“Dulce et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen Welcome to class, get out some paper, and read this poem Bent double, like old beggars under sacks, Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge, Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs, And towards our distant rest began to trudge. Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots, But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind; Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots Of gas-shells dropping softly behind. Gas! GAS! Quick, boys!—An ecstasy of fumbling Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time, But someone still was yelling out and stumbling And flound’ring like a man in fire or lime.— Dim through the misty panes and thick green light, As under a green sea, I saw him drowning. In all my dreams before my helpless sight, He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning. If in some smothering dreams, you too could pace Behind the wagon that we flung him in, And watch the white eyes writhing in his face, His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin; If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs, Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,— My friend, you would not tell with such high zest To children ardent for some desperate glory, The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori. Latin phrase is from the Roman poet Horace: “It is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country.”  

Creating Imagery: Similes “Dulce et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen Bent double, like old beggars under sacks, Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge, Till on the haunting flares we turned out backs, And turned towards our distant rest began to trudge. Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots, But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind; Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots Of gas-shells dropping softly behind. Similies are a type of imagery where one thing is compared to another, for illuminative effect Similes use ‘like or as’ White like a fresh snowfall. White as snow Wilfred Owen was a young British poet who fought and dies on the front lines of WWI. His powerful verses, written direct from the combat zone, bring home all the inhuman horror of the time. What similes does Owen use in the first stanza of this powerful poem?

Creating Imagery: Similes Ex: Night is like a blanket Activity: Complete the similes by adding nouns. Television is like …. 16. ____ as loving as ____ Summer is like… 17. ____ as gentle as ____ Sleep is like… 18. ____ as ancient as ___ The moon is like… 19. ____ as blue as _____ Day is like… 20. _____ as wise as ____ Day is like…. A dream is like… Fire is like… Hands are like… Anger is like… The wind is like… Feeling like… Moving like… Scattering like… Blooming like… Pick five similes to extend by answering Who? What? When? Why? How? Example: The breeze is like a whisper. (When?) The breeze is like a whisper in the early morning. Madonna used similes! Wednesday, February 27

Creating Imagery: Metaphors Consider these sentences: Love is good. Love is fleeting. The adjective fleeting suggest only one Aspect of love: time. The adjective good provides no picture at all. What happens, though, when “love” is described not by an adjective but through metaphor, the comparison between two different persons, places, things, and ideas? Consider the following examples: Love is a train. Love is an anchor. Love is mountain. Metaphors are bridges. They create images, and by connecting any two, show things in a new way. Metaphors are implied comparisons that do not use the words “like” or “as.” “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players.” – William Shakespeare Complete the following metaphors 1. Heart of _______________ 2. Love is ________________ 3. Tears are ______________ 4. Jaws of ________________ 5. A school of _____________ 6. Ropes of _______________ 7. Hands are _____________ 8. Hate is ________________ Then, pick 3 and extended them. Example: Love is a mountain trail filled with valleys and peaks; sometimes easy to walk, other times hard to climb.