THE BRIGHT LIGHTS OF SARAJEVO

TONI HARRISON

BACKGROUND:

Tony Harrison was born in Leeds, Yorkshire, in 1937 and is a

leading poet and translator. He has often written about social
issues and sometimes about international issues. He wrote
‘The Bright Lights of Sarajevo’ when a national British
newspaper sent him to write about Bosnia, a country in the Balkans, in September 1995.

The Bosnian War took place between 1992 and 1995. It was a bitter conflict between parts of the former
Yugoslavia, which broke out along old national and cultural boundaries at the beginning of the 1990s. The
main division was between Bosnia and Serbia, but the political situation was very complex. The war was
motivated by ethnic prejudice and Muslims in the region suffered horrific ethnic cleansing.

The poem is set in Sarajevo, capital city of Bosnia, during the siege mounted by Serb forces which lasted
the entire duration of the war. Thousands of people died in the city during the siege.

THEMES:

 the strength and urgency of love;

 the deprivations and destruction caused by war.

GENRE:

 A poem

AUDIENCE:

 Those who are interested in historical events

PURPOSE:

 To express the feelings on war and the civilians

56
IGCSE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ANTHOLOGY A
STRUCTURE:

 The poem is written in one long stanza made up of linked clauses that form rhyming couplets,
which provide a steady rhythm that, due to the enjambment, seems to almost reflect the natural
pattern of speech.
 The description at the start of the bread shop queue is revisited in a shocking manner later on
when reference to how such a queue was once attacked and massacred is made.
 Contrasts are made between the beauty of the natural world (the sky) and the man-made
destruction below.

LANGUAGE ANALYSIS:

1. Metaphor

Example: “Bright Lights”

Effect: Brightness denotes the hopes and beauty which is in contrast with the symbols of
death

2. Contrast

Example: “…queuing for the precious meager grams… often dodging snipers on the way…”

Effect: Queuing for food is an everyday activity but the idea of being shot / killed has also
become routine for the Sarajevans

Example: “...people walking streets Serb shells destroyed…the young go walking at stroller’s
pace…”

Effect: The people who are walking in the streets should feel threatened instead they walk
at their own accord shows loss of hopes on life as well as bravery

3. Auditory Images

Example: “the tender radar of the tone of voice…”

Effect: Through the auditory image, the poet creates irony. “Radar” is an example of
language used in warfare, which is suitable for a situation like this, hence portraying
the direct contrast to the horror of war with the reference to “tender”

57
IGCSE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ANTHOLOGY A
4. Reference to Lights

Example: “unlit streets”

Effect: The darker roads are the symbols of the dark side of war

Example: “no torches guide them”

Effect: In the relaxed atmosphere they seem to be enjoying their time with no further
hopes to lead them in life

Example: “Then match or lighter to a cigarette…”

Effect: The slightest sources of lights denotes the fading signs of life

5. Paradox

Example: “…I see a pair who’ve certainly progressed…”

Effect: The poet iterates the paradox on how romance can burst into life in terrible
situations like war

Example: “The dark boy-shape leads dark girl-shape away…”

Effect: The difficulties faced by citizens are in contrast with the young couple. While life
will continue on harsh environment, the reality of the situation is inescapable.

6. Language refers to horror

Example: “Serb mortars massacred the breadshop queue and blood – dunked crusts of
shredded bread…”

Effect: Horror intrudes the setting which describes the harsh reality

58
IGCSE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ANTHOLOGY A
7. Visual Images

Example: “…smallest clouds have cleared away, leaving the Sarajevo star – filled evening
sky…ideally bright and clear for bomber’s eye…”

Effect: The beauty of the nature is depicted through the evening star filled sky which is in
contrast with the horrors of life and lack of hopes due to the war

8. Irony

Example: “a candlelit café”

Effect: This note of romance presents the irony in a place where candles were lit due to
lack of electricity nevertheless the couple considers the opportunity as romantic

Example: “…behind AID flour-sacks refilled with sand.”

Effect: The humanitarian aid is provided to conflict sites however these sacks are used to
create barricades that protect civilians from mortar depicts irony

9. Rhyme Scheme

Example: “pass – gas”, “prams – grams”, “voice –choice”

Effect: The simple rhyme scheme assists the readers to appreciate the poem and
remember the poem easily

10. Alliteration

Example: “…walking streets Serb shells destroyed”

Effect: The sibilance provides the contrasting tone of the stroller’s pace with the horrors
of war

Example: “death-deep, death-dark wells”

Effect: This example proves the dreads of war

59
IGCSE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ANTHOLOGY A
 EXAM-STYLE QUESTIONS

How does the writer successfully convey the horror of war and the
ability of human beings to rise above it? In your answer, you should
write about:

 the ideas about war conveyed in the poem

 the way the writer uses images and contrast

 The writer’s use of language and structure

60
IGCSE ENGLISH LANGUAGE ANTHOLOGY A