Dulce et decorum est - Wilfred Owen Flashcards
true of false?
Owen fought in WW1
true
he was 18 when he got enlisted
why was Owen critical of his fellow troops
due to there poor behavior
what happened to Owen in 1916
he fell into a shell hole and suffered concussion
he was blown up by a trench mortar
what was Owen diagnosed with and where did he go
shell shock send to edinburgh for treatment
why did Owen return to active service
he felt it was his duty to add to his friends voice (Sassoon) about the reality of WW1
why did Owen want to be awarded with the military cross
so he could prove he was a war poet
when did Owen die
in battle, a weak before WW1 ended
is this a propaganda poem
no! he had direct opposition of WW1 propaganda and thought that war shouldn’t be glorified
what weapon was used in WW1
chlorine gas
what is the title shortened for in English
it is sweet and proper to die for ones country
why is the title important
it was commonly used between pro war supporters
what is the importance of the title of this poem
the title expresses a pro war sentiment and so we expect it to be positive
however Owen subverts these expectations and uses this pro war phrase in an ironic way
he had first hand experiences on why war is so bad
“bent double, like old beggars under sacks, knock-kneed, coughing like hags”
the similes emphasises how broken and weak war has left the soldiers
what is the effect of the enjambment in the first stanza
mirrors the long journey ahead of the soldiers
“blood-shot”
suggests that their feet are bloody, emphasizing the brutality of war
“gas shells dropping softly behind”
the oxymoron “dropping softly” highlights the soldiers exhaustion as the world makes no sense to them
what could the caesura symbolise
the stop-start journey of the soldiers
how has Owen created a sense of exhaustion in this stanza
creates a semantic field of exhaustion to reject the traditional images of heroism in war poetry
“Gas!Gas!”
creates a sense of urgency
“quick boys!”
highlights the sense of panic
“fumbling” “stumbling”
unprepared, rejecting the traditional image of wartime heroism
“clumsy helmets”
Owen reinforces the idea that the soldiers were not expecting the gas attack
what is the importance in Owen comparing the gas attack to a fire
the triadic strucutre of similes amplifies the sense of suffering experienced by the soldier
“In all my dreams”
possible reference to shellshocked - the persona is haunted by this event and it plagues all there dreams
