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Poetic writeup about war
Poetic writeup about war
Short note on war poetry
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In the poem “Wake Up, England” by Robert Bridges, the speaker expresses his pro-war attitude and urges his English citizens to support the war by playing with our fears, duty and patriotism.
In stanza one and two, the speaker asks the citizens to stand up for England because now is not a time for happiness. This is shown when, ‘Thou peace-maker, fight/Stand, England, for honor.’ (Line 2-3); meaning that the speaker is wanting the citizens of England to fight, either physically in the war or supporting it. As stated in stanza two, the enemy is dangerous and is advancing, so the English must not be idle; ‘Thy cavil’ and play; the foe is upon thee.’ The word “foe” is used to represent the opponent of England. The English need to be more alert and take initiative.
To reinforce his point about the seriousness of war, the speaker alerts us about England’s enemy. As stated in stanza 3 the enemy’s are coming: ‘The monarch Ambition/Hath harnessed the slaves’. This states that the enemy is gathering an army and ready to fight England. In the following lines of stanza 3 the speaker contin...
In the third stanza, the language becomes much darker, words like: anger, explode, and against make this stanza seem even more warlike than the first stanza.
He triggers the feeling of patriotism while convincing them that "The war is inevitable--and let it come! I repeat it, sir, let it come." He believes that there is nothing that should stop the war from starting because we should be fighting for our our independence and our freedom from the British. He continues to say that “we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight!” Emphasizing the fact that the nation as a whole should fight against the British for our freedom because there is no other way to gain our independence. To continue as an independent nation we had to unite and fight against the
He gains their trust and respect, while appealing to their emotions to unite in their decision to fight for their freedom from the British. Through ethos and pathos appeals, Henry’s persuasive speech delivers his strong feelings toward the country and his fellow men. Henry’s speech is relevant even today and encouraging to anyone willing to stand up for what they believe in and fight for their
Wilfred Owen expresses his feelings about war in “Anthem for a Doomed Youth”, which revolves around the events that took place in World War I. Throughout the sonnet, the speaker talks bitterly about modern warfare, noting the harsh sounds of war and questioning the treatment of the soldiers that perish. In the octave, the speaker wonders what can be done to honor the soldiers that died, but realizes negatively that the soldiers only receive death instead of ceremonies. In the sestet, the speaker expands upon this idea of a proper ceremony for the deceased soldiers, saying that the families must be the ones to properly honor their dead. Owen’s use of the Petrarchan sonnet with a Shakespearean rhyme scheme, helps him express his frustration about war and its subsequent treatment of the dead.
...ntation in 20th century war poetry undoubtedly shapes its type and purpose, be it for nationalistic propaganda or to prompt a global paradigm shift, the purpose can be seen to stem largely from the author’s involvement in combat or war life. Authors such as Owen Seaman, who have no first hand experience of the content of their poems, create patriotic propaganda in an attempt to keep young men enlisting, and others such as Rupert Brooke who exemplify blind optimism and nationalistic intentions in a romanticised view of what it would be to die.
In the novel All Quiet on the Western Front and the poem "The Man He Killed," the main two characters have similar thoughts and emotions towards war, they both enroll in war for reasons other than patriotism and they also feel that under different situations, their enemies could have been their friends. If both the characters really felt the reason or need to be in the war, their experiences would have been positively different. Through the characters, it is portrayed that patriotism can be expressed mainly through war, but there are other numerous ways to show your love for the country.
War I. The to poems that I will be comparing are ‘England to her sons’
In his poem Cummings integrated an example of the ideas war propaganda conveys in a humorous but yet serious form. The line: “Who rushed like lions to the roaring slaughter/ They did not stop to think they died instead”, clearly builds up on the fact that apparently due to war propaganda it is honourable to die for one’s country. However, in order to convey his opinion and disaffection about this idea the speaker mocks these by using words of sarcasm and irony. Besides this he conveys the urgent message that patriotic war propaganda is a lie and could lead to death, which will be everything else than
Wilfred Owen’s “Dulce et Decorum Est” and E. E. Cummings’, “next to of course god america i” are poems that critique patriotic propaganda. Both poems use words and images to effectively depict the influence that patriotic propaganda has on war. “Dulce et Decorum Est” uses descriptive words to create realistic images of the horrors soldiers are faced with during combat, whereas “next to of course god america i” uses sarcasm to inform readers that the abuse of propaganda can be used to manipulate others. The attitudes they convey are quite similar; both suggest that propaganda is a lie; it is not sweet and fitting to die for one’s country. It is ingrained in soldier’s minds that to die for ones country is a great and honourable sacrifice.
Stanza one is a ballad that uses symbolism as a technique, ‘grinned at life in empty joy’, this symbolises the boys’ youth when he was pleased by anything, and life was easy, he had no worries, as he would grin at anything. This phrase gives an outlook at life before joining the war, it is demonstrating the boys’ life when he was contented with anything. Another symbol is found in the first stanza, ‘whistled early with the lark’. The phrase suggests the boys’ youth in the early days, oblivious to the future laying ahead oh him. The lark symbolises cheerfulness and the beginning of the day. The boy whistling with the lark shows how he is excited for every new
The next line expresses the way in which he has no grave stone, just a
f rounding up the sonnet as well as emphasising complete grief over the loss of Youth. The contrast with the first stanza's violence makes the reader see the different aspects of war - what happens on the battlefield, and what happens at home. Owen's poem, 'Anthem for Doomed Youth' is more appealing to me because it deals with two contrasting realities of war. His first stanza highlights the wastefulness of war (deaths of young soldiers) while the second stanza, the mourning for the dead. His sarcastic and later quiet tone reinforce the stark contrast between the different aspects of war.
Considered the leading English poet of the First World War, Owen is remembered for realistic poems depicting the horrors of war, which were inspired by his experiences at the Western Front in 1916 and 1917. Owen considered the true subject of his poems to be "the pity of war," and attempted to present the true horror and realities of battle and its effects on the human spirit. His unique voice, which is less passionate and idealistic than those of other war poets, is complemented by his unusual and experimental style of writing. He is recognized as the first English poet to successfully use pararhyme, in which the rhyme is made through altered vowel sounds. Owen’s distinct way of both writing and reading poems led to influence other poets in the 1920s and 1930s.
“Bent double like cold beggars under sacks” (stanza 1, line 1) compares the physical, mental, and emotional state the war left them with. “Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge” (stanza 1, line 2) provides the reader with a vivid image of physically ill soldiers. We see this because they are “coughing like hags” and their leg bone is suffering deformities. “Men marched asleep” (stanza 1, line 5) draws attention to the fatigue and exhaustion that was brought upon to the soldiers. Stanza two is when the chaos begins, gas-shells drop and the speaker witnesses a soldier who was unsuccessful in the application of his gas mask: “And flound’ring like a man in fire or lime” (stanza 2, line 4). Following the third stanza, Owen seems to slowly experience the horrific death of the soldier. The last stanza is again focusing on the speaker visualizing the last stage of his death: “His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin” (stanza 4, line 4). It ends with the deception of war being related to
Throughout the whole poem the speaker is encouraging this “patriotism” by mentioning how great it is to fight for “your England and stand up for it” without mentioning the reason why soldiers should fight at war they are brainwashing people into going to battle (). At the end of the poem of Dulce et Decorum Est the speaker is directly addressing the people who declared war and encouraging war, hinting the propaganda of blind patriotism and the false details on war. Blind patriotism hinder the truth in a country and encourages ignorance in