Grade 10 Worksheet
on how to answer literature short open ended questions Ms. Dougherty
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Spelling words
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poem
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dangerous
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loss
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negative
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irritated
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Die- dying
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Care- caring
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Rules
of how to answer questions:
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All questions must be
written in sentences
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Responses must use quotes
from text to fully explain point being made
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Sentence rules must be
obeyed including punctuations and quoting as well
as spelling and subject verb rules.
Dulce et Decorum est by Wilfred Owen
1.
Who is the speaker
in the poem?
Response: Wilfred
Owen is the speaker of the poem. He went
to World War 1 and brought back a firsthand account “right before my eyes” of
what took place.
2. Who is the speaker addressing?
Response: Wilfred Owen is addressing everyone who has
anything to do with war. He is addressing the young people ‘ardent for
desperate glory’ to dissuade them from wanting to become soldiers to go to war
as they will see a negative end.
He is trying to change the minds of leaders who plan wars
and enrols innocent men to go there and die and he is speaking to soldiers who
have gone to war to remind them of the brutality they faced on the battle field
and that it is a betrayal ‘the old lie’ to kill men.
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sarcastic
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narcissistic
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heavy
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bitter
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obnoxious
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foolish
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disgruntled
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hurtful
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disgusted
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irritated
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hatred
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oppressive
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anxious
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horrified
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annoyed
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resentful
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sick
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guilty
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downcast
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overbearing
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3. What is the speaker’s attitude?
Wilfred
Owen’s attitude towards war is one of
hatred and opposition in the poem. He feels horrified when he sees that ‘all went
lame; all blind;drunk with fatigue’about the traumatic experiences
soldiers undergo and the lifelong side effects of war. In the
end all the soldiers feel about war is
that it is ‘Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud of vile, incurable sores on
innocent tongues’.
4.What
images(pictures created with words) does Owen use to make the misery of the
soldiers seem convincing? Are they effective? Give your reasons.
This
poem is packed full of vivid images forged in the heat of battle, skilfully
drawn by the young, keenly observant poet. Owen utilizes figurative language,
similes, and assonance to combat the illusion that war is glorious, as well as
show the dark feelings on the battle field.
The
opening scene is one of a group of soldiers making their weary way from the
frontline "towards our distant rest" as bombs drop and lethal gas is
released. Details are intimate and immediate, taking the reader right into the
thick of trench war.
These
men appear old, but that is only an illusion. War has twisted reality which
gradually turns surreal as the poem progresses. The speaker evokes a dream-like
scenario, the green of the enveloping gas turning his mind to another element,
that of water, and the cruel sea in which a man is drowning.
The
descriptions become more intense as the drowning man is disposed of on a cart.
All the speaker can do is compare the suffering to a disease with no known
cure. The final image - sores on a tongue - hints at what the dying soldier
himself might have said about the war and the idea of a glorious death.
5. Do
you think Owe is patriotic(love his country)? Give reasons.
I do
believe Wilfred Owen loves his country as he went to war to defend Brtitains
legacy and to help them to gain more power. After going his love for his
country is also evident as he sends the message of the real meaning of war to
his fellow country men and to the world about the negative effects of war.
6.What
are the various points of view that Owen uses.(Explain the different points he
makes)
In the first stanza The first line
takes the reader straight into the ranks of the soldiers, an unusual opening,
only we're told they resemble "old beggars" and "hags"
(note the similes) by
the speaker, who is actually in amongst this sick and motley crew.
In
the second stanza, the speaker sees the man consumed by gas as a drowning man, as
if he were underwater. Misty panes add an unreal element to this traumatic
scene, as though the speaker is looking through a window.
In
the third stanza , Owen chose the word "guttering" to describe the tears
streaming down the face of the unfortunate man, a symptom of inhaling toxic
gas.
In the fourth stanza , the speaker widens the
issue by confronting the reader (and especially the people at home, far away
from the war), suggesting that if they too could experience what he had
witnessed, they would not be so quick to praise those who die in action. They
would be lying to future generations if they though that death on the
battlefield was sweet. Owen does not hold back. His vivid imagery is quite
shocking, his message direct and his conclusion sincere.
What Is the Tone and Mood of
"Dulce et Decorum Est?"
From the
start of this poem you are immersed in the atmosphere of war. These are the
trenches of WWI, full of mud and death. Once optimistic, healthy soldiers have
now been reduced to a miserable, exhausted gang who have little left to give.
It's a
shocking environment into which the reader is taken–one that is oppressive,
dangerous and without any real hope.
The poet
wants the reader to know that warfare is anything but glorious, so he paints a
gloomy, realistic, human picture of life at the frontline. He leaves us no
doubt about his feelings.
The tone
and mood is also set by language such as "misty panes and thick green
light." From the start we feel that the world has been turned upside down,
and that all things having to do with happiness and vitality have been cast
away. This is not a lively green, but a thick green. The window is not clear,
but misty. This is the land of the walking dead, of the sickly–a world cold,
muddy and metallic.
By the
end of the poem, it appears the reader has been moved away from the
"haunting" battlefield, and the setting becomes internal. Here, the
mood is less gruesome, but no less pitiful. In one sense, to see the way these
scenes of death and violence have affected the poets mind is just as disturbing
as the scenes themselves
Themes
What Is the Main Theme of
"Dulce et Decorum Est?"
"Dulce
et Decorum Est" does not have one theme, but many. Still, each of the
themes center around war and the antiquated notions associated with it. The
main themes of this poem are listed below:
War
One of
the main themes of this poem is war. It deals with a soldier's experience in
World War I, and contrasts the realities of war with the glorified notion of
what serving in a war is like.
Propaganda
This
poem takes aim at the idea of war presented by war-supporting propaganda.
During World War I, propaganda came in the form of books, poems, posters,
movies, radio and more, and presented an idea of war full of glory and pride
rather than of death and destruction.
Politics
Politics
are often the cause war, yet it is the men who have nothing to do with politics
who are recruited to fight it. This poem underlines the wrongness of this
dynamic.
Hero Worship
Everyone
wants to be the hero. In reality, it is the man who keeps his head down is he
who survives the longest.
Patriotism
"Dulce
et decorum est pro patria mori," means it is sweet and proper to die for
one's country. This idea of patriotism fueled the hopes and dreams of many
young soldiers who entered World War I. Once they realized the horrors that
awaited them, however, this ideal patriotism was rightly viewed as ridiculous.
Question:
Explain how the tone brings out the theme of the poem.
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5 marks
2.
Which
seem can you relate to most. Why?
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5 marks
Home work. Write an essay on : 1. How is war depicted in the
poem Dulce et Decorum est.
2.
Explain three (3) devices that
are used
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