Introduction to 'History' by John Burnside

Welcome! In these notes, we are exploring 'History', a thought-provoking poem by John Burnside. This poem is part of your Unit 1 Section A: Post-2000 Poetry study. It was written in response to the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 (9/11), but instead of focusing on the news footage, Burnside looks at a quiet morning on a beach with his young son. It’s a poem about how we find meaning in a world that can suddenly feel very fragile and scary.

Why this poem matters: It asks us to think about what "history" really is. Is it just big, violent events on the news, or is it the small, physical details of our daily lives, like the feel of sand or the sight of a child playing?

The Story of the Poem

The poem takes place on a beach at St Andrews in Scotland. The speaker is there with his young son, Lucas, and other people. While the "news" of the attacks in America is happening in the background (heard on the radio or felt in the atmosphere), the speaker is focused on the immediate, physical world around him.

He watches his son play in the sand, notices the sea anemones and the tide, and observes the planes in the sky. He reflects on the fragility of human life and wonders how we can remain "sane" when the world seems to be falling apart. By the end, he suggests that perhaps the most important things are the small, tangible details of nature and love.

Form and Structure

The structure of 'History' is very distinctive. If you look at it on the page, it looks "broken up" or fragmented. This is a deliberate choice by Burnside to reflect the themes of the poem.

  • Fragmented Stanzas: The poem uses free verse with many irregular gaps and spaces on the page. This "shattered" appearance mirrors the falling debris of the Twin Towers and the feeling of a world that has been broken or disrupted.
  • Enjambment: Lines often run into each other without punctuation. This creates a sense of a "stream of consciousness," as if we are sitting inside the speaker's mind as he tries to process his fears.
  • White Space: The large gaps of white space on the page might represent the silence of the beach, the "gaps" in our understanding of the world, or the breaths the speaker takes as he tries to stay calm.

Key Takeaway: The "messy" look of the poem on the page isn't an accident; it represents the instability of the world after a major tragedy.

Language and Imagery

Burnside uses a contrast between solid, natural things and vague, scary ideas.

1. The Natural World

The speaker spends a lot of time describing very small, physical things on the beach:

  • Sea creatures: He mentions jellyfish and sea anemones. These creatures are beautiful but very delicate. If you touch them, they might break or sting. This represents how fragile life is.
  • The Tide: The shifting sand and the moving water suggest that nothing in the world is permanent. Everything is constantly changing.

2. The Human/Mechanical World

Contrasting with the beach are the "man-made" elements:

  • The Radio/News: The poem mentions "the news" and the "war on terror." These are presented as loud, confusing, and distant compared to the quiet beach.
  • Warplanes: The speaker notices planes in the sky. Usually, we don't think much of planes, but in the context of 9/11, they become symbols of potential danger and destruction.

3. Innocence vs. Experience

The speaker’s son, Lucas, represents innocence. He is "gathering shells" and is completely unaware of the global tragedy. The speaker, however, has experience and "adult grief." He wants to protect his son but knows that he cannot stop "history" from happening.

Key Themes

Fragility and Transience

Everything in the poem feels like it could disappear. The sand is "shifting," the shells are "shards," and the world is "leaking." Burnside is showing us that human civilization is not as solid as we like to think. We are just as vulnerable as the tiny creatures on the beach.

The Definition of 'History'

Usually, we think of history as dates and battles. Burnside suggests that true history is the physical reality of being alive. He lists many small things—pebbles, weeds, the smell of petrol—and suggests that "attending" to these things (paying attention to them) is what keeps us human.

Fear and Anxiety

There is a constant "muffled" sense of dread in the poem. The speaker is trying to find a way to live with the knowledge that bad things happen. He concludes that we should value "the rose or the iris" (the beautiful, fleeting things) while we can.

Memory Aid: Think of the poem as a camera lens. It starts with a "wide-angle" view of global news, but then "zooms in" very closely on the tiny details of the beach to find comfort.

Comparison Hints

In your exam, you will need to compare 'History' with another poem from the Poems of the Decade anthology. Here are some ideas:

  • Compare with 'The Gun' (Vicki Feaver): Both poems look at how violence or the potential for violence changes our perspective on the world and nature.
  • Compare with 'An Easy Passage' (Julia Copus): Both poems deal with the transition between childhood innocence and the complexities of the adult world.
  • Compare with 'Please Hold' (Ciaran O’Driscoll): Both poems look at the frustrations and anxieties of modern life, though 'History' is more philosophical while 'Please Hold' is more satirical.

Quick Summary Review

Context: Written after the 9/11 attacks.

Setting: A beach in St Andrews, Scotland.

Form: Fragmented, free verse, lots of white space (reflecting a broken world).

Key Contrast: The small, delicate beauty of nature vs. the large, destructive forces of global politics.

Message: We should cherish the physical, immediate world and the people we love, as life is incredibly fragile.

Don't worry if the poem feels a bit "abstract" at first! Just remember that it’s about a father trying to stay "grounded" by looking at the sand and his son while the world feels like it's spinning out of control.