In doing do I will look at how each poet is effective in conveying the message through their use of imagery. Wilfred Owen most eminent poem regarding war is known as Dulce et Decorum est which means The Old Lie in Latin. T... ... middle of paper ... ...eam for fighting for their country is in reality a living nightmare both physically and psychologically and in fact there is nothing honourable in war and life on the battlefield. Instead he wants the reader to understand that war rapes a soldier of human dignity. He does this effectively through the use of his bold description of the gas attack incident and his elaborate description of the soldiers appearances.
The essay discusses the opposing attitudes of a soldiers life, in which Owen’s poem has a horrid tone and Brooke’s has a patriotic tone. The use of personification which reviews how things have been written to represent certain actions, where Dulce et Decorum est uses pessimistic words and The Soldier uses optimistic words. Finally, the use of imagery in both poems to present diverse images and attitudes of war in the readers head. I believe Wilfred Owen has written the perfect poem to truly and realistically portray the true life of a soldier. The use of imagery and figurative language created an experience as if I was there on the battlefield.
Both poets swirl around the idea of death in the name of ones country, in this case England in the World War 1 era, but this example serves different purposes in the two poems. Owen uses a graphic example where he remorsefully describes the death caused by a gas attack, exposing to his readers that war is an ugly, brutal and detestable encounter. Yet Brooke uses a different approach, and expresses that not only is it every man’s duty to fight and die for his country to preserve perfection, but once dead, the ashes shall physically enrich the already ‘rich’ soil “In that rich earth, a richer dust concealed”. And all ‘English’ values that the motherland bore will live on in one form or another. This way Brooke tries to convince that there is a deeper meaning to what lies on the surface of war.
Despite his patriotic view, he has repeated the danger of an early death in his poem, proving he is fully aware of war's horrors. Owen has shown war as being gruesome. His poem describes the war through the senses, which allows readers enter the shoes of Wilfred Owen, and understand war's tragedy. He believes that 'sweet and proper to die for your country' is a lie, unlike Tennyson. Alfred Tennyson's poem was based on a newspaper article that has made the poem biased and patriotic.
The message that ‘Dulce Et Decorum’ delivers is a complete contrast. It tells the reader that war is chaos, pain and is not worth a life. Wilfred Owen makes his point at the end of the poem in which he says ‘My friend, you would not tell with such high zest To children ardent for some desperate glory, The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori’ Which is Latin for ‘It is sweet and meet (fitting) to die for one’s country.’ This is a powerful end to such a powerful poem not only does it express the point of the whole poem but it also addresses the reader as ‘My friend’ making it feel more direct and personal.
At the beginning the troops are marching in awful conditions to battle. Then suddenly there's a gas attack and Owen recalls exactly what happened. Towards the end of the poem the tone changes, he reflects and he makes his view on war clear. The structure is written from his point of view and how awful war was to him. The soldiers are ready to fight and are hunched in the trenches 'Bent d... ... middle of paper ... ...od in war unlike 'Dulce et decorum est' who thinks it is a bad thing to die for your country.
His opinions are emphasised in the final lines of the poem: "My friend you would not tell with such high zest To children ardent for some desperate glory, The old lie: Dulce Et Decorum Est Pro Patria Mori." Dulce Et Decorum Est Pro Patria Mori - it is rightful and fitting to die for one's country - the author says is a lie. The harsh realistic style in which the poem was written would convince many readers to agree, meaning his usage of words and poetic devices are very effective. However the poem could also be portrayed as unpatriotic as it denounces the causes of his country fighting the war.
The Hags is connected with the word beggers as they both outcasts in society. What's more words like beggers, hags and blood-shod shows what the war has done to the soldiers of war.. Through his use of vivid words and portrayal it makes us understand the effects of war and what it involves. The Stanza continues ‘Till on the haunting flares’, this suggests that the soldiers are possibly disturbed and are being haunted by the flares. The last line further shows the effects of war, the soldiers are deaf to the gas shells dropping right behind them.
The octave starts immediately with the great change the war brings along, and the sextet functions merely to detail this change further. In a normal Sonnet there is a clear division in style between the octave and the sestet. In the poem, Brooke describes his opinion with regard to the war. The poem also tells the situation of Brooke's personal life. The well chosen words Brooke uses to emphasis his optimism are beautiful.
In contrast Owen's poem attacks the idealistic and romantic view put forward by Brooke. He argues against the ideals of heroism and self-sacrifice. He is more concerned with all the men going into war thinking that it is heroic and glorious when actually it is horrible and that millions of men die every day. The poem which I prefer between Rupert Brooke's The Soldier and Wilfred Owen's Dulce Et Decorum Est is Wilfred Owen's Dulce Et Decorum because it describes the war as I believe it is and it is very descriptive on how the gas attack happened and how all the men felt. So I like Wilfred Owen's Dulce Et Decorum overall