Analysis of the poem
‘The Soldier’ by Rupert Brooke
Listen to the poem: www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAFnhJojMYY.
‘The Soldier’ was written in 1914, at the outbreak of the First World War.
It is a sonnet exploring the feelings of patriotism. It was written to praise the men who
went to war to save and defend such a great country: ‘There shall be / In that rich earth
a richer dust concealed;’.
Read the poem then answer the following questions.
•
The poem is written in first person. Who do you think is speaking?
•
Where do you think the soldier might be as he writes?
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What general attitudes towards war does the poem express?
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If he dies, where does ‘the soldier’ expect to be buried?
•
Once buried, how does the narrator imagine that his body
will make ‘some corner of a foreign field ... for ever
England’?
•
What does the narrator believe that England has given him?
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The narrator describes his body as ‘A body of England’s’. What
does this phrase suggest to you?
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After death, the narrator imagines himself becoming ‘A pulse in the eternal mind’.
What is he suggesting?
•
In the last three lines of the poem, the narrator describes what his ‘pulse in the
eternal mind’ will give back. Now compare this with what England has given him ,
described in stanza 1. What does this suggest?
•
Look at the last few words of the poem: ‘under an English heaven’
•
What is the narrator’s view of heaven?
•
What is the narrator’s view of England?
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Analysis of the poem
‘The Soldier’ by Rupert Brooke
Look closely at the language Brooke has chosen to use.
Add words and phrases from the poem to the table below:
Language of war
Language of peace
die
rich earth
flowers to love
What do you notice about your table? What does this suggest?
What do we learn from the poem about the soldier’s views on England?
Arrange the following statements to reflect what you think the main message of the
poem is.
The narrator strongly believes that it is a soldier’s duty to fight for his country.
The narrator expresses the view that, considering everything our country has given to
us, we should be prepared to give everything we have when our country needs us –
even our lives.
The narrator ignores the brutality of war, focusing on the nobility of giving one’s life
for one’s country.
The narrator is encouraging people to fight for their country with unthinking
patriotism and arrogant nationalism.
The poem is not about war, it is about England.
Answer the following essay style question:
How does Rupert Brooke present the narrator’s view of war in ‘The Soldier’?
© www.teachit.co.uk 2015
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