Three days before Armistice Sunday
and poppies had already been placed
on individual war graves.
The opening lines of the poem immediately introduce the wartime context and explain the significance of the title. The reference to “Armistice Sunday” in the first line alludes to two significant dates in the United Kingdom holiday calendar, both of which relate to war, thus signaling to the (presumed British) reader that the poem will explore the theme of warfare. The primary holiday referenced is Armistice Day, which falls on November 11 annually and marks the anniversary of the conclusion of hostilities in World War I through the armistice signed between the Allied Powers and Germany. The reference to “Armistice Sunday” specifically may also recall the national United Kingdom holiday of Remembrance Sunday, which commemorates the contributions of British and Commonwealth military and civilian servicemen in all British wars. Confirming the importance of these dates, even to readers who are not familiar with these British holidays, the second and third lines reveal that in honor of these dates individuals have placed poppies on soldiers’ graves. The striking and sorrowful image of a poppy being placed on a grave clarifies the otherwise ambiguous title of the poem, “Poppies.” The poppies are not simply a striking flower, but are being used as a sign of mourning, specifically in connection with war.
I was brave, as I walked
with you, to the front door, threw
it open, the world overflowing
like a treasure chest.
These lines make use of enjambment and simile to represent the intense emotions surrounding the son’s departure from the home. The use of enjambment captures the feel of the moment, mirroring the punctures and pauses in the oral speech of someone who is overwhelmed with emotion. The enjambment serves to separate the mother and son: in Line 18, the mother stands alone, with the first-person “I”: “I was brave, as I walked.” This line focuses singly on the mother and on the emotions she experiences at this moment. Line 19, by contrast, uses the second-person “you”: “with you, to the front door.” The mother and son are separated across these two lines, the enjambment emphasizing their emotional distance. This disconnect is further explained in Line 21. While the mother is “brave” and steeling herself for the anxieties caused by her son’s departure, the son views the world as a “treasure chest,” with rewards and riches to be discovered. This simile juxtaposes the somber and reflective tone of the prior stanza, introducing the son’s perspective. Unlike the mother, who is aware of the grave risks of war that her son faces, the son appears more optimistic and naive.
The dove pulled freely against the sky,
an ornamental stitch, I listened, hoping to hear
your playground voice catching on the wind.
The final image of the mother making her way to a war memorial ends with her listening closely to the wind, hoping to hear her son’s “playground voice.” This striking and nostalgic description of her son’s voice connects the poem’s conclusion to its second stanza, when the mother also expressed her desire to play childhood games with her son. This is an elegiac ending that further complicates the ambiguous chronology of the poem. It is arguably unclear whether the mother has sent her son to war or to somewhere else, or whether the son has in fact already passed away. Thus, “Poppies” threads a line between genres: it is both a dramatic monologue and potentially an elegy, which is a poem where the speaker expresses grief and loss for a loved one. One could also argue that “Poppies” in fact fits into the elegy genre regardless of whether the son has passed away, as the mother expresses a sense of loss regarding her son as well as grief for the soldiers in the graveyard. The free movement of the dove in the sky above, and the dove's beauty as an "ornamental" stitch, contrasts with the image of the mother listening to the wind, fearing for her son. The dove can be viewed as a representation of the son, as it enjoys its freedom (much like the son, who viewed the outside world as a treasure chest), but is also ominous because it can represent a symbol of mourning.
