Explain How Far Wilfred Owen Challenges the Notion that it is Sweet Essay

Explain How Far Wilfred Owen Challenges the Notion that it is Sweet and Noble to Die For Your Country Using The Poems Dulce et - Essay Example Even after a war ends the violent and troubling memories keep haunting a soldier’s mind. Sometimes when the soldier becomes physically disabled he is unable to carry out the normal activities of life and to such a man what remains are only the memories with which he has to live throughout. When the young children in their schools are told how noble it is to fight for one’s land and people, it might sound really righteous but the truths which unfold as one takes a closer look at the consequences of war especially on the lives of those noble doers, one is bound to be discouraged and all motivations in favor of warfare seem meaningless in front of sheer humanity. He draws out visual images in some of his poems, where the physical, and mental suffering of the troops are vividly described. In the war poems, ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ and ‘Disabled’ he challenges the notion that dying for one’s country is sweet and noble. The poem ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ describes just another day in the World War I when the soldiers are marching towards their place of rest but at that very moment gas bombs begin to drop around them. They hurry for their masks and weapons but some of the ravaged bodies fail to save themselves from the attack. The author writes in a personal tone and tells the readers what he witnesses as vividly as possible with frequent use of similes –â€Å"But someone still was yelling out and stumbling,/ And flound'ring like a man in fire or lime† (Owen, line9). He focuses the description now on a single person who dies in the attack and this vision continuously haunts him in his dreams later on. He gradually shifts from first person to third person and then to second person in his address. Towards the end the poet conveys to the people at home their experience of violence and distress and wishes that they could witness the same. At the very beginning he stressed upon the very appearance of the people marching towards their place of rest. He does not address the men as soldiers or warriors; rather he compares them to old beggars and hags. He even uses the metaphoric comparison between their walk and the term ‘cursed’ which he uses to describe the miserable conditions as they march through the muddle trenches. The experience seemed to have them under some kind of a curse. The poet at times uses the technique of creating a caesura or a pause in a line of the poem in order to signify the realism precisely. The language is brief and curt as he mentions ‘Men marched asleep’ (Owen,line4). This sentence makes the men look like ghost figures walking in the dark. They are so exhausted that they almost are falling asleep. The poet uses alliterations I the form of repeated words beginning with ‘l’ – â€Å"Many had lost their boots/But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind† (Owen, line4). The words indicate they were cover ed in blood and therefore the war has enveloped their physical and mental forms. The idea here is to put forth the dragging effect on the readers just as the fatigued soldiers dragged themselves towards the tent. He changes drastically the motion by using brief lines: â€Å"Five-nines/that dropped behind. Gas!/Gas! Quick boys!†(Owen, line7), which generates the effect of fast action amidst the slow movements. Suddenly there seems to be a rush for safety. The fear struck cries and bombs falling all around leads to the environment, which brings on merciless deaths that render a stomach