Which line best signals the memory's torment in Remains?

• A. The memory cannot be shaken off.
• B. He forgets it after a while.
• C. The soldiers celebrate his survival.
• D. The memory returns in dreams.

Answer: (D)

In Remains, the hurt caused by war lives inside the speaker and shows itself through how memory floods back, not just as a recollection but as a force that invades sleep. The line where the memory returns in dreams is the clearest signal of torment because dreams are an uncontrolled, private space where the mind re-experiences what happened. They reveal that the memory isn’t just something recalled during the day; it persists, disrupts sleep, and keeps the scene vivid and present. This makes the trauma feel ongoing and real, showing the speaker cannot escape what occurred.

The other ideas would describe persistence in a milder way or shift focus away from internal distress. Treating the memory as something easily shaken off would imply resolution, while forgetting it would erase the conflict. Celebrating survival foregrounds a reaction that doesn’t capture the inner torture the poem emphasizes. The dream imagery, by contrast, anchors the torment in a tangible, haunting experience.