The Young Soldier
It is not specified until the second-to-last stanza that the young man in the poem is a wounded soldier. The exploration into his states of consciousness before Sassoon reveals the poem's context serves to personalize the reader's connection to the young man. Rather than thinking of him only as a soldier from World War I, and thus seeing him through a particular lens, we first connect with him on a human level. Sleep and death are universal, and so the vivid and sensory-oriented descriptions of the young man falling asleep (as he drifts closer to death) are relatable.
The Caregiver
An unidentified person (described as "someone") cares for the wounded soldier, providing basic needs like water as well as companionship to help ward off the pain. It is not specified whether the "someone" who gives the man water is the same as the "someone" who stands beside him until his pain passes. What matters is that a human presence is evoked to care for the wounded man.
The poet implores readers to take on this role in the sixth stanza.
The Soldier's Pain
The wounded soldier's pain is given the qualities of a wild, raving beast in the fifth stanza. It prowls, gripping and tearing the man's groping dreams with grinding claws and fangs. It is also described as an "evil thing" (Line 32). Thus the pain is personified (or rather, given animalistic qualities) in order to be "dehumanized" by later being referred to as a thing.
death
Death is not an actively violent or cruel figure in the poem. Instead, death is portrayed as a humble force that takes people when it is their time to go. The use of lower-case in the name "death" for this figure contributes to the sense of humbleness. The presence of death among the silence and safety of a summer night either suggests that this death is gentle, or it evokes a sinister note in what would otherwise be perceived as a beautiful warm summer evening.
The Reader
Sassoon implores the reader to take on the role of caregiver. The task is to light lamps and gather around the soldier's bed, lend him eyes, warm blood, and the will to live, and speak to and rouse him (Lines 34-36). This direct recognition of the reader's presence and the call-to-action taking place shows that Sassoon is implicating the general public that would read his poetry during World War I. He wishes readers to know and care about the fates of the soldiers.
