Break Of Day In The Trenches Analysis

War Poem Analysis

The poem “Break of Day In The Trenches” by Isaac Rosenberg, is a strong, creative war poem that does not transmit a new beginning after war, instead it conveys darkness that disappears as the sun rises in the fields of France and the final line shows how Rosenberg is against nationalism . He 's against nationalism and that there is no tomorrow after war, and he created an extremely metaphorical poem. In the poem time contrasts with the setting to create a new poetic perception of life and death. Rosenberg emphasis three main themes; the horrors of war, the need of maintaining human values and how any political and cultural barriers are artificial. The poem begins with “The darkness crumbles away” showing how the night is ending like the life at the trenches “crumbles away”. One of the main focuses of the poem is the poppy “As I pull the parapet’s poppy / To stick behind my ear”— a poppy growing out of the parapet which is the top of a trench wall. The soldier pulls the poppy from the ground and places it behind his ear. The poppy, of course, is a familiar symbol of war, its redness, being associated with the blood of dead soldiers,

The personification of murder is also very important, as at this point, its “whims” do not function alone, but are rather helplessly connected to a war caused by nationalism. Therefore, the poet draws a strong connection between murder and nationalism, and expands on those lines throughout the rest of the poem. The rhetorical question of “What do you see in your eyes/ At the shrieking iron and flame/ Hurled through still heavens” is a manner of criticising the blindness of politicians during the war. The “shrieking iron and flame”, are, of course, the artillery shells exploding over the trenches, thus disturbing the “still