World War I Poetry

The first 200 words of this essay...

With Detailed Reference to Three Poems, Compare and Contrast the Poets' Presentation of War Through Their Choice of Language and Forms.

The poems compared in this essay are from the times of the First and Second World Wars. The three poems were written by poets who had fought as soldiers and experienced the war first hand. Two were written by World War I poet Wilfred Owen: 'Anthem for Doomed Youth' and 'Dulce et Decorum Est'. The other is World War II poet Kieth Douglas's poem: 'Vergissmeinnicht'.

While fighting with his regiment in France, Owen is known to have experienced some of the most terrible elements of the First World War. For example: leading his regiment into battle only to fall into a shell hole and be trapped in the hole for three days, shortly after this experience he was diagnosed with shell-shock. Douglas fought during the Second World War in North Africa. He served as a camouflage officer and towards the end of war fought as a member of a tank squadron. 'Dulce' and 'Vergissmeinnicht' describe experiences the poets had, however 'Anthem' is considered a lament for soldiers who died during WWI.

In both 'Anthem'