Whenever you have a question like this that asks you to
define the impact of a particular group of words, it is really important to go back to
the text and read those words in context before proceeding to try and answer the
question. In this example, it if important to consider the tone of the section where
these words occur and what the poet is trying to achieve. Note the first four lines of
the poem:
Bent double, like old beggars under
sacks,
Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through
sludge,
Till on the haunting flares we turned our
backs
And toward our distant rest began to
trudge.
The overall effect is
to present us with a hideous image of dehumanised soldiers marching around in a
desolate, godforsaken landscape. Therefore, considering the bleak tone that is created,
it is fair to say that the "haunting flares" add a spectral flavour to this
poem.
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