Compare and Contrast Rupert Brooke's 'The Solider' with Wilfred Owen's 'Dulce et Decorum Est.'

Authors Avatar

Compare and Contrast Rupert Brooke’s ‘The Solider’ with

Wilfred Owen’s ‘Dulce et Decorum Est.’        

Although ‘The Soldier’ by Rupert Brooke and ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ by Wilfred Owen are concerned with the common theme of war, the two poems contrast two very different views of war. ‘The Soldier’ gives a very positive view of war, whereas Owen’s portrayal is negative to the extreme.

Rupert Brooke’s ‘The Soldier’ is very  patriotic as Brooke loves his country and is ready to die for it. This perhaps is not surprising as it was written in the first few months of war when the whole country was swept by a tide of patriotic fervour. Rather ironically for a war poem ‘The Soldier’ is a peaceful poem, as it doesn’t describe the blood and death of war like ‘Dulce et Decorum Est.’. Brooke’s love for his country, however, is somewhat jingoistic and his view of England is rather sentimental. There are many examples of his love for his country, one of which is ‘A body of England’s, breathing English air.’ Brooke also thinks that his country is superior to any other land: ‘a richer dust concealed ’. To an outsider this is a rather conceited view; thinking that an Englishman’s rotting corpse would act as some superior fertilizer. But to his patriotic readers, this only intensified his main arguing point; his conviction that England is worth dying for.

Brooke’s purpose for writing such a one-sided poem was to give a morale booster to his audience and to demonstrate his deep love for his country. The poem is very powerful and no doubt had a very positive effect on these reluctant to join the army. The poem effectively demonstrates that this is a cause and country undoubtedly worth fighting for.

Join now!

Brooke’s belief that God is on England’s side is proven by the quote: ‘blest by the suns of home’. The choice of religious words/phrases shows his strong belief in God: for example, ‘under an English heaven’. This quote emphasises that God is on England’s side and God will take those who fight for England to heaven. Moreover, England itself is described in heavenly terms. So death would just be a transition from one ‘heaven’ to another. His death for England gives him the opportunity to return the favour of being born and nurtured by his beloved country. This again ...

This is a preview of the whole essay