War Poem Comparison Essay
Gavin Ross
Pre-Entry Access Class – English Module
Tutors – Aimee McNair and Kevin Wilson
Q. In an essay of not more than 1,500 words compare and contrast ONE PAIR of the two pairs of poems printed below. Your answer should exhibiy a clear understanding of each poem’s meaning and tone, and you should consider the effect and importance of formal features, such as rhyme scheme, sound patterning, word choice, figurative language and punctuation.
Date handed in : 31st January 2011
This essay will compare the poems “On Passing the New Menin Gate” by Siegfried Sassoon (1927) and “Anthem For Doomed Youth” by Wilfred Owen (1917) and decipher whether there are any contrasts of worthwhile note. It will explore the meanings of both poems and consider the importance and effect of formal features that Sassoon and Owen use to convey their ideas. One immediate comparison that can be made about these two poems is that they are both anti-war poems. Sassoon and Owen became friends while fighting in World War 1 (Internet 1), which is the subject of both poems. Having both experienced the war first-hand, Sassoon and Owen talk about its harsh reality and the devastating consequences for both soldiers and their families alike. Their close friendship is undoubtedly a major factor in the two poems being very similar in the way they are written, especially considering Sassoon helped co-write “Anthem For Doomed Youth” with Owen (Internet 2). They are both keen to dispell the popular myth that it was a “Great War” and use various techniques to convey the main themes of anger, resentment, betrayal and biterness to emphasise the destructive and devastating nature of war throughout their poems, which I will now go on to talk about in greater depth. The seminal technique Sassoon and Owen use in their poems in order to achieve this emphasisation is their ironic use of the traditional sonnet form. In “On Passing the New Menin Gate” Sassoon deliberately decides to
Pre-Entry Access Class – English Module
Tutors – Aimee McNair and Kevin Wilson
Q. In an essay of not more than 1,500 words compare and contrast ONE PAIR of the two pairs of poems printed below. Your answer should exhibiy a clear understanding of each poem’s meaning and tone, and you should consider the effect and importance of formal features, such as rhyme scheme, sound patterning, word choice, figurative language and punctuation.
Date handed in : 31st January 2011
This essay will compare the poems “On Passing the New Menin Gate” by Siegfried Sassoon (1927) and “Anthem For Doomed Youth” by Wilfred Owen (1917) and decipher whether there are any contrasts of worthwhile note. It will explore the meanings of both poems and consider the importance and effect of formal features that Sassoon and Owen use to convey their ideas. One immediate comparison that can be made about these two poems is that they are both anti-war poems. Sassoon and Owen became friends while fighting in World War 1 (Internet 1), which is the subject of both poems. Having both experienced the war first-hand, Sassoon and Owen talk about its harsh reality and the devastating consequences for both soldiers and their families alike. Their close friendship is undoubtedly a major factor in the two poems being very similar in the way they are written, especially considering Sassoon helped co-write “Anthem For Doomed Youth” with Owen (Internet 2). They are both keen to dispell the popular myth that it was a “Great War” and use various techniques to convey the main themes of anger, resentment, betrayal and biterness to emphasise the destructive and devastating nature of war throughout their poems, which I will now go on to talk about in greater depth. The seminal technique Sassoon and Owen use in their poems in order to achieve this emphasisation is their ironic use of the traditional sonnet form. In “On Passing the New Menin Gate” Sassoon deliberately decides to