"The Soldier" by Rupert Brooke

In that rich earth a richer dust concealed:
These are the first four lines of Rupert Brooke's poignant sonnet, "The Soldier". "The Soldier" is a poem about death in war. This does not glorify war, but only shows that dying in war is a proud thing to do for your country. It is a message from Rupert Brooke and possibly all the young men at war to their loved ones. Brooke's purpose seems to be bequeathing his spirit even though his body may be in another country. As you can see in this picture, (**show picture of Rupert Brooke**) Rupert Brooke looks quite determined and young and so this is a sad, depressing poem but it is also quite reflective. In this sense, the poem is typical of the early part of World War 1.
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