• Wilfred Owen was an officer in World War I, however was sent to a hospital because he suffered from "shellshock". Here, he met poet Siegfried Sassoon, who played a part in influencing him to write poetry about war and the suffering of soldiers. He later returned to the war, where he was killed.
Opening Statement and Title
• Greater Love expresses Owen's thoughts that romantic love cannot even be compared to the love felt by soldiers on the battlefield. The brotherly bond is the strongest and much more significant than romantic love.
• Through the use of the structure …show more content…
Through the use of alliteration, consonance, and punctuation, Owen creates an atmosphere where readers can see the extent of the message he is trying to convey.
• Alliteration: o This is present when Owen writes, "stained stones" (line 2) and this shows Owens emphasizing the point that red lips cannot be compared to the red of the stained stones (blood) by the soldiers who have fought in war. o When Owen writes, "wooed and wooer" (line 3) also shows a emphasize on the initial aspects of love (wooing) where everything sweet and perfect, however this is shameful to the "pure" (line 4) of the soldiers. Also, loves eyes "lose lore" (line 5) when compared to the emotional soldier's affection o Also present when Owen writes "sings not so soft" (line 13) and the "s" sound highlights the softness of the stanza which contradicts the harsh tone in the beginning. This emphasizes the vocal aspect of love
• Consonance o When Owen writes "stones kissed" (line 2), he uses the "s" sound to create a sober dialogue in the poem, which creates a sense of affection when read
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These features enhance the meaning of the poem and allow readers to connect with the poem.
• Metaphor o When Owen uses the word "kissed" (line 2), this is metaphoric as the word seems to fit in with the feeling of love however, the message is not about love. It is used for a specific purpose o This is present when Owen writes "whom none now hear" (line 17) and this is a metaphor for how the soldiers are dead now and they cannot hear anything compared to the vocal soft voice of romance
• Personification o This is used when Owen writes, "earth has stopped" (line 18) and shows how the earth is personified as love for stopping the piteous mouths of the soldiers as they died o When Owen writes "O love" (line 5), he gives love, an inanimate aspect, human qualities of eyes losing lure. This provides readers a better understanding of his comparison
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