Wildred_Owen

Literature, since ancient times, has glorified and glossed over the horrors of war, making it seem worthwhile, honourable and a romantic male endeavour. The beginning of the twentieth century was marked by one of the most brutal wars in history. Termed as the “Great War”, World War I brought on a great change in the minds of Westerners, who was accustomed to the rosy and romantic pictures painted by authors, poets and artists. The gruesome nature of the Great War, however, shattered these visions and philosophies and from that era on, poem and other like documents reflects only the disgust and disillusionment felt by so many during and after the war. Wilfred Owen was a ‘War Poet’. He was an officer, who ironically dies a few days before the war actually ends. His poetry is specifically linked to the general historical views of WW1 which conjures up overwhelming feelings of futility and emphasises that so many lives have been lost for such little gains. The melancholic themes of lost youth and surrendered innocence, as well as the obvious revulsion and pity of war find expression in his poems. He intends to show through his poetry that war is not sentimental and nostalgic, but it is filled with hopelessness and despair. In particular, Anthem for Doomed Youth and Dulce et Decorum Est, are both influential war poems that are highly representative of Owen’s ideas about war. Throughout Anthem for Doomed Youth, Owen draws the comparison of the traditional funeral rituals and ceremonies with the actuality of death for a soldier on the battlefield. The poem itself is an extended metaphor of a funeral for the deceased soldiers on the battle front. In the poem, youth innocence, waste and death represents the main themes of the sonnet. The title of the poem instantly confronts the audience with the negative tone of the poem. The words “Anthem”, “Doomed” and “Youth” are juxtaposed to highlight the brutality of war. Youth is usually associated with the happiness of being in the early stages of life. It is, however, aligned with the word “doomed” which stresses the soldier’s inevitable pain. An anthem is usually a prolonged song of praise. Owen, however, is presenting this brief utterance as an “anthem”. The paradox emphasises Owen’s perspective that there is nothing to celebrate. The war itself is personified as “monstrous”, and it automatically creates a hideous image for the audience as they are confronted with the real trepidation of war. “What passing bells for these who die as cattle'” The opening line of the poem begins with a rhetorical question to involve the audience in the scandal that Owen is reporting. The passing bells that he talks about are the traditional custom for when a person dies. The slaughter of these young men is so inhumane that Owen compares it to the killing of cattle. The rhetorical question appears to be answered by a third party in “Only the monstrous anger of the guns.” The personification of the weapons helps to transport the audience into the personas position. From this point onwards, Owen begins the degradation and dehumanisation of the human spirit and the young soldier’s innocent view of the world caused by the futile nature of war. “Only the stuttering rifles’ rapid rattle.” The use of alliteration, combined with onomatopoeia and personification enhances the brutality of war. It recreates aurally the sounds of the battlefield. The sound of war and gunfire replaces the grieving of loved ones for the death of the soldiers. This shows the responder the lack of burial rites of the “war heroes” in comparison to those at home. It is also an indication that this poem is an extended metaphor of a funeral. Owen emphasises that this is their “Anthem” and by appealing to the audience’s senses, Owen encourages empathy for the soldier’s experiences. The only choirs that sings at their funeral is the “shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells/And bugles calling for them from sad shrines”. This reminds the audience that sympathy not only goes to the dead soldiers but must also be felt for their families back home who are left grief-stricken by the men’s death. The second stanza begins, like the first, with a rhetorical question. “What candles may be held to speed them all'” This indicates a change in tone from one of bitter and remorseful to a much more softened tone, which makes the stanza more compassionate. The poem begins to focus on its main concern which revolves around the futility of war and the pity that it generates. Owen re-emphasises the youth of the soldiers by referring to them as “boys”. This stresses not only their youth, but also their vulnerability which reinforcing the wastefulness of war on human life. “The pallor of girls’ brows shall be their pall” This line is once again tapping at the extended metaphor of the funeral, with the white faces of women being their only comfort. The sonnet ends with a rhyming couplet which is more positive. It hints that the dead soldiers will be remembered and will be in the memories of those back home. “And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds” The alliteration in this closing phase places emphasis on the dull stillness of the atmosphere, which reinforces the cycle of life and death. Similar to Anthem for Doomed Youth, Wilfred Owen also explores the sacrifice of young lives and the pity brought on by war. Owen’s main idea about war presented in Dulce et Decorum Est is not only the horrors of war, but also the hypocrisy of those back home. Owen brings forth the ideas of death, dehumanisation and the way that “it is not sweet and decorous to die for one’s country” as the title suggests. The poem is based around the line “Dulce et Decorum Est” that is referred to as “The old Lie”. This “lie” ironically means “it is sweet and decorous to die for one’s country”. The irony of this is shown throughout the poem as Owen describes the horror and brutality of war, and how death is anything but “sweet and decorous”. Dulce et Decorum Est starts with a simile, “bent double, like old beggars under sacks”, depicting how the young soldiers are physically and emotionally struggling due to the harsh conditions of war. It portrays “young” men as “old”, indicating that they are incapacitated before their time. These young soldiers are not only prematurely aged, they are physically destroyed and mentally traumatised. “All went lame, all blind;/Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots...”Owen covers all senses, emphasising the soldiers undermined masculinity. The repetition of “all” and the use of pluralised “men,” in “men marched asleep”, stresses the communal experiences of the soldiers. This further stresses the extent of the pain and suffering of not only individuals but each and every single soldier fighting in the war. The description of the bleak, sombre atmosphere quickly adjusts to dramatic action in the second stanza with an outburst and command in the line “Gas! GAS! Quick, boys!” The exclamation marks, capitalisation and repetition of “gas” accentuate a sense of urgency, alarm and desperation. Again, the referral of men as “boys” is a reminder of their essential youth, further emphasises the tragedy of the situation and Owen’s concern of the waste of lives. The central image of Dulce et Decorum Est is depicted in the simile, “Dim through the misty panes and thick green light/As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.” Through this short yet powerful line, the audience is confronted with a sense of hopelessness as the soldier departs from life and that there is nothing anyone can do. The audience is also addressed in the final stanza through the use of second person “you”. “If in some smothering dreams, you too could pace/Behind the wagon that we flung him in.” Here, the audience is not an innocent bystander, witnessing the horror from a cosy armchair. By inserting the personal pronoun “you” he forces the audience to take on the position in the war and try to make us see through his eyes. This forces the audience to reconsider our opinion of war and to feel sympathy towards the soldiers. Owen also refers to his audience as “My friend” in an attempt to secure their sympathy and rejection of war. There is no heroism in this kind of horrific death that Owen has presented. The reality of warfare is far from the myths and stories told in the old English literature. It is not “Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori”. During WW1, people back home didn’t know the extent of what was happening on the battlefields, and Owen wanted to awaken people as to what it was really like. He acts as a resistant and a subverting voice, highly criticising those who supported the war, and it’s physical and psychological effects. For the first time, a poet is not describing war in grandiose and epic terms with a readily identifiable set of male heroes, but rather is showing in grisly realistic detail the kind of horror and senselessness war causes. Owen wrote his poetry while at war and while experiencing war. Without this, he may not have the same ideas about war nor would he know of the experience of such brutality and horridness, which is presented throughout his poems.