Eric Bogle's Homecoming Injustice

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As Martin Luther King once said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” The connection between families and soldiers is affected by the war. Eric Bogle’s poem, The Green Fields of France, demonstrates the anti-war sentiment through the impact on the society due to the loss of young lives. Homecoming, by Bruce Dawe, explores the dehumanisation and pointlessness of war that thoroughly implicate the imperative relationship between soldiers and their families. The poem, The Charge of The Light Brigade by Lord Alfred Tennyson, presents the bravery and courage of the soldiers to sacrifice themselves in battle to defend their nation. The poets are using clear visual and aural poetic techniques to explore the relationship between the…show more content…
Eric Bogle’s poem, The Green Fields of France, depicts the detrimental effects of war on individuals and the society. The use of hyperbole in, “The killing and dying was all done in vain…whole generation that were butchered and damned,” reflects how the society was ripped apart due to the death of loved ones, which lead to an unhealthy community. It further explains that families had to go through so much grief and anxiety for a war that did not achieve anything. Likewise, Bogle demonstrates the pointlessness of the war. “…Did they really believe that this war would end wars…it all happened again, and again, and again,” this use of rhetorical question and repetition emphasises the anti-war sentiment that both Bogle and Dawe capture. Similarly in Homecoming, it is illustrated the dehumanisation of war. “…mortuary coolness…deep-freeze…sorrowful…frozen sunset…wintering tree…bitter…grief…”through an extended metaphor, it is suggested the implications on the society from the death of thousands of loved ones; the coldness is symbolising the death, grief and struggling of society and the individual. Dehumanising effects give poets their anti-war point of view the effectively portray the bonds between the society and the
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