Wilfred Owen Exposure Essay
Choose a poem in which a place is portrayed vividly.
A poem in which a place is portrayed vividly is “Exposure” written by Wilfred Owen.
Owen vividly describes No-Man’s Land throughout the poem “we hear the mad gusts tugging on the wire”. The poem highlights the physical and psychological effects of war during the winter. As the poem continues, the conditions gradually intensify; leaving the remaining soldiers with horrible psychological after affects.
Owen vividly portrays the devastating effects of the weather conditions throughout the poem. “We hear the mad gusts tugging on the wire” highlights the wind’s violent tendencies. The lexical choice of ‘mad’ insinuates the terrifying nature of the wind and that it is brutal in force. The use …show more content…
“Sudden successive flights of bullets streak the silence” this describes that the weather conditions were the real enemy to the soldiers, not just the Germans. ‘Bullets’ clearly insinuates that the snow falling was more damaging to the soldiers than the enemy bullets. ‘Silence’ highlights the eerie quietness of no-man’s land. Through exploring these elements Owen reveals the psychological and physical horrors of war and the apprehension that no man’s land causes.
In the third stanza of the poem Owen makes apparent his interpretation of dawn. “Dawn massing in the east her melancholy army” this highlights the menace the weather holds for the men. The lexical choice of ‘army’ shows that the soldiers saw the weather as something to be feared and intimidated by. The personification of ‘dawn’ is effectively used to get the central concern of the poem which is the psychological effects of the harsh weather conditions.
Another psychological consequence of the freezing conditions was hallucinations due to hypothermia. “Deep into grassier ditches.” Owen then goes on to describe the form that the hallucinations take place in the minds of the soldiers. The trench becomes a comfortable grassy
A poem in which a place is portrayed vividly is “Exposure” written by Wilfred Owen.
Owen vividly describes No-Man’s Land throughout the poem “we hear the mad gusts tugging on the wire”. The poem highlights the physical and psychological effects of war during the winter. As the poem continues, the conditions gradually intensify; leaving the remaining soldiers with horrible psychological after affects.
Owen vividly portrays the devastating effects of the weather conditions throughout the poem. “We hear the mad gusts tugging on the wire” highlights the wind’s violent tendencies. The lexical choice of ‘mad’ insinuates the terrifying nature of the wind and that it is brutal in force. The use …show more content…
“Sudden successive flights of bullets streak the silence” this describes that the weather conditions were the real enemy to the soldiers, not just the Germans. ‘Bullets’ clearly insinuates that the snow falling was more damaging to the soldiers than the enemy bullets. ‘Silence’ highlights the eerie quietness of no-man’s land. Through exploring these elements Owen reveals the psychological and physical horrors of war and the apprehension that no man’s land causes.
In the third stanza of the poem Owen makes apparent his interpretation of dawn. “Dawn massing in the east her melancholy army” this highlights the menace the weather holds for the men. The lexical choice of ‘army’ shows that the soldiers saw the weather as something to be feared and intimidated by. The personification of ‘dawn’ is effectively used to get the central concern of the poem which is the psychological effects of the harsh weather conditions.
Another psychological consequence of the freezing conditions was hallucinations due to hypothermia. “Deep into grassier ditches.” Owen then goes on to describe the form that the hallucinations take place in the minds of the soldiers. The trench becomes a comfortable grassy