Anthem for Doomed Youth

‘Anthem for Doomed Youth’ is an elegiac poem, which, while overflowing with a lamenting sadness, Owen also uses to convey absolute derision for the brutality of war and the immorality that defines it. Through its paradoxical nature, he expresses the impact of the war by shattering the romanticised and distorted misconceptions with the juxtaposition of his violent images that give an insight into the true experience. These striking sentiments are further emphasised by Owen’s intriguing exploration of the glorification of the deaths in the trenches, hinting at the futility of faith and the lack of religious justification, leaving the reader with a resounding conclusion of the perverse nature of war.

Immediately there is a sense of irony that is created in the poem, rooted in the title: 'Anthem for Doomed Youth.' Typically, an anthem is a patriotic song that symbolises the power in unity (also having religious connotations) therefore, in the presence of the following phrase, 'doomed youth', a sense of incongruity arises - the irony being that it seems a paradoxical celebration of such hopelessness, conveying the depraved nature of war. Additionally, Owen's specification of the 'youth' is highly emotive, revealing an unjustness that such corrupt brutality and inevitable 'doom' is thrust onto such innocent and inexperienced people. This depicts the futility of those who are victims of war, evoking pathos for the soldiers and expressing the true heinousness of the experience.

Furthermore, the poem begins with the shocking rhetorical question: 'What passing bells for these who die as cattle?' Already, this phrase introduces religious imagery, however this is quickly is compounded by the violent simile which serves to dehumanise the soldiers as 'cattle', emphasising the merciless nature of the deaths as well the sheer amount. With his clever use of diction in referring to the soldiers as 'these' rather than 'those', he creates more of an intimacy and closeness between them and the reader, only to shatter this with the vicious depiction of their slaughter, conveying a sense of loss. Interestingly, whilst this line holds sorrow, there is a somewhat bitter subtext linking back to the abolition of the religious imagery of the 'passing bells' with the juxtaposition of the reality of war. This could be interpreted as Owen hinting at the sinfulness of war, the lack of spirituality and mercy, perhaps in a rather accusatory way. This is supported by aggressive, sensory imagery in the next two lines: 'Only the monstrous anger of the guns/ Only the stuttering rifle's rapid rattle.' These create a very vivid image of the war with the plosive phrase 'stuttering rifles rapid rattle', which mimics the sound of the gun and therefore brings the atmosphere of the war unsettlingly close to the reader. It is yet another line with offers conflicting ideas of the war, what with the disjointed syllables reflecting the instability and unpredictability of war while the continuance of the alliteration creates an unbearable sense of monotony. As well as this, by using anaphora of the word 'only' at the beginning of these lines, it offers an answer to the previous rhetorical question: there is a blatant lack of recognition or appreciation of those who died, there is just the inevitable abundance of more violence and death. The personification of the weapons, giving them very human states such as 'anger' here is highly significant also, considering the previous dehumanisation of the soldiers - it gives a certain unjust supremacy to the guns, and the concept of violence - emphasising further the tragic futility of their battle.

Owen further delves into the idea of the ungodliness of war in the line, 'No mockeries now; no prayers nor bells'. The referral to these spiritual things as 'mockeries' strips them of their holy, solemn façade - here Owen may be trying to reveal these things as ritual pleasantries - justifications of the deaths which he has set up as impossible to justify due to their horrific, meaningless slaughter. In this way, the poem is very much a parody