World War 1 Poetry Essay
Focusing on two World War One poems, explore how the poet expresses their feelings.
Dulce et Decorum Est - Wilfred Owen
Suicide in the Trenches - Siegfried Sassoon In the poem, Dulce et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen we can understand Owen's feelings toward the war, in the form of strong sarcasm and empathy. Poems were often used by many people, as a way to vent their feelings, and find a voice. Strong empathy is felt as Owen himself was a soldier in the army and military hero until he got admitted to a hospital with shellshock, where he then met Siegfried Sassoon, the poet of the next poem I will be analysing. Sassoon showed Owen a more pacifist view on the war. Despite Owen having this view he returned to the war again in 1918, and sadly, was killed in 1918 when shot only 7 days before the "The Great War" ended. The poem itself gives us an inside view into the life of soldiers, and the horror they go through. Many feelings are expressed throughout the poem, which highlight his opinions and feeling toward the whole concept of war.
In the first stanza, we get a powerful feeling of sympathy toward all soldiers, as Owen conveys the experiences that soldiers endure. For example "Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots, But limped on, blood-shod." This quote gives us an understanding of how life was for soldiers. It shows us that it was extremely hard for them, that they were immensely tired, and they all had problems/injuries; but they just had to get on with it, as they had no way out and could not give up. By using the word limped portrays the the soldier being spoken about it so injured that he can't actually walk, once again proving the hardship soldiers had to go through. This could be a way of Owen giving a subtle approach to showing us how he felt when he was a solider himself, making the reader feel sorry and sympathise for him. These feelings of empathy from the audience along with progressive anger toward the government and guilt for being
Dulce et Decorum Est - Wilfred Owen
Suicide in the Trenches - Siegfried Sassoon In the poem, Dulce et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen we can understand Owen's feelings toward the war, in the form of strong sarcasm and empathy. Poems were often used by many people, as a way to vent their feelings, and find a voice. Strong empathy is felt as Owen himself was a soldier in the army and military hero until he got admitted to a hospital with shellshock, where he then met Siegfried Sassoon, the poet of the next poem I will be analysing. Sassoon showed Owen a more pacifist view on the war. Despite Owen having this view he returned to the war again in 1918, and sadly, was killed in 1918 when shot only 7 days before the "The Great War" ended. The poem itself gives us an inside view into the life of soldiers, and the horror they go through. Many feelings are expressed throughout the poem, which highlight his opinions and feeling toward the whole concept of war.
In the first stanza, we get a powerful feeling of sympathy toward all soldiers, as Owen conveys the experiences that soldiers endure. For example "Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots, But limped on, blood-shod." This quote gives us an understanding of how life was for soldiers. It shows us that it was extremely hard for them, that they were immensely tired, and they all had problems/injuries; but they just had to get on with it, as they had no way out and could not give up. By using the word limped portrays the the soldier being spoken about it so injured that he can't actually walk, once again proving the hardship soldiers had to go through. This could be a way of Owen giving a subtle approach to showing us how he felt when he was a solider himself, making the reader feel sorry and sympathise for him. These feelings of empathy from the audience along with progressive anger toward the government and guilt for being