Onomatopoeic words such as “stuttering” and “wailing” and the alliterative “rifles’ rapid rattle” create an aural picture which puts the reader right in the dramatic battle scenes. Owen uses a range of sound effects in the octet to recreate the harsh noises of war. The “monstrous anger” of the guns emphasises the hostile surroundings in the trenches. The sounds of the weapons in the octet are made more threatening because of Owen’s use of personification. Again it makes a mockery of the jingoistic poetry used to glamorise the war. This dehumanises the men, making them seem like animals being slaughtered. Simile comparing “these who die” to cattle. Owens use of personification in Anthem for Doomed Youth degrades the soldiers to objects to show how the war dehumanized them to intentionally create a.

The word ‘doomed’ suggests that these men are already dead and implies little hope before we even read the poem.įinally, the word ‘youth’ seems used to remind us how young and innocent these soldiers were, making their futile deaths all the more poignant. This double meaning could be used ironically here as the poem rejects the rousing propaganda that glorified war, and also questions the usefulness of religious ceremonies and practices when soldiers die. It can also refer to music set to a religious reading which is sung by a choir during some Christian services. It can refer to a rousing song used by a certain group or team - think of football or national anthems for example. It was suggested by his fellow war poet, Siegfried Sassoon. The poem is also a comment on Owen's rejection of his religion in 1915.The title of the poem makes Owen’s intentions clear. Written between September and October 1917, when Owen was a patient at Craiglockhart War Hospital in Edinburgh recovering from shell shock, the poem is a lament for young soldiers whose lives were unnecessarily lost in the First World War. The poem does this by following the sorrow of common soldiers in one of the bloodiest battles of the 20th century. Much of the second half of the poem is dedicated to funeral rituals suffered by those families deeply affected by World War I. The poem employs the traditional form of a Petrarchan sonnet, but it uses the rhyme scheme of a Shakespearean sonnet. The amended manuscript copy, in both men's handwriting, still exists and may be found at the Wilfred Owen Manuscript Archive on the world wide web. It was Sassoon who named the start of the poem 'anthem', and who also substituted 'doomed' for 'dead' the famous epithet of 'patient minds' is also a correction of his.

While at hospital, Owen met and befriended Siegfried Sassoon, and asked for his assistance in refining his poem's rough drafts. Manuscript by Owen, with revieions by Sasoon.

This poem is in the public domain History

Anthem for doomed youth by wilfred owen