Because of the effectiveness of the pro-war propaganda set out by the government at the outbreak of World War I, many men from all classes of society were morally induced to join the war effort. However, the idealistic war image was soon shattered as the soldiers were faced with the reality of war’s horrors on the battlefront. The soldier poets were determined to enlighten the masses at home. Two such anti-war poems are “Glory of Women” written by Siegfried Sassoon and “The Send-off” by Wilfred Owen. The themes were conveyed through the common devices used in poetry such as form, rhyme, rhythm and imagery, coupled with the knowledge of the context in which they wrote.

As the Great War was the first international military confrontation in a time of universal literacy, most of a nation’s population were subject to a barrage of propaganda promoting the war. Men as well as women were the targets for these campaigns which attached to war such labels as nobility, honour and self-sacrifice. Nationalism, patriotism and heroism were deemed to be the greatest feeling one could have for one’s country. To prove this, many men willingly enlisted and women happily fared them well tot he battlefront. However, these men soon experienced the abhorrent and sickening conditions of trench warfare. They realized that it was a useless exercise which caused mass destruction and was a waste of many young lives. Determined that the deception of propaganda would not continue, such men like Sassoon and Owen wrote poems to counter it.

Sassoon’s poem “Glory of Women” is written in the form of a sonnet. The form used is clearly ironic in that sonnets are traditionally used to express love. “Glory of Women” also speaks of love - “You love us when we’re heroes” but this is a love of heroism and honour which is revealed to be a love enforced by propaganda. Women are shown to be both victims of pro-war propaganda and perpetrators of it. The poem is structured into an octave where the attitudes of women towards war are described, such as their ignorant fascination in it - “You listen with delight at tales of dirt and danger fondly thrilled.” A volta marks the end of the eighth line where there is a shift in subject. The image created of the British soldiers breaking into a fear-induced stampede when faced with heavy enemy fire, trampling the bloodied corpses is powerful in dispelling any illusions that war is a noble pursuit.

On the other hand, “The Send-off” has been structured differently according to a rhyme scheme of aba ab cdccd efe ef ghggh. The rhyme scheme co-incides with the building up of descriptions, culminating in use of symbolism in the two-line stanzas. The first stanza describes the men heading off to battle. Then the second two-line stanza with the rhyme of ab contains a striking symbolic comparison - “Their breasts were stuck all white with wreath and spray/ As men’s are, dead.” Here, these living men with farewell wreaths and confetti on their uniforms are likened to the deceased with funeral wreaths placed on their breasts.

Similar to Sassoon’s poem, Owens also relates to the role that women hold in the continuation of the lie - “Nor there if they yet mock what women meant who gave them flowers.” Patriotism and courage so valued and encouraged by the womenfolk will soon be proven false in the view of the soldiers. Although Owen does not specifically address women as does Sassoon, he still is able to appropriately convey the negative nature of their conscious desire to water the propaganda for war set by the government.

Several ironies are produced in Sassoon’s choice of diction. These serve to define even more clearly the aspects of society and human behaviour he is criticizing. His ironic title is an example. Because women are not faced with the reality of war, they cannot possible fathom the death and destruction it produces. That they glorify and hold in high esteem such mindless, wanton acts of killing is ironic. Also, phrases such as “… chivalry redeems the war’s disgrace…” and “… crown our distant ardours…” give connotations of knighthood and hence again, great nobility and bravery.

This “noble” image of war is a misconception also protrayed by Owen in his description of the departing men’s feelings - “… with faces grimly gay.” This is an oxymoron. Owen has managed to transmit the meaning that the men were grim because they were leaving their family and home but were happy at the prospect of becoming a much praised and courageous hero. “… mourn our laurelled memories when we’re killed” is starkly contrasted with “His face trodden deeper into the mud.” The imagery produced from “laurelled memories” can be related to the crowning of a wreath of laurel leaves on the victor in the ancient Greek Olympic games. This image of victory in “glory of women”, however, crushed by the ignominy of the soldier’s death. He is buried into the mud, not with respect or ceremony, but by the blind trampling feet of soldiers fleeing from enemy fire.

In Owen’s poem, this idealism of victory is also discussed, leading to a direct contrast with what will be real. The last stanza does this, beginning with the rhetorical question - “Shall they return to beatings of great bells in wild train-loads?” The fanfare and wild rejoicing represent the image of a triumphal return. However, it is quashed in the next verse with the repetition - “A few, a few, too few…/ May creep back…” The repetition draws emphasis on the numerous other young men who will never again see their home. That those who do survive “creep” back shows the lies of propaganda.

The slow rhythm of both poems is reflective of their tone. Their slow pace is necessary to display the heavy the heavy ironies that exist when comparing the artificial glorified picture of war with its reality. Sassoon addresses women directly with the use of the “you” point of view - “You love us when we’re heroes…/ You worship decorations…” In saying this, his tone is cynical and bitter, especially towards the end when he wants to drive the reality home - “O German mother…/ While you are knitting socks to send your son/ His face is trodden deeper into the mud.”

Owen’s work contains a quiet regret and lament at the sending of so many lives to their premature ends. He comments on the tragedy that those on the home front - the women, should encourage patriotism when they are not aware of the true ramifications of war. Objects such as the signals and lamp at the train station are personified - “… signals nodded and a lamp/ Winked to the guard” to indicate that they are more animated than the humans whose behaviour and attitudes have been dictated by propaganda.

The purpose of these poems is to expose war as an ignoble, brutal and inhuman activity. Sassoon and Owen have achieved this aim through their different writing styles but using the common poetic techniques. They first commented on propaganda’s portrayal of war and then contrasted this with the experiences they had on the battleground. Their common medium was experience. They knew first-hand what war encompassed and were appalled by the way human life has been demeaned and the mindless slaughter both sides had committed.