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How do the poems of Wilfred Owen represent the horrors of the battlefield
Literary impacts of world war 1
Themes of war poetry
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One poem that is full of irony is “Dulce et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen. The very title is ironic which means it is sweet and right to die for your country. His poem talks all about World War I but nothing about it is sweet or shows the honor of dying for one’s country. In this poem, he shares the harsh conditions and grim reality of war. As a soldier he witnessed his friends choking and dying by gas, no glorified death. He saw the real physical and mental exhaustion of these soldiers. He uses irony to get his point across of the truly horrific experiences of men at war. What Foster means is that readers who read linearly do not necessarily see the irony. Irony does not work for some "Because of the multivocal
“The supreme irony of life is that hardly anyone gets out of it alive.” -Robert A. Heinlein. In the short story, “The Possibility of Evil”, the author Shirley Jackson uses irony to develop the traits of the protagonist, Miss Strangeworth, in her small hometown. Throughout the story, there are many examples of irony as Miss Strangeworth goes through her normal day. Irony is an engaging literary device used by authors to expose underlying intentions which become critical to the development of the plot.
Irony is the expression of ones meaning by using language that usually signifies the opposite. There are three different types of irony; verbal, dramatic, and situational. Edgar Allen Poe uses verbal and dramatic irony in The Cask of Amontillado to depict a deeper meaning of Montresor’s hate towards Fortunato.
The Lottery by Shirley Jackson and A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift each use irony to demonstrate the understanding of a political system. People say that politics is a funny business, but no, it is an ironic one bent on making people look like fools. It is because of that people lose faith in the political process.
But don't directly say it. Irony is the use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning. So ironically, these authors show irony. In All the Quiet On The Western Front, Paul gets a letter from his old school teacher raving about how great it is to join the war. Paul is enraged he says, “Iron Youth. Youth! We are none of us more than twenty years old. But young? Youth? That is long ago. We are old folk” (106). Paul gets almost offended by his teacher writing this to them. His teacher is praising them for their actions. Paul and his friends know they’re killing people, and it's making them age rapidly in their heads. No person who kills is young. It's ironic because all these kids are no less than twenty years old. No twenty year old is killing the French for their country, and no French man is twenty when they’re killing Germans. No one on either side is living like any twenty year old. In another poem Dulce Et Decorum Est, our author says, “The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori.” (Doc B) This French quote means that its sweet and honorable to die for your country. But the context of the poem says otherwise. The poem states all these stanzas of sick words that are telling you the complete opposite. This ironic poem is also stating that your country and family will love you for what you did. But they will be blind for what actually happened. These
This type of irony involves a situation in which actions have an effect that opposing from what was initially intended, so that the outcome is contrary to what was anticipated.When the Buna camp was threatened to be reached and liberated by the Red Army, the prisoners were evacuated the next morning. At this time Elie was in the hospital, and was certain he would likely be killed by the time the SS army was ready to leave, as a sick prisoner would slow the rest of the group down, and was worthless to them. Elie then decides to join the ranks and leave with the rest of the evacuees. Elie learns in post, “after the war the fate of those who had stayed behind in the hospital. They were quite simply liberated by the Russians two days after the evacuation” (). This quote is very ironic in a depressing way because it was unexpected that those who remained at the infirmary would be liberated, and Elie ultimately chose more cruelty and suffering by deciding to follow the others. The situational irony of Wiesel bandwagoning off popular opinion, when the situation could have been a lot smoother otherwise, is a numbing sensation of devastation. As a result, the evacuation of Auschwitz rather than immediately leading to their freedom, the Jews were imprisoned for another three months instead of being liberated by the Red Army. Elie Wiesel shows situational irony in other forms other than only
What is irony? Irony is a figure of speech in which the intended meaning is actually the opposite of what is expressed by the words the author used. This technique is used to ridicule or mock a particular subject by expressing laudatory remarks, but implying contempt and denigration. There are several examples of irony in the novel _All_Quiet_on_the_Western_Front_ by Erich Maria Remarque, a realistic, yet fabricated account of a soldier's experience in an international war. The lighthearted irony quickly transitions into dark satire with the use of dramatic irony, the setting, and situational irony to mock the glorification of war and introduce reality.
1. Irony is a useful device for giving stories many unexpected twists and turns. In Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour," irony is used very effectively in her story. Situational irony is used to show the reader what is assumed to happen sometimes doesn't. Dramatic irony is used to hint to the reader something is happening to the characters in the story that they do not know about. Irony is used throughout Chopin's "The Story of an Hour" through the use of situational irony and the use of dramatic irony.
Both Stephen Crane's "Do Not Weep, Maiden, For War Is Kind" and Wilfred Owen's "Dulce et Decorum Est" use vivid images, diction rich with connotation, similes, and metaphors to portray the irony between the idealized glory of war and the lurid reality of war. However, by looking at the different ways these elements are used in each poem, it is clear that the speakers in the two poems are soldiers who come from opposite ends of the spectrum of military ranks. One speaker is an officer and the other is a foot soldier. Each of the speakers/soldiers is dealing with the repercussions from his own realities of the horror of war based on his duty during the battle.
“In what ways does the poet draw you into the world of poetry? Detailed reference to 2 poems”
The story "Camp Harmony" by Monica Sone shows a great amount of irony. Starting with the name of the camp, "Camp Harmony" is an interment camp, this is where all people with Japanese ancestry where put in confinement during World War ll, and there is no "Harmony" about the camp at all. Also it is very ironic when the family goes to there cabin and find dandelions on the floor and plans to make a garden. " Cultivate them! If we don't watch out, these things will be growing in our hair." The author puts out the irony of how they are growing a lovely, happy, colorful garden even though they are in an gloomy, dull, sober camp.
Both Wilfred Owen’s “Dulce et Decorum Est” as well as “next to of course god america i” written by E.E. Cummings preform critic on war propaganda used during the first world war. Besides this the influence war propaganda has on the soldiers as individuals as well as on war in more general terms, is being portrayed in a sophisticated and progressive manner. By depicting war with the use of strong literary features such as imagery or sarcasm both texts demonstrate the harshness of war as well as attempt to convey that war propaganda is, as Owen states “an old lie”, and that it certainly is not honourable to die for one’s country. Therefore, the aim of both writers can be said to be to frontally attack any form of war promotion or support offensively
The poem ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ by Wilfred Owen portrays the horrors of World War I with the horrific imagery and the startling use of words he uses. He describes his experience of a gas attack where he lost a member of his squadron and the lasting impact it had on him. He describes how terrible the conditions were for the soldiers and just how bad it was. By doing this he is trying to help stop other soldiers from experiencing what happened in a shortage of time.
One example of dramatic irony is when Oedipus is looking for the killer of the king Laius-his father. The irony here is that he is looking for himself because he is the murder of his father. Oedipus knows that he killed someone, but what he does not know is that it was Laius, the one he murder. Oedipus wants to punish the person who killed Laius, but we, the audience know that Oedipus was the one who killed Laius. Also Oedipus married Jocasta without knowing that she is his mother. We, the audience knew that he was Jocasta's son, but he was unaware of that.
Irony appears in several parts of “The Ransom of Red Chief.” In the beginning, Johnny goes from being the one captured to holding his captors hostage. He literally takes Bill captive during their game, and the men become his captives when he declines to return to his family after Sam and Bill have realized that they made a big mistake taking this child. Another ironic accident in the story is when Sam mails
“War is kind” by Stephen Crane is the perfect example of irony. It also ties many war themes together nicely and is similar to “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”, “Drummer Boy of Shiloh”, and “O Captain My Captain” in various underlying ways. Even though it shares themes with other poems, it brings creative views on war onto paper and introduces all of the pains focused on in the other passages into one.