Essay on Compare two poems by wilfed owen - 1716 Words

Compare two poems by Wilfred Owen, showing how they reflected contemporary attitudes to the ‘Great War’. Refer closely to language and poetic techniques. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;World War 1 broke out in 1914. At the beginning of the war, there was a great feeling of patriotism and enthusiasm. Young men were eager to join the armed forces, as they thought the glory and heroism of war would be enjoyable. Fighting in France was expected to be an exciting adventure. Thousands of men joined so they would have the honor of serving their Queen and country. Underage age boys lied about their age in order to join, which showed that the English people thought the war would be won and over quickly. Many patriotic poems and songs were written†¦show more content†¦The reader is shown the reality of war, and the poem is directed at the reader ‘If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood’. This technique immediately involves the reader and grabs attention. The reader imagines how bad the reality of trench warfare really was, and if they experienced it then their attitude would have changed. This kind of death is not ‘swe et’ or ‘fitting’ is the message throughout the poem nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; The feelings of bitterness and anger are strongly shown in both of the poems. Displayed in ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’, is Owens annoyance of writers such as Jessie Pope who wrote ‘Who’s for the Game?’, a patriotic war poem, which showed the naivete and innocence of the people back home who thought war was a game. ‘The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori’, demonstrates what was said and thought at the begging of the war was wrong, and the word ‘lie’ is used to show that Owen no longer believed the statement as he once had, and that it was no longer believed by people because their attitudes had changed. The Latin expression shows encouragement to fight, and displays soldiers as heroic and glorious, which clearly angers Owen. In ‘Disabled’, their are examples the people who had signed up feeling excited, glamorous and expecting glory ‘And care of arms; and leave; and pay arrears.’ The repetition of the word ‘and’ shows