Exposure Analysis

Exposure depicts a true vision of what the war was like for the soldiers fighting in it, and how much it differentiated from the propaganda used to motivated and recruit new young soldiers on this new life that they will have abroad fighting in 'The Great War' for their country. The poem constantly repeats "But nothing happens" which indicates how the soldiers such as Owen himself spent most of their time waiting for something to happen in the trenches to help the time pass and save them from the insanity of boredom; creating a contrast between the constant fighting and battles they were told they would be apart of. Alternatively this could mean that this relates to the weather set in the poem "Our brains ache, in the merciless east winds that knife us." and how this cold has almost made them frozen in time, like they are already dead. Waiting for something to make them come to life and be human once again. Owen suggests that the weather is more dangerous than the war itself through his use of language. "Shrivelling many hands and puckering foreheads crisp." suggesting that each night the men are exposed to these harsh conditions more and more die just from the weather alone, slowly being withered away to death by the cold that is personified to be Death.

All Quiet on the Western Front analysis

Remarque's presentation of World War 1 in "All Quiet on the Western Front" gives the soldier's point of view of the war from their eyes, we see the German soldiers fighting the war and visiting their friend 'Franz' in one of the hospitals whilst being off duty. The reader is told that the soldier has in fact lost his leg but is yet to be told by the doctors or friends in attempts to somewhat keep his sanity before what is inevitably portrayed as his impending death. "He looks terrible, yellow and pallid and his face already has those weird lines that we are so familiar with because we have seen them a hundred times before." The clear signs of the constant death and trauma that the soldiers are constantly put through and witnessing before them seems never ending to the extent that they now seem to have become accustom to seeing fellow friends, not just dying. But slowly being withered away because of disease and infection for weeks upon end. This gives the reader a clear view of how difficult war is on the soldiers not just physically as presented by Franz losing his leg, but also the psychological effects on his friends that now must watch him slowly die.

Journey's End

Journey's End portrays the image of World War 1 through a group of soldiers stuck in the trenches, war back home in England is presented as being action filled and full of constant fighting to motivate young men to go to war. This key idea of propaganda is presented through the character of Raleigh and his realisation of what war actually is like in the trenches. Raleigh realises that he has been lied to by the propaganda and has almost been "brainwashed" like millions of young men sent to fight in the trenches, relating to the context of the time and what actually happened. "It's just this- This quiet" This highlights to the reader Raleigh's realisation of what war actually is like and that to most of the soldiers they seem to be waiting for something to happen, and when something did happen, It wasn't for very long. Raleigh is young, innocent and fresh to the cruel reality of war and will fully realise later on what will happen when the anticipated Boche attack happens.