poem literature

1. Men who sit on chairs
This is a short poem that could be considered a Lyric poem belonging to the movement of
War poetry because of the way the author represents his thoughts, disgust and protest
towards war using an specific rhyming style. Despite being shorter I found it shares some
similarities to the poem PTSD by Tony McNally, for instance, the use of the language and
rhymes, so it is possible to assume that McNally may be the author.
Let’s begin this analysis by the title of the poem, “Men who sit on chairs”, this phrase could
have many interpretations, but by the theme of war that the work is presenting it would be
best to assume that is a metonymy referred to the officers at high command on an army,
same as men acts as a synecdoche for all the officers.
The poet writes in first person since this is a expression of his own thoughts and
experiences going through war, “Men who sit on chairs send us back home. Minus one or
two or three or four or more”, it also makes more personal the feelings he is conveying,
setting a somber mood to the reader and showing imagery through his words of how
soldiers are sent to battle following orders of the highers in command, some of them never
to return, others, suffering pain from their wounds, and their families, only receiving letters
about how their loved ones lost their lives for their country.
Finally, highlighting the last phrases of the poem in order to reinstate what was presented
in the previous paragraphs, “Men who sit on chairs sleep soundly in their beds. Unlike the
men in psyche wards being force-fed on their meds”, expressing the irony of it all, the
message that the author wanted to transmit, that while the soldiers suffer the horrors of
war and their consequences, the officers continue to live their lives safely with a clear
conscience.
Notes: I found it a bit difficult to concentrate at first and it took me some time to try and
guess the author that seemed the more close to me between McNally and Sasson. I also
needed to check the poetic devices several times to not confuse their meanings.