World war one began in 1914 and ended in 1918. During these four years there were enormous numbers of dead and wounded. Soldiers as young as 18 years old defending trench lines, which produced deadlock and nightmarish battles which ended in horrific consequences.
As everyone was a volunteer in 1914 to 1915 Posters, magazines and poems helped to recruit young soldiers making war sound fun and heroic, classed as propaganda. Poets such as Harold Begbie and Jessie Pope used their pro-war poems, which helped to sustain war effort for Great Britain. Wilfred Owen, who unlike Jessie Pope, had fought in the war and had witnessed the horrific scenes, particularly detested Jessie Pope. Owen had an anti war attitude as he wrote poems about the truth at war. Owen thought of Jessie Pope as an unfeeling civilian enjoying the drama of war at home and helping to drive men to the battle fronts, which is evident in her pro-war poem
This pro-war poem aims to persuade vulnerable young men to join the army. The poem was part of the recruitment drive via newspapers. Pope uses striking lines comparing war to sport it is a new way to ‘play for England’ the poem is very jingoistic with a regular beat and an alterna
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