Andrew's Wiki
Dis Abled

Content

• A biography of a Scottish recruit who looked for glamor in war (manly iconography and dress) but who now can’t even move himself
  • He never supported or even properly understood the objectives behind the war
• He muses about his lost opportunities, how he is ousted from the marriage market and fun, and even mobility, from his injuries
  • Can no longer be a full member of the social body now that his body is no longer whole
• Reminds us that a very many different types of war injuries, including the memories and the fact of having been a soldier, will mark them for live as an oddity, as separate

Style

• Verses are separated more aggressively than the other poems are: there are separations between each verse
  • Leisurely story: fragmented, like this poor man’s body
  • Everything is broken up, doesn’t have wholeness anymore
• Repetition at end emphasizes helplessness
  • “Why don’t they come / And put him into bed? why don’t they come?”