Wilfred Owen 's “Arms and the Boy” is a creepily and finely detailed work of art. To accomplish such a feat, it is important to focus on Owen 's use of diction throughout the work. Wilfred Owen implicates a very formal tone despite the fact that the poem is about the atrocities of war. Owen 's use of the words “boy” (1) and “lads” (6) instead of using words such as “kids” or “guy” indicate the formality of the tone used throughout the poem. Any other words would have led to the potential collection of colloquial words that would make this poem a rather informal one. In addition to the Owen 's word choice, his mellifluous third person usage aids the formal tone the poem carries (Schacht Web). Employment of either first or second person would
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One must note that the description of the weapon as being “cold” (2) and “keen with hunger of blood” (2) all come back to express the idea that Owen tries to express: war is brutal. Words such as “malice” (3), “madman” (3), “famishing” (4), “sharp”(8), and “hunger” (2) all work together to paint a vivid image of the cruelty a young boy faces during the gruesome war. Owen 's choice of words imbue the reader 's mind with a feeling of sympathy for the simple, naive young boy who transforms into a “madman” that strokes the bayonet while he is “famishing for flesh”. In addition, alliteration used in the poem, such as “blind blunt bullet-leads” and “famishing for flesh” depict savage thoughts and the actuality of the cruelty of such murderous weapons. The words are also put in such a way that, if pronunciated sharply, add more of a harsh and aggressive emphasis on the cruelty the young boy faces in a war that is not made for people like him. To end the poem, Owen uses diction such as “antlers” and “talons” (two weapon-like and very violent words) to describe things that God does not have and therefore did not …show more content…
In addition, each line contains around ten syllables each and all end in an assonance or consonance. Although the subject is a very violent one, Owen maintains formality throughout the poem. There is little to no repetition but there is an evident amount of rhyming. Slant rhymes and eye rhymes are especially noted in the poem (Rios Web). For example, “Blue with... flash” (3) and “And thinly... flesh” (4) as well as “Or give him.... teeth” (7) and “Sharp with... death” (8) shows clear and very distinct usage of eye rhymes. Furthermore, farther down the poem, the same is seen later on in the poem when one reads “For his teeth... apple” (9) and “There lurk no claws... supple” (10). Also, each stanza seems to start off with a simple sentence and then continues onto a complex sentence. Wilfred Owen uses the long, complex sentences to pile detail after detail in order to illustrate every single gruesome detail of the weapon and war. The extensive sentences demonstrate the enormity of corruption of the young boy. On the other hand, Owen uses the quick simple sentences to stress a key idea. For example, Owen states “For his teeth seem for laughing round an apple.” (9) to express a rapid idea. With this simple sentence, Owen introduces talk about the boy having teeth that are not weapons, unlike the “zing teeth” (7), to introduce a contradicting factor. In addition, the poem is rich
One must note that the description of the weapon as being “cold” (2) and “keen with hunger of blood” (2) all come back to express the idea that Owen tries to express: war is brutal. Words such as “malice” (3), “madman” (3), “famishing” (4), “sharp”(8), and “hunger” (2) all work together to paint a vivid image of the cruelty a young boy faces during the gruesome war. Owen 's choice of words imbue the reader 's mind with a feeling of sympathy for the simple, naive young boy who transforms into a “madman” that strokes the bayonet while he is “famishing for flesh”. In addition, alliteration used in the poem, such as “blind blunt bullet-leads” and “famishing for flesh” depict savage thoughts and the actuality of the cruelty of such murderous weapons. The words are also put in such a way that, if pronunciated sharply, add more of a harsh and aggressive emphasis on the cruelty the young boy faces in a war that is not made for people like him. To end the poem, Owen uses diction such as “antlers” and “talons” (two weapon-like and very violent words) to describe things that God does not have and therefore did not …show more content…
In addition, each line contains around ten syllables each and all end in an assonance or consonance. Although the subject is a very violent one, Owen maintains formality throughout the poem. There is little to no repetition but there is an evident amount of rhyming. Slant rhymes and eye rhymes are especially noted in the poem (Rios Web). For example, “Blue with... flash” (3) and “And thinly... flesh” (4) as well as “Or give him.... teeth” (7) and “Sharp with... death” (8) shows clear and very distinct usage of eye rhymes. Furthermore, farther down the poem, the same is seen later on in the poem when one reads “For his teeth... apple” (9) and “There lurk no claws... supple” (10). Also, each stanza seems to start off with a simple sentence and then continues onto a complex sentence. Wilfred Owen uses the long, complex sentences to pile detail after detail in order to illustrate every single gruesome detail of the weapon and war. The extensive sentences demonstrate the enormity of corruption of the young boy. On the other hand, Owen uses the quick simple sentences to stress a key idea. For example, Owen states “For his teeth seem for laughing round an apple.” (9) to express a rapid idea. With this simple sentence, Owen introduces talk about the boy having teeth that are not weapons, unlike the “zing teeth” (7), to introduce a contradicting factor. In addition, the poem is rich