Literary Elements
This phrase, "His hanging face, like a devil's sick of sin" (21), is an example of what literary element
What is Simile?
What is sludge?
This place is where the speaker and his men are leaving at the beginning of the poem
What is the battlefield?
It can be infered that the speaker was once this type of person.
What is a Soldier?
This claim is the central idea that the speaker contends throughout the poem.
What is War is Brutal not Glorious
This phrase, "And watch the white eyes writing in his face" (20), is an example of what literary element
What is Alliteration?
In the second stanza, this symbol that the speaker and his men try to flee represents the attrocities of war that they are faced with.
What is gas?
This place is where the man who suffered the gas attack was put to be taken away.
What is a wagon?
The tone in the first stanza can be best described as this.
What is Bitter/Exhausted?
The speaker's nightmares are an example of this condition that sodier experience after war.
What is Trauma?
This phrase "Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs" (3), is an example of what literary element
What is Personification?
In the first stanza, this symbol represents one of the many pieces of oneself that are lost in conflict.
What is boots?
The speaker describes the man telling stories of war to children as this.
What is desperate for glory?
It is during this event that the speakers tone becomes urgent during this event.
What is the Gas Attack?
The speaker rejects the idea that was is glorious by referring to the phrase "Dulce et Decorum Est" (28) as this.
Throught the poem, the author uses this literary element to refute the idea that conflict is glorious.
What is Vivid Imagery?
In the final stanza, this injury to one of the speakers men acts as a symbol for the lasting harm that war has on individuals and society
What is vile sores?
The speaker suffers from this type of trauma where he has visions of the soldier who was caught in the gas attack.
What is nightmares?
In the final stanza, the tone towars the reader can be described as this.
What is Accusatory/Angry?
The speaker does this in the final stanza to confront the issue of glorifying war.
What is Addresses the Reader?
The translation of this phrase "Dulce et decorum est / Pro patria mori" (28-29) juxtaposes the speakers main point on the gruesome nature of conflict
What is it is sweet and fitting to die for one's country?
In the second stanza, the speaker and his men find themselves "under" this symbol which represents the all encompassing nature of war on society.
What is green sea?
The speakers dreams revolve around the one man who was unable to do this action after the battle.
What is fitting their gas mask?
The speaker is directly addressing this group at the end of the poem.
What is People who Glorify War/Civilians/Propogandists
The vivid imagery in the poem suggests that the death of the soldier in the gas attack was of this nature.
What is Slow/Helpless/Painful/Terrfying?