It is a poem that conveys a message about the brutalities and horrors of war to an ill-informed and complacent audience in England. The length of the poem is short, but powerful and wrought with vivid imagery, griping the reader’s attention from the beginning to the end. The poem focuses on the horrifying death of a solder in WWI who falls victim to gas warfare because he fails to attach his gas mask quick enough. Wilfred Owens, a war veteran himself, uses the story of the soldier to expose the harsh truths of war. With his effective use of imagery, diction and irony, Wellford Owens strips away the glory of war and reveals the horror of what it was really like to fight in WWI.
He said his main concern was ‘war and the pity of war’ He felt it was his responsibility as a poet to tell the truth and bring to light to atrocities of modern warfare, in a way others could or would not. Once he had properly experienced war his poetry became a form of education, he wanted to expose the belief war was good and noble and prove wrong the propaganda that bombarded Britain. No knowledge, imagination or military training could properly prepare Owen for the reality of war and the suffering of front line experience it brought along with it. Within twelve days of arriving in France the ‘easy-going’ chatter of his letters turned to a ‘cry of anguish’. ‘The Sentry’ was written by Owen when he was receiving treatment at Craiglockhart in Edinburgh in 1917, finished in September later that year whilst in France.
In the poem “Dulce et Decorum est” the poet writes about soldiers in the battle field and all the grueling things about war. I feel the meaning of this poem is to give an idea and insight to the reader of how war is very gruesome and just down right awful with no sugar coating. In both of these poems the writers use irony and similes to help get the reader to understand the point they are making. The first comparison about the two poems is the use of irony. In “Rite of passage” the line “short men, men in first grade” the writer is calling the young boys men.
With these events occurring, I believe the happening of another World War could occur. It would only be fitting in this situation if we introduce to you all, a man whose poems portrayed war in a completely different perspective and how his own personal experience of the war has impacted us. With his many famous poems including Dulce Et Decorum Est. and Futility. Won’t you please now welcome … Wilfred Owen!
As for the setting, it is set up in a terrible time of war that gives the reader a depressing, grieving feeling. The shocking ending is enough to affect all three of these topics. (Notes on “The Sniper” by O'Flaherty) Symbolism is a very successful thing used in “The Sniper”. The first connection of symbolism that is noticed is between the bothers. It can be said that the brothers are reflecting the war between two countries.
Dulce Et Decorum Est Wifred Owen’s war poem “Dulce Et Decorum Est” is poem in which there is incident vividly in a scene. Wilfred Owen expreses how it is so sweet and honourable to die for your country but also disagrees with this. Owen uses great word choice and through this technique this cause emotional and also dramatic stanza’s which include death. ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’ tells us of the horrors and traumatizing effects of World War I. Wilfred Owen achieves this by using descriptive language to tell us of the terrible state of the weary soldiers and trench life. He then goes on to describe the horrific and deadly gas attack that takes the soldiers by surprise.
Which sets the book of to a strong start, as the declaration was passionately written during the war. Siegfried Sassoon used repetition through his declaration , making sure that he feels strongly against war. During the declaration Sassoon explains the horrors if war in many different ways. He repeats the word “suffering” throughout the declaration to put emphasis on what the war is really like for the soldiers that are fighting for our country. He also talks strongly about how the sufferings are being “prolonged” as he tired of witnessing men “being sacrificed” to this awful war.
Also it is very emotional, about the fathers feeling for his son, which makes the poem very intense and more effective. The fascinating part is the use of metaphors and personification in this poem, which effectively helps the poet to get his message across. As I have mentioned before Nettles is a poem that can be interpreted in several ways. Scanning through the poem you will that there are several references to conflict, war and military, such as “spears”, “regiment” and “recruits” as well as many other references of wounds and violence. “That regiment of spire behind the shed: it was no place for rest” the word spite underlines how malicious nettles are, they have strong desire to hurt in this case the young boy.
However if you read deeper in to the text you find that Owen is criticising the term because his poem shows the exact opposite. "Bent double, like old beggars under sacks." Owen is describing how the war has turned young fit men to near critical health conditions to the extent of Owen saying that the young men are now becoming like old women. The similie is very effective in the context because the reader feels sympathy toward the soldiers because they are being worked near to death. "Knock-kneed, couging like hags, we cursed through sludge."
"Anthem for Doomed Youth," a wartime Sonnet by Wilfred Owen The poem uses many techniques to convey its meaning. By our understanding of the use of these techniques, the poem becomes easier to understand and at the same time, more is revealed to us. Wilfred Owen was a soldier during WW1 and therefore gives us a firsthand experience of war. He was against war and was appalled by the effects of war on people and their families. By using a sonnet for the structure of his poem, Wilfred Owen introduces a touch of irony.