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Comparing The Charge of the Light Brigade and Dulce ET Decorum EST

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Comparing The Charge of the Light Brigade and Dulce ET Decorum EST

The poems “The Charge of the Light Brigade” and “Dulce ET Decorum EST” are war poems. They reflect on two different but equally harrowing events, however the poets portray these events using their own style and the and result is two entirely different views of war.

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.…show more content…
On the other hand however he can also speed up the poem “Storm'd at with shot and shell, While horse and hero fell”, to give a sense of frenzy.

Owen’s use of punctuation to convey a mood is depicted here “His hanging face, like a devils sick of sin; If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood come gargling from the froth corrupted lungs”.

Although there are many similarities between the poems if you were to read them each shows an entirely different aspect of war. Tennyson glamorises the war. His views of the war are very positive and he sees it as an opportunity for a man to prove himself. He speaks of the qualities of these men, of their bravery. They are charging in to almost certain death but yet they still follow orders and fight on in the “valley of death”. He doesn’t speak of the fact that this was a huge mistake by the general to send his men into almost certain death. He reflects the popular and widespread opinion of the time, which was that war was a great thing and all young men looked forward to being able to serve and die for their country. The main reason for this belief was that there hadn’t been a major war fought in Britain for the past two hundred or so years and people didn’t realise the horrors that war brought. Tennyson’s poem has none of the gory details of "Dulce ET Decorum EST”. “Tennyson’s poem is removed from the sordid
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