Survivors by Siegfried Sassoon Analysis Essay Example

filled with nightmares of the ghosts of friends who died in battle and the horrific scenes in the battlefield. When they are haunted by these how can they ever ‘soon’ forget anything? The underlying tone of sarcasm that runs throughout the entire poem is seen again when Sassoon writes that the soldiers will be proud of the lorious war. The writer’s disdain is obvious as the war not only shattered their pride in fighting for their country but shattered their individual selves. Sassoon ends the poem in an accusatory manner. The last two lines convey the total effect of the war; reducing men who went to war, glad to be serving their country, to the level of helpless children. The hate he talks about referring to the people who supported the war even though they could never understand its horror. Survivors’ juxtaposes hope and the harsh brutality of battle in an exploration of the brokenness of the soldiers and the unfeigned optimism of those who didn’t even go to war. Its sad rhetoric displays the lack of understanding and the alienation that so many soldiers felt. Siegfried Sassoon uses vivid language and description to capture the essence of despair. The poet’s stance on the matter is seemingly neutral but there is a subliminal message of cynicism and confrontation with a society that sent its men to a war they could never be prepared for.