Dulce et Decorum est Pro Patria Mori
(Or is it?)
Despite the government's knowledge of the intense horrors of war, they persist on sending innocent soldiers onto the battlefield. Two pieces of literature used to describe these intense horrors are the novel All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque and the poem Dulce et Decorum est by Wilfred Owen. Both authors, soldiers of WWI, write about their experience in the war and both pieces of work convey a strong meaning and persuasive argument. In both the novel and the poem, there is a theme of patriotism that the soldiers show by giving up their lives to serve there country. However, both the book and poem also give reason to oppose the war, such as having to watch your comrade's die as well as soldiers fighting for no personal reasons. In spite of that, these guiltless children are sent off to fight a war that means nothing to them solely for their country and it's demanding government.
One of many, many graveyards in the Somme battlefi...
Iraq
Dulce MatuzIn All Quiet on the Western Front, the reader is told that the boys were conned into joining the war by their teacher. They are told that it is there patriotic duty to aid their country in its great time of need. "I can see him now, as he used to say in a moving voice: "Won't you join up, Comrades?""(11). Their superiors shamed them into fighting in the war. The government needed volunteers to fight a government's battle. They needed men to go out, kill, die, and sacrifice for an unidentified reason. In the beginning these new recruits were all for the war and fighting for the country, but as the novel progresses they realize that it is not nearly as wonderful as it is made out to be. The...