The Rear Guard
by Siegfried Sassoon
(Hindenburg Line, April 1917)
Groping along the tunnel, step by step,
He winked his prying torch with patching glare
From side to side, and sniffed the unwholesome air.Tins, boxes, bottles, shapes and too vague to know;
A mirror smashed, the mattress from a bed;
And he, exploring fifty feet below
The rosy gloom of battle overhead.Tripping, he grabbed the wall; saw someone lie
Humped at his feet, half-hidden by a rug.
And stooped to give the sleeper’s arm a tug.
“I’m looking for headquarters.” No reply.
“God blast your neck!” (For days he’d had no sleep.)
“Get up and guide me through this stinking place.”
Savage, he kicked a soft, unanswering heap,
And flashed his beam across the livid face
Terribly glaring up, whose eyes yet wore
Agony dying hard of ten days before;
And fists of fingers clutched a blackening wound.Alone he staggered on until he found
Dawn’s ghost that filtered down a shafted stair
To the dazed, muttering creatures underground
Who hear the boom of shells in muffled sound.
At last, with sweat and horror in his hair,
He climbed through darkness to the twilight air,
Unloading hell behind him step by step.
Unveiling the Horrors: An In-Depth Look at Siegfried Sassoon’s “The Rear Guard”
Siegfried Sassoon’s “The Rear Guard” stands as a powerful and unflinching testament to the grim realities of World War I. This poem plunges readers into the subterranean world of the Hindenburg Line, offering a stark contrast to the romanticized notions of warfare often propagated during the era. It is a vital piece for understanding the true human cost of conflict, making it a frequently studied work for its profound insights and masterful use of language.
The Rear Guard Summary: A Journey into Despair
“The Rear Guard” follows a lone soldier navigating the dark, claustrophobic tunnels beneath the battlefield in April 1917. His mission is to find headquarters, but his journey becomes a descent into a forgotten hell. As he gropes through the debris-strewn passages, he encounters the decaying remains of a fellow soldier, whom he initially mistakes for a sleeping comrade. His frustrated attempts to rouse the body, culminating in a savage kick, reveal the dehumanizing toll of prolonged exposure to war. The poem culminates with the soldier emerging from the underground labyrinth into the faint, ghostly light of dawn, carrying the psychological burden of the horrors he has witnessed.
Central Idea and Key Themes
At its core, “The Rear Guard” explores the profound themes of death, disillusionment, and the dehumanizing impact of war. The central idea revolves around the psychological and moral decay inflicted upon individuals by the brutal conditions of conflict. The soldier’s callous reaction to the dead body underscores how war can strip away empathy and numb the human spirit. The poem also subtly touches upon the theme of isolation, as the soldier navigates this horrifying landscape alone. It serves as a powerful anti-war statement, exposing the squalor and despair that lay beneath the surface of the grand narratives of heroism.
Historical Context and Significance
Written during World War I, “The Rear Guard” is deeply rooted in Sassoon’s personal experiences as an officer in the British Army. The Hindenburg Line was a heavily fortified German defensive position, and the tunnels beneath it were a grim reality for soldiers. Sassoon was one of the “War Poets” who used their art to challenge the jingoistic propaganda of the time, presenting an honest, often brutal, portrayal of trench warfare. This poem is significant for its contribution to the growing anti-war sentiment and its enduring power to convey the psychological scars left by conflict, making it a crucial piece for understanding the literature of the Great War.
In-Depth Analysis: Literary and Poetic Devices in “The Rear Guard”
Sassoon masterfully employs a rich tapestry of literary and poetic devices to craft the poem’s unsettling atmosphere and convey its powerful themes. A close examination of these techniques reveals the depth of his artistry and the enduring impact of “The Rear Guard.”
Imagery and Sensory Details: A Descent into the Abyss
The poem is saturated with vivid, often disturbing, imagery that appeals to multiple senses, immersing the reader in the soldier’s grim reality. Visuals of decay and claustrophobia dominate:
Tins, boxes, bottles, shapes and too vague to know;
A mirror smashed, the mattress from a bed;
This accumulation of discarded items paints a picture of utter desolation and abandonment. The soldier’s “prying torch with patching glare” offers only fleeting, inadequate illumination, emphasizing the pervasive darkness. Auditory and olfactory details further enhance the oppressive atmosphere:
He winked his prying torch with patching glare
From side to side, and sniffed the unwholesome air.
The “unwholesome air” immediately conveys a sense of decay and disease, while the later “boom of shells in muffled sound” reminds us of the constant, distant threat above. The most harrowing imagery comes with the discovery of the dead soldier:
And flashed his beam across the livid face
Terribly glaring up, whose eyes yet wore
Agony dying hard of ten days before;
And fists of fingers clutched a blackening wound.
The “livid face,” “terribly glaring up,” and “blackening wound” are visceral descriptions that confront the reader with the raw, unromanticized horror of death in war. The detail of “Agony dying hard of ten days before” adds a layer of prolonged suffering and the slow, agonizing nature of death.
Narrative Voice and Perspective
“The Rear Guard” is told from a third-person perspective, focusing on the actions and limited internal thoughts of the unnamed soldier. This objective distance allows the reader to observe the soldier’s dehumanization without explicit authorial judgment. The use of “He” throughout the poem creates a sense of universality, suggesting that this soldier’s experience is representative of many. The narrative follows his physical journey, but also subtly reveals his psychological state through his reactions, such as his initial frustration and subsequent “savage” kick, highlighting the emotional numbing brought on by war.
Sound Devices: Rhythm and Emphasis
Sassoon employs various sound devices to enhance the poem’s impact. Alliteration, the repetition of initial consonant sounds, can be found in lines like:
Savage, he kicked a soft, unanswering heap,
The repeated “s” sound here creates a sibilant, almost hissing quality that underscores the harshness and brutality of the soldier’s action. Assonance, the repetition of vowel sounds within words, contributes to the poem’s sonic texture, as seen in “rosy gloom” or “unwholesome.” The phrase “boom of shells in muffled sound” also uses a subtle onomatopoeia, mimicking the distant, dull thud of explosions, further immersing the reader in the war zone.
Figurative Language: Metaphor and Symbolism
Metaphor and symbolism are crucial to understanding the deeper meanings of “The Rear Guard.” The tunnels themselves serve as a powerful symbol of the psychological depths of war, a hidden, suffocating realm beneath the surface of conflict. The phrase “The rosy gloom of battle overhead” is a striking example of juxtaposition and symbolism. “Rosy” suggests beauty or idealism, a deceptive facade, while “gloom” reveals the underlying darkness and despair. This metaphor highlights the stark contrast between the perceived glory of war and its brutal reality. Perhaps the most poignant metaphor is found in the poem’s closing stanza:
Alone he staggered on until he found
Dawn’s ghost that filtered down a shafted stair
“Dawn’s ghost” is a powerful metaphor for a fragile, almost non-existent hope. Dawn, typically a symbol of new beginnings and light, is here reduced to a mere specter, suggesting that even hope is diminished and spectral in the face of such overwhelming horror. It symbolizes the faint, almost illusory promise of an end to the suffering.
Structure, Form, and Rhythm
“The Rear Guard” is composed of four stanzas of varying lengths, contributing to a sense of irregularity and fragmentation that mirrors the chaos of war. While not strictly free verse, the poem predominantly utilizes iambic pentameter, a meter common in English poetry, which gives it a natural, conversational rhythm, albeit one often disrupted by the harsh subject matter. Sassoon employs a consistent rhyme scheme throughout the poem, typically AABCCB in each stanza, which provides a subtle, almost haunting musicality that contrasts with the poem’s bleak content. The frequent use of enjambment, where lines flow into one another without punctuation, creates a sense of continuous movement and urgency, mirroring the soldier’s relentless, almost mechanical progress through the tunnels:
Alone he staggered on until he found
Dawn’s ghost that filtered down a shafted stair
This technique also creates a breathless quality, reflecting the soldier’s exhaustion and the suffocating environment.
Diction and Tone: Crafting the Bleak Reality
Sassoon’s word choice, or diction, is deliberate and impactful, contributing significantly to the poem’s overall bleak and cynical tone. Words like “unwholesome,” “stinking,” “livid,” “blackening,” and “agony” are carefully selected to evoke disgust, horror, and despair. There is no romantic language here; instead, the vocabulary is stark, direct, and visceral, reflecting the unvarnished truth of war. The tone is overwhelmingly anti-romantic and critical, avoiding any glorification of conflict. The mood created is claustrophobic, unsettling, and filled with a profound sense of despair and the dehumanizing effects of prolonged suffering.
Irony and Juxtaposition
Irony plays a subtle yet significant role in the poem. The soldier’s desperate search for “headquarters,” the nerve center of the war effort, is juxtaposed with his discovery of a forgotten, decaying body. His callous reaction, kicking the “unanswering heap” and cursing, is deeply ironic. He is ostensibly part of a collective effort, yet his immediate response to a fallen comrade is one of frustration and disrespect, highlighting the moral compromises and emotional numbing that war demands. The contrast between the “rosy gloom of battle overhead” and the squalid, death-filled tunnels below further emphasizes the poem’s ironic commentary on the deceptive nature of war’s outward appearance versus its hidden horrors.
The Enduring Echoes of “The Rear Guard”
“The Rear Guard” remains a profoundly impactful poem, a chilling journey into the psychological and physical depths of warfare. Through its vivid imagery, precise diction, and masterful use of poetic devices, Siegfried Sassoon crafts a haunting and unforgettable portrayal of the horrors of conflict. The poem’s exploration of dehumanization, the fragility of hope, and the stark realities beneath the surface of battle ensures its place as a timeless and essential piece of literature, continuing to resonate with readers seeking to understand the true cost of war.