the soldier Flashcards
who was it written by and some brief life info?
Rupert Brooke (1914)
He was a soldier but in 1915 died from septicaemia from a mosquito bite whilst serving in the royal navy
Despite his death early in the war, Brooke is considered a war poet. The poem was read in St Paul’s Cathedral on Easter Sunday 1915 and published in the Times which highlights Brooke’s popularity and the poem’s influence.
what is the form and structure like?
Shakespearean sonnet which could link to the patriotic message of the poem.
2 stanzas - octave and sestet
In the first stanza (octave) he talks about how his grave will be England herself. In the second stanza (sestet) the physical is left behind in favour of the spiritual.
what are the key themes?
The poem sums up the idealistic pre-war attitude of 1914 (it was well received). This idealism faded as the death count grew and the poem fell out of favour.
The poem glorifies England during WW1 and it represents the ideals that led many men to enlist in the war early on.
what is the historical and literary context?
Historical Context: Written during and about World War 1. Brooke fought in the war and died of a mosquito bite in 1915.
The poem was read out during a sermon in St Paul’s Cathedral and published in The Times - traditional, conservative views reflected in the classical form.
Literary Context: The sonnet form enables a lyrical exposition of the poet’s theme -‘The Soldier’ could be considered a love poem for England, the ultimate patriotic hymn. Over time the poem has fallen out of favour - viewed as propaganda.
Brooke was one of the Georgian poets, a group who wished to make poetry accessible to a wider reading public. In later years “Georgian” came to be a pejorative term, used in a sense not intended by its progenitors: rooted in its period and looking backward rather than forward. .
quote 1: ‘if I should die think only this of me’ what could you say about this?
Use of first person pronoun, Brooke is writing in the voice of a soldier. The conditional ‘if’ indicates his optimism about the war and survival. He uses the imperative to command the reader like a solider.
quote 2: ‘That there’s some corner of of a foreign field/ that is for ever England’ what could you say about this?
Figuratively suggests that by dying in a foreign place he will be turning it into England. ‘some corner’ = colloquial/derogatory? implies England is superior
quote 3: ‘A body of England’s, breathing English air/ washed by the rivers, blest by the suns of home’
Positive features of nature imply nationalistic pride The imagery is typical of the Georgian poets, known for their frequent mediations in the English countryside and pride in pre-industrial England. An example of holy imagery- ‘washed by rivers’ = baptism? ‘blest’ also.
quote 4: ‘A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware’ what could you say about this?
England personified as a woman. Metaphor of England giving birth to the speaker.
quote 5: ‘Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam’ what could you say about this?
Listing allows him to highlight multiple attributes and suggest that England is wonderful in many ways. Also creates a sense that this supremacy will continue.
quote 6: ‘In hearts at peace, under an English heaven’ what could you say about this?
Alludes to English supremacy and religious imagery reinforced. Could show how God is within England and further presents pro-war attitude/opinions
