker chooses to feature
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four generations (children, speaker, father, grandfather) to show that conflict will keep on
impacting each generation by the impact it has on those before.
Comparisons
Kamikaze The Prelude
Celebrated the beauty of nature Feared the power of nature
Patriotism vs Nature Man vs Nature
Both speakers are forced to reconsider their perspective and consider the power and
influence of nature
Kamikaze & Poppies
Similarities ● Both poems convey the grave impact on civilians that war and conflict can
have, including the psychological impact. In Poppies, the mother is
grieving and suffering from loss and this emotional breaking is displayed
through the structural use of caesura and enjambment. Similarly, in
Kamikaze, the daughter suffering from a life where she cannot know her
father and this is a struggle against culture (third person).
● They both also display characters trying to process memories, and how
memory interacts with impact of conflict. In Kamikaze, this is the speaker
going over memory of father whilst trying to rationalise why he came back
and why he left, and in Poppies this is the main character going back over
memories of her son whilst trying to rationalise why he left - "I was brave"
● The poets both offer non-conventional perspectives of war, Kamikaze
rom the perspective of a daughter (loss of father) and Poppies from the
perspective of a mother (loss of son).
Differences ● Whilst both are suffering from loss, one ne is loss of father not because of a
physical death but because of her culture’s rejection of him, whereas in
Poppies it is the physical loss of a son to war, but also loss of her
memories of him as they are corrupted by connections to war. These
contrasting perspectives display the multitudes of way war and conflict can
cause loss for those left behind.
Kamikaze & Checking Out Me History
Similarities ● Both poems express the Importance of a person’s history and origins (as
well as their culture) in forming their identity. In Kamikaze, it is shown that
without her father, she cannot understand herself and is therefore
distanced from him
Differences ● Whilst Kamikaze presents conflict with her culture, COMH shows conflict
with those restricting his culture, fighting for it not against it
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