Conjugal Friendship in the Creation of Wilfred Owen’s “Anthem for Doomed Youth”

This article examines Owen and Sassoon’s creative bond in what Owen referred to as the Greek context, an intensely empathetic connection: “We have followed parallel trenches all our lives, and have more friends in common, authors I mean, than most people can boast of in a life time.” This article analyzes closely the Greek context that shapes the writing and editing of one of the most anthologized Great War poems, “Anthem for Doomed Youth.” Close attention is given to Sassoon’s role in editing the poem. It also discusses how their verse composed after their stays at Craiglockhart War Hospital extends the reach of their relational politics and the communicative potential of conjugal friendship in the postwar world.