“Boldly they rode and well, into the jaws of Death, into the mouth of Hell.” That is an excerpt from Lord Alfred Tennyson's Charge of the Light Brigade, a poem highlighting the honor and death of war. The poem was chosen for this close reading essay because it has always been a personal favorite. It talks of the real events of the Battle of Balaclava, yet speaks of the life all soldiers must live. The Charge of the Light Brigade is a fascinating poem, both in the way it is formed, to the details of why it was created. First, a brief explanation of the poem is in order. In it, six hundred soldiers ride for a league and a half to enter the battle. They were ordered forward against the Russian and Cossack forces, despite being largely …show more content…
That is why Lord Alfred Tennyson said that there were cannons to the right, the left, and in front of the Light Brigade as it advanced. They were, as Lord Alfred Tennyson says, “storm'd at with shot and shell,” as they, “charged an army.” When they got to the enemy, “all their sabers bare, flash'd as they turn'd in air,” and, “right thro' the line they broke;”. Despite this success, the soldiers were left stranded and outnumbered with no help coming because they had been sent on a mission that was impossible to complete. The six hundred knew this, but did not speak a word of complaint, for it was, “Theirs not to reason why, theirs but to do and die;” At the end, Lord Alfred Tennyson highlights the glory of their charge, and that they should be honored for it. But why was this poem crafted? According to Sir Charles Tennyson, the son of Lord Alfred Tennyson, his father wrote the poem as soon as he read about the battle in the Times and it was published on December 9, 1854. With the rise of nationalism starting in the 1700s, Lord Alfred Tennyson felt that it was his duty to honor his country. But, on the other hand, the 243 soldiers who died because of the charge ordered by Lord Raglan also needed to be honored. The poem was written as an attempt to balance the two,. This is evident in that he stresses that the soldiers were sworn to obey their country, and that they were dedicated enough to pay
The first poem we are going to look at is ‘The Charge of the Light
The poem was written to show that war is a waste of human life as the soldier knows he will die one day as well as the men around him, just some quicker than others. This can be evident in stanza four of the poem: “I know I’ll join them somewhere, one day.” The language used is more casual than formative, this is effective as it shows the personal feelings and thoughts of the soldier during the time
The Light Brigade’s determined gallop towards its destruction is emphasised, by repetition, from the first two lines of the first stanza of the poem: “Half a league, half a league,/ Half a league onward...” Once the order has been given, the fate of the men was sealed – they had no choice but to follow their terrible destiny to its conclusion. The weapons they faced are also
causes the poem to flow, and thus lightens up the dark and serious issue of war. The lines "But ranged as infantry, And staring face to face, I shot at him as he at me, And killed him in his place." are easy to read; however, their meaning is extremely
Analysis of The Charge of the Light Brigade This particular poem deals with the unfortunate mistake of Battle of Balaclava in 1854. In an attempt to retrieve their stolen firearms, the British, lead by Lord Raglen, took their light cavalry to the innocent Turkish territory, rather than the guilty Russians. In self-defence Turkey protect themselves by attacking the British troops causing hundreds of deaths but "not, not the six hundred". Tennyson uses various techniques to involve the reader more personally.
Ancient Mexico is a grandiose mural which represents the main events of Mexico’s history from the Pre-Columbian Period to Modern Time. The inspiration came to Diego Rivera, from the nationalist movement of his country. Therefore, the mural elements are prototypical of the painting style’s era. Physically the mural is located on the stairway of the Mexican National Palace, in Mexico City; which is the place where the Presidents work. This mural was commissioned at the end of the Mexican Revolution by the federal government. Moreover, this masterpiece depicts its era, considering that this was the dominating genre in the 1920’s, among the Mexican painters.
tells the story of a group of soldiers who were caught in a gas attack
In the poem Charge of the Light Brigade Alfred Lord Tennyson tells the story of a light brigade consisting of 600 soldiers charging on horseback into the “valley of death” during the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War in 1953-56 where they fought against Russian and Cossack forces. The poem tells of the journey that soldiers take through battle. Tennyson uses repetition, personification, and diction to make this poem flow.
so well.” “They came back from the mouth of hell, all that was left of
The Charge of the Light Brigade by Tennyson "The charge of the light brigade" by Tennyson was written about a
War is a scandalous topic where peoples’ views differ as to what war is. Some people see it as pure evil and wicked while others think that it is brave and noble of what soldiers do. Looking at poems which had been written by people affected by war help show the messages which are portrayed. The two sets of poems which show different views of war as well as some similarities are “the Charge of the Light Brigade” by Alfred Lord Tennyson, “To Lucasta, on Going to the Wars” by Richard Lovelace and “Dulce Et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen, “The Song of the Mud” by Mary Borden. Both these poets use linguistic devices to convince the reader of their view of what the war is. Tennyson and Lovelace show how war is worthy
Alfred Tennyson wrote the “Charge of the Light Brigade” in 1854 and it is about the battle of Balaclava in the Crimean war. Although this battle had no real influence on the outcome of the war it showed the bravery of six hundred British soldiers who charged into almost certain death. The poem itself is a patriotic ballad keeping up with the tradition of the time. The poem is heroic and romantic.
In this essay you will notice the differences and similarities between ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’ and ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’. ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’ was written in nineteenth century by Alfred Lord Tennyson. In contrast, ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’ was written in the twentieth century by Wilfred Owen. The main similarity we have observed is that they both capture war time experiences. However, the poets’ present these events using their own style, and the effect is two completely different observations of war.
The poet then presents a scene of patriotic relevance as he describes a scene of a regiment marching into battle with their “flag” and “Eagle with crest of red and gold” (17-18). When people think of flags, they think of patriotism and representing their country. Eagles also symbolize freedom but as readers can witness in the work, the poet makes it seem as if these men were created not to enjoy the gift of life for one moment by him saying “These men were born to drill and die” (19). This comes across to the reader as almost inhumane. Then by illustrating an image of a field of thousands of dead corpses makes any reader wonder why people even go to war. The whole fourth stanza paints a picture of living human being going into a battle with most, if not any, making it out alive. Like stated before, the speaker in the poem builds a case for those people that opposed to war even though the title of the poem might
Both poems give a different impression of war. Wilfred Owen writes about the pity of war and his responsibility to warn other generations of the horror and propaganda of it, whereas Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem is about the honour, courage and glory of fighting in a war.