The meaning of ‘dulce et decorum est’ is quite an ironic and sarcastic meaning , because it means ‘ it is sweet and honourable to die for your country’, but Owen really doesn’t agree with this at all, therefore he is being sarcastic.
In my opinion the poem is written for men thinking of joining up to the army, that need to know what war life is really like.
The conditions in the trenches was very bad, and the very bad condition that the soldiers had to withstand. The soldiers had to march for days without rest and carrying severe injuries.
“Bent double, like old beggars under sacks , knock kneed , coughing like hags”
This tells us that they have been squatting in their small trenches, and their not used to the walking. And also it shows us that they were helpless and the conditions were awful.
The soldiers had been walking for days, and that the lack of medication and the gasses used in the war was causing had caused the soldiers to become very ill, and they started coughing.
There was also a severe lack of rest amongst the soldiers and the soldiers
“men marched asleep”
but they were very determined to carry on, but most of them didn’t know what was happening and they were practically asleep, but they had nothing else to do, had nothing left apart from to carry on marching ‘til the end. They were like zombies marching to their death
Real war life was totally different from what the jingoistic writers had made it out to be.
“…limped on, blood-shod. All went lame all went blind”
The soldiers were injured badly, and covered in blood (not only their own) but they are very determined to carry on.
The soldiers also had chosen to try and ignore what was happening and were choosing to be blind, and not watch what was happening, because it was very depressing.
Other bad conditions for the soldiers is the noise factor
“Deaf even to the hoots”
this shows us that because of all of the explosions and the guns firing, and the soldiers were used to the noise, and blocked it out altogether, because all day there was bombs going off , and guns firing.
The soldiers didn’t seem to be prepared for everything, because as the warning for the gas attack. And it seemed to be quite manic, as the soldiers tried to put on their helmets.
“an ecstasy of fumbling”
usually ‘ecstasy’ means excitement, or something positive. But in this case it is the opposite and it is a very worrying time.
There was also many risks , which the jingoists had never mentioned, but Owen wanted people to know about
“but someone still was yelling out and stumbling”
as a soldier couldn’t put on his helmet and unfortunately died.
Owen described the death of the soldier with the theme of water, as the gas killed him, and it is as if the gas was described as water..
“…under a green sea, I saw him drowning”
“…plunges at me…chocking, drowning”.
In the third stanza the tone changes and slows down and after the first two stanza’s describing the conditions, the rhythms calms down.
Owen makes us feel sorry and quite sad as he describes how they followed the wagon that the soldier had been thrown into the back of.
“Behind the wagon that we flung him in,
and watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
his hanging face like a devils sick of sin;”
this says that the soldier looked so bad that he was like a the devils sick. (Which is not a pretty sight)
as the poem draws to an end it is very depressing.
“gargling from the froth corrupted lungs,
obscene as cancer bitter as the cud”
the cud is a slang word for the countryside, and that could be reverting to the countryside as the battlefield.
There is also a feeling of regret as he says
“incurable sores, on innocent tongues”
I think this means that it has left a physical mark, or a bad taste in the mouth.
The poem then ends with
“the old lie: dulce et decorum est
pro patria mori.
Which it is sweet and honourable to die for country, which in Owens view definitely untrue, hence “the old lie:”
In anthem for domed youth, there is a similar tone to dulce, as they were both written by owen at a similar time.
In my opinion the reason for the name ‘ anthem for doomed youth is because as the soldiers were marching thoughts o death would be running through the soldiers heads.
At the start of the 1st stanza there is a question asking
“what passing bells for those who die as cattle”
this is an effective way of describing the soldiers because it is like the soldiers are like cows in a slaughterhouse, and the soldiers are just marching to their death.
In this poem Owen describes what a soldiers death would be like, and describes what happens when a soldier dies.
