Poppies

1. Poppies Jane Weir

4. The story of the poem • The poem is the story of a woman whose son has gone to war • She remembers the times they spent together as he was a child growing up

5. Poppies – Jane Weir "I wrote the piece from a woman's perspective, which is quite rare, as most poets who write about war have been men. "As the mother of two teenage boys, I tried to put across how I might feel if they were fighting in a war zone. "From the overwhelming response I have had since it was published, I hope that I have achieved that."

6. Reader response… • Since the piece was published in a national newspaper, Mrs Weir has been contacted by mothers of young soldiers killed in action, as well as people from France, Belgium and Germany • One woman thanked the 46-year-old for writing the poem, saying it summed up perfectly the way she felt about losing her 18-year-old son • 'Poppies' was one of the poems commissioned by Carol Ann Duffy who invited modern poets to offer a war poem for 'Exit Wounds', published in ‘The Guardian’ at the beginning of the Iraq Inquiry in July 2009.

8. Brainstorm:What would a son say about War? • Fearful? • Abominable? • Tough? • Blood? • Pride?

9. Brainstorm:What a mother say about War? • Anxious? • Proud? • Worried? • Fearful? • Angry? • Hopeful?

10. The poem makes us think about… • The pain and difficulty of loss • The personal price a family can pay • The value of Remembrance