Owen Forces Readers example essay topic

Life is not easy for soldiers in World War I as Wilfred Owen expresses strongly in his famous poem "Dulce et Decorum est". In the poem, he presents the frightful imagery of World War I. Wilfred Owen also conveys his strongly anti-war sentiments to readers. Through vivid imagery and figurative language, Owen forces readers to experience the war, and therefore gives readers the exact feeling he wants. Owen applies sensory imagery and metaphor to contribute to the power and anti-war sentiment of the poem. Owen writes "Dulce Et Decorum Est" which reveals the truth behind war-the grief and suffering. Owen wants to dismiss the idea of romance as a motivation to fight in the war; young men believe that fighting in the war will make them heroes and that girls will feel passionate about them.

Of course some men do not have an option in the matter; wives and girlfriends choose not to stay with their men if they do not fight in the war, so that men are forced to join the army. In addition, if they do not join the army, the whole society will look down upon them with contempt; they are not men if they do not fight for their country. "Dulce Et Decorum Est" speaks about Owen and his platoon of exhausted soldiers on their way back from the front line and the sudden panic caused when the soldiers are hit unexpectedly with a gas attack. Owen has arranged the poem in four stanzas, each of them dealing with a different stage of this terrible experience. He makes use of a simple, regular rhythm, which helps to emphasize how solemn and serious the content is. The first stanza is about how exhausted the soldiers are after they come back from the front line, and they do not notice there is a gas attack.

The poem begins with a simile, "Bent double, like old beggars under sacks" (1). This not only indicates that they are tired, but also says that they are as tired as beggars who have not slept in a bed for weeks. The last few words of the first line, .".. under sacks", (1) give readers a vivid picture of the heaviness and feeling of the soldiers' uniforms. The second line brings in the aural aspects of suffering by using words "coughing" (2) and "cursed" (2); those words help to depict the soldiers' poor health and their depressed feelings. Owen tries to make readers picture the soldiers as ill, disturbed and completely exhausted. By telling readers that many of the soldiers are barefoot in the fifth line, "Many had lost their boots" (5), Owen gives readers an idea of how awful the soldiers' journey already is; it then gets even worse.

Owen tries to make the readers feel pity for the soldiers and he does this by saying. ".. All went lame, all blind"; (6). This gives readers the image that those soldiers cannot see or hear correctly anymore. He uses the metaphor "Drunk with fatigue; ... ".

(7) to illustrate the tiredness of the soldiers. Owen then tells readers that the soldiers, although they must have been trained for a long time before they are commanded to go fight in the war, they still do not notice the gas attack because of their extreme tiredness. The first stanza ends with that warning: the danger that the soldiers are unaware of. Then there comes the gas attack in the second stanza. Owen starts the second stanza with a shout of danger, "Gas! Gas!

Quick, boys! -An ecstasy of fumbling", (9), which instantly draws the attention of readers. He also uses the expression. ".. an ecstasy of fumbling", (9) to describe the speed and panic of the soldiers as they know how important it is to get their masks on and yet they fail to do so. The word "ecstasy" (9) is used to give readers the impression of the completely panic and fearful, which the soldiers feel when they notice the gas shells.

This is a effective way to depict the horror of the war because it is a strong contrast to the image of the soldiers before they know there is gas attack; at first they trudge through, "Drunk with fatigue; ... " (7), but they are suddenly forced into an "ecstasy of fumbling" (9) by the unexpected gas attack. The poet says, "Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time"; (10), which gives readers the feeling that everyone has their masks on. The description of the gas masks as "clumsy helmets" (10) tells readers that the equipment given to the soldiers is heavy and substandard. Surprisingly, Owen then describes one member of the platoon who is not quick enough in fitting his mask, and he yells out in pain and stumbles around. Readers can feel the terror and pain that soldier goes through as the gas spreads over his entire body.

The simile. ".. found " ring like a man in fire or lime... ". (12) is used to demonstrate the panic created by that poor soldier as he knows he is going to die and this is made bitterer that no one can do anything to help. Owen describes himself when he looks at that soldier "As under a green sea, I saw him drowning". (14). The dying man is described as "drowning".

By using this word, readers can get a clear picture that he suffers from the poison gas severely. It is as if the soldier drowns in the sea and the water takes away the oxygen he needs. That makes him can barely breath and soon slips into death. Although the third stanza is short, it is very important.

Owen makes this stanza short, so that it is different from any other stanzas. This stanza shows that Owen still has nightmares about the gas attack and the death of his man; he cannot escape the torture and suffering his man went through. Therefore, he is also a victim of the gas attack. He uses "my" and "me" to illustrate this. In Owen's dreams, the soldier pleads with Owen for helping him yet Owen can do nothing to help. The last three words: .".. guttering, choking, drowning".

(16), not only show how the soldier is suffering, but also he is in terrible pain that no human being could endure. In the last stanza, Owen uses "you" frequently as he talks directly to readers. This makes the last stanza unique due to Owen has written in third person throughout the poem. "Behind the wagon that we flung him in", (18) reveals Owen and the platoon rush to fight again and the only thing they can do is fling their dead friend into a wagon.

"Obscene as cancer... " is used to tell readers that the pain that soldier goes through is hidden. He is dead because of a hidden weapon inside his body-the toxic gas. The message is given out at the end of the poem, "The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est / Pro patria mori". (27-28). It means, "It is sweet and fitting to die for one's country" in English. Obviously, Owen does not agree with this and he thinks that there is little dignity in the lives of soldiers, and, wars would not make anyone become a hero.

"Dulce Et Decorum Est" is definitely an anti-war poem. It is full of horrifying thoughts and terms putting terrible images into readers' minds. Owen uses good diction, vivid comparisons, and graphic images to have the reader feel disgusted at what war. Wilfred Owen died at the age of 25.

He was killed one week before the end of World War 1, and he is regarded as one of the most well-known war poets. This poem is extremely effective as an anti-war poem for the poet died at such young age. That make war seems absolutely horrible and revolting, just as the author wanted it to. Furthermore, Owen hopes people will change their views on war.