Question

How is the concept of futility of war revealed in the poem asleep in the valley?

Answer 1

Asleep In The Valley” is a war poem dealing with the fatal consequence of war . But the poet does not reveal much about war.He gives a natural description of a valley where a slow stream flows.He has focused much on the scenic beauty of the valley than destructive consequence of until the very end of the poem.He proceeds with the description of a young soldier who is blissfully sleeping.His body is stretched in the heavy bushes.His feet are among the flowers.These flowers may Symbolically refer to homage to the martyr paid by nature because his devotion has snatched his life away.So he is sleeping forever peacefully.The soldier is a victim of war that has been made clear by the expression ‘the two red holes’.It exposes how inhumanly the soldier is victimised in war.These red holes are nothing but ‘bullet wounds’.