Disabled and Refugee Blues, contrast and compare experiences free essay sample

Disabled and Refugee Blues, written by Wilfred Owen and W. H. Auden respectively, are both responses to exile and isolation and a cry for those who are suffering from them. Disabled, written in 1917, was a response to the isolation caused by disability and especially that of war veterans. Auden’s, Refugee Blues, written in 1939 on the outbreak of the Second World War, was criticism of the widespread discrimination of Jews in Europe and more specifically German Jews by the Nazis. A key difference between the poems is, obviously, the different times that they were written in. Another, less obvious difference is that Refugee Blues was written with no personal experience and was written about a group from a country which he briefly experienced in a trip to Berlin 10 years prior to writing, in 1929. This is contrasted by Owen undoubtedly being influenced by his experiences at Craiglockhart Hospital where he wrote Disabled. This difference in influence could easily be one of many reasons for any contrast and variance in their depictions of the experiences of exile and isolation. Both poets expose the reality of isolation and exile, showing these experiences to be entrapping, unjust and revealing emotions of hopelessness and powerlessness. Owen thoroughly explores the state of isolation as entrapping and inescapable in Disabled. Throughout the poem the tense almost involuntarily switches between the dreamy â€Å"light-blue trees† of â€Å"his youth† to the present, with the soldier’s flowing, nostalgic memories of the past always being truncated by the sharp caesura of the present. For example in the second stanza the rhythmic, fertile language of â€Å"girls glanced† and â€Å"glow-lamps budded† is broken by â€Å"before he threw away his knees. † The slow, graceful rhythm, which is produced by the alliteration and fertile language, is sharply broken by the short blunt sentence which instantaneously withdraws the reader from the lament and into the present. This represents the soldier’s ineffective struggle to escape from the present into his dreamy past; therefore demonstrating the powerful hold that isolation and exile can have on a person. Owen reinforces the entrapment of isolation through the personification of â€Å"mothering† sleep, which reveals the comfort the soldier draws from sleep as it protects him from his torturous present. Although the soldier’s ability to sleep might suggest that the soldier is not in fact trapped by his isolation and is able to escape it, in reality sleep always comes to an end and the soldier is always reined in by his present life, just like when he is reined in from his memories. Owen’s exploration of the soldier’s present life being inescapable torture is very interesting as it contrasts common opinion, that soldiers were haunted by their past experiences in the war. This soldier’s wartime experiences are neglected throughout the poem, suggesting that they are unimportant, this emphasises Owen’s point, that neglect and isolation of veterans is actually worse than the wartime experiences. The theme of endless entrapment is similarly explored in Refugee Blues through the use of the refugee’s dreams. Auden uses the speaker’s reference to a dream to show the extent of the exile; even when a refugee is dreaming they are unable to escape their exile: â€Å"Dreamed I saw a building with a thousand floors, A thousand windows and a thousand doors: Not one of them was ours, my dear, not one of them was ours† On a simplistic level, the huge building represents the magnitude of the opportunities, which is accentuated by the triadic repetition of â€Å"a thousand†, that the couple are not able to have even when they are dreaming. By taking a step back, one can also realise that the building is a subtle reference to Hitler’s plans of ‘Lebensraum’ for the Aryan race. The dream is a double edged sword as it shows the entrapment that exile has over its subjects and it exposes the injustice of the Nazi regime and exile of the Jews by revealing the endless opportunities that the Nazis and their Aryan race have in comparison to the exile of the Jewish race. Auden’s use of dreams slightly differs to Owen’s nostalgic, dream-like memories due to Owen’s representation of dreams as an escape from torturous life and Auden’s direct use of dreams to show the permeating effect of exile. However, ultimately, they have the same effect of illuminating the permeating entrapment that exile and isolation cause. Both poems also use negation in order to exhibit the experiences of exile and isolation as entrapping. In Refugee Blues Auden generally uses the refrain to contrast the previous two sentences with a negative, for instance, â€Å"we cannot go there†. This clearly demonstrates the entrapping nature of exile. Furthermore, the syllabic emphasis habitually falls on the negative – in this case is â€Å"cannot† – which not only effectively emphasises it but also, because of the refrain, gives a sense of the refugees having more and more options shut off, which in turn brings about the sense of increasing panic and despair, two other emotions which Auden effectively creates. The emotions of entrapment created by negation in Refugee Blues are reinforced by the line structure. In the refrain of every tercet, the â€Å"my dear† is trapped by a usually ominous phrase such as â€Å"we cannot go there now, my dear, we cannot go there now. † This successfully reveals the extent of the entrapment of the exile as it permeates all parts of an exiles life, even the form of a poem which is a cry for help. Owen employs a slightly different type of negation. He uses the absence of communication to demonstrate the entrapment which being disabled has brought upon the soldier. Throughout the poem the disabled soldier seems unable to communicate with society and the society with him. â€Å"All of them touch him like some queer disease†. This simile shows the inability of the girls to communicate with the previously handsome soldier (â€Å"an artist sill for his face†), who is longing to â€Å"feel again how slim / Girls’ waists are†. This sense of desperation for things that â€Å"he will never feel again† shows how the soldier is trapped by his disability. The entrapment is further accentuated by the direct contrast with his past self where he was clearly able to communicate and interact with girls as he had â€Å"his Meg†, this shows that it was specifically the disability that distanced him from society, not his personality. Later in the poem the â€Å"solemn man† manages to â€Å"thank† him however this still shows the negation of any real communication. There is also still no communication on the soldier’s part, even when he has been â€Å"thanked†, emphasising that he is trapped. In comparison, Auden uses the same sort of language as â€Å"thanked† as well as many other devises to demonstrate the injustice of exile. The committee asked the refugee â€Å"politely to return next year†. The adverb â€Å"politely† gives the justice system – which is represented by the â€Å"committee† – an air of civility which brings about its detachedness and depersonalises it. By doing this Auden successfully reveals the facade which is the justice system consequently revealing the injustice of exile. More subtly, Auden uses almost rhyme in order to undermine the â€Å"committee† and make the injustice more apparent. The rhyme pattern of Blues poems is traditionally AAB, and this is followed throughout the poem apart from â€Å"chair† and â€Å"year† which don’t quite rhyme. This represents the falseness of the justice system; even though they have offered him a â€Å"chair†, which could imply a position of power, it is just pretence like asking him â€Å"politely† to return next year. Auden also uses the simple example of the legal system rejecting the refugee three times. Firstly â€Å"the consul†, then â€Å"a committee† and finally the â€Å"public meeting†, the threefold rejection of the refugee serves to emphasise all different types of justice rejecting them; revealing the full extent of the injustice of exile. As well as the rejection, the use of particular nouns also emphasises the injustice of exile. â€Å"The consul† is supposed to be a place of refuge for citizens in a foreign country, despite this, â€Å"the consul† rejects the exiles. The noun consul, unsurprisingly, comes from the same root as counsel, which only serves to further emphasise the injustice as â€Å"the consul† should therefore offer advice and help to refugees but instead it aggressively â€Å"banged on the table and said, / If you’ve got no passport you’re officially dead. ’† Owen complimentarily portrays the experience of isolation as unjust, he however, he does it largely through the description of the soldier. The veteran is constantly labelled and defined by what he can’t do. Firstly, Owen uses the title, â€Å"Disabled†, the prefix â€Å"dis† immediately introduces the theme of defining the soldier by what they can’t do, which is unjust in itself. The etymology of the word â€Å"disabled† is ‘legally disqualified’, which is deeply ironic as the soldier is the one who fought for the very existence of the legal system, but now his own countrymen are defining him as ‘legally disqualified’. Furthermore, the title being â€Å"Disabled† seems to subjugate everything else, ignoring things such as the fact that he gave his limbs for the country; further presenting the injustice of isolation. The simile â€Å"like some queer disease† is another example of the total injustice of isolation. Again, the etymology of the word demonstrates the injustice as it is, ‘inconvenience’; this implies that the veteran is inconvenient to society. This is highly ironic in two ways, firstly because he fought in order to look after society and its values, so in fact he is highly convenient to society. Secondly, towards the end of the poem, we realise that society is actually an inconvenience to the disabled veteran as he waits â€Å"for dark† – or death, but the society doesn’t allow him to die. Owen also uses the constant comparisons between the past and present to demonstrate the injustice of isolation. The soldier is constantly defined by what he can’t do compared to what he was able to do as his pre-war self, and he is seemingly punished for it. Values of sexuality, â€Å"an artist silly for his face†, athleticism, he was ‘chaired’ by his teammates, and valour, which was once represented by â€Å"a bloodsmear down his leg† were all pre-war values which he thought would be enhanced by enlisting. Owen proves this to be totally wrong through the direct comparisons between the pre-war and the post war. The asterisks between the stanzas act like a mirror between the pre and post war, for example: And leap of purple spurted from his thigh *** One time he liked the bloodsmear down his leg, The post war description of bleeding is a grim parody of ejaculation ejaculation is supposed to create life. However, as this â€Å"leap of purple† is ejaculated from his thigh it quickly destroys his life, turning it into a life of disabled isolation. On the other side of the asterisk, the â€Å"bloodsmear down his leg† represents valour and heroism; values which he wrongly thought would be enhanced by the war. The injustice of his isolation is then compounded by the reaction of the public to his returning home, â€Å"Some cheered him home, but not as crowds cheer Goal. † The direct comparison between the post war public reaction to valour and heroism and the pre-war reaction further reveal the unfair difference in attitudes towards the soldier and subsequently the injustice of isolation. Another similar experience which both Auden and Owen display is the bleak permanence of both isolation and exile. Both poems start off very bleakly, Owen introduces a grey, monotonous, depressing chromatic pallet through the use of language such as â€Å"dark† , â€Å"suit of grey† and â€Å"saddening†, which all work together to produce an experience of bleak exile. Auden also uses specific language to create a depressing, bleak atmosphere. Lexis such as â€Å"souls† sets an ominous, foreboding tone for the poem because of its connotations. Another similarity is the poets’ use of syntax to develop a steady continuous rhythm, which runs throughout the poems. The slow continuous form represents the experiences of exile and isolation: slow, bleak and boring. Auden and Owen both also similarly make reference to a bleak future to help the reader realise the bleak permanence of exile and isolation. The very fact that the disabled soldier’s future is able to be summed up in the one sad sentence, â€Å"He will spend a few sick years in Institutes†, reveals the bareness of the isolation, the fact that it’s in the future, emphasises the certain, permanence of his bleak exile. Similarly, in Refugee Blues the refugee cites the question â€Å"where shall we go to-day? † this expresses the lack of immediate future subsequently showing the bleak nature of exile. However, it also introduces the experience of uncertainty of exile. This experience of uncertainty is a slight, but key, difference between Auden’s Refugee Blues and Disabled and therefore between experiences of isolation and exile. Auden and Owen also both express feelings of hopelessness created by exile and isolation. Although there is similarity, Refugee Blues slightly differs from Disabled because there is a building sense of hope towards the middle section of the poem. However, this deteriorates by the end of the poem which concludes with feelings of hopelessness just like in Disabled. In both poems this hopelessness is signified by the central character giving up hope and accepting defeat. Owen starts Disabled with feelings of hopelessness and despair as the soldier is immediately â€Å"waiting for dark†, or death. These feelings continue throughout the poem, eventually amalgamating and becoming too much for the veteran who gets angry (shown by the exclamation point) and eventually begs for death. â€Å"Why don’t they come / and put him into bed? † which is the veteran metaphorically asking for death, this clearly shows that he has completely lost hope and given up. Refugee Blues has a similar start with feelings of despair and hopelessness simply created by caesura and language. â€Å"Some are living in mansions, some are living in holes. † The use of commas, which creates a sense of listing, together with the representation of the widespread of society – created by listing the extremities of society – creates a sense of a huge society with lots of variation â€Å"yet, there’s no place for [them]†. This demonstrates the feeling of hopelessness which is reemphasised by the repeat of â€Å"yet, there’s no place for us. † Owen also emphasises the feeling of despair by the syllabic emphasis always falling on the â€Å"no†, which makes it seem like doors are closing and opportunities are disappearing. However, unlike Owen, Auden creates a slight sense of hope with â€Å"But we are still alive, my dear, but we are still alive. † The refrain, as usual, increases the power of the emotion, in this case creating a sense of building hope. However, this hope is short-lived and by the end of the poem gradually deteriorates into the refugee giving up. This is shown by the choice of the verbs at the start of each stanza and towards the end of the poem, â€Å"went†, â€Å"walked†, â€Å"dreamed† and, finally, â€Å"stood†. All of the verbs before â€Å"stood† are movements or imaginations which provide the contrast for â€Å"stood† which, through its static finality, is representative that the refugee has completely given up on trying to escape exile therefore it reveals that he has lost hope. This is compounded by the hyperbole, â€Å"ten thousand soldiers†¦/ looking for you and me†, which shows that the exile has taken over him as he is unable, or has given up trying, to rationalise it. This representation of exile and isolation extremely similar to Owen’s because they both present the idea that exile and isolation eventually culminate in a total loss of hope and eventually the embracing of death. Owen and Auden use the perspective and form in their poems in order to subtly criticise society and the way that it puts people into exile and how it treats the disabled. During Disabled the viewpoint changes as the tense changes. When describing the present tense, the reader is put in a distanced and detached viewpoint through the use of the pronoun â€Å"he†. This is contrasted by the subjective view that is taken when describing the past. This change in viewpoint is representative, and critical, of the way that society views disabled people and more generally those in isolation. It criticises the distanced, dehumanised view that people take of disabled people through the contrast between the personal viewpoint taken before he â€Å"threw away his knees† and the way it presents the disabled veteran after the war. Auden also subtly criticises society, however, he does so by using the form of the poem. Auden uses the blues form to present exile because it originated from black African slaves in America. In 1939, when the poem was written, black people in America were openly discriminated against through the use of ‘Jim Crow’ Laws. The form of the poem demonstrates how discrimination, and therefore isolation and exile, are engrained in society because of the ironic use of a form which originated from black slaves in a poem which is supposed to give a voice to those in isolation and exile. Auden also uses the form of Refugee Blues in order to expose the lack of voice for those seeking refuge. Throughout the poem the refugee’s voice seems to have no effect. The whole poem is written as if it is a conversation or a description to a loved one. However, similarly to Disabled, there is lack of a voice in return, for example the question â€Å"where shall we go to-day? † goes unanswered throughout the whole poem, which makes it seem as if the supposed conversation is just a monologue. This not only emphasises the entrapment through the same technique as Owen employs in Disabled (inability to communicate with society shows that the refugee is trapped by exile) but also seems to be like a Ghazal. Traditionally, a Ghazal is written in order to express love which is usually unrequited or impossible. In Refugee Blues the poem is about the pain of exile, therefore, by being similar to a Ghazal, the form reveals that the pain of exile is unrequited and the wish to be free is impossible. Overall, the differences created by the different time of writing for each poem and the amount of influence personal experience had on the poem are minimal.