Anthem for Doomed Youth
July 6, 20231914
July 6, 2023A New Heaven
Seeing we never found gay fairyland
(Though still we crouched by bluebells moon by moon)
And missed the tide of Lethe; yet are soon
For that new bridge that leaves old Styx half-spanned;
Nor ever unto Mecca caravanned;
Nor bugled Asgard, skilled in magic rune;
Nor yearned for far Nirvana, the sweet swoon,
And from high Paradise are cursed and banned;
-Let’s die home, ferry across the Channel! Thus
Shall we live gods there. Death shall be no sev’rance.
Weary cathedrals light new shrines for us.
To us, rough knees of boys shall ache with rev’rence.
Are not girls’ breasts a clear, strong Acropole?
-There our oun mothers’ tears shall heal us whole.
Wilfred Owen
Wilfred Owen (1893-1918) was an English poet and soldier who is considered one of the most important voices of the First World War. Owen's poetry often dealt with the horrors of war and the suffering of soldiers, and his most famous works include "Dulce et Decorum Est" and "Anthem for Doomed Youth." Owen was killed in action just one week before the end of the war.