The viewpoint of the later poems is permantly to keep men from participating in any war. The reasons such poems were written is possibly because people who have experienced the war have written it. Perhaps they have felt what it is like to see people die or disabled or who are injured in some other way. The poem Disabled for example is written by Wilfred Owen. He is writing as if it is a man who has been in the war, showing clearly his anger. The poem could have also been written by an angry family member who has had a loss or a relative injured in the war. Whereas on the other hand early poetry was written mostly to persuade men to join the war because there were not enough men already in. Some people wrote these poems for newspapers and articles hoping to persuade men to join in any possible way they could.
The attitude of the early poetry is mostly persuasion to join and to make them believe that war is fun, " be out of the fun", as stated in who's for the game? This is glorifying war as an act of fun and communication. Also joining the war throughout the early poetry is almost written in as part of duty (to be part of making a commitment to life) " Lads, you're wanted! Over there!" . It then talks about how children will down on their fathers if they have not joined up in later years. As if their father was lazy and no good to participate in the war like everybody else’s father did. It talks about the men that do join in the war as if they are going to survive. But is this really true? Are they really going to survive?. " Where will you look, sonny, where will you luck, When your children yet to be". This is making false statements as though they are going to overcome war and have children. Therefore a lot of the talk in here is nothing but lies to persuade men to join.
Later poems attitude is to tell nothing but the truth about the war. To talk about the deaths and the despair of war. On the contrary it uses long gory words to describe how desperate, scared, longing, to go home the men were whilst fighting in the war, " legless, sown, short at elbow" ," blood smear down his leg", " loosing your legs", " loosing your sight" were only a few of the many bad disadvantages that war had. Then throughout the poetry it mentions about seeing other men die and the effects that it can have, how the person feels when seeing a person murdered, die in an instance or hours of suffering and agony.
Fall in
In the poem Fall In he is persuading men to join the war, In the first paragraph of Begbies poem he uses persuasive writing but only in a hidden way. He is writing the poem as if the soldiers have already came back, using rhymes to show good poetic persuasion. Although at the same time, he is persuading men to join. His first piece of persuasion is in the first line " what will you lack sonny, what will you lack". In this line he is starting his first paragraph making the men feel guilty, and as if they had missed a part of their lives. He is putting the message across that if the men weren’t to join they will be looked down on and those who did participate will be looked at as heroes. However, throughout the poem he avoids the downsides to joining the war. He says, " in the war that men kept free", although they could loose and not be set free. Here he is not making a true comment or a fair one . He makes the comment about children also, as if the men are going to survive and have children, " when your child yet to be ". This poem is dedicated to those who did take part in the war, but making those who didn’t feel guilty. In the last paragraph he mentions the fact that you should die old while everyone looks up to you and talk of the fight " your old head shamed and bent" making reasonable comments to be ashamed for not taking part in the war. The use of language was poetic
and very fluent but however the odd work such as "shirkers" meaning someone who has not taking part in the war. The occasional use of slang is used because of the time it was written in and the expressions are used to indicate that period of time as well.
Who's for the game?
Who's for the game is written independently directed at people back home to join up for war. It is using vocabulary, persuading and asking soldiers to join up. When it mentions "yet regularly shoulders a gun" this shows the first sign of great danger that men can face in the war. The author writes the poem as if everyone should be involved in war " who wants a turn to himself in the show". Using show as a way of describing war. Jessie Pope acts and writes about war as if glorying it as a chance to become a hero therefore you should participate. " Then lie low and be out of the fun ". This paragraph e.g. the last few lines, are written as an act of sympathy, a different way of persuading.
Peace
Peace, the poem seems to be about all the bad sides to the war and cruelty. The poem is written as if war is worthwhile, they have something to fight for, " And all the little emptiness of love", is stating that they have nothing to love. Although war means something of good use there is nothing to love about it, nor be loved by while fighting for the war. Peace is trying to say that war releases from further war but yet it doesn’t really. That war (in the end) makes the value peace and safety. Whether by death or perhaps freedom.
In Flanders Field
The poem is written precisely to prove a point, using nature as part of the war. This poem looks as if it were possibly inspired by someone’s death, perhaps a friend or a relative . Its written n poetic style, using good vocabulary to show good detail. The poem is talking about all the deaths that have happened in the war. It reminds me for possibly something that was written for remembrance day. "We shall not sleep, though poppies grow". Meaning that there is no real time to sleep until you are dead or the battle is completely over and u has survived.
Does it matter?
This poem looks at different kinds of injuries caused by war. It talks about three injuries legs, sight and dreams. Sasoon uses sarcasm to sharp effect, such as " there is such splendid work for the blind". Yet this means nothing, because overall it is a terrible injury. The most catching verse is the last one because it mentions forget, but really after fighting in a war there is nothing that you possibly can forget about. Sassoon is looking at the injuries and unlike the other poems is saying just because this injury you will be honored because of fighting in the war. Therefore he uses the injuries as an act of bravery.
The difference between the two poems, the later poems and the earlier poems is that the earlier poems are trying to encourage men to join the war and the later poems are trying to put people off because of the experiences that they have already caused to the peoples family and friends. The language also varies between the two there are more modern words as well as old fashioned words in the later years, but in the earlier years there are alot more slang expressions too.
Disabled
This poem was written as if it were a very young and severely wounded soldier, who has lost all their limbs and is helplessly in a wheelchair, thinking sadly and bitterly of the past " Voices of boys rang saddening like a hymn", he is thinking about his childhood " Voices of play and pleasure after play", still back in childhood. He is reminding himself of what he could do then but can no longer do again. This poem is written as if it were in first person and shows great detail and a good use of words. " About this time" meaning when they finish work, meaning war, and the town used to be joyful and happy. Then it tells us of how awful it was to lose his knees. Also because of being disabled how he looked at as disgust, how whenever he is looked at he is looked at just as a cripple, therefore he is showing a point that all them other early poems didn’t show. He is claiming that when you return from the war that you are not always looked up upon as hero and loved more than those who didn’t. Contrary to this is because he feels looked down upon because of being disabled. Then he goes onto about how helpless he is, wounded and unable to help anyone. He talks about underage men who were allowed to join and even he was allowed even though they knew he was underage. Also it talks about in the poem how before joining the war he was looked up to but now is looked at as nothing but a cripple.
