Suicide in the trenches

“Suicide in the Trenches” by Siegfried Sassoon

Siegfried Sassoon , was an English poet, writer and soldier.  Decorated for bravery on the Western Front, he became one of the leading poets of the WW1.  

In the poem Sassoon uses figurative language,descriptive detail, tone and sound to create a powerful impression of the horror of war. War is viewed as intense suffering and destruction of all that is beautiful and innocent. The setting is in depressing, smelly, and stuffy trenches as the title states.

The first stanza of the poem tells of a boy very naive to understanding the true nature of war.  He is carefree and sees nothing bad in life.  The poet describes the boy as happy and simple.  The boy symbolizes  all the guys that went to war for us and lost their lives.

Stanza two presents imagery, which is complete opposite of the descriptive details in stanza one.  The poet makes the reader realize the

hard times the soldier endures and the effects of the war on innocent and simple lives.

Stanza three tells us about the soldiers coming home from war and people not knowing the real torture the soldiers went through. The poem is telling how the war has taken away laughter and youth.

The structure of the poem is three stanzas with four lines in each.  The rhyme scheme is A-A-B-B  in each stanza.  The tone is bitter and sarcastic you can see from the words, “You smug-faced crowds with kindling eye”.  

I chose this poem because it is a true fact.  The poet talks about how people lose their lives and their true self in war. Only a soldier could really understand this poem.  

http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/~keith/poems/suicide.html