DISABLED Thursday, 15 November 2018 jonathan peel SGS 2012

OVERVIEW “Above all I am not concerned with Poetry. My subject is War, and the pity of War. The Poetry is in the pity. Yet these elegies are to this generation in no sense consolatory. They may be to the next. All a poet can do today is warn. That is why the true Poets must be truthful.” Lines by Wilfred Owen to act as a preface to his poetry. Owen died shortly before the end of WW1 and is now viewed by many as the greatest English war poet. These lines should alert you to the possible “rule breaking” of his poetry and to the stark honesty with which he carries his message. Disabled was written following Owen’s hospitalisation for shell-shock. Much of his writing is based on first-hand experience. jonathan peel SGS 2012

Disabled He sat in a wheeled chair, waiting for dark, And shivered in his ghastly suit of grey, Legless, sewn short at elbow. Through the park Voices of boys rang saddening like a hymn, Voices of play and pleasure after day, Till gathering sleep had mothered them from him. About this time Town used to swing so gay When glow-lamps budded in the light blue trees, And girls glanced lovelier as the air grew dim,- In the old times, before he threw away his knees. Now he will never feel again how slim Girls' waists are, or how warm their subtle hands. All of them touch him like some queer disease. There was an artist silly for his face, For it was younger than his youth, last year. Now, he is old; his back will never brace; He's lost his colour very far from here, Poured it down shell-holes till the veins ran dry, And half his lifetime lapsed in the hot race And leap of purple spurted from his thigh. One time he liked a blood-smear down his leg, After the matches, carried shoulder-high. It was after football, when he'd drunk a peg, He thought he'd better join. - He wonders why. Someone had said he'd look a god in kilts, That's why; and maybe, too, to please his Meg, Aye, that was it, to please the giddy jilts He asked to join. He didn't have to beg; Smiling they wrote his lie: aged nineteen years. Germans he scarcely thought of; all their guilt, And Austria's, did not move him. And no fears Of Fear came yet. He drought of jewelled hills For daggers in plaid socks; of smart salutes; And care of arms; and leave; and pay arrears; Esprit de corps; and hints for young recruits. And soon, he was drafted out with drums and cheers. Some cheered him home, but not as crowds cheer Goal. Only a solemn man who brought him fruits Thanked him; and then enquired about his soul. Now, he will spend a few sick years in institutes, And do what things the rules consider wise, And take whatever pity they may dole. Tonight he noticed how the women's eyes Passed from him to the strong men that were whole. How cold and late it is! Why don't they come And put him into bed? Why don't they come? Wilfred Owen jonathan peel SGS 2012

The soldier is not given an identity – one of many The soldier is not given an identity – one of many. The focus is on his immobility, and the metaphorical “waiting for dark” suggestive of the end of day and of death. Before the Caesura, the sentence becomes broken up and fragmentary like the soldiers limbs. The caesura creates a sudden break, reflecting again the loss of part of the arm. After the pause, the focus is on the sense of being locked inside… frustration and sadness predominate. His uniform has been replaced by another – a “ghastly” grey suit. Again the imagery is suggestive of death. He sat in a wheeled chair, waiting for dark,  And shivered in his ghastly suit of grey,  Legless, sewn short at elbow. Through the park  Voices of boys rang saddening like a hymn,  Voices of play and pleasure after day,  Till gathering sleep had mothered them from him.  Owen focuses on the senses – voices are heard and repeated and the use of “boys” serves to remind the reader how young this soldier may be – he should be one of these boys. So removed is he, that the voices produce a hymn which saddens rather than uplifts, Slep is equated with his mother in a powerful shift of noun to verb – it provides all the ideas associated with motherhood – love, warmth, comfort and so on. It is a small journey from “sleep” to the “dark” of the opening line. jonathan peel SGS 2012

About this time Town used to swing so gay  When glow-lamps budded in the light blue trees,  And girls glanced lovelier as the air grew dim,-  In the old times, before he threw away his knees.  Now he will never feel again how slim  Girls' waists are, or how warm their subtle hands.  All of them touch him like some queer disease.  The pause introduced by the dash is stroing and suggests a shift back to reality. Owen uses a euphemism “threw away his knees” as though the soldier either can not fasce the truth or is trying to put a brave face on his injury. A contrast is set up in his mind. The second line with its compound noun and use of nature verbs such as “budded” suggests both beauty and the continuation of life The stanza closes with a rhyme to pick up “knees”- the cause of the disability – the sense of “queer disease” is to show the revulsion felt for his new condition. It is as if the girls fear that he might be contagious. Physical affection is now only in his mind and Owen focuses on the slim waists and the “subtle” hands which must have caressed him in earlier times. jonathan peel SGS 2012

The immediate contrast with old age and weakness is powerful. By ending the first couplet on “last year” after a weak caesura, Owen draws focus onto the lost youth and beauty of the boy-soldier The immediate contrast with old age and weakness is powerful. There was an artist silly for his face,  For it was younger than his youth, last year.  Now, he is old; his back will never brace;  He's lost his colour very far from here,  Poured it down shell-holes till the veins ran dry,  And half his lifetime lapsed in the hot race  And leap of purple spurted from his thigh.  Alliteration is powerful here. The Ls draw attention to the half-lifetime said to have “lapsed, which implies a significant length of life still to be led, and in the final line the Ps and the assonance of U sounds focus both on the violence of the wound, but alos on the colour purple, redolent of royalty and nobility. The metaphor “poured it down shell holes” not only sugests the torrent of blood lost, but also makes the boy an active participant in his wound, jonathan peel SGS 2012

The kilt simply serves to highlight his new disability -irony This stanza takes the reader to the pre war games field –an image beloved of Victorian War poets and Owen uses it to draw sharp contrast – once he was a hero who enjoyed the attention of a “blood-smear” – now things have changed. The image of the triumphal hero being carried aloft is in sharp contrast to his current predicament. The reader is also shown his reason for enlisting – to impress the girls. The poem is honest in its appraisal of WW1 – Patriotism was rarely the reason for joining up! The wounded soldier is given time to reflect on his actions. The caesura is doubled –a full stop and a dash to provide a real sense of time for thought. One time he liked a blood-smear down his leg,  After the matches, carried shoulder-high.  It was after football, when he'd drunk a peg,  He thought he'd better join. - He wonders why.  Someone had said he'd look a god in kilts,  That's why; and maybe, too, to please his Meg,  Aye, that was it, to please the giddy jilts  He asked to join. He didn't have to beg;  The kilt simply serves to highlight his new disability -irony After the caesura, the weight is put onto the “didn’t have to beg” – we will see why in the next line. The rhyme links this idea both to his drunken state of bravado and to his girlfriend Meg who is noticeably absent from the poem in any comforting sense. jonathan peel SGS 2012

He is still a hero as he leaves for war… The power is in the simplicity – a perfectly balanced line with a caesura to throw emphasis onto his “lie” and then to drive home the meaning – however old he was, he was obviously not 19. The smiling adds an horrific complicity on the part of the authorities –”they”. Smiling they wrote his lie: aged nineteen years.  Germans he scarcely thought of; all their guilt,  And Austria's, did not move him. And no fears  Of Fear came yet. He thought of jewelled hilts  For daggers in plaid socks; of smart salutes;  And care of arms; and leave; and pay arrears;  Esprit de corps; and hints for young recruits.  And soon, he was drafted out with drums and cheers.  He is not driven by patriotism, but the repetition here spans across the lines and suggests that Fear will soon come. The emphasis is on the peripheral and the vain. The phrases are short as though each reflects a passing thought in the young soldier’s mind. The use of “and” in the repetitive fashion is suggestive of conversation – as though this is a natural response to the excitement of joining up. A euphemistic phrase which hides the reality of the short life expectancy on the Western Front. Owen is possibly also attacking the people who wrote such bland documents. He is still a hero as he leaves for war… jonathan peel SGS 2012

“Now” returns to reality and the present swiftly and sharply The contrast is immediate – he is no longer a hero, as soon as he returns as a cripple. The “solemn man” is a sinister figure. The italicisation draws attention to the strangeness of this meeting. After the caesura the religious comment is shown to be jarring and suggests that the whole role of the church is suspect and not appreciated by the soldiers. Some cheered him home, but not as crowds cheer Goal.  Only a solemn man who brought him fruits  Thanked him; and then enquired about his soul.  Now, he will spend a few sick years in institutes,  And do what things the rules consider wise,  And take whatever pity they may dole.  Tonight he noticed how the women's eyes  Passed from him to the strong men that were whole.  How cold and late it is! Why don't they come  And put him into bed? Why don't they come?  “Now” returns to reality and the present swiftly and sharply The lack of a free future is shown by the “rules” and the impersonal “they” used of the authority figures An attack on the attitude of women? Certainly this is not complimentary. The glorious final couplet starts by focusing on his loneliness and isolation – alone in the dark with an almost child-like cry. Then comes the repeated question – part prayer, part plea, part accusation. We need know who “they” are – nurses, visitors, loved ones… The strength is in the repetition –first a simple request for help to bed, the second an altogether more worrying plea for love and solace. jonathan peel SGS 2012

Finally The poem is so full of poetic effects and is so widely covered online, that you will find more to consider with some ease. Focus on the attitude of the healthy to the young man Focus on the sense of betrayal felt by the young man Focus on Owen's attacks on a society which encourages and allows such children to go to war. Look closely at Owen’s language choices throughout the poem. His use of alliteration, assonance and rhyme is masterly – try to come up with ideas of your own! jonathan peel SGS 2012