World War I Poetry Analysis

Compare and Contrast the the poems “An Irish Airman Foresees his death”- W.

B Yeats and “The Death Bed”- Siegfried Sasson. Compare the poems to the critical analysis, “Trauma Theory. ” The poems, “An Irish Airman Foresees his death”- W. B Yeats and “The Death Bed”- Siegfried Sasson share various qualities and differences. The similar qualities that the poems share includes a complementary theme of war, thoughts of a comrade in the war and the thoughts that run through the soldiers mind before death.

The differences in the poems are the forms the poems are written in.The comparison of the poems to the critical analysis, Trauma theory included the poet’s approaches on the violent actions of the war that occurred in the characters life. The poem, “An Irish Airman Foresees his death”- W. B Yeats was about an Irish airman fighting in world war I.

The speaker mentions that he will die fighting, that there isn’t a positive outcome of weather the war is an improvement or detrimental outcome on their lives.He didn’t fight in the war for publicity or frame or because the law said so, “Nor law, nor duty bade me fight, nor public man, nor cheering crowds. (9-11) but his decision on fighting in the war was due to this an instinctive decision of coming at peace with himself. He describes it as an “A lonely impulse of delight”(11). The poem, “The Death Bed”- Siegfried Sasson is about a confused solider that senses that he is either blinded or dying. But he recovers when he catches the sight of “a real landscape.

” “HE drowsed and was aware of silence heaped, Round him, unshaken as the steadfast walls; Aqueous like floating rays of amber light, Soaring and quivering in the wings of sleep.Silence and safety; and his mortal shore, Lipped by the inward, moonless waves of death. ” (1-6). The solider patiently lies down and has visions of rivers and boats. “Water—calm, sliding green above the weir, Water—a sky-lit alley for his boat.

”(11-12) But the solider transgresses into unconsciousness and hopes that death won’t catch up too him and hopes for help. “Light many lamps and gather round his bed. Lend him your eyes, warm blood, and will to live. Speak to him; rouse him; you may save him yet. ” (34-36) The differences in the poems are the forms the poems are written in.

The poem, “An Irish Airman Foresees his death”- W. B Yeats is written in lines metered in iambic tetrameter, a four lined poem with alternating rhymes. Yeats applies representations of imagery, rhythm, alliteration, figurative language and a rhythm pattern. The poem, “The Death Bed”- Siegfried Sasson is divided into six stanzas but doesn’t follow a apparent pattern. Sasson is trying to show that he believes that being dead is better than being in the war, so he utilizes many examples of imagery of peace, figurative language and free verse.In both poems, “An Irish Airman Foresees his death”- W.

 B Yeats and “The Death Bed”- Siegfried Sasson share the common theme of war, life and death. “I know that i shall meet my fate”(1) “In balance with this life, this death. ”(16)-Yeats “Lipped by the inward, moonless waves of death. ”(1) “And death, who’d stepped toward him, paused and stared.

”(33)-Sasson. The thoughts that run through the comrade’s mind is also a similarity. The soldier’s thoughts consist of life, death and war. “I that i shall meet my fate”(1) “ I balanced all, brought all to mind, the years to come seemed waste of breath, a waste of breath the years behind.In balance with this life, this death.

(13-16)-Yeats “ His groping dreams with grinding claws and fangs. But someone was beside him; soon he lay Shuddering because that evil thing had passed. And death, who’d stepped toward him, paused and stared. ” (30-31) “He’s young; he hated War; how should he die”(37) “But death replied: ‘I choose him. ’ So he went” (39)-Sasson The poems, “An Irish Airman Foresees his death”- W.

B Yeats and “The Death Bed”- Siegfried and the critical analysis, Trauma Theory are a relevance to each other because the poems and the theory approach the focus on the violent acts that the characters in the poem went through.Each character in the poems, speaks about their experience in the war. Yeats and Sasson both portray the exposure aspects of life and death of World War One. Yeats and Sasson display the characteristics of a victim of trauma warfare. The characters were in doubt of whether they would live or die.

Sasson described the comrade with the thoughts of how he is going to survive on is verge of death. He describes his tragedy with peaceful metaphors and figurative language to put him at ease before his time of death. The comrade would in vision landscapes of rivers and boats.Yeats characterized the airman with the realization of his acceptance of death. The airman knew his death was coming and he decided to fight due to “A lonely impulse of delight”(11) Each poem consisted many aspects of life and death of the war.

Yeats and Sasson are great poets that emphasized the perspective of a solider or airman at war. Yeats’s created a strong and noble predicament of an Airman. Sasson illustrated a metaphorical image of thoughts of fear in death. Each poet utilized their skills to compose a political and on edge rapture of the involvement in a distressed revulsion.