Dulce Et Decorum Est

Question 1

Start quote (1)

Answer 1

‘Bent double, like old beggars’ implies soldiers have been physically broken by war. Owen uses a simile to show that soldiers have lost their youth and have aged prematurely.

Question 2

Start quote (2)

Answer 2

‘Gas!Gas!’ the repetition with exclamation marks Shows the urgency and the change of pace between stanza one and stanza two

Question 3

Middle quote (1)

Answer 3

‘Like a man in fire or lime’ simile to draw attention to the soldiers painful death. Soldier vulnerable

Question 4

Middle quote (2)

Answer 4

‘Guttering, choking , drowning’ list of verbs to show desperation, and the continuation of present tense, since he is reliving it

Question 5

End quote (1)

Answer 5

‘High zest’ enthusiasm – addressing Jesse Pope since her poetry encouraged men to join war. Therefore, Owen uses a sarcastic and bitter tone.

Question 6

End quote (2)

Answer 6

‘The old lie:’ half line to represent the soldiers life cut short. Those who went to war knows, it’s a lie because there’s nothing sweet or fitting about it.

Question 7

Structure and form

Answer 7

Follows an ABAB, CDCD rhyme pattern. Wilfred Owen uses literary devices like similes and sound devices to display the pure brutality and hidden truth of World War I.

Question 8

Personal response

Answer 8

I like the poem, because it clearly demonstrates the truthful reality and unseen side of war