Analysis on Disabled

“War is hell,” a famous quote by American Civil War General William Tecumseh Sherma explicitly
encapsulates the stark brutality an armed conflict, offering a lens to analyse Wilfred Owen’s
Disabled. A poem that vividly portrays the grim aftermath of war, aligning with the sentiment that
bloodsheds exact a harrowing and profound toll on the lives of those involved and its casualties. A
direct correlation on Owen’s war-torn reality in Disabled.

The poem talks about a soldier who reflects on the altering consequences of military struggles;
highlighting the physical and emotional challenges faced by the deeply wounded soldier. Bewildered
by the deceptive assurances and misleading conceptions of enlisting in the army and glorification of
war, Owen delves into the depth of pointless loss, isolation and the harsh realities war entails. A
stark transformation from a vibrant past to a devastating and pitch-black isolated present.

“…sat in a wheelchair, waiting for dark” captures the soldier’s depiction of his life after war. A futile
and meaningless existence and image of despair. The metaphorical representation of death in “dark”
deepens Owen’s portrayal of the soldier’s state after his injury. Connecting it with the exploration of
colours in “ghastly use of grey” symbolizing sadness and lack of life, evoking no hope at all.

The futile war leaving unwanted scars both on the soldier’s physical and mental state, making him
painfully lifeless with his existence. The writer’s emotive language encourages strong emotions
capturing the soldier’s plight with his impactful phrases. “Legless, sewn short at elbow” portrays a
clear image on how the author needs to half his sleeves because of the loss of his arms and legs.
Through the use of juxtaposition, we see the soldier mourning for his youth before the War took his
limbs. This line takes us vividly back to the aftermath of the man’s injury and portrays a distasteful
sight on the front line of World War I.

The apparent contrast of Owens’s description between his vibrant attitude in his past, juxtaposes his
outlook in the present. A blatant difference from what he used to be. Being confined in the hospital,
sick on the hostile treatment he receives from the people around him, he treats his days as if death
would be a testament of joy. Known to be a powerful football player in his town, to the extent of
being celebrated after just a game is ironic as after the seriousness of war he gave his life with was
treated instead with isolation and seen “like some queer disease.” Now crippled, depicts a
catastrophe, not just with his dream, more so on how he can continue to live. Losing a part of one’s
body, losing the one thing that you need most, for a former football player without legs, is similar to
breathing without air.

An old disabled man, “his back will never brace paints a clear portrayal on how the soldier uses
supports just to be able to stand up. Even a task as simple as standing cannot be done. A
manifestation on the author’s intention to invoke sympathy from the reader. The pride that his
previous self held on to, expecting to be honoured with heroism, but treated in adversely, adds
torment to his sufferings.

Constantly shifting between the past and the present and the dramatic contrasts of pace and time,
reiterates the author’s purpose in wanting the people to see the soldier’s perspective and create a
strong sense of sympathy for him. Directing it to those who judge war from the comfort of their
homes, and emphasizing his bitterness towards those who glorify it. He sought to enlighten the
society that war, regardless of its forms and reasons, never has winners, only casualties.