Compare Checking Out Me History and Kamikaze: Grade 9 Thesis & Quotes (AQA)

Quick Comparison Grid (The “Ninja Cheat Sheet”)

1. The Power of Education vs. Ideology (The “Blinding” Force)

Checking Out Me History:

• Agard uses the metaphor of physical injury (“Bandage up me eye,” “Blind me to me own identity”) to show that education is not neutral—it is a deliberate act of obscuring the truth.
• The repetition of “Dem tell me” creates a sense of a monolithic, oppressive authority that dictates what is worth knowing (nursery rhymes vs. real history).
• Elite Link: The contrast between the “white” history (Standard English, simple rhymes) and the “black” history (Italicized, free verse, rhythmic) shows that Agard must break the language of the oppressor to find his own voice.

Kamikaze:

• Garland uses the metaphor of “incantations” (“a shaven head full of powerful incantations”) to show that the pilot has been brainwashed by state ideology. He is under a “spell” of nationalistic duty.
• The shift in perspective (from the pilot’s daughter to the pilot’s own silent memory) shows how ideology doesn’t just control the person—it controls how their family and history perceive them.
• Elite Link: The “incantations” are eventually broken not by logic, but by the sensory beauty of nature (the “silver” fish, the “pearl-grey” pebbles), suggesting that the natural world is more “powerful” than the state’s death-cult.

Explore: Agard fights against a “blind” history that ignores him, while the pilot fights against a “blind” ideology that demands his death—both poets show that the individual must “awaken” from institutional control to see the truth.

2. The Individual vs. The Collective (Identity & Erasure)

Checking Out Me History:

• Agard moves from a passive victim (“Dem tell me”) to an active creator (“I carving out me identity”). The verb “carving” suggests that identity is a laborious, physical act of sculpture.
• He celebrates rebel figures (Toussaint L’Ouverture, Nanny de Maroon) who were “visionary,” contrasting their light with the “blindness” of the British curriculum.
• Elite Link: By ending the poem on “I carving out me identity,” Agard leaves the process unfinished—identity is a continuous act of resistance, not a static fact.

Kamikaze:

• The pilot becomes a “ghost” while still alive. His family “treated him as though he no longer existed,” showing that cultural erasure is a form of social death.
• The silence in the poem is profound—the pilot never speaks. His story is told for him by a daughter who “learned to be silent” herself.
• Elite Link: The final lines (“he must have wondered which had been the better way to die”) suggest that the “death” of his identity and family life was more painful than the physical death he avoided.

Explore: Agard uses voice and rhythm to assert his presence, while Garland uses silence and absence to show the pilot’s erasure—both poets explore how culture can either empower or “kill” the individual.

3. Structure: Rebellion vs. Containment (Form Reflects Control)

Checking Out Me History:

• The dual structure is a political statement. The “Standard” stanzas are rigid and mocking, while the “History” stanzas are free-flowing and musical, mimicking the oral traditions of the Caribbean.
• The lack of punctuation throughout the poem represents a refusal to follow the “rules” of English grammar—Agard is literally “un-bandaging” the language.
• Elite Link: The rhythmic “chant” of the poem makes it a performance of identity, forcing the reader to hear the history that was previously silenced.

Kamikaze:

• The regular six-line stanzas create a sense of order and containment, mirroring the rigid expectations of Japanese society.
• However, the heavy use of enjambment (the poem is mostly one long sentence) contrasts with this rigidity, mirroring the pilot’s “inner” wandering and his eventual decision to turn the plane around.
• Elite Link: The shift from the pilot’s “blue-green translucent sea” (vivid, personal) to the daughter’s “learned” silence (grey, social) is reflected in the structural move from the middle of the poem to the end.

Explore: Agard breaks structure to find freedom, while Garland uses a “contained” structure to show the pilot’s imprisonment—both use form to show the tension between the individual and the state.

Context Comparison (AO3 Power Move)

Elite Insight: Agard’s poem is an act of vocal rebellion against a colonial past, while Garland’s is an act of quiet empathy for a victim of a nationalistic past—both argue that “official” history is often a lie that hides the human truth.

Exam Sentence Starters

1. “While Agard utilizes a rebellious, oral vitality to dismantle the ‘blind’ Eurocentric history imposed upon him, Garland employs a hushed narrative of exclusion to expose how nationalistic ideologies ‘silence’ the individual…”
2. “Both poets explore the ‘blinding’ nature of institutional control: Agard through the metaphor of ‘bandaged’ eyes, and Garland through the ‘powerful incantations’ of state-mandated suicide…”
3. “The ‘carving out’ of identity in Checking Out Me History serves as a direct contrast to the ‘ghostly’ erasure of the pilot in Kamikaze, showing how identity can be either a tool of resistance or a casualty of shame…”
4. “Agard’s use of non-standard English and free verse structure enacts his rebellion against colonial ‘rules,’ whereas Garland’s use of enjambment within rigid stanzas mirrors the pilot’s internal struggle against social containment…”
5. “Contextually, Agard’s post-colonial critique of the British curriculum parallels Garland’s exploration of the Japanese ‘Bushido’ code, as both poets challenge the ‘official’ narratives that marginalize individual experience…”

FAQs

What is the best poem to compare with Checking Out Me History?

Kamikaze is excellent for identity and cultural pressure. You can also compare it to London for institutional control, or The Emigree for memory and heritage.

What is the best poem to compare with Kamikaze?

Checking Out Me History is perfect for individual vs. society. Alternatively, compare it to Remains for the aftermath of war, or Poppies for the family’s perspective on conflict.

What is the best theme linking Checking Out Me History and Kamikaze?

Identity and Cultural Conflict—specifically, how the “big” stories told by states and schools can crush or ignore the “small” stories of individuals.

What quotes should I compare between Checking Out Me History and Kamikaze?

• “Bandage up me eye” (History) vs. “Full of powerful incantations” (Kamikaze)—both show how the mind is controlled by outside forces.
• “I carving out me identity” (History) vs. “He was no longer the father we loved” (Kamikaze)—the struggle to create an identity vs. the pain of having one taken away.
• “Toussaint, a slave / with vision” (History) vs. “The dark prince, muscular, dangerous” (Kamikaze)—the contrast between a “visionary” hero and a “dangerous” predator (the tuna/the state).

How do I compare structure in Checking Out Me History and Kamikaze?

Agard uses dual fonts and non-standard punctuation to physically rebel against the “rules” of English. Garland uses enjambment and shifting perspectives to show the pilot’s internal deviation from a rigid social “flight path.” Both use structure to show the individual “straying” from the norm.

What is a Grade 9 thesis for Checking Out Me History vs. Kamikaze?

“While Agard utilizes a rebellious, oral linguistic vitality to dismantle the ‘blind’ Eurocentric history imposed upon him, Garland employs a hushed, third-person narrative of exclusion to expose how nationalistic ideologies can ‘silence’ and erase the individual.”

Read Next

• • • Checking Out Me History Revision Sheet
    • Kamikaze Revision Sheet
    • Power & Conflict Comparisons Hub