Dulce et decorum est

"Dulce et decorum est" is a poem by Wilfred Owen that powerfully depicts the brutal realities of trench warfare during World War I. The title is a Latin phrase from the Roman poet Horace, meaning "It is sweet and proper to die for one's country". Owen, an English poet who fought in the war, was deeply affected by its horrors and pity for its victims.123

The poem vividly describes a gas attack, contrasting the horrific suffering of soldiers with the patriotic ideal of dying for one's country. Owen's work, including this poem, uses descriptive language to convey the anger, despair, and disillusionment that replaced early wartime idealism. He was killed in action just a week before the armistice.13