My
Favourite WW1 Poem
Most
people will have studied some poetry from the First World War during their time
at school. Many of these poems are read or printed each year in the run up to
November 11th. Amongst the most ‘popular’ are the haunting and
bitter ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’, the poignant ‘In Flanders
Fields’ and the idealistic but tragic ‘The Soldier’. All poems from this genre
reveal some aspect of the horror from the trenches of France and Belgium.
My
favourite poem from this period is one that doesn’t crop up too often. I learnt
this whilst at school and it conveyed to me everything that I needed to know
about the war. ‘The General’ by Siegfried Sassoon is one of the shortest poems
about World War One. At 7 lines it is remarkably short to communicate the
futility of the war. But it does just that.
It
starts off in a terribly breezy, very British way with an old General wishing
the passing troops ‘good morning’. Initially he comes across as a friendly guy,
just one of the men. However, the darker side of the poem comes in when we
learn that most of the troops he says hello to are dead. The poem then goes on
to comment about the inadequacy of the army leadership. We then get to meet
(briefly) two British Tommies, Harry and Jack; we have a personal insight of
this meeting. They seem to epitomize the decency of the ordinary British
soldier and his unquestioning nature. Harry’s response is simply that the old
major is a happy soul. The poem then ends with the abrupt news that both of the
soldiers have died due to the detached and ultimately useless general.
Unlike
the graphic nature of Owen’s ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’ with a detailed account of
watching a soldier die from a gas attack or the almost dreamy nature of
Brooke’s ‘The Soldier’ mulling over how his death will some how be glorious in
turning foreign soil English, ‘The General’ shows in a short regimented way the
poorly thought out tactics of many commanders in the First World War and their
terrible consequences. The contrast between the General’s pleasant demeanour
and the outcome of the Battle of Arras, which resulted in the deaths of
thousands pinpointed for me the gaping chasm in those that did the fighting and
those that didn’t. Whilst the General comes across as a nice old buffer, his
apparent detachment or complete incompetence with military tactics and what is
actually happening at the front, is clearly conveyed. In 7 lines the reader can
really believe the rumours of Commanders
sitting in grand country houses miles behind the front line sipping claret,
whilst ordinary soldiers were perishing in the mud and bullets of the Western
Front. All in all it is a deceptively simple yet terribly powerful poem.
The
reason why I like this poem is exactly because it’s simple. The length makes it
very accessible and as a child I actually memorised it. I like the image of the
apparently good natured old General cheering his weary troops up with a
sprightly ‘hello’. It makes us feel that all of the top brass aren’t so bad. I
also liked the two Tommies, Harry and Jack. One could almost see them marching
along through the French countryside to be met by this old military man. The
way Harry ‘grunts’ to his mate that ‘E’s a cheery old card’ made me like the
seemingly good natured soldiers. And then we learn in the last line that both
of these men are to become victims of this General’s ‘plan of attack’. So the
seemingly benign old boy has actually got them killed. A clear, simple snapshot
of the brutal and often short life for a front-line soldier on the Western
Front.
The General
“Good-morning,
good-morning!” the General said
When
we met him last week on our way to the line.
Now
the soldiers he smiled at are most of 'em dead,
And
we're cursing his staff for incompetent swine.
“He's
a cheery old card,” grunted Harry to Jack
As
they slogged up to Arras with rifle and pack.
But
he did them both by his plan of attack.
This post was written by Andy Mackay, KS3 & IGCSE Co-Ordinator at Blackhen Education.
