Simon Armitage has been the UK's Poet Laureate since 2019. Author of poetry collections such as Zoom! (1989) and Kid (1992), he is also known for his translations of epic poems such as Homer's Odessey (2006) and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (2007).
Who is Simon Armitage?
Simon Armitage was born in 1963 in Marsden, West Yorkshire. Armitage's father was known locally as a playwright and also worked as a probation officer, two professions Simon himself would turn his hand to.
Armitage attended the University of Portsmouth, where he studied Geography, before completing a postgraduate degree at the University of Manchester. His Master's thesis discussed the effects of violent television on young offenders.
Armitage's Career
After university, Armitage spent six years working as a probation officer in the Greater Manchester area, until 1994. He chose this profession after failing to find work related to his degree. During this time he published three collections of poetry, Human Geography (1988), Zoom! (1989) and Kid (1992). These collections were partially inspired by Armitage's own experiences as a probation officer, which can be seen in the themes of conflict and violence in the collections.
Following the success of Kid, Armitage quit his job as a probation officer to pursue poetry full-time. He had previously worked as a lecturer at Leeds University, Manchester Metropolitan University, and the University of Iowa. In 2011 he became Professor of Poetry at the University of Sheffield and in 2017 he gained the same position at Leeds University.
Armitage has also created programmes for Radio 3 and 4 on topics such as history and literature. He has presented television documentaries since 1992 including The Pendle Witch Child (2011), The Culture Show (2014) and Sir Gawain and the Green Knight (2009).
Armitage lives in Melham, Yorkshire with his wife and daughter. For his prose collection 'Walking Away', he walked 250 miles from Minehead to Land's End.
What awards and accolades has Simon Armitage received?
Simon Armitage was appointed as the Millennium Poet in 1999. In 2010 he was awarded a CBE for services to poetry.
During 2012, Armitage was the Artist in Residence at London's Southbank, where he created the Poetry Parnassus, a gathering of poets from every Olympic nation. This event is seen as the biggest assemblage of international poets in history.
In 2019, Armitage was appointed as the UK's Poet Laureate. Succeeding Carol Ann Duffy, he will remain in this role until 2029.
What are some of Simon Armitage's poems?
'Kid' (1992)
'Kid' is the titular poem of Armitage's 1992 poetry collection. The poem discusses themes of family and coming of age.
"Holy robin-redbreast-nest-egg-shocker!
Holy roll-me-over-in the-clover,
I'm not playing ball boy any longer
Batman, now I've doffed that off-the-shoulder
Sherwood-Forest-green and scarlet number
for a pair of jeans and crew-neck jumper;
now I'm taller, harder, stronger, older."
Armitage's poem 'Kid' plays on the image of Batman and Robin to tell a story of a young person stepping out of the shadow of a role model. The pop-culture figures are used to explore the idea of being a 'sidekick' to someone else. The poem references different regions of England to show how the speaker is trying to find his voice.
Hint: To figure out the rhyme scheme of this poem, try singing it to the Batman theme song!
'Poem' (1992)
Simon Armitage's 'Poem', appears in his 1992 collection Kid. It features themes of family and conflict.
"And for his mum he hired a private nurse.
And every Sunday taxied her to church.
And he blubbed when she went from bad to worse.
And twice he lifted ten quid from her purse.
Here's how they rated him when they looked back:
sometimes he did this, sometimes he did that."
This poem is written in the form of an elegy as it describes what an unnamed dead man did during his life. The poem uses anaphora and end stop lines to create the non-committal tone, which the speaker uses as he relays the man's actions. This poem discusses themes of family, conflict, and how morally complex people can be.
'Homecoming' (1989)
'Homecoming' first appeared in Armitage's collection Zoom! And also deals with themes of family and conflict. The title of the poem plays on the idea of a teenager returning home.
"These ribs are pleats or seams. These arms are sleeves.
These fingertips are buttons, or these hands can fold
into a clasp, or else these fingers make a zip
or buckle, you say which.
Step backwards into it
and try the same canary-yellow cotton jacket, there,
like this, for size again. It still fits."
Armitage's poem discusses the relationship between a teenager and their parents. This relationship is explored through metaphor and symbolism, such as the coat at the centre of the poem. This piece uses the duality of a trust exercise and a coat to explore themes of familial tensions, conflict, and growing up.
'Remains' (2008)
This poem was written for Armitage's 2008 collection, The Not Dead, which compiled poems based on the testimonials of soldiers. This poem discusses themes of violence and the after-effects of conflict.
"End of story, except not really.
His blood-shadow stays on the street, and out on patrol
I walk right over it week after week.
Then I'm home on leave. But I blink"
Armitage’s poem focuses on a soldier who has been involved in the killing of a robber in the Middle East. The speaker is dealing with how this trauma is affecting him on duty and also when he returns home. This tells the story of how a soldier is only a cog in a machine, fighting a war they are actually helpless to stop. The poem mixes vivid imagery of violence with a conversational tone to create a depiction of guilt and trauma following a violent incident.
Key Themes in Armitage's poems
Here are some of the themes of Armitage's poetry:
Violence
Armitage spent six years working as a probation officer in Manchester, and this experience had a great effect on his work. In this role, Armitage was exposed to violence on a daily basis, and this is reflected in his poetry. Armitage has said that the violence of 1980s Thatcherite Britain had a significant effect on his poetry and how he presented violence (for example, in 'The Big Issue'). The violence that is present in Armitage’s work is never at the forefront of the poem; instead, it is subtly used to make further points about themes such as familial tension and trauma.
Examples
"His blood-shadow stays on the street," - ‘Remains’
"I let him have it... six times with the krooklock" - ‘Hitcher’
"And once, for laughing, punched her in the face" - ‘Poem'
Regional Life
Regional dialects and colloquial language feature heavily in these poems. Aside from his years at university, Armitage has lived his whole life in Yorkshire, which has influenced his poetry. Many of Armitage’s poems feature a Yorkshire dialect, which helps to reflect regional life in the North of England.
Examples
"now I've doffed that off-the-shoulder" - ‘Kid’
"We went out / into the school yard together, me and the boy" ‘The Shout’
Study Tip: To see this theme more clearly - try reading some of these poems in a Yorkshire accent!
Family
Many of Armitage’s poems discuss themes of families and familial tension. This is seen especially in his third collection, Kid, which deals with the theme of coming of age and the tension this can create in a family. Armitage uses experiences from his own school days as well as other outside influences to explore families in his poetry. This can range from coming of age stories to darker stories of violent tension within the familial unit.
Examples
"I'm not playing ball boy any longer / Batman," - ‘Kid’
"Back home / the very model of a mother, yours" - ‘Homecoming’
"And for his mum he hired a private nurse." - ‘Poem’
Simon Armitage (1963-Present) - Key takeaways
Simon Armitage was born in 1963 in Yorkshire.
He was a probation officer in Greater Manchester.
He is the current Poet Laureate of the U.K (2019-2029).
His most well-known poems include 'Kid', 'Homecoming', 'Poem', and 'Remains'.
The themes of his poetry include violence, conflict, regional life, and families.
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