Renowned as being one of the most influential and prominent voices of the First World War, Wilfred Owen wrote powerful and inspirational works, but such only became pertinent after his tragic death in 1918. Owen was born in Oswestry in 1893 and spent most of his life growing up in Birkenhead and Shrewsbury. It was always Owen’s lifelong passion to become a poet; beginning to write verse at the age of 17. After failing in his endeavours to gain entry into the University of England, Owen started teaching in France at the Berlitz, the School of English. This educated Owen in his chosen field of literature but he became abundantly engrossed in World War 1, evidently enlisting himself in the Artists Rifle Group which led to him being commissioned
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The cruelties and futilities of war are the main substance that shaped and moulded Owen’s poems and with the highly pertinent event of the First World War World being extremely engrossed in the world at that time, his works became quite contradictory of the bulk of views in society. The majority of the society at this time believed that going to war or into battle was to be encouraged and this was reinforced by the propaganda and patriotism that was conveyed by the government. They engaged individuals by appealing to their honour and courage to mobilisation by shame to try and validate the righteousness of war to society who really had no real background towards the issue. Owen used his works to shed light on the real futilities of war and through is experiences express to society that war should in no means be fortified. Many of Owen’s more notable poems were written under Sassoon’s guidance and encouragement and he would not have become such a prominent poet with his endeared influence. At times Owen’s work illustrated and portrayed quite graphically the stark and unheard of horrors of human warfare. His poetry was a representation of a clear cut contrast to poetry driven by patriotism that overwhelmed society throughout the dark era of the First World
The cruelties and futilities of war are the main substance that shaped and moulded Owen’s poems and with the highly pertinent event of the First World War World being extremely engrossed in the world at that time, his works became quite contradictory of the bulk of views in society. The majority of the society at this time believed that going to war or into battle was to be encouraged and this was reinforced by the propaganda and patriotism that was conveyed by the government. They engaged individuals by appealing to their honour and courage to mobilisation by shame to try and validate the righteousness of war to society who really had no real background towards the issue. Owen used his works to shed light on the real futilities of war and through is experiences express to society that war should in no means be fortified. Many of Owen’s more notable poems were written under Sassoon’s guidance and encouragement and he would not have become such a prominent poet with his endeared influence. At times Owen’s work illustrated and portrayed quite graphically the stark and unheard of horrors of human warfare. His poetry was a representation of a clear cut contrast to poetry driven by patriotism that overwhelmed society throughout the dark era of the First World