"Anthem for Doomed Youth" is a well-known popular poem written by Wilfred Owen which incorporates the themes of the horror of war. It employs the traditional form of a petrarchan sonnet, but it uses the rhyme scheme of an English sonnet. Much of the second half of the poem is dedicated to funeral rituals suffered by those families deeply affected by World War One. The poem does this by following the sorrow of common soldiers in one of the bloodiest battles of the 20th Century. Written between September and October of 1917, when Owen was a patient at Craiglockhart War Hospital in Edinburgh recovering from shell shock, the poem is a lament for young soldiers whose lives were unnecessarily lost in the First World War.[1] While at hospital, Owen met and became close friends with another poet, Siegfried Sassoon. Owen asked for his assistance in refining his poems rough drafts. It was Sassoon who named the start of the poem "anthem", and who also substituted "doomed" for "dead"; the famous epithet of "patient minds" is also a correction of his. The amended manuscript copy, in both men's handwriting, still exists and may be found at the Wilfred Owen Manuscript Archive on the world wide web.[2] The poem has been widely publicised and can be found on the "First World War Poetry Digital Archive " which is hosted on the internet.[3]
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[[File:|thumb|100px|right|Wilfred Owen served in World War One]] "Anthem for Doomed Youth" is a well-known popular poem written by Wilfred Owen which incorporates the themes of the horror of war. It employs the traditional form of a petrarchan sonnet, but it uses the rhyme scheme of an English sonnet. Much of the second half of the poem is dedicated to funeral rituals suffered by those families deeply affected by World War One. The poem does this by following the sorrow of common soldiers in one of the bloodiest battles of the 20th Century. Written between September and October of 1917, when Owen was a patient at Craiglockhart War Hospital in Edinburgh recovering from shell shock, the poem is a lament for young soldiers whose lives were unnecessarily lost in the First World War.[1] While at hospital, Owen met and became close friends with another poet, Siegfried Sassoon. Owen asked for his assistance in refining his poems rough drafts. It was Sassoon who named the start of the poem "anthem", and who also substituted "dead" for "doomed"; the famous epithet of "patient minds" is also a correction of his. The amended manuscript copy, in both men's handwriting, still exists and may be found at the Wilfred Owen Manuscript Archive on the world wide web.[2]
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Youth by |
| Anthem for Doomed Youth is one of the
best-known and most popular of Wilfred Owen's poems. It employs
the traditional form of a sonnet. Much of the imagery suggests
Christian funeral rituals and the poem moves from infernal noise to
mournful silence.
It was written in 1917, when Owen was a patient at Craiglockhart War Hospital in Edinburgh, recovering from shell shock. The poem itself is a lament for young soldiers whose lives were unnecessarily lost in World War I. Owen met and became close friends with another poet at the hospital, Siegfried Sassoon, and asked for his assistance in polishing his rough drafts. It was Sassoon who named it 'Anthem', and who substituted 'Doomed' for 'Dead'; the famous epithet of "patient minds" is also a correction of his. The amended manuscript copy, in both men's handwriting, still exists, and may be found at the Wilfred Owen Manuscript Archive online.
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What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?
—Only the monstrous anger of the
guns.
Only the stuttering rifles' rapid
rattle
Can patter out their hasty orisons.
No mockeries now for them; no prayers nor bells,
Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs,—
The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells;
And bugles calling for them from sad shires.
What candles may be held to speed them all?
Not in the hands of boys, but
in their eyes
Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes.
The pallor of girls' brows shall be
their pall;
Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds,
And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds.
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This work is in the public domain in
the United States because it was published before
January 1, 1923.
The author died in 1918, so this work is also in the public domain in countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 80 years or less. This work may also be in the public domain in countries and areas with longer native copyright terms that apply the rule of the shorter term to foreign works. |
   | amended manuscript copy - Welcome | First World War Digital Poetry Archive |
| | Wilfred Owen Manuscript Archive - Welcome | First World War Digital Poetry Archive |
| | A Flash animation interpretation of the Poem - Wilfred owen Anthem of Doomed Youth |
| | Interpretation web page by Kenneth Simcox - The Wilfred Owen Association |
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