“THE SOLDIER”By: Rupert Brooke

Project by Jordan BrockEnglish IV Honors

2nd Block

The SoldierBy: Rupert Brooke

 If I should die, think only this of me;

That there’s some corner of a foreign field

That is forever England. There shall be

In that rich earth a richer dust concealed;

A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware,

Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam,

A body of England’s breathing English air,

Washed by the rivers, blest by suns of home.

And think, this heart, all evil shed away,

 A pulse in the eternal mind, no less

Gives somewhere back the thoughts by England given;

Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day;

And laughter, learnt of friends; and gentleness,

In hearts at peace, under an English heaven.

(Click on picture above for video)

About the Poet

Rupert Brooke is an English poet known for his war sonnets that express idealistic patriotism.

He enlisted in the British navy when WWI first broke out and served for a brief amount of time in Belgium.

It is likely that had he lived long enough to witness the horrors of trench warfare, he would have developed a more cynical outlook on the war.

Brooke died at the young age of 27 years old due to blood poisoning.

Analysis

Rupert Brooke’s poem, “The Soldier”, creates an image of a brave British soldier during WWI that would be willing to do anything for his country.

He is honored to be fighting for England because he truly believes that it is the best country in the entire world.

In the first several lines of the poem he discusses his thoughts on the possibility of his death. He states that if he is to die, all he wants is to be remembered by his courage and patriotism when it came to fighting for his home.

“There shall be in that rich earth a richer dust concealed.” This means that if he does die in a battlefield far away, it’s alright because at least that means there will be a piece of England in that foreign country.

Poetic Devices

Alliteration- “That there’s some corner of a foreign field that is forever England.” The repetition of the consonant ‘f’, makes the poem flow in these two lines.

Metaphor- “In that rich earth a richer dust concealed.” He refers to himself by using the word ‘dust’ multiple times throughout the poem.

Personification- “A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware,” this line personifies England as having the ability to bear children and shape their lives. “Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day;” this is another line where the country of England is personified. This time he refers to England as a ‘she’ that can see and hear.

Imagery- Throughout the entire sonnet, Rupert Brooke creates this image of a happy place where laughter is always heard and gentleness is always felt, at the end we learn that this is what “English heaven” would be like for this soldier that died in battle.

Repetition- The repetition of the word dust emphasizes the author’s idea of the soldier’s corpse on the foreign battlefield.

WWI

The poem has such an idealistic outlook on war because at that time, soldiers had never seen sights as awful as trench warfare. Nobody had ever seen a “world war”.

World War I, or the “Great War”, showed people how devastating a war can be when so many countries are involved.

If this poem would’ve been written before WWII, it’s probable that it wouldn’t have been nearly as optimistic.

Song Connection“Proud to be an American (God Bless the USA)” by Lee Greenwood

I chose this song because it was written to express an overwhelming sense of patriotism, just like “The Soldier.” Both men love their countries so much that they’re willing to do anything to protect them even if it

means sacrificing their lives. (Click on picture above to watch video)