There is one particular phrase in the third stanza, which sums up Jessie Pope’s attitude towards war.
‘Who would much rather come back with a crutch
Than lie low and be out of the fun?’
It shows how little she cares about the soldiers that are risking their lives to fight for what she believes is right, but also shows how much she cares about her own well-being.
Jessie Pope constantly uses slang language in the poem. This is mainly because of the audience this piece is aimed at. She uses terms that they are familiar with and so often use such as ‘sit tight’ and ‘up to her neck,’ which make the poem sound more interesting and appealing to the youth.
Near the conclusion of the poem Jessie Pope personifies Britain calling it ‘she.’ This is effective because men were believed to be the protectors of women, and yet they are allowing Britain, their homeland to be destroyed, without even putting up a fight. Giving Britain the qualities of a living object makes the young men feel as though it is their duty to fight and shield their country.
‘Who’s for the game?’ consists of a steady, alternating rhyme scheme, (ABAB ect.) This helps add to the enjoyable, cheery tempo that Jessie Pope tries to create in an attempt to lure and persuade young, unsighted men to fight. It has a structure of four quatrain stanzas too. Another technique Jessie Pope used to make the poem sound lively was her effective use of sound. In ‘Who’s for the game?’ Jessie Pope used a regular number of syllables for each line in a quatrain. For example, in the first stanza, ’who’s for the game, the biggest that’s ever played,’ this line has a total of nine syllables, and correlates with line three of the stanza ‘who’ll grip and tackle the job unafraid?’
Now I will consider another patriotic poem and study the poets’ attitude to war. Julian Grenfell wrote ‘Into Battle’. Unlike Pope, Grenfell had been to the western front and lived the life of a soldier. In actual fact, his death, which was sadly before The Times published this poem, came about to the deep, piercing wounds he suffered at war. In this poem he clearly shows his willingness and his passion for war and country.
Throughout this poem Grenfell makes strong comparisons to war and the wilderness. This shows that he thought war was natural. Jessie Pope’s technique strongly contrasts Grenfell’s. Pope tries to play with the readers conscious for example when she says ‘Who wants a seat in the stand?’ Instantly, in the first quatrain Grenfell says, ‘The naked earth is warm with spring.’ This contrasts what war actually is, as it is a time of death and destruction, whereas spring is a time of hope and rebirth. Grenfell sees war as a new beginning, which is exactly what spring is, as the bare trees are now becoming ripe, the days of dullness are coming to an end and bringing with them new life. This shows the importance of spring to Grenfell and is also a perfect example of how he describes the struggle for survival nature is faced with.
A similarity between the two poems is how they both compare war to positive things to strengthen the effectiveness of their message. Pope calls war the biggest game ‘That’s ever played’ and Grenfell to natural things such as ‘the woodland trees’ (also personification). As we approach the end of the second stanza Grenfell states
‘And he is dead who will not fight,
And who dies fighting has increase.‘
This is Grenfell’s viewpoint and clearly shows the importance war had to him as well as society. This is also an example of how he tried to persuade the reader by showing them that they are born to fight and defying the reason of their existence will inevitably make them ‘dead.’ ‘Has increase,’ which I included in the quote earlier seems to mean that those who are lucky enough to die fighting increase their stature and significance. From this poem it is strongly evident that his opinion is that if you don’t fight, there is no reason for your existence. Grenfell then repeats this viewpoint once more in the second stanza when he explains,
‘And when fighting shall be done,
Great rest, and fullness after dearth.’
This basically means, although you may die fighting you will be fulfilled. This is a viewpoint shared by Pope, she states ‘who wants a seat in the stand?’ Grenfell also shows what he believes a soldier gains from fighting. ‘All the bright company of Heaven Hold them in their high comradeship,’ his opinion seems to be that with war comes religion, and friendship with heaven. This emphasises to the reader that war is right.
In the fourth quatrain of the poem, Grenfell uses various metaphors linking natures struggle to that of a soldier, and also showing how they are alike this creates the positive atmosphere of the poem. ‘The woodland trees that stand together.’ This is one of the ways Grenfell shows the similarities between nature and humans as the trees represent the way soldiers stand, united and as one. Then Grenfell continues, ‘They stand to him each one a friend,’ this is how he shows that war is natural and nature itself has been designed to encourage it as by ‘friend’ Grenfell means a source of camouflage for the soldiers. Grenfell also gives ‘the woodland trees’ human qualities (personification), ‘They gently speak in the windy weather,’ this helps create a picture in the mind of the reader and is particularly effective as it shows a strong link between nature and soldiers.
Then Grenfell shows the qualities a bird of prey has and compares them to the skills of a soldier.
‘The kestrel hovering by day,
And the little owls that call by night,
Bid him be swift and keen as they,
As keen of ear as swift of sight’
Grenfell sees a soldier as a hunter that hunts by day like a kestrel, and by night like an owl, which are both completely contrasting conditions. A soldier needs good hearing, sight, speed and agility to survive.
Grenfell uses nature effectively to persuade soldiers. ‘The blackbird sings to him, ‘Brother, brother,’’ this emphasises the link that soldiers and nature have as the term ‘Brother’ is more likely to be used whilst talking to someone that is quite close. The poem then continuous, ‘If this be the last song you shall sing, sing well for you may not sing another; Brother, sing.’ This shows that the soldiers and nature are a family, and ‘sing well…’ Is the kind of advice that you are more likely to receive from your family, as nature says to do your best, as this may be your last chance. This shows that Grenfell realises the downfall of war, unlike Jessie Pope who is more ignorant to death.
The seventh stanza is very negative, this quatrain begins dramatically, Grenfell alliterates ‘dreary doubtful’ the repetition of the ‘d’ sound slows down the pace at which the reader is reading, and also emphasises the negative atmosphere. Grenfell then says,
‘The horses show him nobler powers,
O patient eyes, courageous heart!’
This shows that the horse is his inspiration.
As the battle finally begins, it is described as an abrupt burst of heat ‘And when the burning moment breaks,’ In the next lines Grenfell explains what the soldier is going through, ‘All things else are out of mind, and only joy of Battle takes Him by the throat, and makes him blind,’ this description makes the reader feel almost excited and also therefore encourages and persuades the reader. When the battle commences all other thoughts disappear, and that fighting is a joyful and blinding experience. Grenfell also personifies battle by calling it ‘Battle’ this is effective as by giving battle human qualities it creates a picture in the readers mind, here Grenfell is at least showing the reader the realities of fighting for your life, something which Pope never does. Grenfell then decides to repeat his idea of what a soldier feels, as he is about to go ‘into battle’ in the following stanza, ‘Through joy blindness he shall know,’ this repetition is useful to persuade as it enforces what Grenfell is saying into the readers mind.
Grenfell uses a lot of personification in this poem as well, I already showed how he personified ‘the woodland trees’ by saying that they ‘gently speak’ and also battle by calling it ‘Battle,’ he uses it very effectively in the final part of the poem. Firstly, ‘That it be not the Destined Will.’ This means that the soldier will die when his time comes, and they don’t need to worry about it as God has already planned it. Then he uses it once more, ‘And in the air death moans and sings;’ this is Grenfell’s personification of death. His use of personification in this poem is particularly useful because it shows us his attitude that war is right, as it is a soldier’s fate, which has already been planned by God.
Grenfell also shows how he feels that a soldier is protect by ‘Day’ and ‘Night’,
‘But Day shall clasp him withs strong hands,
And Night shall fold him in soft wings.’
Grenfell feels that ‘Day’ looks after the soldier, and ‘Night’ is like an angel, which will also protect him.
‘Into Battle’ is intended for a far more intellectual audience than ‘Who’s for the game?’ which is more direct. Pope uses rhetorical questioning throughout her poem. This is a more basic technique as it forces the reader to think; it also uses phrases such as ‘And who thinks he’d rather sit tight?’ making the reader feel it is his duty to fight. Pope also uses slang such as ‘sit tight,’ making the poem more appealing to younger men, whilst Grenfell uses similes and metaphors. Still both writers have a very positive outlook on war. Grenfell shows this by creating a warm image, using words such as ‘glowing earth.’ ‘Into Battle’ consists of an alternating rhyme scheme; this gives the poem a constant beat. The way the poem is set out is very regular as it is made up of mainly quatrains. Grenfell also uses sound effectively in this poem. The first quatrain starts ‘The naked earth is warm with spring’ this line consists of eight separate sounds, or syllables. Then in the next line we also find the same number of syllables, ‘And with green grass and bursting trees,’ this creates a steady, set rhythm which allows the poem to flow at a constant speed, helping create the positive tone of the poem.
Now that I have looked at the attitudes of a couple of patriotic poets, I will compare them with that of realistic poet. The realistic poems include; ‘Disabled’ and ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’ which were poems both written by Wilfred Owen. As I have already explained these poems were written to show the realities of war.
Owen was very critical of war, and its nature. However he still enlisted to fight on the western front in 1915, when he returned to England, from the continent where he was the tutor of an English family in Bordeaux, he visited a hospital for the wounded. Owen quickly established himself in the army and soon even had his own platoon. Though, in May 1917 Owen was sent home after it was discovered that he was suffering from shell shock. He was admitted into CraigLockhart war Hospital in Edinburgh, where by some twist of fate he met Siegfried Sassoon, a man who was greatly responsible for nurturing Owen’s growing poetic talents. Sassoon was also being treated for shell shock at the hospital. He had a rich background and also shared the bitterness for war Owen had. With the guidance of Sassoon, Owen wrote some of his most effective and successful poems, some of which include; ‘Anthem For Doomed Youth’ and ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est,’ which were both anti-war poems, showing the realities. Although Owen’s poetry was beginning to take off, in June 1918 he was classified as fit for service, and in August returned to the front line. On November 4, only a mere seven days before the armistice he was caught by a German gun attack as he crossed the Sambre canal. ’I came out in order to help these boys - - directly by leading them as well as an officer can; indirectly, by watching their sufferings that I may speak of them as well as a leader can. I have done the first.’ This was a quote taken from www.emory.edu. Owen clearly despised war, and in particularly those that encouraged it and showed it as being a ‘heroic adventure’ without having the slightest idea of what war involved. He wrote his poetry to show the truth and what he has experienced.
Firstly, I will look at ‘Disabled.’ This poem is based on an ex-war soldier who was severely wounded whilst fighting on the western front and lost all of his limbs. The poem shows the contrasting lives the soldier led, before and after the war. In this poem, Owen strongly attacks patriotic poets who advertised war as a harmless game, especially Pope in ‘ Who’s for the game?’
In ‘Disabled,’ like ‘Who’s for the Game?’ Owen shows how war was portrayed as a game. However, in this poem, unlike Pope, Owen shows how the image of war being like a game led to millions going to war without any knowledge of the truth. As the poem starts, Owen uses some very cold, negative words,
‘He sat in a wheel chair, waiting for dark,
And shivered in the ghastly suit of grey,’
The words, ‘dark’, ‘shivered’ and ‘grey’ instantly give an impression to the reader of the isolation the wounded soldier had been condemned to, this could also be Owen’s metaphorical description of death. ‘Waiting for dark’ shows the reader how the soldier had nothing to look forward to but ‘dark,’ this shows the harm that the war had done to him not just physically but psychologically also. ‘Through the park voices of boys rang saddening, Till gathering sleep had mothered them from him’ this is particularly saddening because the wounded soldier hears the cries of laughter that he knows that he will never experience he is now helpless and his days of happiness have disappeared. This stanza clearly shows to the reader what not only this soldier has lost, but many other soldiers alike after going to war.
Pope in ‘Who’s for the Game?’ shows how the soldiers life will be all the better for going to war, rather than ‘lying low and being out of the fun.’ She also tries to show that going to war will have no effect on your life. ‘Who would rather come back with a crutch?’ Disabled strongly attacks and shows the realities of view such as these, especially from women like Pope. As we go into the second stanza, Owen contrasts the soldiers’ life, after and before he went to war. This helps show the impact war has had on him.
‘About this time Town use to swing so Gay,
When glow-lamps budded in the light blue trees,
And the girls glanced lovelier as the air grew dim.’
This shows that women were once attracted to him, he also shows this once more in the third stanza, ‘There was an artist silly for his face,’ but now that he has become an invalid, ‘women’s eyes passed from him to the strong men,’ and ‘Now he will never feel again how slim girls’ waists… All of them treat him like some queer disease.’ Owen also shows the soldier as being full of youth before ‘For it was younger than his youth last year.’ However, now ‘half his life has lapsed in hot race’ this shows that due to the war the soldier has literally lost half his blood, and so his life too overnight. The way Owen compares the life of the soldier before the war to after it makes the poem more dramatic as the reader can clearly see the changes in his life. Now that he has become crippled girls take no notice of him, and when they come in contact with each other there is no longer any sexual attraction. Owen further explains the suffering that the soldier had gone through later on in the poem ‘Now he is old; his back will never brace, He’s lost his colour very far from here,’ Owen increase the impact of how the soldier lost his limbs by saying ‘he threw away his knees’ this shows that the soldier has lost his limbs without a real cause, and also shows that Owen thought war was horrific and foolish i.e. his attitude to war. The way he describes how the soldier lost his limbs, using words such as ‘threw away his knees,’ and ‘poured it down shell-holes till the veins ran dry,’ suggests that they were lost in a particularly pathetic way.
In the fourth stanza Owen continues contrasting the soldiers life to show the full extent of the damage that has been inflicted on him. ‘One time he liked a blood-smear down his leg.’ This shows the soldiers athleticism, and is also extremely ironic as now he has no limbs and cannot bleed to make him feel courageous. In this stanza Owen attacks Pope’s message in ‘Who’s for the game?’ of war being a harmless game, and that many people were manipulated into believing it as a fact. Owen also shows its similarities, ‘After the matches, carried shoulder-high, it was after football when he’d drunk a peg.’ This shows that he thought war was just the same as a football match. He was led to believe that he would come back a national hero. ‘And soon, he was drafted out with drums and cheers.’ However, in the fifth stanza we find that his dream was completely empty. ‘Some cheered him home, but not as a crowed cheer goal.’ Even though the soldier hadn’t accomplished anything i.e. when he left, he was cheered. Now he has achieved something but at a great cost he is seen as being insignificant.
Owen also talks about the reasons the soldier had for going to war. ‘He thought he’d better join- he wonders why. Someone had said he’d look a God in kilts,’ this shows that Owen felt soldiers didn’t go to war for their own reasons but for others ‘to please his Meg; Aye that was it, to please the giddy jilts.’ This is also a direct attack at patriotic poets especially Pope, who in ‘Who’s for the game?’ tries to make people feel they have something to prove to themselves as well as others and can only be accomplished by going to war. Owen also shows the desperate state the government were in, knowing that millions had fallen, not being replaced by fresh man. ‘Smiling they wrote his lie; aged nineteen years.’ This shows that they were well aware that the soldier was under aged but still decided to overlook this fact.
In the final stanza Owen shows how weak and reliant upon others the soldier has become.
‘Now he will spend a few sick years in institutes,
And do what things the rules consider wise.’
This shows the soldier has lost all his personal freedom, and is consequently at mercy as he is unable to do anything for himself. ‘To-night he noticed how women’s eyes passed from him to the strong men that were whole.’ Once more this is evidence of Owen attacking women, as without his limbs he is thought of as being unattractive. This is also ironic as when he was fit and healthy he was the one that put women to bed, though now he is dependent on the women to put him in bed. At the end of the poem, Owen completes the picture of how pathetic the soldier has become by showing his thoughts. This is particularly effective as the reader is thrown into the soldier’s emotions.
‘How cold and late it is! Why don’t they come
And put him into bed? Why don’t they come?’
This is completely contrasting to what Pope feels. She shows life as being joyless before war but more exciting and prosperous afterwards. This is shown when she states, ‘who wants a turn to himself in the show? And who wants a seat in the stand?’
The techniques that both Pope and Owen use are very different. In ‘Who’s for the Game?’ a lot of rhetorical questioning is used. This is effective as it not only makes the reader think but also, due to the questions, gives the reader more determination. For example,
‘Who’ll grip and tackle the job unafraid?
And who thinks he’d rather sit tight?’
However Owen uses contrasts (already stated) to show the damage war has inflicted upon the young soldier.
Unlike ‘who’s for the game?’ ‘Disabled’ doesn’t have a set rhyme scheme. In the first stanza it is ABACBC, though in fourth stanza it becomes alternating. This is very effective as it creates an unsettled and unpredictable tempo, similar to the soldier’s life. The use of sound is also inconsistent, however does correlate with the rhyme scheme. For example, in the first sestet, ‘He sat in a wheel chair, waiting for dark,’ has ten syllables, it rhymes with line three ‘Legless, sewn short at elbow. Through the park,’ which also consists of ten syllables. The erratic use of sound also creates an inconsistent rhythm.
Now I will look at ‘Dulce et Decorum Est.’ as I have already stated, this poem was also written by Wilfred Owen. The title means ‘it is sweet and right to die for you country.’ In this poem Owen shows the bitter, violent realities of war.
The first octave describes the exhausted soldiers staggering back home. He uses words such as ‘hags’ and a simile ‘like old beggars under sacks,’ to create a horrid picture of the soldiers. Owen also uses onomatopoeia to create an atmosphere, ‘knock-kneed (also alliteration)…sludge…trudge,’ this use of negative sounds shows the reader the true conditions of war, which is a complete contrast to Grenfell’s description where he shows it in a positive way, ‘the naked earth is warm with spring.’ The bitter tone of the poem continues as Owen describes ‘men march asleep. Many had lost their boots but limped on blood-shod,’ this gives the reader the image that the soldiers wore blood, portraying the true conditions of war. Owen also says the soldiers are ‘drunk with fatigue’ this increases the feeling of tiredness and shows how demanding being a soldier is, ‘deaf even to the hoots of tired, outstripped Five-Nines that dropped behind,’ showing they are so worn out that they no longer hear the bombs explode behind them.
In the second stanza the subject changes very dramatically. The sestet begins ‘Gas! Gas! Quick boys!’ this throws the reader into the gas attack as the bitter tone abruptly changes into one of panic. It gives the fearful feeling to the reader; it gives them the soldier’s tiredness and dread.
‘- An ecstasy of fumbling,
Fitting the clumsy, fitting the clumsy helmets just in time;’
This shows the shock and madness of the soldier. It shows that in war, soldiers must expect the unexpected, death can happen anywhere. The quote also describes how uncomfortable and irritating it is to wear the masks.
‘But someone still was yelling out and stumbling
And flound’ring like a man in fire or lime.’
This adds to the fear the reader has been put into as a soldier is in grave danger. Flound’ring’ shows the soldier gasping desperately for air like a fish, it is also evident from ‘stumbling’ that the soldier is lacking any experience, probably due to the fact that so many had died, they couldn’t train the young ones properly. Owen then goes on to explain the gas. ‘Dim, through the misty panes and thick green light, as under a green sea, I saw him drowning. This shows how the smoke is enclosing the soldier, as though he is in the sea, drowning and gasping for air.
Owen structured this poem in a very simple but dramatic way, he uses each stanza to represent a different time. In the third stanza, Owen increases the effectiveness of the soldiers death by showing it will be an everlasting memory; it shows how he can’t help the dying soldier and stop his nightmare. This allows the reader to see all the horrific experiences they will undoubtedly face at war, and how it will stay with them forever. He uses onomatopoeia as he describes the soldier reaching for Owen, ‘guttering’ this builds up the sense of horror and also shows how impossible it was to save the soldier’s life, as the soldier was in a whirlpool (like the water as it goes down the drain of a gutter), where he will eventually disappear in the thick smoke.
In the final stanza, Owen speaks directly to the reader. ‘If in some smothering dream you too…’ this is very effective as it throws the reader into action and makes them part of the poem. Owen also continues using horrific language as he explains how the soldier’s body was disposed after his death.
‘Behind the wagon that we flung him in,
And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin.’
‘Writhing’ creates a strong picture of the soldiers disintegrating face, as though his eyes are going into his face. It also shows weakness as candles usually writher as they are about to die out, which shows the soldiers are becoming increasingly weak. ‘Like devil’s sick of sin,’ Owen uses the devil very effectively here, as satan is associated with darkness, a figure, which thrives upon sin, however this quote suggests that this war has bought so much sin that the devil has become sick of it. Grenfell calls going to war ‘the Destined Will,’(a personification of God), in his opinion going to war is fate, which is a complete contrast to Owen’s opinion. Owen then continues using direct speech, ‘If you could hear…’ he also uses onomatopoeia ‘come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,’ ‘Froth-corrupted’ builds the horror as it describes how the lungs have been destroyed by the evil gas. Near the end of the poem Owen strongly attacks Pope, ‘My friend (sarcastic), you would not tell with such high zest…’ this shows how strongly he hates war and feels about people such as Pope, who have no idea of what war involves, but still boast of it highly. This is also considerable effective to the reader as they also realise how patriotic poets lie. The message Owen is trying to send out is, fighting for your country isn’t right, it will only take you through agonising pain. ‘The old lie: Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori.
Owen and Grenfell use very contrasting techniques in their poems. Owen uses onomatopoeia effectively to create a strong atmosphere and picture in the readers mind, he uses phrases such as ‘gargling’ and guttering.’ Grenfell uses similes and metaphors that link war and nature together, to express how he feels war is natural and everything in nature is equipped for battle. ‘The blackbird sings to him, ‘Brother, Brother’ to emphasise the link between the two.
Like ‘Into battle,’ Owen uses an alternating rhyme scheme in this poem (ABAB ect.), which gives the poem a continuous beat. As already stated, the poem has been very dramatically split into three parts, where the soldiers are walking and are attacked by the gas, the nightmare of the soldier reaching for help and the direct speech and attack on Pope.
Now that I have looked at both types of poems and how they got their messages across, I feel, overall realistic poems are more effective. The reason I think this is because they are more memorable. How Owen, in ‘Disabled’ shows the contrasting life of the ex-war soldier, dramatically shows the after affect of war. Also how the reader is made to feel the soldiers panic through the gas attack and the nightmares, which the soldier has as he helplessly, watches the death of fellow soldiers is also very memorable. However, the main reason that I feel realistic poems are more effective is they directly attack patriotic poets. In ‘Dulce et decorum est,’ Owen attacks Pope ‘My friend…’ this allows the reader to see how patriotic poet’s views are ignorant.
