1. Personification:

Personification is a poetic device where animals, plants or even inanimate objects are given human qualities. The poet has used this poetic device in the following lines.

I shall die, but

that is all that I shall do for Death.

Throughout the poem Death has been personified. To indicate this the poet has used capital letter “D” throughout the poem.

2. Anaphora:

Anaphora is a literary device that uses the repetition of short phrases or single words at the beginning of clauses or sentences to enhance rhythm. This device can be seen in the following lines.

I hear him leading his horse out of the stall;

I hear the clatter on the barn-floor. (Lines 3 -4)

Both lines start with the phrase “I hear”. In the same way, the following two lines begin with the pronoun “I” and the phrase “I shall” is repeated in the following line.

I shall die, but that is all that I shall do for Death;

I am not on his pay-roll.

3.Repetition:

Repetition is a literary device where a certain word or phrase is repeated multiple times to emphasise the word or to create a rhythm. The poet has used this device in the following line.

This line is repeated at the first and second stanza. 

I shall die, but

that is all that I shall do for Death.

This device can also be found in the following line. In the second and third stanza the phrase “I will not” is repeated by the poet. It gives emphasis the speaker’s decision of not disclosing the information to the Death.

Conscientious Objector Summary

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