A Comparative Essay between “Disabled” and “An
Unknown Girl”
Moniza Alvi reflects on
To begin with, there is a difference
in mood between “An Unknown Girl” and “Disabled” as Alvi creates an optimistic
mood whereas Owen creates a predominantly depressing mood. Owen creates this by
suggesting a theme of isolation felt by the persona which is implied in the
first stanza when Owen says “mothered them from him”. The word “mothered” has
caring, kind connotations but when used with “from”, it implies that he is not
given the love and is actually an outcast which creates a strong negative mood
as we can feel his seclusion. Similarly, “Espirit de corps” is said in an
ironic tone which emphasises the fact that he is an outcast and that war does
not leave you with glory or pride. This inspires pathos as everything has been
taken away from him and he is no longer included, an idea which is further
emphasised by the iambic pentameter in the first stanza, communicating the dull
monotony of his life due to the isolation as he has no one to share anything
with. Finally, the question at the end of the poem “Why don’t they come?” shows
that he is literally waiting for someone to “put him into bed” as he is not
able to do this himself. We can tell that he is waiting for night and the
cyclical routine that repeats each day although he could be waiting for death
as he has “a few sick years in Institutes” left which creates a powerful sorrow
as he is still young. As this is the end of the poem, we are left with the
image of him isolated and abandoned which is very striking.
Owen further creates the pessimistic
mood by suggesting the disappointment and lack of pride the persona has been
left with after the war. Owen declares “no fears of Fear came yet” describing
the persona before the war which groups all the fears and makes them seem
overwhelming. This may suggest the persona is afraid of being a coward as he
must appear strong and the personification of “Fear” makes him seem weak
inside. This is emphasised by the use of “yet” as the persona now feels these
fears after the horror of war. Later in the poem, the long stanza of hopes such
as “For daggers in plaid socks; of smart salutes; And care of arms” contrasts
with the short stanza for reality such as “Only a solemn man offered him
fruits” revealing that his hopes for war were not met and he has been left with
very little. This contrast is emphasised by the reaction of the people as he is
“thanked” by “a solemn man” showing us that this “pity” makes him feel mocked.
A miserable mood is portrayed as he has not received the celebratory “cheer” or
“giddy jilts” he was expecting instead men “inquired about his soul” which
portrays that the persona feels that these “cheers” are wrong therefore the man
is making a mockery of him. The phrase “carried shoulder-high” depicts a
glorious image to the reader as the persona recalls the excitement after a game
of football. This excitement must have been similar to his expectations of war
and when contrasted with the inglorious impression of life during and after
war, the reader once again is forced to feel the sorrow and regret felt by the
persona as Owen has effectively provided us with images and emotions.
Furthermore, the persona appears bitter about going to war as he says “Smiling
they wrote his lie” indicating their deception as they dropped “hints for young
recruits” which is an exaggerated glorious image which Owen portrays as a lie.
“Smiling” gives this a sinister feeling which emphasises the fact that he has
been tricked and lied to in a bitter, uncaring way. We feel pathos as we can
feel how powerful his bitterness is.
Alternatively, to create an
optimistic mood in “An Unknown Girl”, Alvi creates a theme of the magic that
surrounds her in
In contrast to the theme of
isolation in “Disabled”, Alvi creates the impression of inclusion and
reassurance that contribute to the upbeat mood. Alvi has written this poem to
portray her search for personal identity as she was taken from her home in
Another difference in mood is the
freedom created by Alvi contrasted with the dull gloom portrayed by Owen. Alvi
displays a sense of freedom that originates from the beauty of
On the other hand, Owen portrays the
dull gloomy mood through the enjambment in the third and fourth line of the
first stanza. It indicates how long the personas empty days are and is
contrasted with the simple “play and pleasures” enjoyed by the young boys to
create a dull atmosphere surrounding the lonely persona. This is very effective
as the reader can feel this mood themselves. In the same stanza the phrase
“saddening like a hymn” is used to create a gloomy atmosphere. In addition to
the obvious connotations of saddening, Owens use of “hymn” suggests a solemn
and mournful mood almost as though a part of him has died. By forcing the
reader to feel these emotions, Owen has powerfully portrayed the persona’s
melancholy. Due to his injury, the persona must now do what “the rules consider
wise” which shows the persona no longer has freedom as “rules” have
connotations of being strict which contrasts to the freedom and fun he
experienced in the past. The word “wise” could also reflect on the fact that he
has gained wisdom from the war due to bad decisions but this wisdom has come at
the price of his happiness. This contrast shows the boring nature of his current
life and the reader can feel his regret more powerfully with the image of his
past happiness. The persona is described as wearing a “ghastly suit of grey” so
the word “ghastly” forces the reader to think of a terrible image of the lonely
man and then used with “grey” to make that image dull and lifeless. Overall
this creates a gloomy visual image which is emphasised by the lack of emotion
attached to the words creating an image which inspires sympathy from the
reader. Finally Owen uses “shivered”, “cold and late” and “queer disease” to
show how the despair is affecting the persona. He is literally cold although he
may also feel cold inside as he has nothing left and is now isolated and alone.
We can feel his sorrow which allows these words to effectively portray the dull
mood to the reader.
Owen also reveals a contrast inside
“Disabled” as an alternate lively mood is portrayed in the past. The persona
has “lost his colour” which is literally referring to the colour of his skin as
he is now pale and he would have been flushed after playing football but
additionally he has lost the bright glow of his youth during the war. The
superficial meaning gives us a physical contrast between past and present but
the alternate meaning allows the reader a glimpse at how his soul was affected.
Owen distinguishes between this past excitement and the present day gloom. The persona is “waiting for dark” which is
contrasted with the bright, colourful excitement felt in the past, portrayed in
the second stanza. The word “waiting” implies that he is lonely because he has
nothing left in his life which contrasts with “girls glanced lovelier” and
romantic excitement from his past and is emphasised by the use of “dark” to
suggest that he is waiting for night and the continuation of the cyclical
routine that happens each day. The persona could also be waiting for death as
this is a connotation of “dark”. These effective contrasts show his longing for
the past and his dull life which inspires pathos from the reader. The reader
also feels pathos because of the extreme contrast between past and present.
Owen says “Town used to swing so gay” and the personification of “Town” gives
it human emotions such as happiness that the reader is allowed to feel briefly.
This creates a lively and upbeat mood in the past which is emphasised by “gay”
but “used to” show the reader that this was in the past as it is written in
past tense. This powerful contrast between past and present forces the reader
to suffer the emotions the persona feels. Owen creates the impression of the
excitement felt by the persona in the past through the contrast between leaving
for war with “drums and cheers” and returning from war with “only a solemn
man”. This contrast between his expectations and reality makes his past life
seem exciting as he was popular but upon return, the persona feels bewildered
by the lack of celebration. The difference between past and present shows us
that this excitement was strong but short-lived and more pathos is inspired by
that fact he feels pitied. Finally Owen says “Now, he is old;” which shows that
the energetic past has gone. The word “old” is used to show that although his
body is still young, the persona has physiologically aged and, in his current
state, he is ancient. This contrast to his bright youth effectively makes us
feel significant amounts of pathos.
One of the main contrasts between
these poems is within the theme of longing as Alvi portrays her persona longing
for her identity whereas Owen suggests regret and longing for the past. Having
been taken from her home whilst she was young, Alvi reveals that she longs for
a home and to discover her personal identity in
Alternatively, Owen expresses the
feeling of regret that comes from his longing which is emphasised by his
realisation that his injury is his own fault although Owen depicts the
persona’s anger towards the military which is similar to his own as Owen wrote
most of his poetry whilst injured from war. Owen articulates “He thought he’d
better join – He wonders why” and the pause after “he’d better join” shows that
he is struggling to remember why he decided to fight in the war so therefore he
is questioning his reasons. The phrase shows the insignificance of his reasons
and leads to the persona regretting his decision. Similarly, the asyndeton in
stanza five focuses on all the glorious things he briefly considered and
indicates that he didn’t think about the effects of war, effectively portraying
the impression of regret. Owen forces the reader to contrast the short time
taken to make the decision with the lifetime he will have to suffer the
consequences which evokes pathos as he does regret his choice. Owen describes
the war as a “hot race” which provides a sense of chaos and disorder associated
with the war by the reader. This gives the reader the strong feeling of
exhilaration felt by the persona whilst fighting but the reader also gets the
impression that this is different from the excitement and glory that the
persona was expecting from war. This difference in emotion emphasises that the
persona feels regret and the word “race” shows that although he will live with
the consequences, the war was over quickly. This is very effective as we are
forced to feel these emotions such as regret and exhilaration. The phrases
“Poured away” and “threw away” show that the persona considers the choice he
made wasteful sacrifice which emphasises the fact he feels regret for the
foolish decision. The word “Poured” is foregrounded so he feels that he has done
this to himself. This is very effective as we feel his regret strongly. Owen
associates “giddy jilts” with going to war therefore showing that he was drunk
and disorientated when he made the decision so he did it for foolish reasons
and he now lives with regret. Ultimately the rhyme pattern that continues
regularly throughout the poem could suggest that his decisions, made in the
past, will carry on like the lines even after they have been made.
Owen emphasises this regret by the
longing created for the past. Owen contrasts “One time, he liked a blood smear”
with the persona’s real injury to emphasis the fact that the persona is now
“legless” but in those days he enjoyed the glorious side of injuries. This
shows the powerful longing for the past but also indicates that the persona was
more naïve in those days from the ironic tone. This is emphasised by “in the
old times” as the tone is happy and warm but the use of “old” shows us that
this was in the past and he no longer has these caring feelings. This illustrates the longing for
the past although pathos is also created. The phrase “younger than his youth,
last year” indicates that the persona wishes to have his past life back as his
youth was the time of excitement and happiness and he no longer feels these
things in the present. The pause shows he is struggling to compare the past and
present which emphasises the fact the he wishes he could have his previous life
back. This is a strong emotion and inspires much pathos from the reader.
Finally the persona sees how the women’s eyes “Passed from him to the strong
men that were whole” showing his longing for the past as he is comparing the
way they look at him now to how they used to “glance lovelier”. This contrast
shows how incomplete the persona feels as well as portraying to the reader that
he is alone and deserted. This direct contrast between past and present allows
the reader to feel precisely how strong the persona’s longing for the past is
and how lonely he now feels.
Although both Owen and Alvi both create
an excited mood, there are different emotions created by the different types of
excitement. The contrast between excitement and calm especially in the phrase
“longing for the unknown girl in the neon bazaar” in “An Unknown Girl” allows
Alvi to see both sides of
However, one of the most striking
differences between “An Unknown Girl” and “Disabled” is the persona’s choice
and control of the situation. In “Disabled” Owen says “he asked to join”
showing that not only was the persona given a choice but he chose to do the
wrong thing although he was in control. This illustrates to the reader that it
was the persona’s own fault and his decisions lead to his injury. He can’t
blame the military for being “legless” although “smiling” and “lie” indicate
his bitterness towards the commanders. Alvi portrays an image of the persona “hands
outstretched” which shows that she is longing for this and is not in control
although she is fighting from having her identity evade her again. She was not
given a choice. This contrast makes Owen’s persona appear wasteful as he threw
away his youth whereas Alvi has lost something she cares about. Alvi creates a
subtle amount of pathos throughout the poem whereas we feel pathos for the
persona in “Disabled” as he is having the realisation and it is already too
late.