Research Paper On War Poetry

Even a century long time after his death, Wilfred Owen is still famous for his war poetry written during World War 1. In his poems, Owen uses various language techniques to vividly illustrate the horrendous reality of war. Hence, he communicates his own anti-war feelings, that are embedded beneath his techniques. However, although he is now known as an anti-war poet, for once, he had been a naive boy, who had been pressured by the propaganda and volunteered to fight in war.

Literature and poetry are a reflection of society. The words are reflected in numerous feelings that we can almost touch and can be deeply felt in its reach. Most poets expressed their perception and emotion through their writings. Unfortunately the art and poetry describes one of the worst things that human can do to one another. The legalized murder called "war." Hence, this type of self-reflection called "poetry" has help create new fundamental ideas and values towards our society. In this essay, I will discuss the issue of the "War Poetry" during the "Great War" along with comparing and contrasting two talented renowned poets; Wilfred Owen (1893-1918) and Siegfried Sassoon (1886-1967).

The Universal Soldier is less of a man or human and more so the idea of every soldier combined as well as the perspective war personified. Throughout the song, the Universal Soldier is referred to as “him” and the songs depict what he is and what he does. The lines 1 and 4 are both representative of the height and age parameters for soldiers in 1961, which supports the idea that he represents all soldiers in war. The lines 22-24 depict him as the armies both Hitler and Caesar have; without both of their armies, they could not have accomplished what they did.

This would start to change during the War of 1812. Often referred to as the “Second War of Independence,” the conflict inspired a fresh wave of patriotism in a generation too young to remember the Revolution. When Key declared that “our flag was still there,” he fused the physical symbol of the nation with universal feelings of patriotism, courage, and resilience. By giving the flag a starring role in one of the most celebrated victories of the war, Francis Scott Key’s song established a new prominence for the flag as an expression of national identity, unity, and pride. And by giving it a name—that Star-Spangled Banner—Key transformed the official emblem into something familiar and evocative, a symbol that Americans could connect with and

In most war poetry, both physical and psychological perspectives are highlighted for the reader to see. The author Siegfried Sassoon wrote “They” as a conversation between the narrator and the Bishop, indicating the difference of perspectives. As wars keep being fought, the present-day message has become ‘what effect has war had on our soldiers.’ As this movement becomes increasingly bigger with more soldiers defending their countries and the possibility of another World War on the horizon, it is important to see the faults war has created versus the ideals of the majority over the years, yet this is being ignored by society as it is now a part of a game.

from mustard gas, he addresses his audience directly to state that it is not at all a great and glorious thing to die for one’s country. He likens the deadsoldier to a child, an innocent doing an adult’s bidding and implies that his death is based on propaganda and deceit, perpetuated for

The soldiers had to experience many hardships and so much death and a lot of people at home had a distorted view of the war. People praised them and revered them but did not understand the consequences and did not understand that the war didn’t make you a glamorous hero. This disconnect that the war caused made many soldiers bitter and cynical toward those at home. In addition, resentment was stirred up in soldiers due to the “wartime employment of women in traditionally male jobs” (Berenson 432). Also wartime propaganda was false creating cynicism (Berenson 434). In addition to remarking on the hardships of war, in many of Sassoon’s poems, he speaks to civilian disillusionment. Which can be seen in the poem “Suicide in the Trenches,” previously discussed, and “Does it Matter?” There is an underlying attitude that war was a “futile, meaningless and tragic waste” In “Suicide in the Trenches” Sassoon also discusses civilian’s disillusionment of the war. In the last stanza Sassoon says calls the people “sumg-faced crowds” showing his bitterness toward them. He ends the poem by saying “Sneak home and pray you’ll never know/ The hell where youth and laughter go” He is saying that these people don’t understand. This can been seen in Sassoon’s poem “Does it Matter?” in which he speaks of the consequences of the war. Sassoon outlines several consequences of the war; losing limbs, losing sight and nightmares from the war. He questions whether or not these things matter because when they return people don’t understand. The final line is “And no one will worry a bit” what he is trying to say is that people aren’t worried about their well being when they get home because they don’t understand that what they experienced in the war follows them

In the year 1945 the United Nations was established with a goal in mind: to create unity and peace throughout the world’s countries. This was created due to disputes and disagreements that led to wars, such as World Wars I and II. The emergence of new age war technologies led to a more brutal and long lasting war. As well as the new weapons, a new battle technique arose, trench warfare. This led to days and even weeks of doing absolutely nothing in the disease filled holes. The brutality and experiences these children faced in this particular war is unmatched. Their moral values became foggy, their personalities changed, and for the rest of their lives would be haunted by the experiences of war. By continual recollection

even made aware of the fact and the true horror of the war. During the

Is it truly honorable to die for one’s country? Only this month, Australian military commanders were preparing to send 200 Australian soldiers into Iraq to advise and assist the Iraqi security forces in building up their capacity in order to fight the Islamic State (Isis). Our Aussie soldiers are being sent to help fight a war that Australia shouldn’t be apart of and one that costs $500 million a year. How is this necessary for Australia? Why is our country still perceived as pro-war? For decades society was completely pro-war. Poet, Siegfried Sassoon, helped begin the revolution of anti-war poetry in 1918, as World War l was in its early stages. Sassoon’s poem “How to Die”, was a sarcastically named, anti-war poem released into a completely pro-war society. Following in Sassoon’s footsteps, Donald Bruce Dawe later released his anti-war poem “Homecoming” in 1968. The 60s-70s were the age of protest specifically protests against war. Poets are artists and social commentators voicing the opinions of the wider society. So really, is it honorable to fight another country and risk your life or is it just expected of us?

When faced with the countless problems of war including death, disease, sorrow, and loss, soldiers develop and intense bond between one another as they seek support in one another. A brotherhood is formed among these soldiers who rely on one another for protection and companionship amid a time in their lives where they are faced with the constant threat of death and violence everyday of their lives. But what happens to them after the war? In After the War, poet brings awareness to how the war-torn soldier attempts to reestablish their self in a society they have been isolated from for so many years through use of free verse and repetitive phrases, which further reinforces the theme throughout the poem.

“All the arms we need are for hugging.” Unknown. Writers have used their voices and opinions to protest war and its effects of their own experiences of the war. Stephen Crane worked as a journalist during the Spanish-American war and published the poem “War Is Kind” to show how people see the war, versus what the war was really like. Wilfred Owen wrote the poem “Dulce et Decorum Est”, which means “It is sweet and right to die for your country”. Owen fought during World War 1, where he also passed away. Tim O’Brien served in the Vietnam War and wrote The Things They Carried, to explain what the soldiers had to go through during this war by carrying heavy materials and close friends’ deaths. Using his personal experiences and difficulties after the war, author Kevin Powers wrote The Yellow Birds after he returned home from serving in Iraq, explaining what goes through his mind after the war. Writers use imagery, irony, and structure to protest war.

that if he should die, the place of his death will be made richer by

Rupert Brooke (1887-1915) was an accomplished poet in WW1. Unlike Sassoon, Brooke never fought at the front line, but joined the Mediterranean Navy where he died of a mosquito bite. Rupert Brooke expressed his feelings about war (war being a heroic act) through poems such as “The Soldier” where he talks about the solemnity of the soldier and represented war as the ultimate sacrifice and honourable act for your country. Siegfried Sassoon (1887-1967), however, was a

With the poems of Siegfried Sassoon we are moving from the conventional way of writing in the approach of the issue of war, in what sense???