Warring Words

Essay by Caledor123High School, 12th grade September 2004

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Warring Words

"My subject is war and the pity of war. The poetry is in the pity" - Wilfred Owen

Wether we like it or not, the world and its people have always been driven by war. It is a well known fact that peace is simply the time between the end of one war and the beginning of another equally senseless war. It appears that peace is simply a pit stop in the world's quest for global conquest. This goes someway to explain why war themes dominate modern poetry and songs. For many their only way to escape the horrors of war is to engage in poetry that takes them to another realm where peace prevails. For others war provides the substance for their poetry, enabling them to describe in details both the sorrow and morbid joy that war can bring. Whichever the case, it remains a fact that war poets have produced some of the most inspirational and horrifying poetic scenery that has graced (or sullied) the pages of history.

Poetry has long been considered one of the foremost forms of literature. With its high relevance on a single word, a poem can speak many thousand of words, and really show the human spirit like no other form can. Because of this increased emphasis on words and their meaning, an audiences understanding of certain situations can be enhanced by the reading of poetry.

When considering the epic novels of war poetry, one era stands above all others. The war to end all wars was World War One. This struggle against Central Powers tyranny was the building blocks that many notable poets used to create their masterpieces.

During the first years of the war, many youths signed up for the war effort. They believed they were going for a...