F08250_tspoke

= Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Literary Text: = = Introduction to Literature Hypertext Project = = =

Tom Spoke
= Dulce et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen (1917) = = First Impressions Engaging with Text =

= = = Vertical Thinking: = = Close Readings & Interpretations of the Text = = Horizontal Thinking: = = Connecting the Text to Its Contexts =

= = = Unifying Interpretation =

by Wilfred Owen (1917)
Bent double, like old beggars under sacks, Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge, Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs And towards our distant rest began to trudge. Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots But limped on,blood-shod. All went lame; all blind; Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots Of disappointed shells that dropped behind.

Gas! Gas! Quick, boys! - An ecstasy of fumbling, Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time; But someone still was yelling out and stumbling And floundering like a man on fire or lime. - Dim, through the misty panes and thick green light As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.

In all my dreams, before my helpless sight, He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.

If in some smothering dreams you too could pace Behind the wagon that we flung him in, And watch the white eyes writhing in his face, His hanging face, like a devil's sick of sin; If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs. Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues, - My friend, you would not tell with such high zest To children ardent for some desperate glory, The old Lie: Dulce et Decorum est Pro patria mori.



Way 1: First Impressions
My first impression about this text is that it's about a war, and the narrator is one of the soldiers who fought in the war. The author describes the war as being completely awful and unbearable. In the first few lines of the poem, the marching soldiers appear to be suffering a great deal. They are tired, wounded, mentally worn out, partially dressed (missing boots, etc.) and seemingly ready for the war to be over. Despite their poor physical and mental conditions, they get adrenaline rushes when they hear the shots being fired at them from behind. At this point in the poem the soldiers get gassed. They are desperately trying to get their masks on, and one of the soldiers is unable to. The gas is green, and it consumes the entire area.

He seems to have strong emotional ties to his experience, referring to the reoccurring dreams he has of the war. He describes in detail the incident surrounding the gassing of his unit, and the poor soldier who failed to get his mask on in time. The narrator talks about the man "guttering, choking, drowning," (line 16) which is a constant reminder infiltrating Owen‘s thoughts and dreams, forcing him to experience again the awful things that went on throughout his time in the war. I'm interested to learn the connection between the dreams he is having and reality. Did the soldiers have to swim across a lake to avoid the attackers from behind? Were they attempting to get in their boats in the ocean and sail away in retreat?

Some of the terms used to describe the way the men refused to give up and how they kept pushing forward indicates he had great respect and confidence in the men he was with. They remained strong, despite being involved in a horrific war, and continued to trudge on.

 What war is this referring to? Based on the year of the poem, I would assume World War I, since the war started in 1914 and the poem was written in 1917. 

Way 2: Engaging with the Text
One of the sounds that sticks out after reading this aloud comes from line 9. "Gas! Gas! Quick, boys" (line 9) helps the reader become one with the narrator and the war. I was able to visualize his descriptive setting, and felt a part of the group of soldiers trying to escape the danger zone. Shots were being fired at them, and the enemy was hot on their trail.

In addition, this poem is has a rhythmic pattern and therefore has several similar sounds. The words "sludge" (line 2) and "trudge" (line 4) in the first stanza identify the setting as dirty and unpleasant. It also sets the tone of the poem, very gruesome and horrific. Other sounds, such as "blood" (line 21) and "cud" (line 23) add to the tone of the poem. The term "cud" is used to define the regurgitated food from a cow's stomach that makes its way back to the mouth and is chewed then again. Blood is obviously not a very pleasant word, especially considering the context.

“Men marched asleep, many had lost their boots” is a good example of alliteration. The frequency of the words that begin with the letter "m" roll off of the tongue in a slowly paced manner. The narrator is trying to set the tone of the story as slow and sluggish. In addition, the soldiers come off as tired and weary, slow to act.

Way 3: A Point About Form and Its Relationship to Content
The form of poetry that best describes this poem is dramatic monologue. The speaker of the poem is a character in the poem’s setting; the battlefield during World War I. Soldiers, including the speaker, are marching along during the war. They seemingly get attacked by the enemy with some kind of a gas. From the poem’s speaker, the reader is able to identify not only the setting on the poem, but the mood and atmosphere as well.

The poem takes the form of forced rhyme, due to the strict rhyming of words in the stanzas. The first stanza’s structure contains 8 lines, and the rhyming scheme is as follows: ABABCDCD. The second stanza contains 6 lines and the rhyming scheme is ABABCD. The third stanza stands out more than any other stanza, primarily because it is only two lines. Its rhyming scheme is CD because it appears to be a continuation from the second stanza’s last two lines. The rest of the poem is contained in the last stanza. The rhyming scheme of the 12 lines is ABABCDCDEFEF.

Way 4: Unpacking an Instance of Figurative Language
In the first line of “Dulce Et Decorum Est” Owen uses a simile to describe the tired and worn out soldiers. “Like old beggars under sacks” (line 1) compares the soldiers to old beggars who likely are homeless and live on the street. An annotative meaning could be defined as this: beggars were also commonly starved, having no good resources to find food or shelter. Like beggars, the soldiers were probably exhausted from lack of nourishment, and had not slept in a bed in quite a while. This explains the connotative meaning of the simile.  "Old beggars" could mean depression, unhappiness, loneliness, and being altogether homesick. Instead of a bed the soldiers were sleeping wherever they ended up at the conclusion of the day’s marches and battles, lacking motivation and energy to carry on. They probably didn’t have the best blankets, if any, and used whatever they can find to keep warm. During the war they slept in cold muddy trenches, which could easily be compared to homeless.

"Coughing like hags"   (line 2) is another simile that helps the reader identify the physical state of the soldiers at war.  When I picture an old hag coughing and then relate that to the condition of the soldiers, I get a good perspective of how they are holding up. The health of these young soldiers has deteriorated over time, and they are malnourished, lacking rest, and emotionally wrecked. As a result, they have rapidly aged ahead of where they should be at this point in their lives. A connotation of "hags" could be several things. Poor, sick, disgusting, filhy are a few words that come to mind.

Other words like "froth-corrupted" (line 22) are images that exemplify the gruesomeness of the battle scene. The annotative meaning of froth-corrupted is a description of the soldier's blood-filled throat. He is gargling his own blood as he's trying to breath and stay alive. The denotative could suggest his containment in the war. Wars like this are typically fought for freedom, but are these soldiers reaping any benefits?

Way 5: Analyzing the Setting
 The poem “Dulce Et Decorum Est” takes place during World War I, and the narrator is a soldier in the war. WWI occurred from1914 through 1918 and was fought mostly in Europe. Several of the narrator's descriptions leads the reader to believe they are combating in the muddy trenches. "We cursed through sludge" (line 2) is an example that effectively describes the setting of the poem. Owen explains how he and his fellow soldiers are "blood shod" (line 6) and "drunk with fatigue" (line 7) indicating very harsh conditions, and are apparently on their way to a safe camp to rest, "And towards our distant rest." In addition to the physical setting, the mood of this poem is very grim. Owen sees many his soldiers dying right in front of him, causing a very nightmarish atmosphere.

Way 6: Identifying and Analyzing Point of View
This poem is written in first-person point of view. One of the lines that gives this away is "As under a green sea, I saw him drowning." It's difficult to assume the actual identity of the narrator, as he could be a ranking official who is commanding troops, or one of the troops himself. He does show leadership based on some of the commands he give to his fellow troops, "Gas! Gas! Quick, boys!" (line 9) I think the narrator can be characterized as a protagonist due to his leadership and command he has on the battlefield. 

Way 7: Analyzing Complexity, Ambiguity, & Difficulty
 One example of ambiguity in the poem occurs in Line 4, "And towards our distant rest began to trudge." The phrase, "distant rest" could have multiple meanings. When I first read the poem, I took it as a place of shelter and safety for the soldiers to recuperate. Being out in the trenches for so long and facing such awful conditions, a place of shelter must be desired by all. The more I thought about the nature of the poem, however, I decided that phrase could also mean the eternal rest - death. The number of casualties caused by the war coupled with Owen's gruesome descriptions and negative perspective leads me to this interpretation.

Another example of ambiguity is in Line 16. "He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning." (line 16) The word guttering can mean some type of a flowage; like a stream or water running through the gutters of a house. From what I know about some types of gas, the presence of it can have quite a strong reaction to your body. It can make your nose, mouth, and eyes all pour out bodily fluids. This is likely what is physically happening to this soldier. I think another interpretation of this term could be that the soldier is crying. Tears are flowing down his face and he is looking to his commander for any sort of help he can get. It may not just be the one soldier, but it could indicate the overall state of the entire group of soldiers. They are helpless in the sence that they cannot escape from these conditions, and are all relying on their commander to be the leader and take them out of harm's way. 

Way 8: Considering Canonicity
This poem has a great deal of cultural and historical significance, and therefore is definitely part of the canon. Culturally, this poem deals with different perspectives and views of World War I. During the war, many poets described it as a glorious war, and serving in it is patriotic. Owen, however, went against the norm and wrote about all of the negative things. This was quite a culture shock for many Americans who had only heard about the positive aspects coming from the media and other writers. Being set in WWI, the historical significance is obviously there. The poem draws a fairly clear picture of a first person view of the ground war.

Way 9: Biographical Context
According to the British website "The War Poetry Web Site," Wilfred Owen was a soldier in WWI, and was killed in battle. I found it interesting to learn that he volunteered for the war and fought in the French Army. Throughout is short life he had always enjoyed writing, and even was a private tutor before the war. Unlike several fellow poets, Owen grew up in a middle class family. (Wilfred Owen Association) It's likely he had a different perspective of the war than most being a poet, middle class citizen, and a soldier of war. Owen's literary skills make him a unique soldier, and it is fascinating to read about his experiences in his own words. While in a hospital recovering from shell shock, Owen met one of his literary idols, Siegfried Sassoon. [|Sassoon ended up encouraging him to write about his war experiences.] (Wilfred Owen Association) This led to his remarkable yet short career of a poet of war.

Way 10: Historical and Cultural Contexts
Culturally, during WWI the war was generally seen as "romantic," "honorable," and "worthwhile." (Smith) Owen offered a different perspective of the war, portraying it as gruesome. He wrote about the mass casualties and other tragedies that took place in an attempt to show what really happens in war. This along with other literary works began to change the view of the war in the eyes of the World.

Way 11: Theoretical Application
 The New Criticism view of this poem helps the reader understand how the text and its form are pulled together to interpret the true meaning. Imagery plays a large role here. There are several points in the poem where the soldiers are being depicted as poor, suffering, men; undeserving of their physical and emotional condition. Using words like <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">"guttering, choking, drowning." (line 16) <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">to portray a suffering soldier creates an image of unimaginable pain, a pain that no one should have to experience. Another image that ties closely with this one is found in line 2, "Knock-kneed, coughing like hags..." This is another example of the pain and suffering endured by the soldiers. Although the soldiers are actually quite young and in good shape (they'd have to be in order to serve in the war), their physical condition has turned them weak and feeble, in poor health and lacking strength. "But limped on, blood-shod" is a third image portraying the soldiers' state. (line 6) Blood-shod, which indicates the soldiers were marching in their own blood, makes a further attempt to gain sympathy from the reader.

Way 12: Another Theoretical Application
Reader-response criticism <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">is an interesting view of the contradictions that exist in this poem. The title, "Dulce et Decorum Est" is actually short for <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Dulce et Decorum Est Patria Mori, which means "It is sweet and right to die for one's country." (Smith) Yet throughout the entire story, Owen does nothing but portray the war to be cruel, gruesome, and horrific. In the end, he calls the historic phrase "The old Lie." (line 27) "Lie" is capatilized to point out the importance of his point. During the war, readers, especially the soldiers, could find themselves becoming intimate with the text, taking it all in as if they were living the poem. Active involvement is the reader-response Owen was trying to achieve. Speaking out to the reader, "If in some smothering dreams you too could pace," helps accomplish this. 

<span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';"><span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Way 13: Unifying Interpretation
"Dulce et Decorum Est" is clearly a statement about World War I and how Owen opposes it. He show this by his intense criticism. Throughout the poem he picks it apart, painting gruesome pictures of the soldiers' experiences. He picked a singe incident involving a mustard gas attack, which is all he really needed to do in order to grab the audience's attention. Illustrations of scenes like this are enough to prove his point that the war was inhumane. I think the figurative language he used was brilliant, and the words and phrases he used were so strong and convincing. The fact that Owen even died in the war that he was so much against further supports his arguments. His inside look into the battles and everyday life of a soldier at war gives the reader perspective he otherwise might not have had. In addition. he brings emotion to the story, which has to touch the hearts of many who read it. When readers think about these soldiers, and read about how they are fighting in an arguably controversial war, and in the end reading about their cruel and gruesome death, opinions of the war will form. Overall, Owen really opens the door for war criticism, as prior to his writings it was widely viewed as an attractive war. In the end, he deems the phrase "Dulce et Decorum Est pro patria mora" as "The old Lie."



Works Cited and Consulted
Brown, James S., and Scott D. Yarbrough. __A Practical Introduction to Literary Study.__ Upper Saddle River: Prentice, 2005.

Owen, Wilfred. "Dulce Et Decorum Est." __Out in the Dark.__ Ed. David Roberts. Saxon Books, 1999.

Biographical References:

Roberts, David. "Wilfred Owen - Greatest War Poet Writing in the English Language." 1999. 15 Nov 2008. <<span class="wiki_link_ext">http://www.warpoetry.co.uk/owena.htm >.

Wilfred Owen Association. "Wilfred Owen: Poet in the Trenches." __The Wilfred Owen Association.__ 2005. 29 Nov 2008. <<span class="wiki_link_ext">http://www.1914-18.co.uk/owen/ >.

Cultural/Historical References:

Monick, S. "The Poet Under Fire - Four Poets of World War I." __Military History Journal.__ 10 Nov 2008. <<span class="wiki_link_ext">http://samilitaryhistory.org/vol071sm.html >.

Smith, Nicole. "Transition of History." __Article Myriad.com.__ 2008. 29 Nov 2008. <EBSCO Host. [|http://www.articlemyriad.com/dolce_decorum_owen.htm]