BIOGRAPHY STRUCTURE TITLE Lines 4 – 6:

Vultures by Chinua Achebe

Born in Nigeria in Written in free verse. The poem is divided into 4 sections marked by line indentation and ellipsis. Vultures signify/symbolise evil. They The negative depiction of the vulture is reinforced.
1930. Died 22 Part a – descriptive in past tense; part b – reflection; part c – descriptive in present tense; part d – general reflection are scavenging/ disgusting birds.
March 2013. Note how the positive lines are sandwiched by the negative lines. This represents human nature where love and evil are Metaphor – humans are compared to Broken bone – metaphor comparing the dead
POETIC DEVICES intertwined or coexist. ( and ) vultures tree to a bone: both are dry and brittle. Death
imagery
1. Metaphor – (title) humans//vultures
2. Alliteration (lines 2/3) d
THEME Lines 9 – 12: Description of the vulture’s appearance
3. Alliteration (lines 5/6) broken bone
4. Metaphor (lines 5/5) tree//bone 1. In the greyness
Metaphor – the vultures head is compared to a
5. Metaphor (line 9) head//pebble The poem is about love and evil – a paradox 2. and drizzle of one despondent pebble. They are similar in shape (round), in size
6. Metaphor (line 10) neck // stem 3. dawn unstirred by harbingers (small) and strong (hard); both are unattractive.
7. Metaphor (lines 11/12) ground// dump 1. Achebe is fascinated by the fact that 4. of sunbreak a vulture sunbreak
Lines 1 – 3:
Bashed-in suggests that the head has been damaged
of gross feathers creatures that love can also carry out acts of 5. perching high on broken stem rooted – a plant image. Metaphor the neck of
8. Metaphor (line 21) vulture// weapon 6. bone of a dead tree The introduction presents a miserable gloomy picture
to kill
great evil OR creatures that carry out acts of of a grey dawn.
the vulture is compared to the stem of a plant.
great evil can also love. 7. nestled close to his Metaphor: the neck is planted in the unpleasant
9. Personification (line 23) love will
8. mate his smooth garbage of ugly feathers – compared to the
pick… and love is compared to a Despondent – downhearted
9. bashed-in head, a pebble unpleasant appearance of the dirty ground (soil)
woman 2. He suggests at the end of the poem that
10. Metaphor (line 26) area//charnel these two factors may be more closely linked to 10. on a stem rooted in harbinger – an omen, is something or someone that
house 11. a dump of gross
each other than most people think. predicts what will soon happen, here the dawn is Lines 12 – 13:
11. Metaphor (line 33) humans//roast 12. feathers, inclined affectionately approaching. But this won’t mean sunshine or a joyful
12. Metaphor (line 43) 13. to hers. Yesterday they picked new day. The Alliteration of the d in ‘drizzle … Inclines affectionately to hers - In this poem the
3. There is a fine line between love and hate.
Commandant//ogre 14. the eyes of a swollen despondent dawn’ have negative associations'. The negativity is broken up by occasional contrasting
13. Alliteration (line 46) c 15. corpse in a water-logged heavy sounding d expresses the depressive mood of positive depictions. ‘Affectionately’ is unexpected
14. Metaphor (line 46) heart//icy cavern 4. Vultures are outwardly evil but good on the 16. trench and ate the the morning. after such a gross description of the vulture. Link
15. Ambiguous conclusion (-/+/-/+/- etc.) inside. 17. things in its bowel. Full with ‘nestled close to his’ (line 7) and ‘coiled up
18. gorged they chose their roost Diction like drizzle, despondent, harbingers, broken, there’ (line 27).
5. The Commandant is outwardly good but evil 19. keeping the hollowed remnant dead, bashed-in, dump, gross, corpse and cold create
on the inside. 20. in easy range of cold the semantic field of death. What is ‘semantic field’?
Lines 20/21:
Lines 47 – 51: 21. telescopic eyes ...
Lines 41 – 47: 22. Strange In easy range – suggests the range of a weapon or gun
Lines 13 – 19:
23. indeed how love in other
Or do we abandon hope that in 24. ways so particular
Do we respond in praise for all that has been Picked the eyes of a swollen corpse – disgusting feeding Cold telescopic eyes – suggests the weapon that can be
the origin of the tiniest amount of 25. will pick a corner used from a distance and reach target. Metaphor – the
provided that in the icy cold heart of evil there is habit of the vultures
love there is ever-present evil? 26. in that charnel-house vultures are compared to target weapon.
the smallest light, tenderness, innocence and 27. tidy it and coil up there, perhaps
love? A grotesque image is associated with the vultures, this
28. even fall asleep – her face time it is not their appearance rather what they do. Line 23 – 29:
29. turned to the wall!
Line 48: 30. ... Thus the Commandant at Belsen Water-logged trench - brings to mind an open sewer. Love is usually associated with beauty, sweetness,
Line 50: 31. Camp going home for kindness. This personified love chooses to locate
Germ means seed, origin or beginning here. In 32. the day with fumes of Bowel – intestines, entrails itself in a charnel house, a place where the bones of
Perpetuity – the state of continuing the very origin of love, evil is present. 33. human roast clinging the dead are kept, turning her ‘face to the wall’, as if to
forever 34. rebelliously to his hairy Full gorged – suggests greed disregard the horror. The term can also be used more
35. nostrils will stop generally as a description of a place filled
36. at the wayside sweet-shop Roost – settle down for rest or sleep with death and destruction. Love can live in the heart
Line 47:
37. and pick up a chocolate of a vulture and ignore the disgust and horror.
38. for his tender offspring Hollowed remnant – remains of the empty carcass
Or – the alternative response Metaphor: the area is compared to a place where
Line 49: 39. waiting at home for Daddy's
40. return ... dead bodies are kept. Again, reinforcing the morbid
Despair – to abandon, give up hope Line 22 – 25:
41. Praise bounteous atmosphere of death.
Kindred – related by blood, close family, Coil up – conjures up the image of a snake-again
the same 42. providence if you will Strange – odd, peculiar. Suggests that the poet another vulgar image.
Line 46: 43. that grants even an ogre is thinking.
44. a tiny glow-worm
Alliteration has the impact of sharp sounds 45. tenderness encapsulated Line 33/34:
Line 44/45 Love is personified as a woman you will carry
46. in icy caverns of a cruel
describing the coldness of an evil heart. The out a domestic function of finding a place to
47. heart or else despair Human roast - seems particularly revolting with
Tiny – vulnerable, fragile cruel heart of a vulture is compared to a cold
48. for in the very germ sleep and then tidy it.
(line 20 - death) cavern (empty, hollow in line its connotations of cooking and hairy nostrils -
49. of that kindred love is
Glow-worm: represents love here 19) are designed to repel. It refers to the
50. lodged the perpetuity Line 30:
51. of evil. incineration of the Jews in the holocaust. Fumes
Encapsulated – enclosed in Caverns – hollows, cavities good evil Belsen Camp - a World War 2 German also suggest the smell of the human bodies that
concentration camp where many people were is infused into the Commandant’s body. He
exterminated during the Second World War. Also cannot escape his daytime activity of
Line 43: Lines 41/42: Lines 38 – 40: known as death camps. commanding such an evil deed. The smell of
Commandant – German officer in charge
death envelopes him.
Ogre – a monster that Biblical language – expressing all the Tender offspring – the Commandant’s children
represents evil here. A good that God provides to mankind. rebelliously - suggests that the smell refuses go
metaphor comparing the Tender – suggests innocent as opposed to the evil of the father Lines 36/37: away even after the Commandant has left the
If you will – consider this for others may camp.
Commandant to a monster (all
humans)
not Daddy’s return – suggests a homely and loving family image A regular act of love to stop to buy a
but it makes his daytime activity more horrifying. chocolate.
 Cold telescopic eyes Pebble on a stem rooted in a
Hollow remnant Charnel-house dump of gross feathers
Perching on broken
Chinua Achebe bone

Human roast
Fumes of human roast

Commandant His tender offspring

Hairy nostrils

ogre A tiny glow-worm Icy caverns

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