In ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ Wifred Owen creates a horrific atmosphere to demonstrate that life, although precious, is often treated with contempt. To do this he gives us a eye witness glimpse of of the horrific reality of the First World War. From this he intelligently conveys an image of the respect that human life should be granted. The most obvious and most effective technique used by Owen to develop the invaluable dignity of human life is through his choice of words.

Owen’s clever choice of words is at its strongest in the very first verse in the way he contrasts the poem’s patriotic title to the pathetic and pitiful image given to the soldiers.

“Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,

knocked-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge.”

This shows how these heroic soldiers have suffered. The use of phrases like “bent double” and “old beggars” graphically show how these men no longer look like fit young men but withered old men which emphasises the harsh consequences of this war. The application of the simile “coughing like hags” also continues the trend of portraying these soldiers i

n a painful and wracked condition. To round this up it shows how these human lives are reduced and degraded by war and so reveals the mockery behind Owen’s cynical choice of title.

To emphasise the respect which all human life should be given Owen confronts us throughout his poem with the total disrespect suffered by soldiers under the effects of a gas attack. The tone he uses is sombre and funereal and harrowing. He paints a picture in the opening scene of defeated and demoralised soldiers as they blindly and dejectedly ‘trudge’ and ‘limp’ their weary way in line only to be suddenly attacked by gas and now the tone becomes frenzied with ‘an ecstasy of fumbling’ as the poor men desperately try to put on their ‘clumsy helmets’ but horrifically we witness through Owen’s eyes one particular soldier’s agonising distress ‘stumbling’ and ‘flound’ring’ as the sea of gas engulfs him.

This fast rhythm is clearly contrasted with the slow sleepy rhythm of the first stanza and the miserable and pathetic condition of the soldiers. With this combined imagery Owen captures the confused and conflicting torment and torture of war and further promotes his belief that all human life should always be cherished.

The second concept which supports my claim that human life is being debased and shamefully humiliated through war is contained in the last stanza. With phrases such as “the white eyes writhing” and “his hanging face”, we picture the

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