This poem is a lament for a child killed in an air raid during World War II. It rejects the idea of mourning the child's death with traditional funeral rites, instead advocating for a more direct and unflinching confrontation with the reality of war. The speaker argues that the child's death by fire is not worthy of the usual formalities of mourning, as it is a common occurrence in wartime. The poem suggests that the only proper response to such a death is outrage and anger at the senseless destruction caused by war. The tone is one of fierce indignation and moral outrage, with the speaker demanding that society acknowledge the true horror of war and its effects on civilians, particularly children.
By Dylan Thomas · First published 1936 · Genre: Poetry, Elegy, Modernist