Year 8 · English · War poetry · Lesson 2
The reality of war
Wilfred Owen's ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’: exhaustion, the gas attack, imagery, similes and the irony of ‘the old Lie’.
20-minute video lesson
Teaching, worked examples and 20 practice questions solved step by step.
Watch free for a monthWhat your child will learn
- Know who Wilfred Owen was
- Analyse similes and imagery
- Explain the change of pace in the gas attack
- Explain the irony of the title
- Compare Owen with Brooke and Pope
The method
- Remember Owen's experience.
- Pick a short quotation.
- Name the technique: simile, imagery, irony.
- Explain the effect on the reader.
Key words: irony, simile, imagery, first person, anti-war, context, pace.
Worked examples
The first three practice questions from the lesson, with every step.
Question 1
When was ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ written?
- Step 1: 1917 to 1918, published 1920
Answer: 1917–18 (published 1920)
Question 2
Why is ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ different from Brooke's poem?
- Step 1: Owen fought: he shows the horror
- Step 2: Brooke shows a noble, peaceful death
Answer: Owen shows the real horror; Brooke idealises war
Question 3
What does ‘sludge’ suggest about the trenches?
- Step 1: Thick, dirty mud
- Step 2: Hard to walk: miserable conditions
Answer: Thick mud: miserable, exhausting conditions