Introduction Men suffer greatly during war. If you’ve watched any of Ken Burn’s war documentaries, you know what I’m talking about. The suffering of American men during the Civil War, WWI and especially WWII are widely known, spoken, and written about. But, what about those poor British men that suffered during WWI? Why is their part in this war, and the suffering they endured, not as often written about? Are their memories, and WW1 itself slowly becoming yet another Korean war – a so-called “forgotten war?” In this blog, I will be focusing on Wilfred Owen, his tragic death, and the hauntingly beautiful poems he left behind. Brief History of WWI To give you a brief history lesson: WW1 was fought between 1914 and 1918. In WW1, Britain was part of the Allied Powers. The Allied Powers were made up of France, Russia, Italy, and the United States. The Allied powers were fighting against the Central Powers, made up of Austria-Hungry, Germany, Bulgaria, and the Ottoman Empire. Like WWII, the beginning of WWI first began and was primarily fought in Europe (Howard 1). WW1 ushered in a completely different kind of warfare, “The men and women who served in the First World War endured some of the most brutal forms of warfare ever known. Millions were sent to fight away from home for months, even years at a time, and underwent a series of terrible physical and emotional experiences. The new technologies available to First World War armies combined with the huge number of men mobilised made the battlefields of 1914-18 horrific, deadly and terrifying places” (Wilcox). The brutality that soldiers endured in WWI inspired countless works of poetry and literature. This video shows the effect that WW1 had on the minds and bodies of combat veterans: Wilfred Owen (1893-1918) In his short life of just twenty-five years, Wilfred Owen wrote many poems about his experiences as a British soldier in WW1. Before he tragically died on the battlefields of France, his poems were largely written in 1918, in the town of Yorkshire, England. His most popular poems today are, “Anthem for Doomed Youth” and “Dulce at Decorum Est” (Wilfred Owen, British Library). “Anthem for Doomed Youth” What passing-bells for these who die as cattle? — Only the monstrous anger of the guns. Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle Can patter out their hasty orisons. No mockeries now for them; no prayers nor bells; Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs,-- The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells; And bugles calling for them from sad shires. What candles may be held to speed them all? Not in the hands of boys, but in their eyes Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes. The pallor of girls' brows shall be their pall; Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds, And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds. (via the poetryfoundation.org) Owen’s poetry is emotional and painful to read. Just the first line of this poem, “What passing-bells for these who die as cattle” shows his true feelings about warfare and soldiering. By comparing soldiers dying to cattle dying, he is showing the wastefulness and futility of war. This poem seems to transport you to the battle, and you feel as though your cloths are soaked with mud and blood. In this particular poem, he also writes of the sacrifice these boys and men are making, “Not in the hands of boys, but in their eyes / Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbye.” Just with this line, one can imagine what this poor man witnessed, and the deep wounds that this experience left him with. “Dolce at 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 gas-shells dropping softly 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. (via the poetryfoundation.org) This poem, I think, is much more vivid than the first. In this poem, he touches on the topic of trenches, how terrible they were, and the conditions that they created, “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.” Similar to “Anthem for Doomed Youth,” the images he conjures are horrific. This poem is also more personal than the first, “In all my dreams before my helpless sight, He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.” He is obviously haunted by his memories. When reading these poems, moderns readers would most likely say, “He probably had PTSD,” but what I see when I read this poem is the heartache and sorrow of a broken man, of whom has witnessed things no man of such a young age should witness. To read more about the fallen, and to visit a memorial for WW1 British soldiers, visit: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/story-of-england/20th-century/london-wwi-memorials/ Works Cited: British Library. Wilfred Owen. https://www.bl.uk/people/wilfred-owen Howard, Michael. The First World War: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, 2007. Print. Wilcox, Vanda. Combat and the Soldier’s Experience in the First World War. British Library 2014.
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