Isabel Aguayo Period 2/3 1/24/12 Humanities 10 Goff's War Threw the Poets Eyes The Man He Killed

The poem I decided to re site for poetry out loud was The Man He Killed. by Thomas Hardy. At first, I thought the poem was just another regular poem. Then later I found out that it was about war. Knowing that I was more interested in the poem. started to memorize the poem but still didnt have a solid understanding on what the poem meant. Later on we learned about it in class. The discussion we had helped. Hearing my peers opinion helped me get a feel for this poem. This is the first quote I will use for my paragraph. Its the second Stanza, lines 5-8. But ranged and infantry, And staring face to face, I shot at him and he at me, And killed him in his place. The soldier saw this man across the battle field. He was hesitant to attack, or kill the soldier. But why? Thats what they sign up for to do. Why should soldier be hesitant. What Hardy was trying to say in this stanza, is that the soldier had a feeling he was going to regret shooting the man. If the soldier didnt shot this man he would have been dead. This stanza helps you see what the soldier felt in the heat of the moment. With realizing it he shot and killed the soldier. This is the third stanza. Lines 9-12 He thought he'd 'list perhaps, Off-hand like-just as-I, Was out of work-had sold his trapsNo other reason why. In this stanza he regrets shooting the man. The soldier in listed maybe because he had no money. That soldier could have had a family, that depended on the money he made, by joining the Army. That might have been his last and only choice. The poem was made in 1902. At this time work was hard to find. Factories were beginning to appear in certain countries. A solid high paying job was hard to find. ( had sold his traps-No other reason why) There is no reason to in list to the military. For the soldier he shot down, In listing to the military was his last opportunity to make more money for himself. This is the last Stranza Of the Man He Killed, line 10-13. Yes quaint and curios war is! You shot a fellow down,

You'd treat if met were bar is, Or help to half-a-crown. This last stanza has the main theme of the poem. You see the reality of war. War is interesting, because it has a lot of history. Soldiers in the other hand see the reality. They see the deaths, and pain. He realizes that his actions are to kill the enemy. The soldier begins to wonder whether he did the right thing. What if the met earlier before the war started. Would that have changed anything? They could have gone out for drinks together. After reading and learning about the poem and author. This poem was conversation tone. It's written in third person. You could see the senselessness of war. How men have no choice of going to serve. Back then and now you depend on your income. What if they couldn't support them selves. Some men were lucky enough to learn how to fight in combat. Most men weren't experienced with a gun, or any type of weaponry. Or haven't even shot a men down. They had to, or else you would have been shot and killed. The poem was Thomas Hardy's point of view towards war. It took a while to see this. Many people think is Hardy. No it's the soldier, the soldier that was hesitant to kill the enemy.