A soldier dying in battle has traditionally been endlessly romanticized, and seen as “heroic” and “honorable” by many nations. This all changed, however, in the early twentieth century during The First World War, when any notions of a soldier's death being anything but tragic and horrifying were shattered. The poem “Dulce et Decorum Est”, by Wilfred Owen, demonstrates this dramatic shift in perspective. Using powerful imagery and figuritive language, Owen attempts to shed truth on the realities of war, and the terribly death of millions. Throughout the poem, Owen uses strong imagery to demolish the preconceptions of society, regarding a soldier's death on the battlefield. In the poem, he describes the death of a fellow soldier in horrifying