Examine the Differences Between Alfred Tennyson's, 'Charge of the Light Brigade' and Wilfred Owen's, 'Dulce Et Decorum Est'.

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EXAMINE THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ALFRED TENNYSON’S, ‘CHARGE OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE’ AND WILFRED OWEN’S, ‘DULCE ET DECORUM EST’.  

Lord Tennyson’s, ‘Charge of the Light Brigade’ and Wilfred Owen’s, ‘Dulce et decorum est’ convey entirely contrasting opinions and perceptions of war. These opposing attitudes to warfare are as a consequence of both each poet’s experience of war and the purposes of the poems. The purpose of Lord Tennyson’s, ‘Charge of the Light Brigade’ was to generate propaganda and to boost the countries moral whereas Wilfred Owen’s ‘Dulce et decorum est’ was to merely reveal the gruesome and unnecessary nature of war. These contrasting opinions are as a result of their personal experience of war; as Lord Tennyson experienced warfare as s result of reading a newspaper article, his interpretation of war would reflect the overall outcome of the situation and how each country performed as a unit. This is entirely contrasting to Wilfred Owen as he was in the frontline and physically experienced war; therefore, his interpretation of war is more focused on both the necessity of warfare and on individual suffering. Besides each poet’s personal experience of war and the purposes of the poems differing, each poet writes about a different war. Lord Tennyson’s, ‘Charge of the Light Brigade’ was written to shed light and create propaganda during the Crimiam war during pre nineteenth century, whereas Wilfred Owen wrote, ‘Dulce et decorum est’ as a result of experiencing world war one in 1914. The time difference of each poem has a significant affect on the overall significance and the message in portrays.

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During the pre nineteenth century, Lord Tennyson wrote, ‘Charge of the light Brigade’, however what he wrote was restricted. This is because during this period of time, to oppose the army as considered to be slanderous in contrast to world war one, where war was being challenged by soldiers. The sudden change of people’s thoughts about war during this time allowed Wilfred Owen to write a damaging and highly influential poem against the army.

It is clear that each poem has been substantially affected by the time at which it was written, the purpose of each poem and the ...

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