An Irish Airman foresees his Death

The poem talks about an Irish pilot thinking about his life and upcoming death. We discover that he does not fight because of his duty to his country but because of his ultimate wish to fly, which is uncovered in the lines: “A lonely impulse of delight Drove to this tumult in the clouds”. He views his past and future life as meaningless (“waste of breath”) but this moments in the clouds are pure delight to him. The lines “Those that I fight I do not hate, Those that I guard I do not love” also express the Irish position during the 1st world war, as they had to defend Britain (which they did not love) against the Germans (which they did not hate).