COMPARING AND CONTRASTING TWO POEMS

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Poetry Comparison and Contrast

Poetry on war and battles usually has a distinctively upbeat and lively tone even at moments when men are about to face danger and death . Both Wilfred Owen 's Dulce et Decorum Est (1917 ) and Walt Whitman 's Beat ! Beat ! Drums (1861 ) capture the sonorous images of high emotions , patriotism and nervous apprehension of soldiers or people who are to engage or are actually engaging in a frenetic clash of arms However , while Beat ! Beat ! Drums ' focuses on the sentiments of

the community at the preparation and rallying stage as a prelude to wartime Dulce et Decorum Est ' depicts war as it actually rages on . As such the first is marked by fear with hints of pride and optimism whilst the second is heavy with images of pain and death and a general disdain for violence . At any rate , both poems paint a dark picture of war and make admonitions on the negative effects of war on people and communities

Beat ! Beat ! Drums ' starts out with punctuated lines of warning and fresh call to arms which are at once blaring and relentless (Lines 1-8 A sense of the bang of the drum and the blow of bugles signalling that war is at hand . The noise seeps into every corner of the community : Through the windows - through doors - burst like ruthless force , into the solemn church (2-3 ) and Over the traffic of...