First World War poets

“The soldier” by Rupert Brooke

Death of a man who thinks of England, his country. This is in another country and he is thinking of his death. Death is a remote possibility because there’s “if”. Experience of the First World War had an important role in public opinion and this was completely different from the Victorian Age idea. The first time that this happens. He is away from his mother country.

He is thinking and writing before the war started. He was thinking of the peace of England and there’s the representation of the greatness of England. The English soldier could make Britain bigger and richer. Quiet atmosphere, enthusiastic about the idea of fighting for his nation. He was in the mind of England and he was created to be an Englishman; he will be a winner.

England is personified in this poem. The soldier is totally devoted to the mother country. He dedicated his life. England is compared to the heart of the soldier. He is destined to fight for England.

“Dulce et decorum est” by Wilfred Owen

They are in terrible condition and they are suffering a lot. They try to protect themselves. Body is consumed. Poverty of the human soul. Death is what recurred in the mind of the person who writes. This poem is an example of nationalism and heroism. Patriotism is ended.

There’s the description of what an attack is. There’s not the glory of the past; they lost values, they are obliged to fight because it’s a decision of the government. Horror was not contemplated before the experience of living in trenches. There are visual and auditory images because there is the sound of the war and they don’t have physical strength to escape because there’s an attack.

It’s an extremely realistic description of the condition of soldiers during the First World War. They are risking their lives. The poet used a lot of adjectives to describe the terrible situation of soldiers. There’s only suffering. We can know exactly what war was thanks to this poem. It’s the first time that this happens.

Terrible cycle that has not ended; there’s isolation and they lost their identity. Stagnation: what is determined by this situation. The horror experience of these people is completely different from the horror lived in the Victorian Age or by the romantics. They change their lifestyle.

The situation is not common and it’s used to stress the scene and the difficulty. Every single element seemed to be not real. The members of the government are responsible for the suffering of these persons. It’s a realistic description.