Discuss how Wilfred Owen portrays the horror of war in 'Disabled'
Wilfred Owen portrays the horror of war by using dramatic contrasts, powerful imagery, devastating irony and by generating a strong feeling of sympathy for the subject of the poem.
The contrasts between health and illness feature heavily in the poem and give a before and after picture of the subjects life. Before the war the boy in the poem had played football,
"After the matches." "It was after football"
and now he does not even have the equipment to play, i.e. legs,
"Legless, sewn short at the elbow."
There is also a contrast used in describing age,
"younger than his youth" and "he is old."
This is an example of juxtaposition as these lines are one immediately after the other. As well as this Owen shows how attitudes towards the subject have changed,
"girls glanced", "lover" and "womens eyes passed from him"
This shows that the women who had once admired him now only looked at him with pity and, "touch him like some queer disease."
Blood is used in a graphic contrast in the third stanza,
"Hes lost his colour far from here."
"A leap of purple spurted from his thigh."
These lines give you a real image of how horrific military injures could be and the irony that the subject of the poem had once, "liked a blood smear down his leg" becomes extremely depressing.
There are examples of contrasts between the moods of people pre and post war. It is shown that before the war people were happier,
"Voices of play and pleasure,"
but now there is a more solemn atmosphere,
"Voices of boys rang saddening like a hymn."
This line also has connotations of a funeral.
The poem shows that before the war the subject would have been out with his friends just now,
"About this time Town used to swing so gay ."
However now he is unable to go out with friends,
"waiting for dark."
The character in the poem is well built up and you are given an insight into his life and attitudes both before and after the war. The poem shows that the subject was not particularly
The contrasts between health and illness feature heavily in the poem and give a before and after picture of the subjects life. Before the war the boy in the poem had played football,
"After the matches." "It was after football"
and now he does not even have the equipment to play, i.e. legs,
"Legless, sewn short at the elbow."
There is also a contrast used in describing age,
"younger than his youth" and "he is old."
This is an example of juxtaposition as these lines are one immediately after the other. As well as this Owen shows how attitudes towards the subject have changed,
"girls glanced", "lover" and "womens eyes passed from him"
This shows that the women who had once admired him now only looked at him with pity and, "touch him like some queer disease."
Blood is used in a graphic contrast in the third stanza,
"Hes lost his colour far from here."
"A leap of purple spurted from his thigh."
These lines give you a real image of how horrific military injures could be and the irony that the subject of the poem had once, "liked a blood smear down his leg" becomes extremely depressing.
There are examples of contrasts between the moods of people pre and post war. It is shown that before the war people were happier,
"Voices of play and pleasure,"
but now there is a more solemn atmosphere,
"Voices of boys rang saddening like a hymn."
This line also has connotations of a funeral.
The poem shows that before the war the subject would have been out with his friends just now,
"About this time Town used to swing so gay ."
However now he is unable to go out with friends,
"waiting for dark."
The character in the poem is well built up and you are given an insight into his life and attitudes both before and after the war. The poem shows that the subject was not particularly