The following verse compares his life before and after the war. Before, he was "an artist silly for his face', but now he has 'lost his colour very far from here (home)". This means that he was once a good-looking man, but he has lost blood from the war and therefore looks pale. This gives the readers the impression that this man looks very depressed and sad. Lines 5 and 7 of this verse gives us a very vivid image this man's body. Owen does this throughout the poem, using many different words and phrases to describe the terrible state this man is in, and it is effective as his emotions get through to the reader.
If we look at the poem as a whole, it has no set verse sizes. So it comes as no surprise that verse 4 is 16 line verse long. The verse is in fact like a timeline of the events that lead to the man becoming disabled. It starts off with the man's football days, when he liked "blood-smears down his legs". This is ironic as he will later find out that blood is a not such a pleasant thing, especially on a battlefield. He was seen as a hero in his team, and he felt on top of the world when he got drunk after drinking after the games. In line 4, the man "wonders why" he wanted to join the army. This shows that he regrets even considering joining the army to go to battle. I think that this man will think that he was very stupid in joining the army just so he has a good reputation from his friends. It seems as though he didn't consider about his own future if he had joined, and maybe you could call him foolish for his actions. Owen quotes, "someone had said he'd look good in a kilt", and also suggests that the man joined the army "to please Meg", probably his girlfriend at the time.
Then it moves onto when he joins the forces, and it can be seen that the army were in need of people as he "didn't have to beg" to join. We can see that the man lied about his age to join, which he will most likely regret. This may be one of the messages Owen is trying to say in the poem, that lying can result in the worst possible consequences. At the time when he has just joined the army, the man has no fear whatsoever about the war; "Germans he scarcely thought of". He is thinking about all the good things which may come out of this war such as use of weapons, clothes he'll wear, salutes which he will do, and money which he will receive at the end. When he leaves for war, he is "drafted out with drums and cheers". This shows that the people and the public were happy to see him go and fight for their country. The man would have been so proud then.
However, when he returns home the mood is completely different. "Some cheered him home, but not as crowds cheer Goal". This quote is saying that there were still people cheering, but they were cheers of pity. Also the line also refers back to the man's football days when he was enjoying life, which is opposite to what life will be in the man's future. A "solemn man who brought him fruits" approaches the man. This person thanks the disabled man, presumably for his efforts in the war, but he is worried bout the man's "soul", or his spiritual well being. This verse is only 3 lines long compared to the 16 before. However, Owen does this to show a different time in the man's life, and it makes the return of the man stand out from his departure to war.
The last verse basically emphasises the point that this man is now disabled, and in need of a nurse to look after him. The "they" in the last two lines are the nurses, and he is waiting for them to put him into bed. If he hadn't gone to war, he would still have been able to look after himself, and this therefore shows that the war ruined this man's life forever after. He would feel very regretful of going to war in the first place, when he could have stayed at home due to his age. He also notices that he is no longer attractive to the women, as he "notices how the women's eyes, Passed from him to the strong men that were whole", meaning that the women preferred men with all the limbs intact.
Overall, "Disabled" is a poem which points out the regrets this man had of going to war, and that he didn't consider about himself enough before making a deciding whether to join the army or not. Again, like "Dulce et Decorum Est" it tells us the reader the futility of war.
Comparing and contrasting "Disabled" and "Dulce et Decorum Est"
Both these poems give a very strong message to its reader. The main difference, I think. Is that Dolce et Decorum Est is a view on the army that concerns a whole array of the army, whereas Disabled is just a description of the turmoil of one person.
One thing that I feel both poems I have in common is that they both talk about how they were lied to and how they were sold a lie. Disabled is in my opinion the most more of the two stories as it represents a man's struggle for his life. This man can offer nothing to his country now. He can't even offer himself something that he feels will make his staying alive worth it. Disabled gives the reader more information about the effects war had on the people who fought in the battles. While the people in Dolce Et are still alive the disabled man's souls has in effect died. He has lost his colour and can't get used to the fact of being unpopular like he used to be before he set off to war.
I find Dolce et Decorum Est to be the more powerful of the two poems. This is because, although Disabled is a very emotional and powerful poem in its own right, it only describes the view of one person in the army. I think that what makes Dolce et Decorum Est so powerful is that Owen speaks for the masses in the army when he talks of the daily horrifying sights and regular attempts by the Germans to gas them.
Reading these poems can enlighten the reader. Many people say that they live stressful lives and are under extreme pressure. If you think of what these young men must have gone through it can put a lot of things in to perspective. Day in day out these men had to have the weight of a nation on their shoulders. This is before they have to dodge land mines and gas attacks. They all deserve credit and respect for their efforts, and both these poems do these things.
“The Charge of the Light Brigade” - Alfred Tennyson
This is the poem written by Alfred Tennyson. It is set in the Crimean War during the 19th century, so it is the only poem from the three which isn’t set in either of the World Wars. The location where this took place was in South Russia. The poem gives a story of the "Light Brigade" charging, but at the Russian cannons which hadn't been seen. From it we can see that the plan was a big failure, as the commands set by the chief officer were unplanned and the soldiers did not have the right to question their orders.
The first verse sets out the scene for the reader. It describes the leagues of horseback soldiers preparing for battle, as they charge forward. A “league” is a measure of distance, and it means three miles. The line “All in the valley of Death” personifies death. The mood becomes more dramatic from line 5, with a line that brings us the readers closer to the action; “Forward, the Light Brigade!” This line and the quote “Charge for the guns!” are probably real orders set by the officers to these men, who we find out in the next verse that they didn’t approve their commands. The phrase “Rode the six hundred” is a repetition as it is repeated throughout the poem. This is effective as it keeps the reader informed of the large number of men who later perished in the battle.
The first four lines of the following verse tells us that these soldiers couldn’t, and didn’t, question their orders. “Was there a man dismayed? Not though the soldier knew”. This is followed by three famous lines, as it says of the helplessness these soldiers had when they were set a task to carry out. The first line in line five, “their’s not to make reply”, tells us that the soldiers did not question the commands set by their chiefs. “Their’s not to reason why; their’s not but to do and die” tells us that there was no point in the soldiers arguing, as their job was to carry out the operation and probably die. These lines more or less summarises a soldier’s duties during war. Again in this verse, the phrases “into the valley of Death” and “rode the six hundred” are repeated.
We then move onto a description of the situation these soldiers rode into; cannons on all sides. The three lines, beginning with “cannons to the right of them”, emphasises their surroundings. Tennyson creates a feeling of exhilaration, of the nobility of warfare with his use of poetic devices, such as rhetorical repetition in the case of these three lines. There is alliteration, which are a series of words beginning with the same letter used closely to each other for effect. In the case of “stormed at with shot and shell”, the sound of the letter “S” makes the line sound more dramatic and can be read with emphasis to make the phrase stand out. The words and phrases Tennyson uses is very clever, as we can see clearly that these soldiers had absolutely no chance of overcoming the Russian cannons. The lines “Boldly they rode and well, Into the jaws of Death” does just this.
Verse four is probably the climax of the battle, as how brave soldiers fighting helplessly and the fact that some return is told. The use of the words “flashed” and “sabres” gives the soldiers an honourable and heroic image. We can see that the whole thing wasn’t a big failure, as we can see that “right through the line they broke”, meaning that they did well enough to get past some of the Russians and Cossacks. Again Tennyson uses the letter “S” to produce a bold image of the war, using the words such as “sabre”, “shattered” and “sundered” in this verse. The repetition of the phrase “six hundred” is continued in this verse again, but this time Tennyson writes, “they rode back, but not, Not the six hundred”. This basically tells us the many deaths which resulted from the charge of the Light Brigade.
At the beginning of verse five, the five lines from verse three are repeated for repetition once again. This tells us that the remaining soldiers were yet safe. In this verse, the poet praises the courageous soldiers, claiming that they “had fought so well, Came through the jaws of Death, Back from the mouth of Hell”. Again he is personifying death, just like at the start of the poem. In this verse, again, alliterations are used and phrases are repeated in order to keep the poem flowing.
Tennyson’s praises continue into the final verse, questioning the reader “when can their glory end?” This tells us that Tennyson doesn’t want us to forget the courage these soldiers had, and the honour they had in fighting for their country. The final three lines give us Tennyson’s overall thoughts on the charge of the Light Brigade. We can see that Tennyson is proud of these soldier’s works during the charge, as he uses the word “honour” is repeated, and also he ends each phrase with an exclamation mark. This shows us that the in Tennyson’s view, the charge shouldn’t be remembered for its failure, but for those who lost their lives fighting for their nation. Tennyson describes these men as being the “noble six hundred”. We can clearly see that the poet is on the side of the allies.
The poem is structured so it progresses as the battle does. We can see that verse four is the climax, or the highlight of the battle, and that the last one or so verses are Tennyson’s thoughts on the issue of the poem. There is no regular rhyme scheme throughout the poem, though some rhyme is used to link lines together, such as in the case of “while horses and hero fell, They that had fought so well, Came through the jaws of death”, in verse five. The last verse is also deals with the fact that we should remember the soldiers who fought in the Crimean War. This verse can also be called an epitaph.
The main message Tennyson tells the readers is that war is extremely futile, and that the bravery and courage of the soldiers should be admired and remembered forever. I don’t think that Tennyson will just say this about the Crimean War, but for any war or battles which involve the casualty of men fighting for their respective countries.
Comparing “The Charge of the Light Brigade” to “Dulce et Decorum Est”
Although these two poems both give us a vivid image of the war, the main difference is that Owen’s poem is in the first person. This means that the poem tells us Owen’s personal account of the battles which took place, whereas Tennyson’s poem is the poet’s view from the third person. While “The Charge of the Light Brigade” concentrates on the whole army’s actions from the views of the poet, “Dulce et Decorum Est” is written from Owen’s past experience.
There are several factors which are made possible by a poem being written in the first person. For example, Owen is able to describe the image of war, and other soldiers who were also fighting. Owen does this straight from the first line; “Bent double, like old beggars under sacks”. This shows that these soldiers weren’t able to walk straight due to the fact that they were worn. Tennyson is not able to do this in his poem as he has no experience of being in a war. In his poem, Owen captures the mood of the scene well, by using words and phrases which can be used to produce a rough image of the war in the reader’s mind. These include words such as “trudge”, “flound’ring” and “guttering”, and phrases such as “men marched asleep”, “an ecstasy of fumbling” and “like a devil’s sick of sin”. The last phrase is effective as it shows that Owen believes that even the devil will be sick if he saw what he had seen in the war.
We could say that Owen gives us a personal account of the war, and is able to concentrate on one person, such as the phrase “I saw him drowning” which explains one man dying. This in a way is a contrast to Tennyson’s approach to the soldiers, just referring to them as “the six hundred”. Also Owen sees death of these men as a bad thing, which is opposite to Tennyson’s views of pride in dying for ones country, which is the meaning of the title for Owen’s poem. Tennyson’s poem celebrates the glory of war, and in the epitaph he tells us to remember those who perished, and to honour them as they have done their countries proud. He isn’t saying that war is a good thing, but that dying for your country should be an honourable thing to do. However, we can see that Owen disagrees to this, as towards the end of “Dulce et Decorum Est”, he writes, “the old Lie; Dulce et decorum est”. He is saying here that the phrase “to die for your country is sweet and fitting” is a lie. This is because he knows this from his time in the war, and believes that war is a pointless thing. The whole poem is in a way a protest against the propaganda telling people to go to war. I think that he is trying to tell the reader the real image of war, to prevent more innocent people dying in war in the future. Tennyson also highlights the futility of war in his poem, but states that “Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori”.
Comparing “The Charge of the Light Brigade” to “Disabled”
The main difference between these two poems is that “Disabled” concentrates on the effect of war, and the survivors of it who regretted going to the battles, whereas Tennyson’s poem is about a failed attack during the Crimean war. Again like with “Dulce et Decorum Est”, Owen writes about the futility of war, and how this man has ended up on a wheelchair from a war which he joined in order to up his reputation. The poem tells us how he thinks sadly and bitterly of his past life, when he was a popular character with his friends.
I think that these two poems can flow, as Tennyson’s poem is about an army force riding into battle, and we could consider “Disabled” as the story of a soldier who survived the Russian attack, but was severely wounded. Although the two poems are set in two different wars, I believe that Tennyson’s poem tells us the events of war, and Owen’s is on the effect of war. Therefore in a way, these two poems give us what happens, and what will come out of the war. I think this is the link between the two poems, but they are written in different styles.
There are several ways we can explain the language Owen uses in “Disabled”. We could say he writes sympathetically as he makes us aware of the previous life this man had, and the fact that he couldn’t be what he used to be anymore due to the war. However, we could also say that Owen seems to be using this disabled man as an example of the casualties which survived the war. It seems as though Owen doesn’t feel too sorry for this man, and is more shameful to him. I think Owen is trying to use this man as an example to show people the effects the battles had on some people, which isn’t showing much sympathy for the man. I think that we can say both these points for the way he writes the poem. The first point can be said about Tennyson’s poem too.
“The Charge of the Light Brigade” honours the death of the soldiers who died during the charge into Russian territory. Tennyson shows pride towards the Light Brigade, telling us to “honour the charge they made”. As well as a bit of sympathy, Tennyson shows that he is in favour of people losing their lives for their country, as he feels that this is honourable, and calls these men “noble”.
There is no set rhyme pattern in either poem. With “Disabled”, Owen uses a different rhyme pattern for each of the verses, and Tennyson uses occasional rhyme to make two or more lines flow. Also another similarity is that they both have irregular verse lengths. Each verse is a different stage in the story in each case. For example for “Disabled”, each verse concentrates on different stages of the man’s life. The use of alliteration and onomatopoeia is more frequent in “The Charge of the Light Brigade”, with phrases such as “stormed at with shot and shell” and words such as “shattered” and “sundered” used. Owen, though, uses some irony in his poem, for instance he says “he’d look good in a kilt”, when we know that this man has lost both his legs, as well as both his arms.
Overall, we can say that again, Owen’s poem tells us the vivid image of war by using this disabled man as an example. “The Charge of the Light Brigade” tells us that war is futile, but the lives of those who died should be remembered forever as they should be honoured.
Conclusion
From these three poems, we can see that the message they try to tell us depends on the poet himself. Both Wilfred Owen poems talk about the effect the war had on the soldiers, who the poet was one of during World War 2. Owen writes “Dulce et Decorum Est” and “Disabled” from his personal experiences so we can probably believe what he is saying in his works. The gruesome image he puts into our minds by his use of descriptive words emphasises the point that he wants to get the message across to the reader that war is extremely pointless, and that innocent men are sent to these battles to fight for their lives. The vivid image of the man dying from the poisonous fumes is extremely gruesome by the use of phrases such as “under a green sea” and “flound’ring like a man in fire or lime”. I feel that this poem is the strongest of the three, mainly due to the fact that it is written in first person, therefore meaning that what is said on the poem was seen by Owen, so the reader is almost brought into the war scene. Owen is successful in making us imagine that we are actually there on the battlefields, which I think is very clever.
With “Disabled”, the poet tries to make the reader feel sorry for the man who he is writing about. Again, he writes the poem so effectively that it makes us feel war is futile, therefore allowing the reader to receive Owen’s message. The fact that this man, who was a popular man before the war, became so helpless and disfigured due to war makes us aware of the effects war had on some people.
I think that “The Charge of the Light Brigade”, written by Alfred Tennyson, is the more of a personal opinion by Tennyson rather than a war poem. Yes, it is based on the Crimean War, but the image he sets out is fairly blunt, and I think his main aim in writing this poem was for him to express his thoughts on the “noble” Light Brigade. I feel that Tennyson’s description of the war is quite basic compared to the one in “Dulce et Decorum Est”. Mainly, this will be because Owen writes in the first person and actually experienced war. However, nonetheless Tennyson’s use of repetition throughout the poem is very effective as it keeps the reader aware of the large numbers of men who took part in the charge of the Light Brigade. With the line “rode the six hundred” in mind, it is easy to fall into Tennyson’s trap of honouring them as we are not made to forget them throughout the poem. In the last verse, or the epitaph, the poet asks “when can their glory fade?” This is a rhetorical question, which means that it requires no immediate answer. This is used cleverly so the reader is made to think about the Light Brigade in their minds.
Overall, what these three poems have in common is that they all show the pointlessness of war, and that the world has to realise to the fact that there are other ways in order to settle arguments, not involving the killing of many soldiers fighting for their country. I think what Tennyson says is correct, and we should honour those who die in war. Both these poets agree to the fact that war is futile, but they each have their say on the matter of dying in it.
