How does a writer express stated theme

Read the passage. and thus they fought all the long day, and never stinted till the noble knights were laid to the cold earth. and ever they fought still till it was near night, and by then was there a hundred thousand laid dead upon the down. in the passage from morte d’arthur by sir thomas malory, what are the bolded words an example of?

According to auden’s “musée des beaux arts”, who understands human suffering

In the excerpt above, what can be inferred by the statement, "the dillingham had been flung to the breeze during aformer period of prosperity.?