War has been a constant throughout the history of mankind. From the Stone Age all the way up to 2016 there has always been some sort of war or some sort of conflict that has erupted between two nations. War can be started by anything from resources to discrepancies in politics or even just wanting to expand your nation. Some people believe in war and strongly back it with all their hearts because they think it is necessary. While other people hate the thought of it and will protest it to the day they die. Through the poetry of WW1 we can see how different Americans feel towards war, some respecting the soldiers who fought bravely and died for their country and others disdaining the thought and wanting their troops to come home because they can't see the reason behind it. Overall people didn't like the idea of WW1 and they wanted their troops to come home, also the soldiers fighting in the war wanted it to end because they felt they served their purpose and the war was over.

In the poem "Dulce Et Decorum Est" by Wilfred Owen, a soldier is talking about his time in the trenches and how brutal it is. WW1 had the most brutal warfare of any war because most of it was fought in the trenches where "The sheer quantity of bullets and shells flying through the air in the battle conditions of that war compelled soldiers to burrow into the soil to obtain shelter and survive" (Trench Warfare). The soldier is describing his time in the trenches and how scary it is for him being a kid and having to deal with what is going on around him. A gas bomb is thrown near him and everyone yells to put their helmets on so they aren't affected by the poison but one of his friends doesn't put his gear on in time so he describes him as "But someone still was yelling out and stumbling / And flound'ring like a man in fire or lime..." (Owen, 11-12). He is suffocating from the gas and he's screaming for help but no one can help him. The image of his friend slowly dying will haunt this soldier forever saying, "In all my dreams, before my helpless sight, / He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning" (Owen, 15-16). This poem argues that war is an inhumane place and the things that happen in it are terrifying and cruel. It is crazy to think of the tactics used in the war because the opposing side is going to do whatever it takes to defeat the other side and if that means using really dangerous weapons then they will. This poem also shows that war doesn't look to bad when you're on the outsides not seeing what's going on but when you're on the front lines it is a scary place. This poem shows that soldiers didn't like there time in the war and wanted to come home.

The poem "The Hero" by Siegfried Sassoon describes a mother whose son was in the war and she gets a letter from the Colonel and she opens it. Having a child in the military you know that can only mean one thing; that the letter is going to tell you your loved one has passed away in the fight. This is probably the worst imaginable experience for a parent to hear that their child has just passed away. The mother in this poem reacts to it very well because she is happy her son honored his country and died protecting his country saying, " 'We mothers are so proud/ of our dead soldiers' " (Sassoon, 5-6). She is upset that her son passed away but it overcome with the joy that he did it for his country. Her son actually died trying to run away from the war because he didn't like what was going on, but in trying to escape he stepped on a bomb and blew himself up. Which shows that the soldiers in the war hated it and wanted to escape. But that didn't even bother his mom that he ran away like a coward, she was still proud of him for going into the war and fighting for his nation. This shows the side of people who think war is an honorable thing and if you join the fight and die during it you should be honored forever for your braveness in fighting. 

The statement "A Soldiers Declaration" by Siegfried Sassoon is made by a soldier who actually has fought in the war and he is pleading for them to end it and stop drawing it out because it is just getting more and more people killed. He believes that he is talking on behalf of all the soldiers in the war because they all want it to come to an end. At this point the soldiers aren't fighting for their countries anymore they are fighting for their own lives and the lives of their comrades. He thinks it just has become a war of aggression and conquest for the governments involved that keep it running, stating, "I believe this War, upon which I entered as a war of defense and liberation, has now become a war of aggression and conquest" (Sassoon, 3-4). The interesting point Siegfried makes is that he never says there should never be a war but he thinks once it is done, it is done there is no reason to keep the war going to prove a point and flex your muscles. So he does see the reasoning behind fighting in the first place but once you have defeated the opposing side or made your point you should pull your troops because it is over and if you keep pushing it forward you are only going to get more and more soldiers killed. He says, "I am not protesting against the military conduct of the War, but against the political errors and insincerities for which the fighting men are being sacrificed." (Sassoon, 11-12). This statement is interesting because he doesn't think war should never be enacted in the first place but to just end it and call peace when you have made your point. This is another example of how the soldiers were fed up with fighting and they wanted it to come to an end.

The poem "The Soldier" by Rupert Brooke is a story of a soldier from England who thinks if they die they will be forever honored in England. This soldier thinks that from fighting and dying in the war he will reach everlasting peace. Some people do want to fight for their countries because they think it is there civil duty and if they do they will be respected when they come back. The soldier in this poem is from England and he thinks, "If I should die, think only this of me: / That there's some corner of a foreign field / That is forever England." (Brooke, 1-3).   This soldier's point of view is different from all the poems before because he is the only soldier who likes the war and will fight for his country until they win or he dies because he thinks that is the right thing to do. Some people do have this way of thinking and they truly believe joining the war will be a good thing because they get to protect the country they love and be respected by all the people of their country who aren't in the war. 

War will always be a debate for the rest of time because there will always be people for it and people who strongly think that it should never happen and then people in the middle who think it serves a purpose but they think it should end sooner so a lot of people don't get killed. Most of the people who believe war is a good thing really respect the soldiers of their countries because they see them as heroes for protecting them. Some of the soldiers love this praise because they feel like what they did was good and they should be respected but others are ashamed of what they did and they don't want to talk about it or think about it because it was a nightmare for them and they would never go back. A lot of the soldiers get PTSD because of what they witnessed during the fight and what they personally had to do. This is why people are against war because they think it is cruel and unnecessary for the soldiers and are scared for their personal safety after. A lot of soldiers tried to escape because they were scared and didn't want to commit certain acts; so even people on the battlefield don't like what war is and what it stands for. From these poems we can see the people who favored the war and respected their troops and the people who wanted it to end and never happen again.

