What Were They Like? by Denise Levertov: context, form and key methods

A set of questions about the Vietnamese people is answered by a voice who shows their culture has been destroyed by war. This poem is in copyright, so it is described mainly in our own words.

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Context and Levertov's purpose

Denise Levertov was born in England and moved to the United States, where she campaigned against the Vietnam War. Pearson dates the poem to 1967, when American bombing of Vietnam was at its height.
Levertov wanted to show that war destroys not only lives but a whole culture, and to make readers face what had been lost.

Form and structure

Two stanzas. The first asks six numbered questions, like an official enquiry or a history exam, about the people's lanterns, ceremonies, laughter, ornaments, poetry and speech.
The second stanza gives six numbered answers, from a voice addressing someone as "Sir". The answers are longer, sadder and less certain.
The contrast between the cold questions and the emotional answers shows the gap between those who study the war and those who suffered it.

Language and key methods

Past tense: the title itself suggests that the people and their way of life no longer exist.
Imagery of beauty destroyed: gentle images of nature, rice fields and singing are set against bombs and burning. The answer that "their light hearts turned to stone" uses metaphor to show joy being crushed.
Uncertainty: the answers often say "perhaps" or that "It is not remembered", showing that the culture is fading from memory.
Worked example

Compare how loss is presented in What Were They Like? and Poppies.

  1. Both poems show loss caused by war away from the battlefield.
  2. Levertov uses a question and answer structure; Weir uses a personal monologue.
  3. AO3: the Vietnam War; modern wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Answer: Both Levertov and Weir present loss caused by war, but on very different scales. Levertov's question and answer structure creates the cold tone of an official enquiry, while the answers reveal that a whole culture has been wiped out; the metaphor "their light hearts turned to stone" shows joy crushed by violence. Weir focuses on a single mother, and her free verse, full of domestic details, makes the loss feel intimate and personal. While Levertov's speaker admits that much "is not remembered", Weir's mother clings to the memory of her son's childhood. Levertov shows war erasing a people's past; Weir shows it emptying one family's home.

Key idea

Vietnam War; 1967; Levertov, an anti-war campaigner. Six numbered questions, then six numbered answers to "Sir"; past tense; images of beauty destroyed; "their light hearts turned to stone"; "It is not remembered".

Key words
Context
The circumstances in which a text was written and set, such as historical events, social attitudes and the writer's life (AO3 in the GCSE, AO4 in the International GCSE).
Form
The type and shape of a text: for example sonnet, ballad, free verse, tragedy, comedy, novel or play.
Stanza
A group of lines forming a section of a poem (a verse).
Imagery
Language that creates a picture or appeals to the senses, including similes, metaphors and personification.
Metaphor
A comparison that says one thing is another, without using 'like' or 'as'.

All GCSE and International GCSE English Literature key terms and definitions →

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Last updated 2 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us and we will fix it.

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