Discuss ways in which Owen uses events from the past to create sympathy for the young man in Disabled.

Essay by farahelshamyHigh School, 11th gradeB+, May 2014

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Discuss ways in which Owen uses events from the past to create sympathy for the young man.

'Disabled' by Wilfred Owen is a reflective poem on the experiences of a young World War I soldier that compares his horrific post-war experiences to his carefree past. As a solider himself, Owen's sympathizes with the speaker and relates to his plight.

Wilfred Owen's poem is essentially about a disabled soldier. He is sitting in the wheelchair, "waiting for dark". The dark creates a reference not only to the end of the day, but also to the end of life. It illustrates a joyless present and isolation of soldiers that compares to the warmth of the second stanza. It's conveyed as a saddening feeling as they are now helpless and the life they are about to live is inevitable for them. It emphasizes an emptiness of livelihood. The use of the adjective 'dark' provoke sadness for the reader as it has negative connotations that forebode this physically and emotionally damaged life of a soldier.

As he sits, he listens to the sound of children playing. However, he is aware that soon these kids will be called home for bedtime - "till gathering sleep had mothered them from him" Again, he is alluding to the end of their full-of-life sounds, as well as the end of their consciousness.

He then continues to reflect on the way his town used to be, carefree and effervescent, with 'glow-lamps budded in the light blue trees' to emphasize how everything used to blossom with enjoyment even if there was nothing in particular to be joyous about. Owen is highlighting the losses of this soldier by contrasting his present life with the past that he now appreciates to a much larger extent having lost his limbs. This creates...