Wisdom and War

Wisdom and War - meaning Summary

A Bleak Human Indictment

Hughes delivers a terse indictment of human indifference and moral failure. The speaker argues that widespread apathy prevents wise action, making death and destruction inevitable. Thinking and moral effort are portrayed as difficult and unpopular, while violence is framed as the easier, default response. The poem compresses this bleak judgment into short lines that emphasize communal responsibility and the costs of choosing ease over conscience.