Owen's "Anthem for Doomed Youth"

Reflecting on the somber atmosphere surrounding the world over WWI, Wilfred Owen's poem "Anthem for Doomed Youth" highlights the disastrous slaughter of millions of young men, far removed from their homes and families and left in barren lands. Emphasizing the killings of these young men as the slaughter of cattle, the narrator illustrates how inhumane the tremendous number of deaths that occurred were in the Great War. He emphasizes the youth of these men, who he sees as being only boys, to describe how further inhumane and horrendous their deaths were. For their tragic deaths, the lack of proper burial is much more devastating in a religious aspect, especially for the soldiers' families. Without proper burial, only the roars of the rifle serve as the passing bells for the young soldiers, as many of them collapse and simply remain forgotten by the world, losing their futures and recognition in the world. By including caucaphonous words along with others that connote melancholic calmness and rest, the narrator juxtaposes the horrendous circumstances under which the young soldiers leave the world to the peaceful burials of young men near home, where their families feel much more closer to their youth.