Comparison Of Anthem For Doomed Youth And Beach Burial
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War poetry has been written all throughout history exploring emotions and tragedies experienced by those on the war front and those waiting for their loved ones to return home. Anthem for Doomed Youth by Wilfred Owen (1917) and Beach Burial by Kenneth Slessor (1944) provide an insight into World War One and Two. They both present a vision into what it was like to fight for the allied forces, the expectations that were placed upon the soldiers by society, as young, fit men and the idea that war was hopeless. Do Not Ask for Her Identity by Goran Rahim (2014) differs from Anthem for Doomed Youth and Beach Burial, as it looks at war from a victim’s perspective. The poem isbased in Iraq and explores the mind and emotions of a young child living…show more content… As the view on war differs from person to person it is only natural that these three poems are written differently to display distinctive tones. “Softly and humbly to the Gulf of Arabs” is the first line ofBeach Burial, setting the tone for the rest of the poem. The use of the words ‘softly’ and ‘humbly’ gives off an eerie sense of calmness not usually associated with war. They are gentle sounding words that seem to float, much like the bodies in the gulf, as if lulling the reader into a false sense of security. In contrast to the smooth feel of Beach Burial is Anthem for Doomed Youth. Owen’s word choice is strong and harsh compared to the calm, gentle words of Beach Burial.“Only the stuttering rifles’ rapid rattle/Can patter out their hasty orisons…The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells;” These lines give the reader a glimpse of theanger in which Owen is feeling shown through the strong descriptive language that is used in these lines, ‘hasty’, ‘rapid’, ‘shrill’ and ‘demented’ in particular.They have forceful sounds that add to the resentful tone of this poem. The alliteration present, ‘stuttering’, ‘rattle’ and ‘patter’ also adds to the forceful tone. Although both of these poems are quite different in their approach to using different tones, they both do so strongly and