Compare and contrast the various poetic treatments of the theme of death in war in 'Dulce Et Decorum Est' by Wilfred Owen and Rupert Brooke's 'The Rich Dead'

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ENGLISH LITERATURE COURSEWORK

Compare and contrast the various poetic treatments of the theme of death in war in at least two poems you have studied.

It seems that war in society is inevitable - for long as it has been historically documented, war has always been present. Although the tactics by which wars have been fought and won have developed throughout the ages, the outcome has always remained the same - with the untimely deaths of many men. It is this idea of war that has provoked intense controversy, with many people believing it merely results with death and destruction, whilst others regard it as a glorious enterprise and an altogether heroic adventure. During the First World War, poets depicted these diverse aspects of war, with the opposing attitudes clearly recognised in the work of Wilfred Owen and Rupert Brooke. Owens anthology of war poetry is characterised by his vivid and graphic detail concerning war and all its brutal consequences. He also revolts against pro-war propagandists, not only denouncing their beliefs but also by the way they brainwashed naïve young boys into believing it was honourable to die for your country. One such advocate of this idea was Rupert Brooke, his work recognisable by a profound sense of patriotism. He wrote to depict the courage and excitement of war rather than the harsh realities staring them in the face, by means to entice young men into enrolling in the army. This is exactly what Owen was objecting to.

 I have chosen to study in depth the poems-‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’ by Wilfred Owen-an ironically titled poem portraying the wasteful futility of young lives lost at war and ‘The Rich Dead’ by Rupert Brooke-a poem honouring the death of a war hero. I feel that both poems effectively reflect the national mood of the different viewpoints at that time.

From the title of Owen’s poem, ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ (translating as ‘It is sweet and right’) one would expect to discover a poem which glorifies the virtues of war. However these initial thoughts are shattered when we read the opening simile of the poem as the soldiers are compared to repulsive ‘beggars’ and ‘hags’;

“Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,

Knock-kneed, coughing like hags,”  

The extremely graphic language and imagery used by Own effectively conveys the atrocities of war and encourages us to invisage the decrepit, dishevelled state the soldiers are in. The reference to ‘hags’ suggests that their suffering has deprived them of their dignity and in some ways dehumanised them. His description implies that they possess no honour and society has no respect for them. The use of the pronoun ‘we’ emphasises the poets personal involvement in the action of the poem and immediately arouses sympathy from the reader. The use of the word ‘sludge’ reminds us of the universal and pervasive presence of mud in WW1 trench warfare. Owens use of language causes us to imagine the load the exhausted soldiers are carrying as they ‘trudge’ towards the elusive ‘distant rest’. The use of the word ‘trudge’ implies that the men are so worn out they no longer march in any organised or disciplined way, but merely struggle to put one foot in front of the other. This idea is further developed in the next line “Men marched asleep….” Significantly the term ‘soldiers’ is not used as they are referred to in basic human terms as ‘Men’, reminding us that the lives lost in battle were not those of vicious warriors but everyday men that live amongst us; sons, brothers, husbands. Their utter pitiable state is stressed in the same line “Many had lost their boots” showing that even basic military equipment was not present. The clause ‘blood-shod’ is another example of Owens graphic and horrific choice of language. The striking phrase conjures an image of intense physical pain as the soldiers bare feet are covered with coagulated blood, either their own or their fallen comrades. The phrase ‘Drunk with fatigue’ reiterates the soldiers’ exhaustion, which is quite ironic, as normally being intoxicated is not associated within the world of war, rather in festive, jovial occasions. As the word ‘Drunk’ begins a line and contains a capital letter, I feel that Owen really wanted to stress his bitterness at experiencing intoxication in this way and he may feel robbed of opportunities that possibly awaited him later in life. Owen continues to describe the ‘tired, outstripped Five-Nines that dropped behind’. The use of personification in portraying the bombs as ‘tired’ further underlines how nonchalant the men are concerning the war. The line also stresses the fatigue of the men as they no longer even have the energy to outrun enemy fire and seem to have become desensitised to the boom! of the bombs. On analysis the very visual depiction of the degenerate soldiers bodies in the opening stanza, suggests that the ‘distant rest’ alluded to could even be death or heaven rather than the dubious shelter of the trenches.

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Brooke’s poem on the other hand opens with a dramatically different atmosphere,

“Blow out you bugles, over the rich Dead!”

The poem opens with an imperative that is reinforced by the ‘BB’ alliteration. Brooke orders an act of commemoration for the fallen soldiers, as the bugle is a musical instrument traditionally reserved for this function. The line explodes with exaltation and the mood is noticeably high-spirited. Brooke portrays the deaths of the young men as being honourable and of the eternal riches to be gained in death by using the metaphor of wealth ‘the rich Dead’. The capital D ...

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