1. Belfast Confetti

2. Suddenly as the riot squad moved in, it was raining exclamation marks,
Suggests it happens immediately and unexpectedly
Metaphor – nuts and bolts look like punctuation marks
Metal shrapnel
Suddenly as the riot squad moved in, it was raining
exclamation marks,
Nuts, bolts, nails, car-keys. A fount of broken type. And the
explosion.
Itself - an asterisk on the map. This hyphenated line, a burst
of rapid fire…
I was trying to complete a sentence in my head but it kept
stuttering,
All the alleyways and side streets blocked with stops and
colons.
Metaphor – cries of fear and pain
The explosion
Ellipsis suggests it goes on and on
The explosion has stopped him thinking straight?
He can’t escape

3. I know this labyrinth so well - Balaclava, Raglan, Inkerman,
Crimean commander
Caesura emphasises that his way is blocked
Crimean battles
I know this labyrinth so well - Balaclava, Raglan, Inkerman,
Odessa Street -
Why can’t I escape? Every move is punctuated. Crimea
Street. Dead end again.
A Saracen, Kremlin-2 mesh. Makrolon face-shields. Walkie
-talkies. What is
My name? Where am I coming from? Where am I going? A
fusillade of question-marks.
Anti-rocket mesh
To protect the face
Outburst of firing
Question marks highlight his confusion
Armoured personnel carrier

4. How does the poet use punctuation?
References to punctuation in the poem?
This suggests that the shrapnel from the bombs looks like punctuation marks as it falls from the sky.
It also highlights emotions as we often use punctuation in writing to emphasise feelings; for example: exclamation marks.
His actual use of punctuation?
The questions marks show his confusion.
He uses a lot of punctuation to reflect how much shrapnel there is in the bomb.
Use of colons, full-stops and dashes in the middle of lines suggests that he cannot escape from the chaos.

5. Comparing the poems
How is the conflict in Belfast Confetti different to the conflict in “Half-Caste” and “Parade’s End”?
The poem shows physical conflict involving violence towards people, whereas in “Half-Caste”, the wrong against people is through their words and attitudes and in “Parades End” it is also through their attitudes and through vandalism.
The poem shows the damage that can be caused by terrorism, whereas the other two poems focus on prejudice.
Are there any similarities between the poems?
“Belfast Confetti” and “Parade’s End” both show hate crimes through the eyes of innocent victims.
All three poems suggest how conflict can make the victim feel.
All three poems create unusual images to help convey their ideas.