Comparison Exercise 4
Write a critical discussion of the following TWO passages, pointing out features of comparison and/or contrast.
a)

In Flanders Fields
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

John McCrea

B)
The Outpost Trench was about 200 yards from the main trench, which was now our front line. It had been solidly made, ten feet deep, with timbered fire-steps, splayed sides, and timbered steps at intervals to front and rear and to machine-gun emplacements. Now it was wrecked as though by earthquake and eruption. Concrete strong-posts were smashed, and tilted sideways; everywhere the chalky soil was pocked and pitted with huge shell-holes; and wherever we looked the mangled effigies of the dead were our memento mori . Shell-twisted and dismembered, the Germans maintained the violent attitudes in which they had died. The British had mostly been killed by bullets or bombs, so they looked more resigned. But I can remember a pair of hands (nationality unknown) which protruded from the soaked ashen soil like the roots of a tree turned upside down; one hand seemed to be pointing at the sky with an accusing gesture. Each time I passed that place the protest of those fingers became more expressive of an appeal to God in defiance of those who made the War. Who made the War? I laughed hysterically as the thought passed through my mud-stained mind. But I only laughed mentally, for my box of Stokes gun ammunition left me no breath to spare for an angry guffaw . And the dead were the dead; this was no time to be pitying them or asking silly questions about their outraged lives. Such sights must be taken for granted, I thought, as I gasped and slithered and stumbled with my disconsolate crew. Floating on the surface of the flooded trench was the mask of a human face which had detached itself from the skull.

From Memoirs of an Infantry Officer by Siegfried Sassoon

Answers to Comparison Exercise 4

Both (A) and (B) are about war. For (A), the line 'Take up our quarrel with the foe' suggests the dead died in the war. For (B), ' the War' is mentioned and the 'trench' and 'Germans' also suggest the Second World War. However, different attitudes towards wars are shown in the two sources. (A), written in the dead's point of view, supports the idea of wars. The dead died with regrets, as they 'shall not sleep' if the people who are alive 'break faith with [them]'. They wanted to take revenge against their enemies. They ask the ones who are alive to take 'the torch' which they throw to them. A completely different attitude is shown in (B), which is written in the point of view of a living person who once experienced the war. He asked 'who made the War', showing his disapproval of the War. He does not want to take revenge, as he says the 'dead were the dead'. He believes it is not the time 'to be pitying them or asking silly questions about their outraged lives'.
The setting is also described in detail in (A) and (B). For (A), the whole of the first stanza is contributed to describe the 'Flanders field' in which the dead lie. For (B), the outpost trench is described in great details: the exact measurements of the depth of the trench, how far it was from the main trench, what it was made of etc. the settings are similar in a sense that they both are associated with death/destruction. The Flanders field is where the dead lie whereas the trench was where many lost their lives. But different moods are created by the two setting. For (A), the Flanders fields seem to be rather peaceful, with the 'poppies [blowing] between the crosses' and 'the lark, still bravely singing'. But for (B), the trench was 'wrecked as though by earthquake and eruption' and 'concrete srong-posts were smashed, and tilted sideways;...' Things are destroyed in the war and it creates a gloomy feeling.
The scene in poem A is set in a graveyard - Flanders Fields, while that of poem B is set when a soldier is fighting in a war. The mood of poem A is more calm and peaceful compared to that of poem B. Poem B describes the war scene in vivid detail, portraying a more realistic picture.
Poem A opens with a description of the graveyard where the dead soldiers lie. The mood here is quiet and serene. "and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below." This phrase suggests that the souls of the dead are like the larks, looking down at the war still going on from above. The dead are portrayed as brave, courageous souls who have lost their lives for an honourable cause.
Readers are able to feel a sense of poignancy in stanza 2. "Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields." In this phrase, the dead express their sadness as their lives came to an abrupt end. However, although they are dead, their souls linger and live on because of unfinished business. "To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high." Here the "failing hands" refer to the dead soldiers. The throwing of the torch symbolizes the dead soldiers handing over their duty to the living who are still fighting in the war. Because they did not live to see the battle won, they hope that the living will be able to lead the battle to ultimate victory.
Poem B has a rather different point of view concerning war and the dead. Soldiers seem to die with feelings of hatred and blame, instead of sadness and bravery. "one hand seemed to be pointing at the sky with an accusing gesture." The writer believes that the soldiers die blaming God for war and death. "this was no time to be pitying them or asking silly questions about their outraged lives." We sense no poignancy in this sentence, even at the time of death. Rather, the soldier regards his life as "silly" and "outraged" and deserves no pity. "Floating on the surface of the flooded trench was the mask of a human face which had detached itself from the skull." The last sentence symbolizes that the soul dies along with the human body, which differs greatly from the idea presented in poem A.
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Poem A is set in the Flanders Field, which is rather peaceful, while passage B 's setting is a battlefield full of horrible scenes of death and destruction of war.
Poem A 's beginning has a calmer and more serene atmosphere. In the field poppies blow, larks, still bravely singing but the last line of the stanza Scarce heard the amid guns below suggests the theme of war. Still it is not so terrible.However, passage B already starts with violent and disturbing scenes of a war. The trench, which was supposed to be strong , was wrecked as though by earthquake and eruption, pitted with huge shell-holes. wherever we looked the mangled effigies of the dead were momento mori. gives readers a sense of horror.
The personae of Poem A and the narrator of Passage B hold a completely different attitude towards war. The personae in Poem A, who are dead soldiers have a more positive attitude. It seems they will never give up fighting their enemies and their morale will always remain high as the lines Take up our quarrel with the foe and If ye break with us who die/We shall not sleep demonstrate. They might even feel gratified for their death for the war as they are Loved and were loved. But the narrator in passage B , who is an officer in war, has a negative attitude. He can sense the protest of those fingers became more expressive of an appeal to god in defiance of those who made the war. which probably shows that he opposes to the war. And he is possibly very desperate and sad about fighting in a war since he laughed hysterically about the idea Who made the war?
Poem A only shows the idealistic side of war, with images of dawn and sunset, only guns suggest there is violence. Passage B describes war in horrifying details. the Germans maintained the violent attitudes in which they had died. The British had mostly been killed by bullets and bombs, so they looked more resigned proves dying for a war is not gratifying.The appalling Floating on the surface of the flooded trench was the mask of a human face which had detached itself from the skull arouses feelings of fear of war among the readers.
The poem and the passage are probably aimed at spreading messages of war in different views. The poem, with the gratified feelings of the dead soldiers and their determination to drive away foes, possibly encourages readers to join the war to serve their country since they can beLoved and were loved.The passage, with the detailed terrifying scenario of war, like horrible deaths of soldiers, destruction of land, the officer's desperate feelings of war,promotes the message of peace and opposition to war through deriving the sense of fear from readers by the horrible imageries of the reality of war.