Hello- Happy New Year. Can you guys please help me find an analysis of the poem "They" by Siegfried Sassoon??

Answer 1

http://www.uweb.ucsb.edu/~rebozzo/English10WWIpage2.html
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The Bishop tells us: "When the boys come back
They will not be the same; for they'll have fought
In a just cause; they lead the last attack
On Anti-Christ; their comrades' blood has bought
New right to breed an honourable race,
They have challenged Death and dared him face to face."

"We're none of us the same!" the boys reply.
"For George lost both his legs; and Bill's stone blind;
Poor Jim's shot through the lungs and like to die;
And Bert's gone syphilitic: you'll not find
A chap who's served that hasn't found some change.
And the Bishop said: "The ways of God are Strange!"

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Sassoon’s “They” directly illustrates the devastating effect of WWI’s technology on the body by presenting the reader with surviving soldiers. Despite the first stanza’s enthusiastic opening, the literary devices used foreshadow the intense conclusion of the poem. The title of the work directly suggests that we will be experiencing the lives of the collective “they” that have dealt with the brute force of WWI. In studying the first stanza, Sassoon presents his reader with images of a Bishop calmly, yet forcefully speaking to his parish. Although the bishop recognizes that the soldiers have changed, he focuses more on justifying the war by glorifying the men and their courage. He loses sight of his goal, which is to prepare the congregation for the physical and psychological state of the boys that will come home. Although he pays tribute to the soldiers, Sassoon’s initial tone suggests that the Bishop is naïve, for he has not directly experienced the stresses of combat. Even though the segment flows with ten syllables in every line for the first five lines, his strange use of punctuation in the middle of statements creates a subtly disjointed feeling. Like in Owen’s poem, this uneasy atmosphere is meant to prepare the reader for the descriptions of the following stanza. In the line, “They have challenged Death and dared him face to face,” (2055) Sassoon is trying to accentuate the men’s honor in facing Death; however he implies that where there is glory, there is a price to pay. One can assume that any attempt to challenge mortality will have consequences. Therefore, the extra syllable in the last line triggers a sense of caution. This slight break in form suggests that the soldier’s price will soon be revealed.
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good luck

Answer 2

Alberich, First, happy upcoming birthday. Second, music for someone's waining years? Sorry, my friend. I can't think of anything suitable. But I do recommend you read and reread and take to heart Dylan Thomas' poem "Do No Go Gentle -" I personally believe there are no waining years except in the minds of those who have convinced themselves the best parts of their lives are past (the exception would be perhaps for those in the last stages of some long suffering and incurable disease). Getting older should always be a celebration, not some drawn out clock-watching lifespan lamenting ritual. Consider Verdi and the remarkable operas he wrote when he was older than you are now. Fill you life with wonder while you've still got an active, inquiring mind. Write. Compose. Paint. Study. Or whatever. We're never too old to create, to learn, even to love. My friend, you've got as much life left in you as you're willing to have. Celebrate it.