Starter quiz
- When was 'Dulce et Decorum Est' published?
- 1916
- 1917
- 1918
- 1919
- 1920 ✓
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- ______ is biased or misleading information used to influence public opinion. It was used in WWI to encourage young men to enlist in the army.
- 'propaganda' ✓
- Which of the following statements about Wilfred Owen are true?
- Owen's brother Siegfried was also a famous war poet
- Owen served in Serre and St. Quentin ✓
- Owen never actually saw any military action
- Owen died on November 4th 1918 ✓
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- Complete the quotation from 'Dulce et Decorum Est'. "Dulce et Decorum Est..."
- pro maria patrium
- pro patria mori ✓
- pre patrium fori
- por mora patria
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- What is Owen criticising in the poem 'Dulce et Decorum Est''?
- he is criticising the inexperience of soldiers in the war
- he is criticising people who were glorifying war through the use of propaganda ✓
- he is criticising the lack of suitable equipment soldiers were given
- he is criticising war itself and condemning the brutality of it ✓
- he is criticising the government for forcing people to enlist in the army
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- Starting with the first, put these quotations from 'Dulce et Decorum Est' in order, as they appear in the poem.
- 1⇔"Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge"
- 2⇔"Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots"
- 3⇔"But someone still was yelling out and stumbling"
- 4⇔"He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning."
- 5⇔"His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin;"
- 6⇔"Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud"
Exit quiz
- What tense is the middle of the poem 'Dulce et Decorum Est' written in?
- past
- present ✓
- future conditional
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- What method does Owen use in this quotation from 'Dulce et Decorum Est' to present the soldier's death graphically: "As under a green sea, I saw him drowning"?
- simile ✓
- onomatopoeia
- enjambment
- metaphor
- alliteration
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- Which quotation from 'Dulce et Decorum Est' shows us that the soldiers have become desensitised to the violence and threat of war?
- "Many had lost their boots"
- "But someone still was yelling out and stumbling"
- "coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge"
- "deaf even to the hoots" ✓
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- Complete the quotation from 'Dulce et Decorum Est': "His hanging face, like a ______ sick of sin".
- 'devil's' ✓
- What is the effect of the phrase "froth-corrupted lungs" from 'Dulce et Decorum Est'?
- the word "froth" is reminiscent of madness, so Owen suggests that war is mad.
- Owen could be suggesting that war spoils innocence.O ✓
- it shows how compromised the soldier's breathing has become - he is choking. ✓
- it shows how difficult it was for Owen to breathe in this moment.
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- Why might Owen switch tenses throughout 'Dulce et Decorum Est'?
- to show us that war affects a person's past, present and future ✓
- to show us that he is in the process of healing from his PTSD
- to recreate the experience of PTSD, so that we understand how war affected Owen ✓
- to illustrate that, with time, war can be forgotten and people can move on
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Worksheet
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Lesson Details
Key learning points
- Owen uses graphic imagery to portray the brutal reality of war.
- Owen shows the vulnerability of the men in the beginning of the poem, contradicting the public perception of soldiers.
- Owen uses figurative language to convey a vivid account of the gas attack.
- Owen switches tense throughout the poem - perhaps to represent his experiences with PTSD.
- The inclusion of three tenses arguably illustrates the impact that war has had on Owen’s past, present and future.
Common misconception
Students sometimes fail to recognise that the tense shifts as the poem progresses.
Owen includes three tenses in his poem, perhaps to illustrate that the impact of war has, is and will be felt in his past, present and future.
Keywords
Vulnerable - able to be harmed either physically or emotionally.
Desensitised - less sensitive or reactive to something.
Imagery - words used to create a vivid picture in the reader’s mind.
Gruelling - extremely challenging and demanding.
Ptsd - a mental illness caused by trauma, in which the patient may suffer flashbacks, hallucinations, depression and substance abuse.
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