The Solider Flashcards
Who wrote the solider?
Rupert Brooke
What is the context of Rupert Brooke?
- enlisted to fight in WWI broke out in 1914 (27 - a man)
- educated in university of Cambridge (popular and good connection)
- before WWI he travelled to US, Canada (travel diaries) and suffered homesickness from time to time (strong connection to England)
- wrote a sequence of sonnets (1914) and solider is the last one in this
- the solider made him famous - matches people’s opinions before war
- died in 1915 (before war!) - never actually fought in WWI
- buried in Greece
What effect does the title ‘the solider’ have?
- ‘the’ shows he is important and even a generic man (represents every solider)
How does the poet’s persona show the poem as the last wish of the dead?
‘Think only this of me’
- makes it seem that the poet’s last wish is this
- makes reader bias as the reader is forced to feel or think in a certain way
What shows that the writer only values England?
‘There’s some corner of a foreign field’
- determiners some and a create a vague sounding line - shows they don’t care about this location - one of many and unremarkable
- shows the persona doesn’t care about this space as it’ ‘foreign’ and not naturally English
- blest by suns of ‘home’
- home refers to England = persona feel strongly about it
How does the poet show imperialistic views?
- imperialism = belief that you can extend a country’s power through military force and colonisation
- plot of land will be ‘for ever England’ as the soldier is buried there shows that they will be taking it over
- British imperialism created tension between Britain and Germany and may have been a contributing factor in WWI
How does the poet show that English is better than not English?
- ‘in that rich earth a richer dust concealed’
- foreign soil is ‘rich’ but ‘richer’ soil remains (thus better)
- shows nationalistic pride
- ‘richer dust’ is also a euphemism for death (said in a more softer and lighter way) - persona of solider may not be ready to die
- ‘dust’ also makes it more insignificant - downplaying it? To make it easier and less emotional for the reader?
How is England personified?
‘England bore, shaped, made aware’ = England is compared to a mother = highlights the personas loyalty and protectiveness of England (like men left home to protect mothers and wives)
How does the persona show admiration for ‘England’?
- repeated many times in 2nd stanza = shows deep love for the country - almost obsessive = very devoted to their country
How does caesura effect the poem?
- slows down the pace of the poem - reflective
How does Brooke describe the persona’s return to England?
‘Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day;
- positive so England is positive - Almost idyllic
What shows the persona is aware of the reality of the battlefield?
- ‘in hearts at peace, under an English heaven’
- peace contrasts with war = shows battlefields will not be peaceful or nice
- English heaven = positive and euphemistic- associated with death but also suggests that dying for their country is glorious and righteousness
- heaven in English = has to be - shows their attitude towards of war and death
- doesn’t discuss the harsh reality of war - Maybe because Brooke never went? - propaganda?
How is language used to show England as a utopia?
- richer dust = superiors
- ‘all evil shed away’ = pure
- ‘washed by the wives’ = clean
- ‘flowers roaming’ ‘blest by suns’ ‘heaven’ = Eden - like
- Brooke uses a semantic field of Utopianism in his presentation on England, reflecting the patriotic thoughts of a soon to be solider
What is the form of this poem?
- it’s a sonnet (type of love poem) - 14 lines long
- iambic pentameter (mostly ) - except a few lines which relate to what England has given them or what they will give - England gave them so much it’s overflowing? (11 syllables instead of 10)
- octet shows solider that might die, Volta, sestet changes to what England gave to persona
- rhyme scheme of a typical sonnets
- Almost a perfect sonnet - just how perfect England is?
What are the themes of ‘the solider’?
- love = devotion for England
- war = about a solider - but less about actual fighting
- place = about England
- man = about man’s relationship with his country
- death = foregrounded in the poem’s first line - preparation for death is always there
