The Tradition Of War Poetry

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The Tradition Of War Poetry

By comparing and contrasting a selection of war poems consider the

ways in which attitudes to war have been explored and expressed. When

considering poetry written post 1900 concentrate on a selection of

poems written by Wilfred Owen.

Humans have turned to poetry in many different instances as a way of

expressing them selves, using the best combination of words, in the

best order to express exactly how they are feeling at that moment.

Poetry is one of the most powerful means of communication that uses

words very sparingly, and often defines the era in which the poet

lived and died. I think that is why many poems are written about war,

as anyone who was involved in that experience would obviously have

strong views and opinions about their encounters, which they would

wish to express.

This essay will explore the tradition of war poetry. I will be doing

this by looking at a variety of poems from different wars and then

exploring the ways in which attitudes have been explored and

expressed.

An early expression of war poetry is to be found in an extract from

the play Henry V by William Shakespeare, before the final attack on

Harfleur. The situation in the poem is that Henry V is trying to rouse

his troops before battle by making war sound exciting and noble. I

think the purpose of the poem was to inspire his troops and to give

them courage when fighting; he does this by using a various number of

techniques. He creates very powerful images in his speech such as by

alliterating war in the line, "when the blast of war blows in our

ears." This rouses the troops psychologically for war but also creates...

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...have witnessed an

assortment of different views and attitudes towards the subject of

war.

Some poets have presented a positive image of war, and made it sound

exciting and noble, whereas others have put war into an unpleasant

light and looked at it with a negative view. None have been able to

ignore or not include in some way though, the amount of devastation

and loss of life war causes. Personal experiences also may have had an

effect on the way that the poet presented the subject. Overall I think

that Owen had the right view on war. We can see this clearly in his

preface when he talks of what war poetry should be about,

"This book is not about heroes. English poetry is not yet fit to speak

of them. Nor is it about deeds or ands, nor anything about glory,

honour, might, majesty, dominion, or power except war."

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