Dulce Et Decorum Est Heroism

“This book is not about heroes...Nor is it about deeds, or lands, or anything about glory, honour, might, majesty, dominion, or power, except War” (“Preface” W. Owen). Wilfred Owen wrote this in May of 1918 as a draft for the preface of a book of poetry he was hoping to publish. Owen never got a chance to rewrite this draft or publish a book of his poems. He died six months later on November 4, 1918, while leading his troops across the Sambre Canal. Owen’s poetry stands as a testament to the brutality of the First World War. “Dulce et Decorum est” exemplifies the “pity” that Owen spoke about in his draft preface. This pity was the manipulation of thousands of young working class men by the rich. The rich lead the young men to believe that …show more content…
War heros have been immortalized as saints and mythologized. One wonders if Owen was thinking about becoming the next Achilles or Saint George as he crossed the English channel. When he arrived he was “struck by the difference between the grotesque reality of the war zone and the appallingly inaccurate depictions of the war at home” (Graalman). He realized that he was been exploited. Tricked into suffering with the promise of glory. Much like how the poor he grew up around were back home. This realization led Owen to write “Dulce et Decorum est” in 1917 …show more content…
The poem stands to admonish the upper class for their blatant manipulation of the general public through propaganda. Laurence Mazzeno argues that Owen is giving readers “bitter advice… about… the outcome of blind patriotism” (Mazzeno). But, these men weren’t blinded by devotion, they were blinded by manipulation. Lower class young men saw the war as a chance to make something of themselves. They thought that the war would was a chance to rise up from poverty and make something of themselves. They were determined to die heros, not in a factory fire like their mother, or of alcoholism like their father, or of consumption like their younger sister. Becoming a war hero allows for class mobility that they would otherwise never have been able to attain. Unfortunately, they were blinded by the same manipulation their ancestors were the victims of fifty years prior. They suffered and died to maintain the wealth of the upper classes. There was no glory in having your corpse flung onto a cart (“Dulce et…” W. Owen 18) like the carcass of a dead animal on its way to the butcher. They were not blinded by patriotism; they were blinded by capitalism. The intense desire to rise up. The belief that you have the ability to change your economic circumstances and should, no matter what the