Wilfred Owen, an English soldier during World War 1, experienced horrific events during the war, and decided to write about the nightmare that he experienced. Owen’s “Dulce et Decorum Est,” is a testament to the nightmare and horrors of war. Through visual, auditory and gustatory imagery, Owen brings his readers back to the time of war, and into his nightmare.
Owen uses visual imagery to reduce the men from heroes to weaklings. They are now weak, fearful, and sick. In the poem, Owen writes, “But someone was still yelling out and stumbling/ and flound’ring around like a man in fire or lime.” Owen is watching this young boy die; he could have shared his oxygen with his fellow soldier and saved his life, but he chooses not to. You can imagine how somebody “yelling out” would sound and you can picture that in your mind. The words “fire or lime” are strong words because a body would burn in fire and lime. Another line that creates visual and imagery is “Bent double, like old beggars under sacks, Knock-kneed,/ coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge.” You can picture what it looks like to be “bent doubled” and “knocked-kneed,” and what “coughing like hags” would sound like. You can also hear …show more content…
Owen states, “If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs, Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues.” People often think of gargling as choking on water or struggling to breath. Most people have tasted blood before, or have cold sores on their tongue so you can imagine what that taste like in your mouth, and most people can relate to how this soldier is feeling and the discomfort on his tongue. Owen compares war to cancer. He is saying that the problem of war can not be fixed, just like cancer could not be cured back during that time period. Owen wants you to have empathy of the dying
Owen uses visual imagery to reduce the men from heroes to weaklings. They are now weak, fearful, and sick. In the poem, Owen writes, “But someone was still yelling out and stumbling/ and flound’ring around like a man in fire or lime.” Owen is watching this young boy die; he could have shared his oxygen with his fellow soldier and saved his life, but he chooses not to. You can imagine how somebody “yelling out” would sound and you can picture that in your mind. The words “fire or lime” are strong words because a body would burn in fire and lime. Another line that creates visual and imagery is “Bent double, like old beggars under sacks, Knock-kneed,/ coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge.” You can picture what it looks like to be “bent doubled” and “knocked-kneed,” and what “coughing like hags” would sound like. You can also hear …show more content…
Owen states, “If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs, Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues.” People often think of gargling as choking on water or struggling to breath. Most people have tasted blood before, or have cold sores on their tongue so you can imagine what that taste like in your mouth, and most people can relate to how this soldier is feeling and the discomfort on his tongue. Owen compares war to cancer. He is saying that the problem of war can not be fixed, just like cancer could not be cured back during that time period. Owen wants you to have empathy of the dying