British Literature

Student’s Name
Professor’s Name
Subject
Date
British Literature
William Butler Yeat’s ‘The Second Coming’ focuses on the theme of Good versus Evil. The poem tries to answer several questions on the issue of good people being unable to act in times of need. There is nothing awe-inspiring about people who show indifference or fail to act when they are needed most. The generation that grew during Yeat’s time experienced the ills of the First World War. There was nothing good in the war since nations were using lethal weapons and committing atrocities against each other. The poems point out the fact the society has experienced a shift in morality and that people are no longer responsible or moral in their actions and behaviours. The Falco which symbolises nobility fails to obey his master. Innocence, as described in the poem, is something which is fabricated and not truly meant. The sphinx shows indifference, and neither characterises evil nor good.
Wilfred Owen explores the theme of warfare in his poem titled “Dulce et Decorum Est.” The horrors of men struggling under a gas attack depict how war endangers the lives of soldiers. Soldiers are human beings who feel pain and the fact that they are fighting with their ‘enemies’ for patriotism purpose is inexplicable in normal circumstances. The poem opens with a vivid description of soldiers who are highly demoralised and retreating from the battlefield’s frontlines. It is painful for soldiers who are fatigued to be subjected to intense attack using the most lethal form of weapons; gas attack.

As one of their colleagues shouts to alert the rest about the impending explosion of gas shells, all men rush to put on their masks except one soldier. The victim drowns in the ‘green sea’ of gas and dies in great pain. The image of the dying soldier is etched painfully in the minds of his colleagues. The poem illustrates the pain and suffering of soldiers on the battlefield and poses the question of the morality and ethics of subjecting human beings to immense suffering in the name of patriotism (Dettmar et al.,23).
Works Cited
Dettmar, Kevin J. H et al. Teaching British Literature. Longman/Pearson, 2006.