Minnie 1201

“Dulce et Decorum Est”

by Wilfred Owen

In the agonizing poem “Dulce et Decorum Est,” Wilfred Owen explores the imperfect
duality of pain and glory in the context of military service through the use of parallel
structure. One effect of parallel structure is giving a sense of rhythm. In this poem, it is used
consistently to imitate the repetitive nature and the marching of soldiers. More importantly, it
highlights the constant pain and suffering soldiers go through, in parallel with the glory they
are supposed to receive. For example, in line 7, “Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots.”
This alliterated repetition of “drunk” and “deaf” puts the emphasis on the absence of senses
or consciousness of soldiers. It reinforces the torment that soldiers have to go through. That
torment is then augmented in line 16: “guttering, choking, drowning.” Parallel structure in
this phrase creates an intensifying effect for the suffering of infected soldiers. It reflects on
how pain gets elevated step by step from guttering, to choking, to drowning when soldiers are
exposed to poison gas. Aside from the pain, Owen then creates an intensely pitious tone
afterwards in line 24, by describing infected soldiers as “incurable sores on innocent
tongues.” The contrast between negative and positive connotations of “incurable” and
“innocent” creates a sympathetic mood. Making the innocent incurable contributes to the
theme of human brutality in time of wars. It conveys that war is merciless and doesn’t choose
its victim. With the presence of this idea, the last line about how dying for one’s country is
sweet and glorious becomes a sudden contradiction which breaks away from the consistently
parallel structure of the poem. This provides a strong impression of structural closure. In
terms of meaning, it can be concluded that for a lot of situations, behind its apparent glory
still exists a persistence of pain and suffering.