Arms and the Boy

The poem begins with someone instructing a young boy to touch a bayonet blade. It is unclear who Owen's poetic voice is intended to be, but it is most likely the masters of war who are instructing young, naive, and innocent children to fight for them. The speaker is either trying to make the boy understand what he is in for in order to prepare him, or to get the boy excited about the dangerous weapons he will soon get to play with.