Summary and Analysis of Five Ways to

Kill a Man by Edwin Brock

Five Ways to Kill a Man by Edwin Brock mocks at the dehumanization of man. The
poem describes the various ways that man has used, beginning from the ancient times
to the 20th century, to kill other human beings. The methods he has used are
crucifixion, lancing, gassing, bombing etc.
Summary:
Stanza 1: The very first stanza of the poem, Five Ways to Kill a Man begins with the
crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The method used to torture him and kill him are termed as
cumbersome by the poet. A whole crowd walks up a hill as they force him to carry the
cross upon his back. Earlier, St. Peter had denied thrice to have known him when he
was asked whether he was in the company of Jesus. The cock crowed to remind Peter
that Jesus had predicted that Peter would deny Christ thrice before the cock would
crow. Jesus was nailed to the cross and the cross was then pulled erect. Later on,
Christ was asked to remove his cloak, so that he would not be able to have a proper
burial and his corpse would be left on top of the hill semi-clad. Christ was tortured in
many ways. When Christ asked for water, they gave him sponge soaked in vinegar tied
to a rod which they put into his mouth. Eventually, Jesus died and they waited there and
watched him die.
Stanza 2: The second stanza talks about the medieval age when wars were fought for
the sake of crown and honour. This is a reference to the Wars of Roses (1455-1485), a
series of dynastic wars fought between the Houses of Lancaster and York, for the
throne of England. There, the knights foolishly slaughtered each other with hook axes
and hammers which could pierce the armour with ease. They rode and faced the
opponents on white horses, attacking them with swords, ready to kill or to be killed. The
poet calls this game of jousting as futile because nothing was accomplished, one man
always ended up losing his life and the other celebrated his death. Similarly, crowns
used to go on conquering sprees, fighting huge wars to annex small kingdoms. Tow
countries would go to war and thousands o f people would die on both sides, before one
prince would emerge as victorious. Then the prince would throw a banquet, celebrating
his victory and the deaths of the numerous people he killed.
Stanza 3: The third stanza of Five Ways to Kill a Man is about the First World War. The
poet says that this period did not require Princes or loyal knights to kill. They only
needed the favourable wind direction to blow the deadly gas towards their opponents.
The poet here refers to the poisonous gas warfare that was popular during the World
War. In 1915, the British used gas cylinders on the Germans. However, the wind
direction changed and the gas came back to the British soldiers and poisoned them.
Edwin Brock also describes the horrors of bombs, mud-blackened boots, plague of mice
and the miserable living conditions in the ditches. The poet talks about all those patriotic
songs that were sung to boost the morale of the soldiers and make them feel proud for
killing their enemies.
Stanza 4: The advent of the airplane and the atomic bomb is what the fourth stanza is
about. Here in this very stanza, he is referring to the bombings of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki in Japan by the USA during the Second World War. He says that this required
an ocean to separate you referring to the cultural gap between America and Japan;
two systems of government referring to the difference in the administrative systems of
the two countries; a nations scientists and several factories to produce lethal
weapons of mass destruction like an atomic bomb. This horrible act of mass killing was
executed by a psychopath possibly referring to the then President of the USA, Harry S.
Truman who authorized the bombing on Japan. Land that no one needs for several
years is a reference to regions of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which were completely
destroyed by the effects of radiation.
Stanza 5: The final stanza talks about the far simple and more direct methods to kill a
man. The poet says that methods described in the first four stanzas were too
cumbersome. The simpler and direct method to kill someone is by leaving the victim
somewhere in the middle of the 20th century. Here, Edwin Brock is referring to the
miserable and tragic conditions which were prevalent after the Second World War,
which included poverty, hunger, malnutrition, diseases, religious intolerance and
joblessness. In such terrible conditions, man was already dying of pain every day in
order to survive.
Theme:
Five Ways to Kill a Man focuses on the loss of humanity in man with every passing era.
The poem describes the methods used by man to kill other men for his own selfish
motives. The first stanza talks about the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the second is about
the medieval age, the third and fourth stanzas talk about the First and Second World
War, respectively. The poet wants to convey a message through this poem. He wants to
say that man has become devoid of emotions and sympathy. Man has developed newer
scientific methods which has made killing easier and faster. People kill one another,
physically or mentally to survive in the world today. Children are dying of hunger,
malnutrition and diseases. People have to endure pain in order to survive and therefore,
they are dying a slow death. Thus, the poem wants to highlight the fact that though man
acquired new methods to discover, create but the basic human tendency to kill remain
unchanged.
Form and Language:
The poem is composed in free verse with no end rhyming scheme. The descriptions of
the ways of killing a man are chronologically arranged. Each stanza depicts one
possible way to kill a man. Every stanza except the last stanza consists of run-on lines.
Run-on lines suggest that the rhythm does not conform to any structure and is free
flowing.
The poem is written in a simple language to describe the different ways to kill a man.
The words are used cold and blunt. The words used to describe the crucifixion of Christ
depict the lack of humanity and emotionless nature of man.
Allusion:
There are several allusions in the poem, Five Ways to Kill a Man.
The first stanza of the poem alludes to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. This is done by
describing the method by which Jesus was crucified. He was forced to carry a plank of
wood up to Golgotha hill. On the way, a big hostile crowd accompanied him and
humiliated him. He was tortured and nailed to the cross where he eventually died.
The second stanza refers to the Wars of Roses to illustrate how wars were fought for
the sake of crown and honour during the medieval age.
The third stanza refers to gas warfare in the First World War.
The fourth stanza refers to the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and
Nagasaki in Japan in August 1945, by the USA.
Poetical Devices:
Alliteration: The examples of the alliteration are as follows,-
*cock that crows
*hammer the nails home
*mile of mud
*black boots
*small switch
*much more
Assonance: Example of assonance is:
*bows and arrows
Personification: ..if the wind allows, blow gas at him is an example of fine
personification in the poem.
Hyperbole: and attempt to pierce the metal cage he wears is an example of a
hyperbole to define the cruel acts of killing a man.