Judging from these two poems, would you prefer to have been a soldier serving in The Light Brigade during the illustrious charge during the Crimean War, or a soldier in the trenches during the First World War. Show how the information, details and style o
Laura Baker
Judging from these two poems, would you prefer to have been a soldier serving in The Light Brigade during the illustrious charge during the Crimean War, or a soldier in the trenches during the First World War. Show how the information, details and style of each poem have influenced your choice.
Wilfred Owen wrote 'Dulce et Decorum Est' from personal experience whereas Alfred Lord Tennysons' poem, 'The Charge of the Light Brigade' was based on a newspaper report that he had read, it celebrates the courage of the soldiers and their bravery despite the danger that they faced. Owens' poem is a very much anti-war, protest poem about the unglamour of war and his dislike of propaganda being used to suade the public. Owen presents the horror of senseless death in the trenches. Owens' poem may have been written to challenge Tennysons' rousing and jingoistic sentiments and other patriotic poems written at that time. Tennyson was a civilian poet as opposed to a soldier poet like Owen, he had not been an eyewitness to the battle that he describes. There is a distinct contrast between the two poems.
In the opening verse you get a very different image of the soldiers than what you would expect from the title. 'Dulce et Decorum Est' is the Latin phrase for 'It is sweet and fitting to die for your country', it is an ironic title because the poem paints an ugly picture of the shere brutality and desperation of war, this is implied by the use of a halting rhythm which echoes the beat of the soldiers' feet marching. This makes the poem much more authentic. The description of the young men is particularly striking,
'Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,
Knock-kneed, coughing like hags,' it stresses the pain and desolation. Its makes the young men seem unnaturally old. The men should be energetic and in good physical shape. These men are so tired that they are like old women and beggars floundering through the mud. They are the opposite of Tennyson's 'Noble six hundred'.
The first verse is very slow and inactive and such words like 'trudge' capture the atmosphere. Owen writes in first person plural, this reminds us that Owen witnessed the war, it makes the poem seem ...
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'Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,
Knock-kneed, coughing like hags,' it stresses the pain and desolation. Its makes the young men seem unnaturally old. The men should be energetic and in good physical shape. These men are so tired that they are like old women and beggars floundering through the mud. They are the opposite of Tennyson's 'Noble six hundred'.
The first verse is very slow and inactive and such words like 'trudge' capture the atmosphere. Owen writes in first person plural, this reminds us that Owen witnessed the war, it makes the poem seem more realistic.
The poem uses a rhyming pattern throughout. This emphasises each line and leaves a lasting impression in the readers' mind.
The language used within the poem has a profound effect on the reader, 'haunting', 'distant rest.' It creates a sense of eeriness and hostility.
The direct speech, 'Gas!Gas! Quick boys!' skilfully gives us an idea of the young mens' desperation and hopelessness. The poem creates an equally good effect of suffering and melancholy. It is implied that the soldiers uniform may have been inadequate,'clumsy helmets', old beggars under sacks.'
'An ecstasy of fumbling' is ironic to describe the soldiers' frantic, passionate, devoted patriotism.
The description of the mustard gas is disturbing. The lively, active narration is grotesque and the use of similes enforces this, 'floundering like men in fire or lime.'
The powerful verbs, 'stumbling', 'drowning', 'guttering', 'choking', the verbs are powerful and distress the agony. The poor man is described intensely.
'He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.' It is almost as if the soldier is being compared to that of someone struggling not to drown.
Owen unforgettably describes the unbearable face of the tortured young man,
'...white eyes writhing in his face.
His hanging face, like a devils sick of sin.' He describes the young mans' choking, 'obscene as cancer',
'...the blood
Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs.'
The reader can imagine the soldier's life flickering away in front of them and not being able to help. During the mans'fatality, the poem makes it feel like you are reliving the torture and feeling how the soldier felt before his death.
The poem has a profound effect on the reader, every line is unique, distinct and memorable. In contrast to 'The Charge of the Light Brigade' by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, which celebrates and admires the bravery of the young men in the battle. The poem is upbeat and positive, it's persuasive rhythm echoes that of the galloping horses and the disciplined formation of the soldiers. It begins in the midst of the action,
'Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward.'
Tennyson creates a vivid impression of the bravery of the soldiers with many 'action verbs',
'Flash'd all their sabres bare,
Flash'd as they turn'd in air,
Sabring the gunners there.'
He uses noble sounding euphemisms like 'the valley of Death', 'the jaws of Death', 'the mouth of Hell' to describe the fate that awaits soldiers. He does not convey the gory reality of the slaughter.
Tennyson creates a feeling of exhilaration, of the nobility of warfare with his use of poetic devices, such as rhetorical repetition,
'Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them',
and alliteration,
'Stormed at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell.'
Tennyson celebrates the idea of the unquestioning obedience of the soldiers in the face of death,
'Their's not to make reply,
Their's not to reason why,
Their's but to do and die.'
"Forward the Light Brigade!'
Was there a man dismayed?"
The direct speech gives it authenticity and makes it feel real.
Where the poem tells us of the blunder in the orders, it also says about the heroism of the soldiers, continuing to charge, knowing their dreadful fate.
'Forward, the Light Brigade!
Charge for the guns!' he said;
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.'
The metaphor 'valley of Death' is strong and makes the valley seem even more terrible. The dramatic description of the battlefield and the charge are vivid and exciting. The use of alliteration emphasises the height of the battle,
'...stormed at with shot and shell'.
Tennyson uses repetition, which is effective when used in tales of heroism to stress phrases. There is suspense after the battle when we are anticipating the soldiers' return.
'All that was left of them,
Left of six hundred'.
The repetition of 'the six hundred' at the end of each verse reminds the reader of the enormous loss of life, but at the end of the poem they have become the 'Noble six hundred' and are celebrated as heroes. The final verse of the poem is beautiful and victorious. The last verse would be effective in a recruiting campaign as it praises the perseverance of the soldiers despite the tragic mistake in the orders. The poem exaggerates and glorifies war and fighting, 'boldly they rode.'
Tennyson makes the reader admire the soldiers' courageous efforts, then rhetorical questions in the verse increase the bravery of the soldiers and make us respect them more.
'When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wondered.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred!'
Judging from the poems I would not have wanted to serve in either the Light Brigade or the First World War because both ended in loss of life. If forced to choose I would have preferred to serve in the trenches in the First World War.
My efforts in the Light Brigade would have been in vain and would have had no effect on the outcome of the Crimean War. Whereas in the First World War my labours may have helped win the war. I would have been doing duty to my country. The 'Charge of the Light Brigade' would have been influential to the publics' already glorified opinion of war, heightening the effect of propaganda. The public would not gain anything from this poem except false pretences.
Although, 'Dulce et Decorum Est' is blatant, it is realistic and paints a picture of the unglamour of war. It is a contrast to the traditional attitude of seeing war as glorious. The poem is more truthful and Owen conveys this by making the poem personal, ' I saw him drowning,' in contrast to Tennysons' impersonal 'six hundred.'