Poem B
ANTHEM FOR DOOMED YOUTH
By Wilfred Owen
- What passing-bells2 for these who die as cattle?
- Only the monstrous anger of the guns.
- Only the stuttering rifles' rapid rattle
- Can patter out3 their hasty orisons.4
- No mockeries5 now for them; no prayers nor bells;
- Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs, –
- The shrill, demented6 choirs of wailing shells;
- And bugles7 calling for them from sad shires.8
- What candles9 may be held to speed them all?
- Not in the hands of boys but in their eyes
- Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes.
- The pallor10 of girls' brows shall be their pall;
- Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds,
- And each slow dusk11 a drawing-down of blinds.12
- September - October, 1917
In this poem, Wilfred Owen uses symbolism as a literary device to carry the theme of his poem of "Anthem for doomed youth." One of the symbols is that of a typical funeral in a church and its proceedings and what would happen to a soldier who was killed in battle. For example he compares the sound of church bells to that of gunfire in battle. The prayers are compared to that of rapid rifle gunfire. The choirs in the church are symbolised by the wailing of the shells of artillery. The candles that the altar boys carry are also symbols of the light reflected in the eyes of the dead soldiers laying along the battlefield.
ReplyDeleteThe poem also uses tone as a literary device to carry out the emotions in the poem.It has a strong tone. The tone of anger is seen throughout the poem as the poet seems to be an anti-war supporter. The sound of the title for instance is long and melancholic which also contributes to the emotions that are trying to be conveyed through the poem from the poet to the reader.