[1] The poem is a soliloquy given by an aviator in the First World War in which the narrator describes the circumstances surrounding his imminent death.

The poem is a work that discusses the role of Irish soldiers fighting for the United Kingdom during a time when they were trying to establish independence for Ireland.

Nor law, nor duty bade me fight, Nor public men, nor cheering crowds, A lonely impulse of delight Drove to this tumult in the clouds;

Additionally, the British rock group Keane based their song "A Bad Dream" (on Under the Iron Sea, 2006) on the poem.

The poem is quoted in the movies Memphis Belle (1990)[7] and Congo (1995), as well as in an episode of the second series of In the Flesh (2014).