What do you think?
Rate this book
Counter-attack, and other poems. With an introd. by Robert Nichols
This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.
76 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1918
13 people are currently reading
193 people want to read
About the author
Siegfried Sassoon
143Ìýbooks175ÌýfollowersSiegfried Loraine Sassoon, CBE was born into a wealthy banking family, the middle of 3 brothers. His Anglican mother and Jewish father separated when he was five. He had little subsequent contact with ‘Pappyâ€�, who died of TB 4 years later. He presented his mother with his first ‘volumeâ€� at 11. Sassoon spent his youth hunting, cricketing, reading, and writing. He was home-schooled until the age of 14 because of ill health. At school he was academically mediocre and teased for being un-athletic, unusually old, and Jewish. He attended Clare College, Cambridge, but left without taking his degree. In 1911, Sassoon read ‘The Intermediate Sexâ€� by Edward Carpenter, a book about homosexuality which was a revelation for Sassoon. In 1913 he wrote ‘The Daffodil Murderer,â€� a parody of a John Masefield poem and his only pre-war success. A patriotic man, he enlisted on 3rd August, the day before Britain entered the war, as a trooper in the Sussex Yeomanry. After a riding accident which put him out of action, in May 1915 he joined the Royal Welch Fusiliers as a second lieutenant. At the training depot he met David Thomas, with whom he fell in love.
In November Sassoon received word that his brother Hamo had died at Gallipoli. On 17th Nov he was shipped to France with David Thomas. He was assigned to C Company, First Battalion. It was here that he met Robert Graves, described in his diary as ‘a young poet in Third Battalion and very much disliked.� He took part in working parties, but no combat. He later became transport officer and so managed to stay out of the front lines. After time on leave, on the 18th of May, 1916 he received word that David Thomas had died of a bullet to the throat. Both Graves and Sassoon were distraught, and in Siegfried’s case it inspired ‘the lust to kill.� He abandoned transport duties and went out on patrols whenever possible, desperate to kill as many Germans as he could, earning him the nickname ‘Mad Jack.� In April he was recommended for the Military Cross for his action in bringing in the dead and wounded after a raid. He received his medal on the day before the Somme. For the first days of the Somme, he was in reserve opposite Fricourt, watching the slaughter from a ridge. Fricourt was successfully taken, and on the 4th July the First Battalion moved up to the front line to attack Mametz Wood. It was here that he famously took a trench single handed. Unfortunately, Siegfried did nothing to consolidate the trench; he simply sat down and read a book, later returning to a berating from Graves. It was in 1917, convalescing in 'Blighty' from a wound, that he decided to make a stand against the war. Encouraged by pacifist friends, he ignored his orders to return to duty and issued a declaration against the war. The army refused to court martial him, sending him instead to Craiglockhart, an institution for soldiers driven mad by the war. Here he met and influenced Wilfred Owen. In 1918 he briefly returned to active service, in Palestine and then France again, but after being wounded by friendly fire he ended the war convalescing. He reached the rank of captain. After the war he made a predictably unhappy marriage and had a son, George. He continued to write, but will be remembered as a war poet.
In November Sassoon received word that his brother Hamo had died at Gallipoli. On 17th Nov he was shipped to France with David Thomas. He was assigned to C Company, First Battalion. It was here that he met Robert Graves, described in his diary as ‘a young poet in Third Battalion and very much disliked.� He took part in working parties, but no combat. He later became transport officer and so managed to stay out of the front lines. After time on leave, on the 18th of May, 1916 he received word that David Thomas had died of a bullet to the throat. Both Graves and Sassoon were distraught, and in Siegfried’s case it inspired ‘the lust to kill.� He abandoned transport duties and went out on patrols whenever possible, desperate to kill as many Germans as he could, earning him the nickname ‘Mad Jack.� In April he was recommended for the Military Cross for his action in bringing in the dead and wounded after a raid. He received his medal on the day before the Somme. For the first days of the Somme, he was in reserve opposite Fricourt, watching the slaughter from a ridge. Fricourt was successfully taken, and on the 4th July the First Battalion moved up to the front line to attack Mametz Wood. It was here that he famously took a trench single handed. Unfortunately, Siegfried did nothing to consolidate the trench; he simply sat down and read a book, later returning to a berating from Graves. It was in 1917, convalescing in 'Blighty' from a wound, that he decided to make a stand against the war. Encouraged by pacifist friends, he ignored his orders to return to duty and issued a declaration against the war. The army refused to court martial him, sending him instead to Craiglockhart, an institution for soldiers driven mad by the war. Here he met and influenced Wilfred Owen. In 1918 he briefly returned to active service, in Palestine and then France again, but after being wounded by friendly fire he ended the war convalescing. He reached the rank of captain. After the war he made a predictably unhappy marriage and had a son, George. He continued to write, but will be remembered as a war poet.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
December 11, 2014
Undoubtedly the most subversive, seditious, and traitorous batch of anti-war Western poems I have ever read, and every damn word of them is true. These are personal and universal poems. It would do no good to have our "leaders" read them. Not one word nor image would resonate with them: we are here to do their bidding, and nothing else. The Neo-cons are happy Americans are dying .....so their companies can prosper in the war. "Hallelujah, and Praise the Lord. It is not torture when WE do it." Just ask them.
January 10, 2018
A reading group pointed me to this author. So far I read only by Ernst Jünger and by Erich Maria Remarque that use World War I as central theme. This book, however, is a collection of poems. I was surprised by its impact and strength letting the horrible images of this war unfold in the reader's mind. My astonishment grew further when I read in the introduction that Sassoon pre-war poetry was centred around the praise of nature. What a change!
There is no heroism, praise for the leaders and the community of men. Instead Sassoon snubs at the masses at home who "cheer the soldiers who'd refrained from dying" and advises them to "Sneak home and pray you'll never know The hell where youth and laughter go." And even in heaven it is just that "God says something kind because you're dead." There hardly can be more desillusion. Apparently the soldiers loved Sassoon's poems because he gave words to the horrors that they experienced every day. A horror that the reader still can feel one hundred years later.
There is no heroism, praise for the leaders and the community of men. Instead Sassoon snubs at the masses at home who "cheer the soldiers who'd refrained from dying" and advises them to "Sneak home and pray you'll never know The hell where youth and laughter go." And even in heaven it is just that "God says something kind because you're dead." There hardly can be more desillusion. Apparently the soldiers loved Sassoon's poems because he gave words to the horrors that they experienced every day. A horror that the reader still can feel one hundred years later.
January 3, 2025
Siegfried Sassoon’s *Counter-Attack and Other Poems* offers a harsh, unvarnished look at war, especially World War I. Written from his experience as a soldier in the trenches, Sassoon’s poems cut through the myths of heroism and glory that were so often associated with war. Instead, he paints a picture of soldiers who are physically and mentally scarred, caught in an endless cycle of violence and trauma. These poems aren’t just about the horrors of battle—they’re about the toll war takes on people, both during and long after it’s over.
One of the most striking themes in *Counter-Attack* is the sense of futility. War doesn’t make anyone a hero; it strips people down to their basic instincts for survival. In poems like *Dreamers*, Sassoon shows soldiers who once had hopes and dreams, but now they’ve been reduced to mere survivors, “citizens of death’s grey land.� What they remember of home—the warmth of a firelit room or a clean bed—feels impossibly far away. The soldiers� lives before the war seem distant, and now all that matters is getting through each day. There’s no glory in it, just the grim reality of trying to stay alive.
This sense of chaos and disorientation is mirrored in the structure of Sassoon’s poetry. Many of the poems are fragmented, with short, jarring lines that reflect the unstable, unpredictable nature of the soldier’s world. In *Counter-Attack*, for example, Sassoon shifts abruptly from one scene to the next—one moment, soldiers are fighting in the trenches, and the next, they’re retreating or reflecting on the carnage. The unevenness of the rhythm and the fractured lines make it feel like the reader is trapped in the confusion and terror of the front lines. This style isn’t just a formal choice; it’s an attempt to capture what the soldiers go through mentally and emotionally. The world around them is chaotic, and so are their thoughts.
The tone of Sassoon’s poetry is bitter and disillusioned. There’s no romanticizing of war in these poems—only anger, frustration, and sorrow. In *Base Details*, for example, Sassoon targets the officers who stay safe behind the front lines while sending young soldiers to die. Through sharp sarcasm, he paints a picture of an officer who takes pleasure in his comfortable position, indifferent to the suffering of those he commands. Similarly, in *The General*, Sassoon mocks the incompetence of military leadership, showing how a general’s mistakes can lead to the deaths of his men. There’s no sense of honor or nobility in these men’s actions, only a dangerous disconnect between the people who make the decisions and the soldiers who pay the price.
But it’s not all anger. Sassoon also captures the quiet, haunting moments of despair that soldiers face. In *How to Die*, for example, the idea of death isn’t romanticized or even feared. Instead, the soldier accepts it as part of his duty, as though it’s just another step in a cycle that never ends. It’s almost a resignation, a recognition that death in war has been stripped of its meaning and is just something that happens. In *Wirers*, the soldiers are reduced to mechanical beings, numb and exhausted, but still carrying out their work under constant threat of death. There’s no escape from the madness of war—they can’t stop, and they can’t look away.
The emotional toll of war is also central to Sassoon’s poetry. Many of the soldiers in his poems are physically alive but emotionally shattered. In *Survivors*, Sassoon paints a picture of men who have made it through the battle but are left haunted by the violence they’ve witnessed. They are “grim and glad� on the outside, but on the inside, they are lost, forever changed by the horrors they’ve seen. In *Repression of War Experience*, the soldier tries to suppress the memories of war, but they keep creeping back, always there, “whispering� in the background. This constant trauma is what Sassoon emphasizes—the way war doesn’t just kill bodies, it breaks minds.
One of Sassoon’s most striking critiques is aimed at those who are untouched by the war. In *The Fathers*, he shows the civilians back home who, though they may express sympathy, are too far removed from the reality of the war to understand what the soldiers are going through. They have their own romanticized ideas about the war, believing that their sons are fighting for a noble cause. But these people don’t see the truth of what’s happening on the front lines. Similarly, in *Does It Matter?*, Sassoon highlights the indifference of society to the suffering of soldiers, both physical and psychological. The poem’s repetitive structure, with its dismissive answers to the speaker’s questions, shows how society continues to move on while the soldiers are left behind to deal with the lasting scars of war.
Yet, even with all the anger and sadness, Sassoon’s poems are not without moments of humanity. In *The Triumph*, for example, amidst the chaos of battle, there are brief glimpses of connection. Despite everything, the soldiers retain their humanity, finding small moments of beauty and meaning in each other’s faces. This tension between the dehumanizing effects of war and the moments of humanity that still survive is part of what makes Sassoon’s poetry so powerful. Even in the darkest circumstances, the soldiers are still people, still capable of feeling and connecting in small ways.
Ultimately, *Counter-Attack and Other Poems* is a stark, unflinching critique of war. Sassoon doesn’t just show the physical destruction of battle—he dives deep into the psychological toll it takes on soldiers, the trauma that follows them long after they leave the front lines. Through vivid imagery, sharp irony, and fragmented structure, he forces readers to confront the truth of war, rejecting the sanitized versions of battle that society often clings to. The soldiers in these poems are not heroic warriors, but broken men trying to survive in a world that has lost its sense of meaning. The collection is a powerful reminder of the real cost of war—not just in lives lost, but in the emotional and mental scars that never fade.
One of the most striking themes in *Counter-Attack* is the sense of futility. War doesn’t make anyone a hero; it strips people down to their basic instincts for survival. In poems like *Dreamers*, Sassoon shows soldiers who once had hopes and dreams, but now they’ve been reduced to mere survivors, “citizens of death’s grey land.� What they remember of home—the warmth of a firelit room or a clean bed—feels impossibly far away. The soldiers� lives before the war seem distant, and now all that matters is getting through each day. There’s no glory in it, just the grim reality of trying to stay alive.
This sense of chaos and disorientation is mirrored in the structure of Sassoon’s poetry. Many of the poems are fragmented, with short, jarring lines that reflect the unstable, unpredictable nature of the soldier’s world. In *Counter-Attack*, for example, Sassoon shifts abruptly from one scene to the next—one moment, soldiers are fighting in the trenches, and the next, they’re retreating or reflecting on the carnage. The unevenness of the rhythm and the fractured lines make it feel like the reader is trapped in the confusion and terror of the front lines. This style isn’t just a formal choice; it’s an attempt to capture what the soldiers go through mentally and emotionally. The world around them is chaotic, and so are their thoughts.
The tone of Sassoon’s poetry is bitter and disillusioned. There’s no romanticizing of war in these poems—only anger, frustration, and sorrow. In *Base Details*, for example, Sassoon targets the officers who stay safe behind the front lines while sending young soldiers to die. Through sharp sarcasm, he paints a picture of an officer who takes pleasure in his comfortable position, indifferent to the suffering of those he commands. Similarly, in *The General*, Sassoon mocks the incompetence of military leadership, showing how a general’s mistakes can lead to the deaths of his men. There’s no sense of honor or nobility in these men’s actions, only a dangerous disconnect between the people who make the decisions and the soldiers who pay the price.
But it’s not all anger. Sassoon also captures the quiet, haunting moments of despair that soldiers face. In *How to Die*, for example, the idea of death isn’t romanticized or even feared. Instead, the soldier accepts it as part of his duty, as though it’s just another step in a cycle that never ends. It’s almost a resignation, a recognition that death in war has been stripped of its meaning and is just something that happens. In *Wirers*, the soldiers are reduced to mechanical beings, numb and exhausted, but still carrying out their work under constant threat of death. There’s no escape from the madness of war—they can’t stop, and they can’t look away.
The emotional toll of war is also central to Sassoon’s poetry. Many of the soldiers in his poems are physically alive but emotionally shattered. In *Survivors*, Sassoon paints a picture of men who have made it through the battle but are left haunted by the violence they’ve witnessed. They are “grim and glad� on the outside, but on the inside, they are lost, forever changed by the horrors they’ve seen. In *Repression of War Experience*, the soldier tries to suppress the memories of war, but they keep creeping back, always there, “whispering� in the background. This constant trauma is what Sassoon emphasizes—the way war doesn’t just kill bodies, it breaks minds.
One of Sassoon’s most striking critiques is aimed at those who are untouched by the war. In *The Fathers*, he shows the civilians back home who, though they may express sympathy, are too far removed from the reality of the war to understand what the soldiers are going through. They have their own romanticized ideas about the war, believing that their sons are fighting for a noble cause. But these people don’t see the truth of what’s happening on the front lines. Similarly, in *Does It Matter?*, Sassoon highlights the indifference of society to the suffering of soldiers, both physical and psychological. The poem’s repetitive structure, with its dismissive answers to the speaker’s questions, shows how society continues to move on while the soldiers are left behind to deal with the lasting scars of war.
Yet, even with all the anger and sadness, Sassoon’s poems are not without moments of humanity. In *The Triumph*, for example, amidst the chaos of battle, there are brief glimpses of connection. Despite everything, the soldiers retain their humanity, finding small moments of beauty and meaning in each other’s faces. This tension between the dehumanizing effects of war and the moments of humanity that still survive is part of what makes Sassoon’s poetry so powerful. Even in the darkest circumstances, the soldiers are still people, still capable of feeling and connecting in small ways.
Ultimately, *Counter-Attack and Other Poems* is a stark, unflinching critique of war. Sassoon doesn’t just show the physical destruction of battle—he dives deep into the psychological toll it takes on soldiers, the trauma that follows them long after they leave the front lines. Through vivid imagery, sharp irony, and fragmented structure, he forces readers to confront the truth of war, rejecting the sanitized versions of battle that society often clings to. The soldiers in these poems are not heroic warriors, but broken men trying to survive in a world that has lost its sense of meaning. The collection is a powerful reminder of the real cost of war—not just in lives lost, but in the emotional and mental scars that never fade.
December 24, 2017
WWI poetry, about the horrors and hypocrisy of war and the longing for better places and people. I think everyone has an idea of what "First World War poetry" means, given its place in the cultural canon, and Sassoon exemplifies a lot of that: grim depictions of violence and terror, homesickness, incompetent leadership. I wasn't expecting the poems that so strongly condemn the complacency of society at large, though: one particular poem, "Song-Books Of the War", predicts a naive nostalgia for the "dazzling times when sacrifice absolved our earth". Which, as a prediction, is evergreen. It's easy to see why poetry like Sassoon's had such a big impact. With the edition I read, a cheap printing adds a few unfortunate typos, but that doesn't detract much from the impact.
August 22, 2017
Enjoyed reading these works from Siegfried Sassoon, I find him particularly realistic in his writing, and through his poetry takes the reader to the horror, futility and stupidity of war and all it's destructions.
April 5, 2018
I've been reading Sassoon's trilogy, which lay out in prose his life before, during and after the war. This is the volume of poems he published after the war was over. It's short - took maybe 20 minutes to read the whole thing - and devastatingly good.
February 17, 2021
A completely haunting short collection from Sassoon based on his experiences in World War I.
April 9, 2022
I read this to write about it which certainly informed my experience but this collection is really insane!!! So honest and so blunt. And so sincere.
July 29, 2023
Great poems
I read this short poetry book about Sassoon's experiences in world War 1. He paints vivid pictures. There is no wasted words My favorite poem
is "Does it Matter?'
I read this short poetry book about Sassoon's experiences in world War 1. He paints vivid pictures. There is no wasted words My favorite poem
is "Does it Matter?'
May 28, 2015
Sassoon was a talented poet (and writer) whose vivid and intelligent imagination manages to capture the essence of the words and sounds he encountered during his war in a way that can be called beautiful. One reading of some of these poems is not enough, you need to savour them to truly take them in, you need to understand Sassoon better. For example, 'Survivors' didn't hit me where it was supposed to until I knew where he was, who he's lost, what he'd stood up for.
A truly amazing collection of a truly horrific time. My favourites in this collection were: 'To Any Dead Officer', 'Suicide in the Trenches', 'Does it Matter?', 'The Fathers', 'Twelve Months After' and 'The Effect'.
A truly amazing collection of a truly horrific time. My favourites in this collection were: 'To Any Dead Officer', 'Suicide in the Trenches', 'Does it Matter?', 'The Fathers', 'Twelve Months After' and 'The Effect'.
March 23, 2016
I have read about Sassoon. A fascinating man - brave in war and brave to confront society's expectations for soldiers to go to war and come back and be quiet.
I find poetry hard to read but this collection resonated with me. Imagery, the conflicts of men at war and at peace and the damage to the minds and bodies are all covered. Sassoon's poems are as good as any to describe the indescribable.
I find poetry hard to read but this collection resonated with me. Imagery, the conflicts of men at war and at peace and the damage to the minds and bodies are all covered. Sassoon's poems are as good as any to describe the indescribable.
December 2, 2010
Sassoon captures the utter horror and lack of glamor in war. He evokes the bitter reality of the men who have had their nerves shattered, lives tarnished and lost friends, and that of those who weren't so lucky...
I thought the best were "The Glory of Women" and "Suicide in the Trenches", but there were many good ones.
I thought the best were "The Glory of Women" and "Suicide in the Trenches", but there were many good ones.
May 27, 2016
I started to read it because one of the poems, The Kiss, was used in the Youtube channel .
The poems which maybe touch me most is Song-Books of the War:
"And dream of lads who fought in France
And lived in time to share the fun."
The poems which maybe touch me most is Song-Books of the War:
"And dream of lads who fought in France
And lived in time to share the fun."
August 5, 2013
Bitter and beautiful. Sassoon was one of the finest ever war poets (even if he didn't particularly appreciate the label) and two of my favourites are in this collection; 'Survivors' and 'To Any Dead Officer'.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.