Dulce Et Decorum Est

“Bent double, like old beggars under sacks, Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,”
The author starts with simile after simile before he acquaints us to the subjects of the poem. I found this interesting, it took me a few times of reading this through, however I believe that he does this to show what war does to men. I have never been in the military and am giving my opinion from one on the outside looking in. I believe that it is very hard for me to relate to war and understand what it is truly like on the battlefield. As the author began with these similes I was able to gain a mental image. After I had this image I was then introduced to my subject. I believe that helped me to get a better understanding of how physically waring war can be on a man’s body. If I know that it is a soldier ahead of time I tend to place more of a heroic or invincible type figure in my mind.
It seems the battle is coming to an end the men head towards their “distant rest” I thought this to be inronic. I am sure that it refers to returning to camp or barracks. I would also suppose that many faced the wages of war. Later in the poem we know he has to watch a comrade go through this experience. I believe it could also reference death that must have seemed very close at times to them. I noticed that all through the poem you feel the struggles and pain from his metaphoric language. It seems exhaustive as you read I really felt the imagery of these broken men giving the last of what they had and a little more. I know that much of WWI was fought in the trenches in this poem you get a taste of what the trenches were like. I grew up playing football and I played on the offensive line. In football they make the comparison of the line of scrimmage being the trench. After reading this poem it is obvious that they use that term loosely. I was never in a game that compared, even a little, to what the trenches were like for our author. I understand why soldiers and veterans can be offended by the comparisons that civilians make to other situations mostly sports.
“Men marched asleep.” I felt that this really put things in perspective. The total exhaustion of the men. The only thing I can relate to is when I started a workout called insanity. I am out of shape and I pushed myself to give everything I had. As my body hit this point it really messes with the way you think. All I wanted to do was lay on the ground and focus was on how to recover. Then to have the gas come. I cannot comprehend how they reached complete fatigue and then have to scramble to find their masks. I believe I would probably want to give up the ghost by that point. The mental capacity to locate the mask and assemble it to the face. I don’t know that I really thought about what that would take the first couple of reads. That in and of itself would be quite that task, with that mental exhaustion.
After getting the mask on to have to witness one that has been through everything with you, have to go down like that. He is very descriptive of what happen. I believe he wants those who that are like me and have never had any experience in war and even more so, I believe that he wants this imagery to sink into those that are sending the men out to war.
I agree with what he is saying at the end of the poem, “Dulce et Decorum Est Pro patria mori.” translated to be “It is sweet and proper to die for one 's country.”. This is the old lie. I believe that things would really change if those that were calling the shots lead the way in battle. It is ironic that the people who start war and call for war are generally far from the war. I enjoyed this poem and it has changed the way I view war. Also I will think twice about the sports references with war. My eyes have been open to what life was like in the trenches.
In my research I read a few things and was watching the military channel. I cannot remember the source but it was said that a majority of soldiers in WWI died of influenza. I found that quite interesting as I later found an article that stated “studies have associated high fatigue levels and poorer health”. I believe this poem gave us a great example of the high fatigue levels that the soldiers faced. Not only was it effective on soldiers performance in battle but it also their health and lives. Works Cited
Owen, Wilfred."Dulce et Decorum Est" Literature. An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. Ed. X.J. Kennedy. 11Pearson, 2010. 607. Print.
Courtney J, Francis A, Paxton S. Caring for the Country: Fatigue, Sleep and Mental Health in Australian Rural Paramedic Shiftworkers. Journal Of Community Health [serial online]. February 2013;38(1):178-186. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed May 7, 2013.

Cited: Owen, Wilfred."Dulce et Decorum Est" Literature. An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. Ed. X.J. Kennedy. 11Pearson, 2010. 607. Print. Courtney J, Francis A, Paxton S. Caring for the Country: Fatigue, Sleep and Mental Health in Australian Rural Paramedic Shiftworkers. Journal Of Community Health [serial online]. February 2013;38(1):178-186. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed May 7, 2013.