Dulce et Decorum Est

Question 1

Themes

Answer 1

• Pain and Suffering
• Death and Loss
• Effects of War
• Negative Emotions

Question 2

Subject

Answer 2

• the poem describes the suffering of exhausted soldiers marching away from battle - in this they are attacked by chlorine gas and the narrator sees someone die and he is haunted by this memory
• The narrator paints a graphic picture of the soldier’s injury and uses his own experiences to warn against those that tell that fighting for your country is honourable

Question 3

Title - “Dulce et Decorum Est”

Answer 3

• it is sweet and right
• Latin shows that people don’t understand why they are fighting for their country
• Latin tricks others into thinking that it is prestigious and traditional for England making it honourable

Question 4

Imagery

Answer 4

• Shows how war has taken from them,
  
  • youth “old” - masculinity “hags”
• They have become broken
  
  • “lame” “blind” “drunk” “deaf”
• It also shows how unprepared they were
  
  • “clumsy” “fumbling” “stumbling”

Question 5

Shocking imagery

Answer 5

-He uses shocking vivid imagery to show the difference between this and the propaganda shown at the time
“watch the white eyes, writhing in his face”
“froth-corrupted lungs”
“obscene as cancer, bitter as cud”

Question 6

Language - sibilance - “gas shells dropping softly behind”

Answer 6

-soft sounds showing that they were not aware of the danger and this is then broken by the sudden increase of pace on the next line - given by the exclamation marks
“Gas! Gas! Quick, boys!”

Question 7

Language - 3rd stanza present tense

Answer 7

-shows how he is haunted by this memory and how it repeats in his mind
the “-ing” endings show how immediate it is and how inescapable

Question 8

Language - repetition of “drowning”

Answer 8

shows how it is stuck in his mind - also repeats

Question 9

Language - in the last stanza he refers directly to the reader

Answer 9

-“you too” “if you could hear”
-appeals to the reader’s sense of sound to try to help them understand the reality of war
invokes empathy

Question 10

Language - “innocence” “children”

Answer 10

-emphasises soldiers innocence

Question 11

Tone

Answer 11

• Suffering - exhaustion, real risk of dying painfully how he suffers emotionally
• Criticism - he wants to dismiss the idea that fighting for your country will bring honour and glory

Question 12

Structure overall progression

Answer 12

• serious tone at the start showing the reality of war
• shows a specific memory and how it still affects him
• then a direct appeal to the reader

Question 13

Structure - rhyme scheme

Answer 13

-regular ABAB which reflects the relentlessness of war

Question 14

Structure - use of enjambment and caesurae

Answer 14

-they create a disjointed rhythm/pace and variable pace, irregular stanza length and metre add to the uncertainty of war