Date of Award
2026
Type
Thesis
Major
English Language and Literature - Literature Concentration
Degree Type
Bachelor of Arts in English
Department
English
First Advisor
Dr. Patrick Jackson
Second Advisor
Dr. Anna Dimitrova
Third Advisor
Professor Matt Jarvis
Abstract
Wilfred Owen, a soldier-poet who fought in World War I, is often labeled an anti-war poet, with some claiming that he was against the war in its entirety. This thesis explores the opinion that Owen is not an anti-war poet but rather that he wrote against anti-pro-war rhetoric. This includes all types of pro-war rhetoric influential in England for recruitment purposes but mainly focuses on poetry that would be published in newspapers for everyday readers to see. Owen seems to specifically resist two types of pro-war rhetoric, the myth of the German barbarian and what he called the old lie. This thesis uses four of Owen’s poems to examine the differences between what soldiers saw on the Western Front versus what information civilians were given or what opinions they held. The four poems used are “Strange Meeting,” “Dulce et Decorum Est,” “Disabled,” and “Smile, Smile, Smile” to showcase Owen’s growing disillusionment, not with the war itself, but with the conversations and beliefs that non-soldiers held in England.
Recommended Citation
Woods, Elizabeth, "Writing Against The War Machine: Wiflred Owen's Poetic Challenge to World War I Pro-War Rhetoric" (2026). Theses and Dissertations. 791.
https://csuepress.columbusstate.edu/theses_dissertations/791
