“Dulce Et Decorum Est” is a very powerful poem drawn from the author Wilfred Owen's own experiences. This poem has great imagery and uses many metaphors that encourage the reader to put themselves in Owen's eyes. The pain is felt in his voice as he speaks of his friend who he sees dying, but for whom he can do nothing. His poem makes fun of the fact that if people were in his shoes at that time, they would not tell their children that war is a good thing. In “Dead Troops Talk,” which is a photograph done by Jeff Wall, there seems to be a different feeling about it. It's not as heavy as the poem. Because in the photo, the soldiers, who appear to have been killed in combat, have been revived to talk and have fun. The poem and the artwork are similar in that they are both about war. However, the feeling one gets from each of them is different. The death in the poem is very tragic and demoralizing, but in the photograph the soldiers who were killed seem happy now that they are no longer serving in someone else's war. The first stanza of the poem, “Dulce Et Decorum Est,” helps set the scene; he talks about soldiers being beaten down and in a horrible state. They limp back from the war front. Owen paints a terrifying picture of these tired and wounded soldiers. When we usually think of a soldier, we think of a young, strong, confident man. However, the soldiers in the poem are compared to old beggars and old witches; as they move forward, barely able to keep their eyes open due to lack of sleep, they struggle to walk. This is because they had lost their shoes in battle and their feet were “shod with blood”. (Line 6) This term means that the ground...... middle of paper ......nal in the fact that he was in the war and encountered everything first hand. He couldn't understand how people back home and the news could talk about how great the war was while the men fighting it were being tortured by it. Wall's photograph was done because it was something he wanted to do. His photography does not show the humor of war but it does not seem to capture the pain felt in the poem. Works Cited Owen, Wilfred. “Dulce et decorum est”. Give importance to literature. 5th edition. John Schilb and John Clifford, eds. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin. 2012. Print. Simcox, Kenneth. “Dulce et decorum est”. The Wilfred Owen Association. The Wilfred Owen Association, 2014. Internet. February 27, 2014. Wall, Jeff. Interviewed by Gordon MacDonald. “Ideas and Ideals in Visual Culture.” WordPress, 2005.Web. February 27 2014.