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English poetry

In war photographer written by Carol Ann Duffy why is it in written in 3rd person ?

obviously there's a degree of subjectivity to it, but what we used to say was that it gives the poem a sense of universality, as in the majority of the readers can resonate with the perspective of someone who only views war from the outside (as non-combatants), like the photographer them-self. Therefore most of us as readers can put ourselves in the position of the war photographer. I guess you could alternatively say it shows a sense of detachment between the photographer and their story, which could be linked to how traumatising what they saw was? Hopefully this helps :smile:

Reply 2

Porcha.xo

Thank you

(edited 4 years ago)

Reply 3

Hyperbolit

Original post by Porcha.xo

In war photographer written by Carol Ann Duffy why is it in written in 3rd person ?

Hi there, Duffy's use of a 3rd person voice enables the speaker to observe the 'war photographer' from a detached angle, which mirrors the sort of emotional detachment which people hold towards the agonies and atrocities of war (a point that Duffy implicitly criticises in her poem). Here's a more detailed analysis on the poem, see if it helps! https://hyperbolit.com/2020/05/13/looking-at-war-poetry-through-the-eyes-of-wilfred-owen-carol-ann-duffy/