He ripped away the patriotic fog
By painting scenes of brutal blood and gore,
Of tedium and unrelenting slog,
To show the world the horrors of the war.
He learned from all the greatest of the age,
Sassoon would coax from him his finest art.
The voice that told a generation's rage,
With passions stolen from a broken heart.
When all was won and death still greater waste,
He gave his life as millions had before.
The news gave peace a lasting bitter taste
And emphasised the dreadful final score.
There is no sweet and fitting way to die,
His verses show the world that greatest lie.
In a list
A contest entry
- Sonnet written for a dead poet. #81 Winklings and all AP Friends by Lyndon.
2600 points, ended May 15, 2008, 12 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Prewrites But NO "fresh" writes by ecrivain01.
450 points, ended June 6, 2008, 77 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - War poetry by Princess-of-Chance.
450 points, ended October 11, 2008, 20 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - CELEBRATING POETRY AND POETS- ONE-DAY competition, "PREVIOUSLY WRITTEN" WORK ONLY by Vera Rich.
6000 points, ended November 26, 2008, 127 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Shakespearean Sonnet Competition: "PREVIOUSLY WRITTEN" WORK ONLY. by Vera Rich.
490 points, ended June 15, 51 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Please tell me what you think
Comments
1 - 23 of 23
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Oh how wonderful this is! A fitting tribute from a poet to those who lost their lives and broke our hearts while doing so! IIt is fitting that they be so honored! So beautifully and so movingly.
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After reading one of your other poems, I felt that I could use some more, so a random click led me to this one. I had never heard of Owen before, but your poem introduced me to a new hero and writer and a little reading up has helped me see what your poem came to represent.
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A very succint and slightly vitriolic opine on Sassoon- excellent!
The two last lines sum his ouvre up very well- great work.
Congrats on awards, too! -
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The poem is about Wilfred Owen, Sassoon was in many ways his mentor.
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Thank you for entering the "Celebrating poetry and poets" competition - with a poem that is most appropriate for St Hilda's day.
I shall be returning to it later, when I make my detailed judging of the competition - at present I am simply pre-sorting the entries into probable, possible and - alas, impossible. -
A marveleous piece...
A marveleous piece; there is certainly nothing glamorous about war; when General Sherman said "War is Hell", I'm sure that meant it as an understatement; loved the ending's couplet and appreciate the use of punctuation. --Joe
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this is great!!! congrats on the gold!!! -slick99
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Dulce et Decorum est
I see a very masculine way of writing in here, which I had generally noticed less before.
I can say I like it, but I feel it isn't a poem to be liked - it is to be respected. I found a few of the rhymes a little forced, but I think it's an effective piece.
For me, it's pretty impressive. Sarah
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Very nice ...
but you've missed reading the rules.
Poems are supposed to be punctuated. Also in line 7 it would be
"generation's heart". This is an excellent poem. I hope you've punctuated it before the contest ends. -
I am glad you directed me to this one. I think it is very well written indeed, and I can see why you linked it to my "Christmas 1917".
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Oh wow. Great poem Jeff.
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Wilfed Owen?
No matter. It's a fabulous poem.
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It is indeed, he died a week from the end of the war, his Mother received the Newspaper announcing the Armistice and the telegram informing her he had died of his wounds at the same time, which is the third stanza and of course "sweet and fitting" is a translation of "dulce et decorum".
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Very good. Rhyme and flow are awesome. Great Poem Jeff
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a great sonnet, jeff green ...
I enjoy reading the different entries in this contest, somehow it feels like we pick those with whose qualities we most easily identify with ... what do you think ?
well, I finally picked "my guy", he will soon join the party ...
I don't wish you good luck in your contest, if you don't mind ...
maa
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Praise from as good a sonneteer as yourself is praise indeed. I took a long time over this one and in the end am not unhappy. This is proving to be a very strong contest and I look forward to your entry very keenly. I have spotted all bar on of the poets so far (both writers and subjects) it isn't just the styles of the greats that are personal!
And yes please don't wish me luck if I win this contest I'll have to leave AP!!!
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thats a fine sonnet, i have never written a sonnet myself i think it's time i gave it a go, who this is about?
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Very good sonnet descriptive and filled with image even if I don't know what a Shropshire is.
Love,
Amera
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not what, where, it's a place in england
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A county, in fact. One of England's best-kept secrets, birthplace of Wilfred Owen (the town of Oswestry) and the place where he lived and studied (Shrewsbury). It was written about most lovingly by A E Houseman.
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A sweet and fitting tribute to a son of Shropshire.
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Couldn't you get it back into the Latin?
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I did - see my "Lupa's song" which quotes Horace.
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