“ask 1 Question 1b: Say what you think the subject matter is. Question 2a: Identify and list in note form three of the techniques used in these lines. Question 2b: Comment in complete sentences on what the effects of the three techniques you have identified might be. Question 3a: In no more than three sentences, give your interpretation of the meaning or meanings of the poem. Question 3b: In no more than two sentences explain how the context helped you to understand the poem. Question 3c: In continuous prose, write an account of this poem, showing how the techniques used create the effects that lead to your interpretation of the meaning of the poem. TMA 02 Task 2 1. What did you find easiest and what did you find most difficult about studying Block 1? Why was this? 2. What could you do to make the things you found difficult easier for you in the future?”

1a: I found the poem to be utterly compelling, and overwhelmingly sad. The most striking effect of the poem, it seems to me, is the sense of hopelessness that it creates. The horrors described by Owen, most notably gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs (The Open University, Assessment Guide 2013, p.18), left me feeling increasingly shocked the more I studied it.

1b: The poem begins by describing a group of soldiers departing the battlefield. Owen goes on to describe the horrific death of one of his comrades from gas poisoning, and the effect that witnessing this has upon him. The poem concludes with an attack on those who glorify the act of dying for ones country.

2b: Although seemingly written in iambic pentameter, hardly any of the lines follow the usual iambic rhythm. Owen frequently interrupts the rhythm of the poem through his use of punctuation. For example, But…(short extract)