Explorations of Themes in War Poetry

Explorations of Themes in War Poetry

Before World War One, war was seen as glorious and honourable. These

attitudes are reflected in the phrase Dulce Et Decorum Est Pro Patria

Mari, translated this means that it is sweet and fitting to die for

your country. It was a firm belief that everyman should fight for his

country. However, World War One changed this attitude that people had,

as they had seen the effects of war on people.

Warfare before World War One was believed to be men on horses battling

or men on foot with swords and shields facing the same weapons as

their own from the opposition. Over the years, technology has

progressed and developed. New weapons were introduced and implemented

during warfare, tanks and helicopters were brought in and this

modified the whole perception of warfare and altered the idea of war

to the reality of war and how it was during a battle and on the

battlefield.

In this essay, I shall be looking at the Patriotism of war, the Irony

in war and the horrors of war. I will use my social, cultural and

historical knowledge and by using particular poems, I will support my

idea of the attitudes changed after World War One. For this essay I

will be looking at six different poems, two for each theme I am

looking at. For the Patriotism of war, I will be using 'The Call' by

Jessie Pope and 'To An Athlete Dying Young' by A.E. Houseman. For the

Irony in war, I will be using 'The General' by Seigfried Sassoon and

'The Charge of the Light Brigade' by Alfred Lord Tennyson. For the

horrors of war, I will be using 'Dulce Et Decorum Est' by Wilfred Owen

and 'Mental Cases' by Wilfred Owen.

Jessie Pope is an ...

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... poems famous of the time greatly influenced the way people saw and

thought of the war, this is significant as the poets deliberately

expressed feelings against war in this attitude.

In many poems, the poets deliberately question and address the reader,

making them feel somewhat involved even thought they were not there to

experience war first hand. This is done primarily to influence the

reader's opinion of the war and to greaten their knowledge of warfare

through their own experience or personal opinions.

The message given from poems is still somewhat relevant; this is as we

remember the lives of all the soldiers still today. However, the

message cannot be seen as important as it would have been at the end

of World War One as the war does not have a big control on the way we

live or even the way we see it now.