Language

• • Strong sense of time linking to how one reminices

  "By some ancient old inn"
• • "Ranged" a metaphorical verb describing the soldiers lined up like toys/objects
  • "infantry" emphasis on infant that is a nod to some soldiers being merely children

  "But ranged as infantry,"
• • Entire line is monosyllabic
  • Simplistic words used to portray the uneducated soldier
  • Its monosyllabic words provides a nod to a nursery rhyme or war chant

  "I shot at him as he to me,"
• • "Foe" to make it sound not as volatile as other words like enemy
  • "Foe" term a result of the propaganda in war that whoever tells you who's the enemy is the enemy

  "Because he was my foe"
• • Sympathetic language used to focus on the man's WHAT IF and regrets
  • "'list" is an ellusion to enlist to better represent the man's colloquial language
  • Another point of questioning himself of his actions and the victim was

  "He thought he'd 'list"
• • Juxtaposition of "quaint and curious" and "war" linking to a psychological defence mechanism to trauma of sugarcoating it
  • Could be an attempt for war propaganda
  • Cheerful and insensitised tone

  "quaint and curious war is!"
• A double meaning metaphor:

  • of a morbid description of a man's head blown off
  • his willingness to help the man with his tab at the bar

  + This being the last line reflects the deep psychological conflict and PTSD he had in from the war

  "help to half-a-crown"