Dulce Et Decorum Est Theme Essay

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Are some of the themes and concerns of the poets conveyed in the exhibition?- Analysing one Poem Yes, a lot of the themes, concerns and concepts are conveyed very well throughout the exhibition. The element of fear is displayed a great deal in most of the artefacts such as the gas masks and various lost possessions such as diaries and stuffed toys. The experiences are described on the diaries very well and creates a very vivid image on how life used to be when the war commenced and ceased. Also, items such as the khaki uniforms and clothing that the soldiers and Jews were made to wear, represents their new personal identity during the war. Another theme can be death which is described very evidently in the poem “Dulce et Decorum Est” by…show more content…
These include “like old beggars” which is a negative simile that creates the image of the soldiers as helpless, dishevelled, defenceless and vulnerable, moreover personal pronouns such as “you”, used throughout the poem makes the reader more connected to the images created. “Knock-kneed” is an example of onomatopoeia and alliteration which creates a better picture of the atmosphere, and so does “haunting flares”, as the word ‘haunting’ is mostly associated with ghosts and that there is a constant reminder of death following them. The word “lame” is used well because the word is usually used when describing animals, so it could be animalistic imagery. Owen also delineates the soldiers as “Drunk with fatigue”, which demonstrates their awful condition in this metaphor. In addition, an important part of Owens’ poem is his punctuation and what it symbolises. The hyphen after the exclamation of gas, could denote the pause in their actions whilst they take into account the ambush of the Germans. Also, the semi colon after “just in time” illustrates suspense and the reader can figure out that the gas masks have not all been put on in the given
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