Out of the blue

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  • Created by: Jesskaa
  • Created on: 04-04-13 09:25
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  • Out of the blue
    • Subject
      • Armitage wrote Out of the Blue for the 5th anniversary of '9/11' – the attack on the World Trade Centre in New York on 11th September 2001 in which 2,976 people died
      • It tells the story of that morning from the point of view of a man who works on the 80th floor of the North tower
    • Form and structure
      • Short, four-lined stanzas
        • Suggests narrators  attempt to maintain self-control
          • The lines vary from short, clear thoughts and questions ("you have picked me out", "So when will you come?", "A bird goes by")
        • The variation in line lengths betray his changing emotions.
          • The last phrase (or sentence) of stanza five mirrors the falling, tumbling motion of the people falling thousands of feet to their death:
    • Themes
      • The poem is about "believing"  your eyes and understanding the unimaginable decisions those victims had to face.
        • They knew they were going to die, could see people falling past them, and needed to make a final connection with loved ones who were still a phone-call away ("do you see me, my love").
      • The main focus on the poem is on how hard it is to understand an event like this
    • Language
      • "Shaking crumbs"; "******* out washing" – as people might do everyday at home.These images highlight the ordinary lives that are being lost and the ordinary moments that will be denied the victims.
      • ("twirling, turning" or "waving, waving"). This expresses the pointless repetition of actions (such as the man waving his shirt). Nothing can make any difference now.

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