John McCrae and the Poppy Major John McCrae wrote the first draft of a poem commemorating the war dead on the same evening as his friend's (Alexis Helmer) death on the 2nd of May 1915. Some fellow soldiers said that he was seen writing the poem sitting on the rear step of an ambulance while looking at his friend's grave. Bright red poppies were said to be springing up amongst the graves in the cemetery. In Flanders Fields The poem that resulted from that evening's work was 'In Flanders Fields'. It was accepted for publication in 'Punch' magazine and was published on 8th December, 1915. Here is the poem.
•Son poème:
"In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch, be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, though poppies grow In Flanders' fields."
•Questions:
What do you think of it? What is effective about it? What language features has McCrae used?
