1914 V: The Soldier Poem by Rupert Brooke

1914 V: The Soldier

Rating: 3.6


If I should die, think only this of me:
That there's some corner of a foreign field
That is for ever England. There shall be
In that rich earth a richer dust concealed;
A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware,
Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam,
A body of England's, breathing English air,
Washed by the rivers, blest by suns of home.

And think, this heart, all evil shed away,
A pulse in the eternal mind, no less
Gives somewhere back the thoughts by England given;
Her sights and sounds; dreams happy as her day;
And laughter, learnt of friends; and gentleness,
In hearts at peace, under an English heaven.

1914 V: The Soldier
COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Kevin Straw 20 September 2012

The idea that a dead soldier: Gives somewhere back the thoughts by England given... is a bit fanciful to say the least. From my experience of military life I should prefer if most of the soldiers I met kept their thoughts to themselves! A famous poem, but its sentimentality has not worn well seen through the carnage that followed. And Brooke's privileged life was by no means the life that most men and women had whom England bore. I do not think they would have written like this.

23 58 Reply
Marcella D 20 September 2011

This poem is such a beautiful and sad poem, so touching

30 27 Reply
Karen Sinclair 20 September 2012

The first half of this poem is just impeccable but im afraid to me it wained a bit in the latter..but thats just personal taste i think...to me the first 8 lines is all that i needed to read....

17 31 Reply
Stevie Taite 20 September 2012

Let's remember the soldier before the atrosity of war took away his inocence and his life!

18 30 Reply
Shadow Girl 13 May 2011

We must read this in the context it is written - the only indication of war in this poem is - 'in a foreign field'. The writer was naive to the atrocities of war.... 'A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware, ' From a 21st century perspective we can read 'made aware' as being ironic as propaganda was used for obfuscation not revelation: it duped men into enlisting.

20 27 Reply
Christopher Okiri 22 November 2022

It is made clear, that man is dust, and to dust he returns.

0 0 Reply
MAHTAB BANGALEE 20 November 2022

Soldier dies for the country and lives in the heaven; it's great work when anyone does anything for ubiquitous welfare; nice to read the first world war related poem

0 0 Reply
Bharati Nayak 20 November 2022

A true soldier loves his motherland.The patriotic feelings of an English soldier has been expressed finely in this poem.

0 0 Reply
Savita Tyagi 20 November 2022

Rather than war and soldier this poem speaks to me the sentiments of a migrant. The one whose voices are never heard, their thoughts never picked up. Great poem!

1 0 Reply
Terry 11 October 2020

.........Terry.............

0 0 Reply
READ THIS POEM IN OTHER LANGUAGES
Rupert Brooke

Rupert Brooke

Warwickshire / England
Close
Error Success