Will it be so again - Poem Analysis

He questions whether war is an infinite event where patriotic individuals die, leaving the politicians, with the time to plan another desolating war. Will it be so again? Will it be so again Euphemism- Death that the brave, the gifted are lost from view, Juxtaposition Politicians and empty, scheming men are left in peace their lunatic age to renew? Soldiers are dead and politicians still rule Will it be so again? Must it be always so Euphemism- Death. Creates a harsh tone and alludes to central message that the best are chosen to fall and sleep Simile: soldiers to seeds like seeds, and we too slow Take what’s not yours- a stolen power. in claiming the earth they quicken, and the old usurpers reap Biblical meaning: Soldiers reap what they don’t deserve, and politicians don’t deserve Sarcastic comparison between dead and living what they could not sow? to rule. War is unfair. Peace can not be claimed. Men shake hands as a sign of peace- one cannot shake hands and draw a sword at the same time. However, the poet is saying Will it be so again - Introduces next line. that our political leaders are precisely shaking hands and Savagery/ brutality stabbing each other at the same time. They speak of peace yet the jungle code and the hypocrite gesture? prepare for war- making them hypocrites. The symbol for the slain soldiers of war. The red poppies would grow over the A poppy wreath for the slain graves in the trenches, and it thus became synonymous with dead soldiers. Pain and violence Pretending to be someone else to deceive and a cut-throat world for the living? That stale imposture Indicates it’s intentional. played on us once again A world of dishonesty and wheeling and dealing. The world fought for by the slain is thus wasted by the living. WW1 Will it be as before An empty slogan that politicians do not pursue. War will happen again. The soldiers are enlisted and their lives peace, with no heart or mind to ensure it, are sacrificed again while politicians sit at home, plotting a new war. guttering down to war Lacks moral restrains Does whatever they wish and are most noted for their drunkennesswhich leads them to their grave. like a libertine to his grave? We should not be surprised: we knew it happen before. Refrain- Repetitive but from a slightly different perspective Shall it be so again? Call not upon the glorious dead to be your witness then. Soldiers have taken up arms to ensure it will not be so again, they have mostly died for this principle. The living alone can nail their promise to the ones who said it shall not be so again. The dead can’t ensure lasting peace. Only the living can do so by living for peace and not advancing war. It is absolute that war will not be so again. Repetition highlights that warfare happens again and again and again. Soldiers believe they are fighting for peace but, they are fighting to ensure politicians continue their dirty business that leads to another war. STRUCTURE Mechanical and tight (predictable like war)- Enjambment breaks it up a bit. Rhyme scheme is ABABA