‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ Revision Notes Essay Preparation

• 
  The assassination of the heir to the Austrian throne Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo on the 28^th June 1914 sparked a crisis in Europe.
  
• 
  He was killed by Gavrilo Princip who was a member of the terrorist organisation the Black Hand. This organisation wanted to unite all Slav people which would mean the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
  
• 
  Serbia was given an unreasonable ultimatum by Austria-Hungary and had only three weeks to accept all of the conditions.
  
• 
  When Serbia failed to accept all of the conditions of the ultimatum, war was declared. This triggered the complex alliance system which had been developed in Europe.
  
• 
  Germany tried to gain the upper hand in the war by implementing the Schlieffen Plan to quickly defeat the French Army. This strategy meant that Germany had to invade neutral Belgium and Luxembourg.
  
• 
  Belgian neutrality was guaranteed by the Treaty of London which had been signed by the United Kingdom. As such, Britain declared war on Germany on 4 August 1914.
  
• 
  When the German advance was halted, a new stage of the war fought in trenches commenced. This war of attrition was to last until 1918.
  
• 
  World War I remains one of the largest scale wars in human history as it involved more than 70 million combatants (60 million of whom were from Europe).
  
• 
  9 million combatants and 7 million civilians were killed over the course of the conflict.
  
• 
  The United States of America entered the war in 1917.
  
• 
  As German resources became depleted, an armistice was agreed. The war ended on 11^th November 1918 (four years, three months and two days after hostilities began).
  

• 
  Previous conflicts had been concluded very quickly. As such it was widely believed that the war would be over by Christmas.
  
• 
  The declaration of war was met with widespread enthusiasm. In the first month of the war, the strength of the British force was bolstered by 225,000 recruits.
  
• 
  Propaganda posters created the impression that the war provided the young men of Britain with an opportunity to enjoy a glorious adventure.
  
• 
  Atrocity propaganda suggested that German soldiers were raping and pillaging their way through Belgium and incited hatred towards Germany.
  
• 
  As the media did not report the horrors on the frontline, many were ignorant of the terrible conditions faced by soldiers and the humiliating defeats which were suffered by the British Army.
  
• 
  Nevertheless, recruitment steadily declined and in January 1916, conscription was introduced in Britain for the first time.
  

• 
  Born 18^th March 1893.
  
• 
  Killed on 4^th November 1918 (exactly one week before the end of the conflict).
  
• 
  He began to compose poetry exposing the realities of the war after being sent to recuperate from shell shock in Craiglockhart War Hospital in Edinburgh.
  
• 
  His poems, many of which were published posthumously, continue to be studied extensively as they offer a window into the horrendous conditions suffered by soldiers during the Great War.
  

‘Dulce et Decorum Est’

Stanza One

Owen’s stark imagery immediately highlights the bleak realities of trench warfare. He describes a company of soldiers retreating from a battlefield. We are shocked by the description of their poor physical condition. Men who are in the prime of their youth are reduced to a condition similar more commonly associated with the elderly and the infirm. Rather than marching proudly, they are struggling to walk upright through mud. So accustomed are they to the noises of the war zone, they seem to be completely desensitised. They are in a state of mental exhaustion and do not hear a gas shell falling nearby. The soldiers have clearly been degraded and demoralised by the war.

The structure of the opening stanza mirrors the slow, staggering movements of the soldiers. It is heavily punctuated and this slows the pace.

Bent double¹, like old beggars under sacks²,

Knock-kneed³, coughing like hags⁴, we cursed⁵ through sludge⁶,

Till on the haunting flares⁷ we turned our backs

And towards our distant rest⁸ began to trudge⁹.

Men marched asleep¹⁰. Many had lost their boots

But limped on, blood-shod¹¹. All went lame; all blind¹²;

Drunk with fatigue¹³; deaf even to the hoots

Of tired, outstripped Five-Nines that dropped behind.¹⁴

Stanza Two

In stanza two, the poet describes the panic of the soldiers as they realise that they are under attack. One man is unable to fit his gas mask with the necessary speed and exposed to the deadly effects of mustard gas. This death is shown to be slow and painful. It is apparent that soldiers are killed in the most inhumane ways and are forced to suffer greatly.

From the start of the stanza, a sudden alteration in the style of the poem successfully captures the panic-stricken state of the soldiers. A series of short exclamations highlights this panic and the short sentences mirror the hasty movements of the soldiers.

Gas! GAS¹⁵! Quick, boys!¹⁶ — An ecstasy of fumbling,

Fitting the clumsy helmets¹⁷ just in time;

But someone still was yelling out and stumbling

And flound'ring¹⁸ like a man in fire or lime¹⁹…

Dim, through the misty panes and thick green light²⁰,

As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.²¹

Stanza Three

In only two lines, Owen effectively captures the psychological trauma faced by survivors. There is a shift in time from the opening two stanzas as the poet is now looking back on the attack. He is haunted by his memories of the death of his comrade and has to relive the experience in the form of a recurring nightmare. We also learn that he is plagued by guilt as he was unable to help in any way. This is evidence of survivor guilt which was common amongst those who survived the horrors of the trenches.

The power of these lines is aided by the structure of the poem. By including a short, two line stanza, Owen makes sure we pay attention to this content. We are left in no doubt that war causes mental scars which are never healed.

In all my dreams²² before my helpless²³ sight
He plunges²⁴ at me, guttering²⁵, choking²⁶, drowning.²⁷

Stanza Four

In the final stanza, the poet directly addresses readers. We are asked to consider our own attitudes towards the atrocities of war and to confront the lies contained within pro-war propaganda. As Owen criticises the politicians and propagandists who promote war without knowing what it is really like, his tone is bitter and angry. It is clear that having read the poem, we should share his feelings. Owen returns to the title of the poem in a deeply ironic way to expose the deceitful nature of romantic portrayals of war.

Owen claims that if the promoters of the continuation of war could experience the suffering he has faced (which is only a fraction of the suffering faced by the dead soldier), they would quickly change their opinion.

If in some smothering²⁸ dreams, you²⁹ too could pace

Behind³⁰ the wagon that we flung³¹ him in,

And watch the white eyes writhing³² in his face,

His hanging face, like a devil's sick of sin³³,

If you could hear, at every jolt³⁴, the blood

Come gargling³⁵ from the froth-corrupted lungs,

Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud

Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues³⁶, —

My friend³⁷, you would not tell with such high zest³⁸

To children ardent for some desperate glory³⁹,

The old Lie⁴⁰: Dulce et decorum est

Pro patria mori⁴¹.

Preparing for the Exam

While it is useful to memorise the entire poem, there are some quotations which will likely appear in any critical essay you write on the poem. Therefore, you must memorise these quotations as an absolute minimum and have a full understanding of why they are important.

If you are asked to evaluate the poem in terms of the way it made you feel, a stanza by stanza approach will work well. Overall you would argue that we feel sympathy for the soldiers and anger towards the people responsible for starting and continuing the war.

-In stanza one, we are made to feel deep sympathy for the men as it is clear that they have suffered physically and emotionally. You would discuss the poet’s use of imagery in making it clear that the men have been robbed of their youth. The pace of the stanza mirrors the slow movements of the soldiers. It would also be worth noting the fact that the need to be constantly alert has drained them and has put their lives in danger.

-In stanza two, our sympathy increases as we learn that one man has failed to fit his gas mask on time. You would examine the poet’s imagery and word choice in making us feel deep sympathy for this person.

-In stanza three we are made to feel sorry for the poet who has been mentally scarred by the experience. You would discuss the effective use of emotive language in making us sympathetic.

-In stanza four we again feel sympathy for the dying man as he is treated as though he is disposable. It is made very apparent that his death is prolonged and undignified.

We also feel sympathy for the men as they have been misled by propaganda which falsely portrayed war as being a glorious adventure and a patriotic duty. This also incites our anger against the individuals who started and continued the war without knowing what it was really like for soldiers.

Questions in the exam about our emotional response to a poem can be worded in different ways. You may also be asked about a poem which made you feel a specific emotion (e.g pity or anger).

Message

‘Dulce et Decorum Est is a poem with a very powerful message. It challenges readers to alter their perception of war by showing how barbaric and futile it is in reality. Answers to questions about the message of the poem should argue that it shows war in a negative light by highlighting the poor physical and mental conditions of soldiers as well as the inhumanity of the deaths many suffered.

You may also be asked to answer a question on a poem in which an incident or experience is vividly described. In such an essay you would focus on the effects of the gas attack, both on the soldier who died and on the observers who were plagued with survivor guilt.

Despair

Many readers may find that the poet has created an atmosphere which makes them feel despair about human existence. They may feel this way because:

• 
  Young men are let down by a society which has sent them into conditions which age them prematurely.
  
• 
  The description of the effects of the gas attack show that weapons conceived of and designed by human beings are used to cause intense pain and suffering.
  
• 
  Humans can be insensitive towards others when subjected to difficult conditions. This is evident in the lack of consideration shown to the dying man.
  
• 
  Individuals send fellow men into situations which can haunt them throughout the remainder of their lives.
  
• 
  People in positions of power are willing to exploit their authority to deceive men into thinking that fighting on behalf of a country is not only a patriotic obligation but a great adventure.
  

In the final exam, you will be directed to discuss relevant features of the text. For ‘Dulce et Decorum Est,’ you may wish to discuss:

• 
  Imagery
  

• 
  Word Choice
  

• 
  Rhythm
  

• 
  Themes
  

-Patriotism: It is clear that this theme will be explored as the title is a patriotic slogan. Our expectations that the poem will be a celebration of the glories of dying for one’s country are quickly subverted. Instead, we see that appeals to the patriotic spirit of young men are used to blind men to the realities they will face. Men are consumed by the desire to survive rather than a desire to secure glory for their country.