English 124-Literary Essay October 19, 2011 “Dulce et Decorum Est” and “The Soldier” Although the poems “Dulce et Decorum Est “by Wilfred Owen, and “The Soldier” by Rupert Brooke, share the elements of writer passion and subjectivity, they differ with regards to tone, theme and literary devices. The lyrical poem, “The Soldier” was written during the period before the World War, and thus presents an unrealistic viewpoint of war. The speaker is simply regurgitating ideas and concepts about war instilled in him by his country England. The phrases, “England bore, shaped, made aware” and “the thoughts by England given” solidify this theory. It is evident that he has not physically engaged in warfare, nor has he observed the explicit nature of the battlefield because his focus remains on England, rather than the war itself.
His aim is not poetry, but to describe the full horrors of war. In this essay I have firstly decided to analyze two poems by the war poet Wilfred Owen, taken from his writings on the First World War. Both 'Dulce et Decorum est' and 'Disabled" portray Owen's bitter angst towards the war, but do so in different ways. Then I will analyze a very different poem 'Who's for the Game?' written by Jessie Pope, and finally contrast this with the poems by Owen.
The imagery of war is associated with the sounds of the poem. You do have to have a background in understanding the events described. During the Spanish-American War, Roosevelt was a major supporter of going to war with the Spanish, although it was seen as unnecessary by President McKinley and others (Spanish-American War). Initially Roosevelt is not painted in such a negative light. The statue is described as being “nostalgic” of a time long lost, and imagery is
Both “The Soldier” and “Dulce et Decorum Est” are poems written by soldiers in World War I about the war. “The Soldier” comes from the beginning of World War I in 1914, while “Dulce et Decorum Est” comes from the end of the war in 1917. “The Soldier” portrays death in the war as bittersweet, explaining that even if the narrator dies his burial place will always have the essence of England, his home country. In contrast, “Dulce et Decorum Est” portrays the war realistically, portraying the fear and raggedness of the soldiers when trying to survive in the trenches. Both poems have many common elements but are very different.
The most important of the poem was his use of “under an English heaven” even after death the bond with England is strong. This is important because if heaven is an English heaven, it is important to God. Is their a German heaven in this time of Great War? The poem is crucial in demonstrating the blind love the soldiers felt for England. The term “if I should die” was probably a used phrase when the soldiers were writing letters to their loved ones.
Friends, Classmates, Fellow literary critics… Today, I am here to stress my knowledge on how the composer’s Siegfried Sassoon and Rupert Brooke have effectively conveyed their thoughts and feelings on war using themes, issues and techniques. Siegfried Sassoon chose to convey the theme of the outcomes war has had in those who survived (hence the name survivors) and how the process of war has aged them prematurely and darkened there spirits. The poem ‘survivors’ is a clever and well structured poem, Sassoon incorporates many techniques to emphasise and illuminate his main theme . Siegfried Sassoon uses primarily literal language; he rarely speaks metaphorically or figuratively thus the reason why we don’t see a frequency in metaphors, similes or imagery throughout the poem. He evokes a very bitter outraged mood in the reader, he’s thoughts and feelings produce anger and spite.
Both poems feature a range of strategies and techniques to feature similar and different points, such as how both poems contain certain criticisms towards the ideals and values carried by blind patriotism. ‘Flag’ explores how patriotic symbols can unite masses and nations together and yet, can also influence people to create barriers against one another, eventually forcing them apart. While E.E Cummings was infamous for his views on pacifism, and uses ‘next of course god america i’ as a method to criticise how people encourage patriotism in others, making the poem satirical. In both poems, the poets explore the power of patriotic symbols, such as the uses of flags, the national anthem and the pledge of alliance. In the poem ‘Flag’, John Agard states that the flag is just a piece of cloth fluttering in a breeze but is capable of bringing “a nation to its knees”, which can be seen as a sign of respect or oppression.
[2] The rhyme scheme of this poem is abbaabbacdcdcd. This Petrarchan sonnet uses the last six lines (sestet) to answer the first eight lines (octave). Summary Wordsworth gives a fatalistic view of the world, past and future. The words "late and soon" in the opening verse describe how the past and future are included in his characterization of mankind. The author knows the potential of humanity's "powers," but fears it is clouded by the mentality of "getting and spending."
Jessica C Anthem for a Doomed Youth: Wilfred Owen Thesis statement: In "Anthem for a Doomed Youth" Wilfred Owen questions the social, religious and political values of the 20th century by using a variety of poetic techniques. Introduction War poetry became an influential genra amongst the British population during the First World War, people admired the truthfulness of the authors who spoke of the horrors that they experienced through poetry. Owen Wilson was one of the most praised authors of his times; his poems depicted the brutality and the horror of war with depth and reality, his art was a mix between criticism of war and patriotism for his country and fellow soldiers. In “Anthem for a Doomed Youth”, Wilfred Owen questions social, religious and political values of the 20th century by using a variety of poetic techniques. Owen depicts the human cost of war and the social and religious ritual’s inability to commemorate properly the dead.
fAnthem for Doomed Youth Anthem for Doomed Youth is a Petrarchan sonnet written by Wilfred Owen about the horrors of war. Owen himself, had fought in World War I and wrote about his first hand experiences as a soldier. In this poem, you can see a sense of irony in the fact that it is a sonnet. Other established poets such as Shakespeare had used sonnets to mainly write about love. Going on to the title, it can be seen as a strong contradiction by coupling together the phrases ‘anthem’ and ‘doomed youth’.