The Tone of the Poem Expresses Sorrow and Regret - Essay Example

War will not be without death or defeat. And the poem describes how sorrowful it is, that even if there is victory in war, there is no victory over death. For in war, there is violence, and in violence there is death.

            The tone of the poem expresses sorrow and regret. Although the drums beat in victory, the drums also beat sorrow for the passing of the honorable men who sacrificed their very lives to gain victory in war. It is but sad for their families and comrades. Although everyone knows how difficult war can be in the end, there are still people willing to sacrifice themselves for the victory of their party. And with this, although there is victory, the family and friends of the passing comrades will always be a shadow of defeat. Yes, they are honored. Yes, the party thanks them for their sacrifice and their hand in victory. But never can they be brought back by the honor that is being given to them.

            The speaker of the poem tells the sad story of how he witnessed the funeral procession of the war veterans. He is particularly struck by the fall of the father and son. With this, he begins to question the war, its purpose, and its victory. He begins to lose his will to fight and his thirst for victory. He does not feel the passion soldiers feel when they begin fighting, but he feels the burden of guilt that he is still alive when there are a lot of his friends and comrades that have fallen. He feels the sorrow of the families who lost brothers, fathers, and sons. And with this, he creates a picture of unfulfillment as disillusion from the war. Although they have gained the victory that they have fought hard for some time, he only felt the pain of being left while so many of his comrades are dead. Although there are drumbeats indicating victory, the drumbeats for him represent the loss that he has seen, felt, and encountered during the period of war. He cannot move on so easily, and he cannot rejoice over their victory because all he sees is death all around him.

            The picture created in the poem, where the moon shines over the procession indicates a sorrowful event despite a victorious winning. It shows that despite the victory, behind the pounding of drums indicating expressions of honor for the dead, there is still a darkness that covers the entire army. Yes, after darkness, there is light, but in this scenario, the speaker cannot find the hope of the coming day but he wallows in the darkness of the bright yet ghastly moon. The moon represents how things may seem bright but it is only illuminated by the sun when one cannot see the sun. In war, the death of the soldiers may be shown as honorable death, but it is a dark event, only illuminated by the thoughts of the entire army celebrating success.

            With the moon shining, the speaker begins to really that even if it is only illuminated by the absent sun, it is still steadfast and strong. With this, he begins to realize what he can do for the dead and dying. He begins to let them go and offer them the only gift he can give them with their deaths, which is his love and the thoughts of being able to gain victory. This indicates how soldiers can still move on while they see comrades die beside them. They gain strength with their deaths, pushing for victory, pushing for the win. Their comrades’ death is like the moon, it gives them strength as the moon gives the nighttime some illumination.

            War will never be without sorrow. It is the twin sister of war. Death is always part of the war, and the only way the soldiers will be able to feel victorious about the deaths of their comrades is if they fight strong, and do not let their comrades’ deaths go to waste by giving up and losing hope. Like the moon, death should be their illumination, their hope. That one day the fighting will stop and they will see the light of the sun after the darkness.

            The poem explicitly defines the sorrow that is part of the war, but it also implicitly indicates that the deaths of the soldiers are, the strength and light that the remaining soldiers hold on to, to fight more, to fight better, and to hope that there is an end to the terrible violence that they are involved in.