A Comparison of Two Poems about Soldiers
             "Joining The Colours" by Katherine Tynan and "The Send Off" by Wilfred Owen are two poems about soldiers leaving Britain to Fight in WWI. "Joining The Colours" is about a regiment of soldiers leaving to go to France to fight. This was at the beginning of the First World War and all the soldiers were happy because it was an opportunity for them to show their girlfriends and their families that they were brave. "The Send Off" is about a regiment of young soldiers who are departing later in the war. It was written a few years after "Joining The Colours". Even though these poems are about the same topic, their structure, styles, and moods are very different because the authors are trying to convey the feelings of war very differently.
             In "Joining The Colours" by Katherine Tynan, the soldiers seem happy as they march to war. In stanza 1 for example "There they go marching all in step so gay" (1). This quotation shows how they enjoy marching, all together. They look almost as though they are "going to a wedding day" (3). In stanza 2 the soldiers "are singing like the lark" (6). In stanza 3 they make noises with "whistles, mouth-organs" (9). The soldiers are carefree because they are brave. They don't understand how dangerous war is because they are too young. They are not serious; they feel as if they are going to a celebration.
             While the soldiers are leaving, there are many people celebrating their bravery. The first group of people mentioned in stanza 1 are the mothers of the young soldiers. They are watching their sons going to war. This is an unhappy moment for them. The reader feels sorry for them because many of their sons won't come back. The second group of people mentioned in this poem are those who are standing at the roadside watching. The third group mentioned are the girlfriends and wives in stanza 4. As the girls are saying goodbye, they are kissing ...