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READ THIS
The poem, like so much of Wilfred Owen's poetry, reflects on the futility of war and emphasises the
emotions of loss and remembrance.
The poem focuses on a soldier who is in shock and denial -- he cannot believe that his friend is dead.
He believes the sun, with all its restorative powers, should be able to resuscitate his friend.
ABOUT THE POET
Wilfred Owen was born in 1893 in Shropshire to a family of committed Christians. He was educated at
the Birkenhead Institute and Shrewsbury Technical College.
He wanted to become a teacher but his father could not afford the university fees. Instead, therefore, he
journeyed to France in 1913 where he worked as a tutor. He also wrote occasional poetry, none of which
is particularly known.
When the Great War broke out in 1914, Owen maintained a vague interest in events through cuttings from
newspapers sent by his mother with whom he had a close relationship. Eventually, however, the pressure
of propaganda reached him and, in October 1915, he returned to England and enlisted. He was then
22 years of age.
The poet spent a year in training. Letters to his mother reveal that he enjoyed the prestige of wearing the
military uniform. His training finished at the end of 1916 whereupon he joined the 2nd Manchesters
in France where he took command of No. 3 Platoon.
His enthusiasm initially abounded but soon he was sent to the frontline and witnessed firsthand the
awfulness of warfare -- living in trenches which were forever knee-deep in mud and water, the rotting
corpses of soldiers, the dreadful war injuries.
"I have suffered seventh hell," he wrote to his mother. "I have not been at the front. I have been
in front of it . . . to where the ground was not mud, not sloppy mud, but an octopus of sucking
clay, three, four, and five feet deep, relieved only by craters full of water . . . "
Initially Owen's character and temperament did not suit his being a soldier. He was a scholar and a poet
--
introverted and sensitive. Moreover, he was a committed Christian whose ideals were opposed to warfare
in any form. It was during this period that he appears to have penned most of his anti-war poems.
The war forced him to face a conflict between his Christian beliefs and his role as a soldier. "I am more
and more a Christian," he wrote to his mother in May 1917. "Suffer dishonour and disgrace, but
never resort to arms. Be bullied, be outraged, be killed: but do not kill."
Late in 1917 Owen received a serious injury and was sent home, suffering from shell-shock. While
recuperating in the military hospital, he fell under the influence of the anti-war poet, Siegfried Sassoon,
who aided him in polishing his war poetry.
Yet Owen appears to have had a distinct dislike for pacifists and did not want to be identified with them.
Indeed, he felt that his poetry could have a far deeper impact if emanating from a soldier in the trenches.
For that reason, therefore, he re-enlisted for the army and, in October 1918, he rejoined his company in
France. This time, however, he appears to have identified himself with the soldiers and took tremendous
risks in battle.
During one encounter, he captured a German machine gun and used it to decimate a host of enemy
soldiers, for which deed he won the Victoria Cross. Although he denied it in letters to his mother, he
appears now to have become a killing machine.
In early November, just one week before the armistice which ended the war, he supervised the
construction of a bridge to cross the Sambre and Oise Canal. Wave after wave of his own men were
massacred in the attempt. Wilfred Owen too fell in a flurry of machine gun bullets.
He was buried in a small British cemetery in northern France. He was then just 25 years of age.
Have you looked at the questions
in the right column?
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TEST YOURSELF!
Read the left column and then answer
the following questions:
"Move him into the sun --
Gently its touch awoke him once,
At home, whispering of fields unsown."
- By considering the CONNOTATION of the sun within the poem as whole, explain carefully why the
poet wants his dead comrade to be moved into the sunlight. (4)
[Need help?]
The sun has the connotation of being able to create and engender life. The sun is a source of life, light,
warmth and hope.
The poet refers to the life-giving powers of the sun in the poem: it brought life to the earth and in spring
it is the warmth and power of the sun that brings seeds to life.
He is hopeful that the rejuvenating powers of the sun will miraculously resurrect the dead soldier. If the
sun was able to awake him each morning, surely it will be able to do so again?
He sees the sun as a miracle worker, a healer with special powers. It has proven its strength before, so
resuscitating his friend should be easy, especially since the friend has just died.
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- Identify the TONE of these lines and explain what you have based your choice on. (3)
[Need help?]
The tone is gentle, poignant and tender. This is conveyed by words like "gently", "touch",
"home" and "whispering".
The sun does not burn harshly. These are all soft, soothing words. They reflect the sadness and
tenderness of the soldier's feelings.
His sense of loss is palpable. These words also stand in stark contrast to the violence of war.
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- Why was the sun "whispering" to the man? (3)
[Need help?]
The sun was gently reminding the man that the fields were waiting to be sown with seeds. It was time for
him to wake up and work on the farm.
It is a gentle and soothing sound which contrasts with the harsh sounds of war.
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- What IMAGE does Owen create by referring to the "fields unsown"? (3)
[Need help?]
This is a peaceful, pastoral image. The countryside is always associated with innocence and simplicity.
At home the soldier was in tune with the rhythms of nature and his life was dictated by the seasons. He
was in control of his own life.
This is in sharp contrast to wartime where soldiers are under orders and their lives are completely
controlled by others. They are not allowed to make their own decisions.
There is no harmony with nature during war, only destruction. At home the soldier would have been
helping nature be creative by planting the seeds which would produce food to nourish, not destroy.
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"Until this morning and this snow."
- Explain why the poet has made specific reference to "snow". (3)
[Need help?]
Snow is cold and has the connotation of lifelessness. It stands in contrast with the warmth and
life-restoring ability of the sun.
Owen uses it to emphasise the lack of life in his friend, as well as the death and destruction which
surrounds him.
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- Comment on the poet's use of repetition of the word "this". (2)
[Need help?]
"This" is a word which specifies a particular time and situation.
Owen uses it to emphasise the difference between this particular day and other days. His friend was
awoken by the sun every morning, but this particular day was different: he was not awoken.
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"The kind old sun will know."
- This is another example of personification. In your own words, explain the qualities he attributes to
the sun and explain why he has chosen these qualities. (4)
[Need help?]
The poet describes the sun as benevolent ("kind") and wise ("old").
The word "old" does not have a negative connotation in this line. It represents wisdom and
maturity.
The poet compares the sun to a loving parent who knows and wants what is best for the child he created.
He chooses these qualities to show how caring the sun is. It is like a parent who knows exactly what
protection and nurturing his child needs in his time of need.
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"Think how it wakes the seeds."
- Comment fully on the reference to "seeds". (4)
[Need help?]
A plant or flower often dies once it has produced seeds. These seeds therefore introduce the cycle of the
seasons.
The seeds represent the cycle of life. In spring, life is restored when the seeds are warmed and
awakened by the sun which encourages them to take root.
Owen feels that the sun should be able to exercise the same restorative power over his dead friend. If
it is able to resurrect a dead plant from something as small as seed, it should have the ability to return life
to his friend.
His friend has only been dead a while, unlike a plant which dies down throughout the entire winter.
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"Woke once the clays of a cold star."
- Explain the meaning and implication of this line. (6)
[Need help?]
The "clay" is reference to the creation story of Genesis which tells of Adam being created from clay.
The "cold star" is a reference to the earth before the sun brought it to life: it was "cold" and
therefore lifeless without the life-giving power of the sun.
The implication is that, if the sun has such powerful creative ability, surely restoring life to his friend will
be an easy task in comparison to creating life on earth!
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"Was it for this the clay grew tall?"
- The poet uses the word "this". Identify and comment on the TONE conveyed by the
word. (3)
[Need help?]
The word conveys the poet's disgust and bitterness that such a promising young life has been destroyed
by a pointless war. One can almost imagine him pointing to his dead friend as he asks the question.
It is as though he does not even want to mention the word "war" because it is simply too appalling
to contemplate. The sight of his dead comrade fills him with bitterness that such potential has been
wasted.
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- Identify the poet's TONE in this line and account for his use of this tone. (4)
[Need help?]
There is a tone of bitterness as well as disbelief. The poet questions why the sun even bothered once to
breathe life into the dead soldier if that precious life was going to be taken away so violently.
He wonders why the dead man was allowed to grow to adulthood. Owen's point is that war destroys the
lives of the young -- lives that once had so much potential.
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