Wilfred Owen

In what ways does the poet draw you into his world?

Wilfred Owen draws the reader into his world by the use of themes such as death, isolation, and dehumanization as well as the horror of war. He brings forth these themes in his poems, most notably Dulce Et Decorum Est (dulce) and Futility, through the use of poetic techniques for example extended metaphors, irony and sense imagery.

In the poem dulce, Owen brings forth the ideas of death, dehumanization and the way it is not sweet and right to die for ones country, as the title suggests. The title of the poem is an allusion to an ode by Horace and is ironic to the content of the poem as it shows how it is not sweet and right. The irony is used to dispel patriotic lies.

Owen uses sense imagery to create a more vivid image of the horrors of war. The use of words such as “guttering, choking, drowning” also help to create a feeling of helplessness and draw the reader in. The people being portrayed in Owen’s poetry are often dehumanized, sometimes to create horror around their death, but other times to show that it is not just individuals who are dying. An example of this is the line “behind the wagon we flung him in” the word flung implies carelessness and depersonalization.

The use of various forms of metonymy throughout dulce helps to engage the reader’s imagination and interest. An example of this is “of tired outstripped five-nines that dropped behind”. There are also several religious images present throughout Owen’s poetry. The line “like a devil’s sick of sin” is not only a religious reference but is also an oxymoron. This oxymoron is used to create an image of the man’s face.

In Owen’s poem futility there are several religious images for example the rhetorical question “was it for this the clay grew tall?” in relation to the creation of man. The whole way through futility the