Structure and Language

Structure

The poem is 14 lines long and is a sonnetsonnet: A 14-line poem, usually written in iambic pentameter. Most sonnets conform to one of the following rhyme schemes: A-B-A-B C-D-C-D E-F-E-F G-G (English sonnet); or A-B-B-A A-B-B-A C-D-E C-D-E (Italian sonnet).. It has three parts: eight lines (an octet), followed by six lines (a sestet) divided into four lines and a final coupletrhyming couplet: a pair of lines of poetry that rhyme and have the same length and metric pattern.. The octet and the sestet each consist of one sentence. Sonnets traditionally deal with love

Language

Think about how the language the poetpoet: A writer of poetry. uses helps to convey his ideas. Here are some points to consider:

• The poem has no title. It is from a collection called Book of Matches: all the poems are untitled and are supposed to be read in the time it takes for a lighted match to burn down. The lack of a title means that even more weight is placed on the first words of the poem, "I've made out a will."
• That first phrase is a clear statement. It shows that Armitage is so determined to see through his wish for his body to be used by the NHS that he has included it on a legal document.
• The range of ways in which the body is described in lines 3 - 7 is humorous. For example, the phrase "loaf of brains" (line 4) reminds us of the rhyming slang for head, 'loaf of bread' (people sometimes say 'Use your loaf'). Perhaps this suggests that Armitage is not too concerned about his body (except the heart). This is confirmed by the casual, offhand way in which he says "They can have the lot" (line 9).
• However, Armitage uses a firm tonetone: The mood or manner of a text or part of a text. The author's 'tone of voice' or way in which they expect to be understood. The emotional load carried by a text. to underline his wish not to include the heart. The final couplet, like line 8, begins "but not" (line 13) and the last line begins with an imperative verb, giving an order: "leave that".
• We are not told why Armitage wants to keep his heart. Perhaps it is because the heart is the one vital organ that keeps us alive and he does not want to lose it even in death. Or perhaps the choice of the sonnetsonnet: A 14-line poem, usually written in iambic pentameter. Most sonnets conform to one of the following rhyme schemes: A-B-A-B C-D-C-D E-F-E-F G-G (English sonnet); or A-B-B-A A-B-B-A C-D-E C-D-E (Italian sonnet). form gives us a clue: he values it for what the heart symbolises and for what we associate it with, like the sonnet - love.