Anthem for Doomed Youth

First Stanza

What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?

— Only the monstrous anger of the guns.

Only the stuttering rifles’ rapid rattle

Can patter out their hasty orisons.

No mockeries now for them; no prayers nor bells;

Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs,—

The shrill, demented choirs of wailing shells;

And bugles calling for them from sad shires.

Paraphrase: 

    The poet is against war and he condemns it by describing it as horrible and 

disgusting. As we always see, when young people die in the war, there is 

always the horrible noise of guns. The poet asks about the bells that should 

announce the death of those soldiers. We hear guns instead of prayers. The 

death of young people is like the death of cattle. They die in huge numbers 

and those cattle don’t know why they die in that horrible war.

    The only sound that shows their death is the angry roar of guns. The sound 

of rapid firing of gun is the only thing they will hear instead of prayers.

    The poet asks people not to mock the dead people by the sound of choirs 

who sing for the dead because there will be the sound of bursting shells 

and he horns of the British countryside calling for them.

Second Stanza

What candles may be held to speed them all?

Not in the hands of boys, but in their eyes

Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes.

The pallor of girls’ brows shall be their pall;

Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds,

And each slow dusk a drawing – down of blinds.

Paraphrase: 

    Where are the candles that are lit at funerals? There will be no candles but their love will be there in the eyes of boys. There will be sadness on the faces of girls when they hear about the death of those poor soldiers. The only flowers to be laid on their coffins will be the gentle unspoken thoughts of those left behind. Finally, as houses pull down their blinds as a sign of mourning, the world will be sad when darkness controls the world at the close of every day. 

Rhyme scheme:     ababcdcdeffegg

Commentary 

There is contrast in the poem between the peaceful atmosphere that should be there when death takes place and what actually happens when we hear terrible noise of guns. At funeral time, there should be only prayers and silence.