Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
Dulce et Decorum Est  By  cover art

Dulce et Decorum Est

By: Wilfred Owen
Narrated by: Phillip J. Mather
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $4.99

Buy for $4.99

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

The narrator pledges to donate 50% of his proceeds to The Royal British Legion Poppy Day Appeal - please support. Wilfred Owen’s famous poem was written in 1917 during World War I. Dulce et Decorum Est describes the horrors of the front lines and the gruesome effect of a gas attack. It is a rebuke to those that would glorify war. The title, taken from Horace, can be translated as “It is sweet and glorious to die for one’s country”. A powerful piece. Those who glorify war should listen to this, and those who send young men to war also before they sign the order. A masterful performance by Phillip J. Mather.

Public Domain (P)2014 Phillip J. Mather

Love Books? You'll Love Audible.

Placeholder Image Alt Text

Transform your day

Replace endless scrolling with endless listening. Chores can be fun.

Placeholder Image Alt Text

Listen everywhere

Download titles to listen offline, wherever you are in the world.

Placeholder Image Alt Text

Carry your entire Library

Your stories go where you go. Audiobooks don’t weigh a thing.

Placeholder Image Alt Text

Listen and learn

Discover stories that can change your mind, your well-being, and your life.

Placeholder Image Alt Text

Reach your reading goals

You can’t turn pages while you drive—but you can press play.

Placeholder Image Alt Text

Find your niche

WIth thousands of titles to explore, there’s something for everyone.

Try for $0.00 $14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

What listeners say about Dulce et Decorum Est

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    7
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    7
  • 4 Stars
    1
  • 3 Stars
    0
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    7
  • 4 Stars
    0
  • 3 Stars
    1
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A Voice Against The Propaganda Of War As Glorious

What did you love best about Dulce et Decorum Est?

It is a story-poem, one relating a gas attack aimed at a convoy of tired, staggering soldiers. It was written to counter a line of propaganda which goaded men to join the army and fight.

Dulce et Decorum est means It Is Sweet and Honorable (to die for the fatherland). Wilfred Owen, in his description of the gas attack berates those who would urge men to die in glory. There is no glory in the Great War that Owen had witness and took part in. The death and anguish and dehumanization of the soldiers leaves no doubt as to how awful war really is.

The poem brings home the horrors of war and explains, perhaps, why following the Great War, England and France were so reluctant to fight Germany and chose appeasement instead.

What did you like best about this story?

Both the narration and the prose of the poem were spot on.

Which scene was your favorite?

There is just one scene, that of the gas attack.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

The Ugly Glory Of War.

Any additional comments?

It is worthwhile to listen to this poem and compare it with masterpieces like England To Free Men, which is highly-patriotic. Both are great poems, yet each takes and opposite view of the war.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful