"Vergissmeinnicht" Literary Criticism

Eric Perkerson

March 24, 2008

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Historical-Biographical Approach

The Second World War was a time of intense loyalty to one's country and patriotism. Douglas was a patriot himself and he reported to an army recruiting center days after war was declared. When he was younger, he also greatly enjoyed playing military games. However, the peom presents another side to Douglas's thoughts. He questions whether he can be a human being and a soldier at the same time, particularly in the last stanza when he says, "And death who had the soldier singled / has done the lover mortal hurt" (Line 23-24). By suggesting that the lover and killer are one and do exist together, he also suggests that they cannot survive like that and that one will eventually take over. This conflicts with his sense of duty to serve his country in battle and with himself as a human being.

Moral-Philisophical Approach

The primary purpose of the poem is to call attention to the delima faced by Douglas and all soldiers regarding the morality of being a soldier. The peom questions how a person can be a killer and a lover, meaning a normal human being, at the same time. The poem then suggests that one cannot, and that if one appears to be in he middle, they have to become one or the other. The poem also seems to imply that he is becoming a killer, especially when he says, "We see him almost with content" (Line 13), and he feels good and expects the reader to feel good because the German is dead. He also says "almost" recognizing that "we" know that it is not something to be content about. This is also interesting because it supports the reason that Douglas thinks war is wrong. His reason is that it destroys the killer, not that it destroys the killed. Mostly, he is worried about himself. This also can be explained through the existentiallist philosophy that Douglas held during this time. This belief holds that one must create their own reason for existance and morals, and he appears to be outside of any organized belief system.