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Analysis Of Disabled By Wilfred Owen

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GCSE Coursework: "Disabled" by Wilfred Owen
How does the past contrast with the present in the poem? "Disabled" is a poem written by Wilfred Owen during World War One telling the tragic tale of a disabled veteran. Owen intricately describes the desolation and depression the veteran is pushed into under harsh circumstances, and he does so in numerous ways. He explores the relationship between the veteran and society regarding themes of pity and humanity. One of the more effective techniques he uses to explore the changed relationship between the veteran and society is through the use of contrast. Owen creates a stark contrast between the past and the present by emphasizing the deteriorated relationship between the veteran and women, as well as the veteran 's altered perspective of his surroundings. Owen also emphasizes the contrast through the use of literary techniques, such as irony, symbolism, and similes, and he also writes using a distinct structure. Women are used to highlight the way the soldier is treated before and after his disability. We are given an example in the second stanza when Owen writes "Now, he will never feel again how slim Girls ' waists are ... All of them touch him like some queer disease." Owen begins the sentence with "now" which creates he contrast between the past and the present; In the past, he had the chance to initiate romantic relations with women, yet now, after he has become disabled, they "touch him like some queer disease". The
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