DULCE ET DECORUM EST
Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,
Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,
Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs
And towards our distant rest began to trudge.
Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots
But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind;
Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots
Of tired, outstripped Five-Nines that dropped behind.
Gas! Gas! Quick, boys!—An ecstasy of fumbling,
Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time;
But someone still was yelling out and stumbling
And flound'ring like a man in fire or lime...
Dim, through the misty panes and thick green light,
As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.
In all my dreams, before my helpless sight,
He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.
If in some smothering dreams you too could pace
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;
If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood
Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,
Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud
Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,—
My friend, you would not tell with such high zest
To children ardent for some desperate glory,
The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est
Pro patria mori.
Wilfred Owen was born in 1893 in Shropshire, England. Teaching in France at the start of World War I, he joined the army in 1915. During that time met and befriended many writers, including Sigfried Sassoon, Robert Graves, and H.G. Wells. He died in battle one week before the end of the war, and his parents heard of his death while the armistice bells were ringing. He would become one of the most admired war poets of all time. At a time when accounts of war were heavily romanticized, Wilfred Owen's poetry was blunt and real. Having been swayed to volunteer for service in World War I in part by the glory of war, Owen felt it was his duty to relay the harsher truth, writing in a letter to his mother: "All a poet can do today is warn." His best known poem: Dulce et Decorum Est, is brutal even by today's standards.
This poem is a striking portrayal of war, and the devastating effects that it leaves behind. The poem illustrates the ruthlessness of war, and vividly describes the deadly situations that constantly face the soldiers. It also focuses on how war can completely dehumanize people, by shattering them physically as well as emotionally.
By displaying horrific scenarios that were so often part of the war, the poem shows exactly how merciless war is. The death of a soldier is graphically painted, so as to give responders a taste of what soldiers were frequently confronted with. A clear picture of an appalling scene can be put into the responders' minds through visual alliteration, as seen in "watch the white eyes writhing".
The horrors of war are further emphasized in "guttering, choking, drowning", where the repetition of the present participle builds up the obvious pain of the dying man. The employment of onomatopoeia also helps to illustrate the shocking circumstances, used in "gargling". Visual elements have already been established; the use of sound evokes our emotions even more. War is shown to put people through a harsh pain, a suffering that they should not have to endure. Besides being cruel, war is also portrayed as being an experience that dehumanises and ruins the lives of those involved in it. The soldiers are depicted as being worn out and weighed down with exhaustion, close to giving up. The use of similes helps to convey the message forcefully, as shown in "like old beggars under sacks" and "coughing like hags." The comparisons are easy for responders to relate to, making the incidents seem substantially more realistic. The weariness of the situation is emphasized in "tired, outstripped Five-Nines", where personification is used to give the impression that even the surroundings are drained of energy. Owen's poem is very successful at depicting war as revolting and unnecessary. The whole poem contains the feeling of lost hope, pain and suffering, completely contradicting the title, "Dulce et Decorum Est." War is shown not to be an honourable or sweet situation to die in, but unforgiving and deadly- an experience not easily survived, nor easily forgotten.
The poem has a message to convey; war is an ugly, brutal and nightmarish business. Owen called this poem a ‘gas poem’, attacking the patriotism of those people who have never experienced war first-hand, and who advocate that it is fitting to die for one’s country. "Dulce Et Decorum Est" is a reactionary poem. Owen reacts to a horrible war and to the lie being told about war. He shows us his reaction through the realism of his language. This poem is extremely effective as an anti-war poem, making war seem absolutely horrid and revolting, just as the author wanted it to.
Finally, Owen juxtaposes the idea of war as devastating and the idea of war as heroic to illustrate the poem's ultimate irony - "Dulce Et Decorum Est, Pro Patria Mori"1. How sweet it is to die for your country.”
