A new day comes, however the fog hangs even thicker than the previous morning. “Tis the morrow; the fog hangs thicker,” Although she is now aware of her husband’s death, she still ponders about where her husband lies, in a grave with full military honours, in a mass grave, faceless and unidentified, or laying where he fell? A letter is received from the soldier who is now dead, a day after the message telling of his death. The poem suggests that the letter was written in high zest, when the soldier was well and full of spirit, the hot flames represent his life like the gas lamp, “By the firelight flicker”
The soldier has had a burial, which was a great deal more than a lot of soldiers got, many of them were left where they fell. “His hand, whom the worm now knows”
The letter is “Page full of his hoped return” it tells of his future dreams, which would now only stay as dreams, he also talks of a “new love”, this may be an unborn child which they wish to have.
This poem shows the dark nature of war, the cruelty on the individual and how it has a permanent effect upon people’s lives. This is a scenario, which many families would have to cope with in times of war.
This next poem by Edgar Wallace, appropriately named “War”, emphasises the harsh reality in which the soldiers would have to face and the conditions in which the surgeons would have to work in. Unlike the poem “A Wife in London” this poem is actually set in the battlefield.
A wagon which would most likely be horse drawn, carries the injured from the battlefield to the tent, where the medical orderlies would deal with them, “A tent that is pitched at the base: A wagon that comes from the night “The soldier has been brought from “The night” this may be the darkness or evil, which surrounds the tent. The surgeon is holding a light, this may be a similar light to the street lamp in “A wife in London” It may be a metaphor for the soldier’s life which the surgeon is holding, and it is the surgeon who has the power and the knowledge to rekindle the flame and save the soldier from death, but if the flame “glimmers cold” then the chances for survival are slim.
The once gallant and brave, young men who were once so young and eager to join the military and become noble heroes, have been reduced to “A whimper of sobs at the rear” The soldiers are no longer ready and willing, they are totally unprepared for the horrors and bloodshed of war, as it was cunningly hidden from the public, now the soldiers cowered in distress “at the rear”
Within the tent there is a table, however it would not be a clean, sterile table of today’s standards, it would most likely be numerous planks of timber held together with a few rusty nails, still stained with the bodily fluids of the previous patient “A table that’s laid out for one”
Wallace is exaggerating the lack of basic equipment which the surgeons had, in the line “A waterproof cover-and nought”. The “Waterproof cover” would most likely be the roof of the tent, which kept them out of the worst of the weather. “Nought” this is slang in some Northern dialects for “nothing”.
The soldier is a mess from the enemy bullet he received “The limp mangled work of a gun” Wallace once again uses a metaphor for the soldier’s life, he links the flickering light within the tent to the soldier’s soul, the light flickers in a similar fashion to the street lamp in the poem “A wife in London”. The flickering may show that the flame is dying and as the flame dies so does the soldier, “The flickering light of a soul.
The wounded man is described as “The Wreck” The surgeon orders the orderly to hold the patients hand, this may be because the surgeon knows that he is going to die and feels that it would be more humane if he were to die with the comfort of someone being beside him, even if it is a complete stranger. The surgeon uses chloroform to put the patient out, “A sigh as the chloroform drips” The soldier slowly dies. “Bluer and bluer the lips”
The soldier is totally dehumanised by the surgeon, which shows the harsh reality, as the surgeons must have no sentimental attachments, “Orderly, take It out” The orderly prepares for the next patient, they have no idea who it will be or what the case is, but they do know that there are more, lots more, as it is a constant flow through the tent, it is their job to do the most for the patients even with the most rudimentary tools, “Orderly, clean the knife”
This poem by Rudyard Kipling is dedicated to the nurses who died in the South African war. The poem is called “Dirge of the Dead Sisters” Kipling admired the tireless sisters, however he feels pity for them, as many did not value their work. The nurses may have worn a type of headdress, which had a “Violet peak” Kipling describes the diligent work of the sisters by the raising of their heads, “Violet peaks uplifted through the crystal evening air”
Kipling describes the laughter of the sisters, as “Noble laughter” “nobility” is often associated with people who have high moral qualities, which the sisters have in common.
The poem is filled with rhetorical questions, these are questions, which are not meant to be answered, they are used to encourage thought from the reader.
Kipling makes the business of the sisters apparent, “Sisters with the dust upon their hair” This “dust” could also be a result of idleness, as dust is often associated with inactivity, however due to Kipling’s respect and appreciation for the nurses this may be interpreted as the lack of time they have to groom themselves.
The nurses would have had to endure “blanket hidden bodies…followed by the flies” The conditions would have been very poor for the nurses, they would have had very little light to work under and would have probably suffered as badly as the soldiers, all the rations would have gone to the remaining soldiers in the bloody battlefields, so it would be unlikely that the nurses would have received anything better.
Kipling may be suggesting that the nurses might be after the glory of war, like many of the soldiers, “…the faces of the Sisters with the glory in their eyes”. Throughout the poem the “s” of “sisters” is capitalised, this may be to show their importance and respect, which Kipling feels they are so greatly owed.
The sisters may be suggested to be Saints, as “All-hallows” is a less common term for All Saints Day, a day where the past Saints must be remembered, “In the open camp all-hallowed”
The poet describes the nurses as “Patient, wise and mirthful…” The nurses are once again described as wrestles, “These endured unresting till they rested from their labours”. This poem is a poem of great sympathy and passion, it reflects the physical and mental torture, which the nurses would deal with.
The next Poem named “The Hyaenas”, also by Rudyard Kipling, describes the starving hyaenas of South Africa, digging up the corpses of the dead soldiers in a battle for survival.
The hyaenas come out in the evening, when it is quieter, and there are less threats, unlike the “kites” which are large birds, that are closely related to vultures, the “kites” are “baffled” by the gunfire and bizarre activities which take place in the day, “And the baffled kites have fled; The wise hyaenas come out at eve” It is ironic that the kites should flee such an easy meal, as the natural behaviour of vultures and scavenging birds, is usually to persist until they get a meal, even if this means waiting around for days until a weak animal dies.
The hyaenas must dig in the ground to reach their meal, this shows the hyaenas critical need for food. An animal that can’t distinguish from right and wrong, cannot be blamed for doing this.
The hyaenas have no respect for “How he died and why he died”. The bodies are just another meal for the carnivorous mammals. The dogs share no interest in the dead “Troubles them not a wit” Although Kipling is offended, he understands that because the soldiers died the hyaenas will live, “That they and their mates may thrive”
The hyaenas are getting an easy meal, as the dead soldiers do not put up a fight. “For a goat may butt, and a worm may sting, and a child will sometimes stand; but a poor dead soldier of the king can never lift a hand.”
The hyaenas pull the dead bodies from the earth to the “light” where they consume them with no guilty conscience. “Take good hold in the army shirt, and tug the corpse to light.” The shame of the soldiers is not apparent to “living men” only to “God and to those” Kipling feels that the destruction and chaos that the soldiers have brought is a crime against nature.
The poet asks “Who” is being “Soulless” and “free from shame” is it the hyaenas for having no respect for those who gave their lives for what they believed in, or is it the soldiers for the annihilation they caused to the World. The hyaenas cannot be accused of doing wrong as they are only animals that go by their instincts, the hyaenas do not corrupt the dead man, it is humans who do this, not animals, “Nor do they defile the dead man’s name- That is reserved for his kind” This is obviously an anti-war poem, it is mainly directed at the generals and superiors who are so careless with the lives of the soldiers.
The poem in which I found the most impressive was definitely “A Wife in London” by Thomas hardy. This is due to the strong atmosphere in the poem and the mystery, which surrounds the plot. I also find it intriguing, as the poem goes much deeper beneath the face value, when it is subjected to further analysis. I find it interesting the way that the lives of the soldiers are contrasted to flames, and the way in which the mystery of her husband’s whereabouts is reflected in the weather conditions around her. I find it sadly ironic that a letter of such hope and passion should follow the arrival of a letter of tragedy, it is as if the victim is being tortured further, for a crime in which she did not commit. The poem deals with an aspect of war, which many friends and families would have had to face, and recovery would have taken decades, and they would have been permanently scared for a lifetime. Very few war poems focus on this type of trauma, most poems were set in distant places in the bloody battlefields, however this poem is set much closer to home, which is more understandable for the average person.