A further simple similarity is that both poems are very dramatic. Owen’s use of ‘ Gas! Gas! Quick boys’ is easily imagined, as it is direct speech, which makes it more exciting the use of quick sharp syllables adds to this excitement. In a similar way Tennyson’s use of ‘Stormed at with shot and shell’ is also very dramatic, the use of alliteration and short sharp sounds make it sound very exhilarating.
A different similarity is that both poems are narratives, which tell a story. ‘Dulce’ tells the story of a group of young men at war coming back from the frontline, when one of the men fails to put on his gas mask in a gas attack, there is a clear description of this mans long, painful death and we have a message at the end. Likewise, ‘The Charge’ tells a story of a group of 600 men who are charging into battle, they fight and return with hardly any men alive and we are again given a message at the end. A narrative is used because it is clearer, easier to understand, more entertaining and therefore interesting.
Within the poems there are many differences including differences in content, style and structure.
One of the main differences is the tone or mood of the poems. In ‘Dulce’, Owen gives us a very realistic and dramatic view of war. He presents the war as destructive and pointless. We feel sad and sympathetic as well as slightly depressed because he shares his personal feelings. He uses ‘I’ which is very personal sharing his feelings and emotions with the reader. He also describes in detail a young man’s long and painful death. He shows suffering with the phrases ‘ white eyes writing in his face’ and ‘ froth corrupted lungs’ this makes us feel sympathetic towards him and the other soldiers in general for having to endure such awful things. In addition, he feels that war destroys young men. ‘ Like old beggars under sacks’ and ‘coughing like hags’ this makes the young 18 year old boys sound like 80 year old men because they are in so much pain and they are so exhausted. Owen is very bitter about being sent to war when he was ill equipped. The use of ‘clumsy helmets’ tells us it was not clumsy soldiers trying to put their helmets on but damaged or incorrect helmets that lost them their lives. ‘ My friend you would not tell with such high zest to children ardent for some desperate glory the old lie; Dulce et Decorum Est pro patria mori’. This is Latin for ‘ it is sweet and right to die for your country’ and he clearly states his opinion by saying that the Latin proverb is a lie and it is so outdated that it is no longer true. Whereas in ‘The Charge’ Tennyson thinks war is harsh and difficult but believes that it brings out the best in the soldiers and that they should be honoured for what they did. He presents war as glorious because he had an idealistic view of war. The poem is exciting and dramatic and the soldiers are described as noble and honourable. ‘Boldly they rode and well’ shows us that the soldiers are brave. ‘Flashed all their sabres bare’ is very exciting because the soldiers are being active and are fighting in what they believe in unlike Tennyson who is very distant from the war. We still have sympathy for the soldiers ‘someone had blundered’ tells us that someone made a mistake but the soldiers had to carry on and loose their lives anyway.
The use of Imagery in the poems is also quite different. In ‘The Charge’ Tennyson uses metaphors to describe the doomed atmosphere for the 600 soldiers for example ‘ into the valley of death’ ‘ into the jaws of death’ and ‘ into the mouth of hell. These suggest that the soldiers are going somewhere where they have no chance of getting out alive. This makes use feel sympathetic towards the soldiers. Where as in ‘Dulce’ similes are used to describe the soldiers in pain and being exhausted. ‘ Like old beggars under sacks’ and ‘coughing like hags’ make the 18 year old boys sound 80, frail and very ill. This is very effective because we can imagine an 80 year old man that cannot walk on the frontline this makes us sympathise with the soldiers.
The language in the two poems is also very different. In ‘ The Charge’ descriptive words are used to explain the surroundings. ‘ Cannon to right of them, cannon to left of them, cannon in front of them’ this makes them sound surrounded and that they can’t get out and as if they have no hope. This again makes us sympathise with the soldiers, as it must have been hard to know that you are going to die if you go and that you must go in. He also describes the soldier’s actions ‘ boldly they rode and well’ and ‘ sabring the gunners there’ both show how brave the soldiers are. Tennyson also uses exciting language ‘ forward the Light Brigade! Charge for the guns!’ makes us feel as though we are at war as we can imagine the sounds around us. The use of ‘someone had blundered shows us that someone had made a mistake in sending the soldiers to war but Tennyson did not want to concentrate on who was to blame but how brave the soldiers were for not arguing. This is contrasted in ‘Dulce’ where Owen uses descriptive words to describe the actions and the feeling of the soldier. ‘Drunk with fatigue’ shows how tired the soldiers were trying to make people understand what war was really like. Owen also uses violent and dramatic language ‘ he plunges at me guttering, choking, drowning’ the list of 3 is effective as what is happening gets worse down the line, again trying to make people understand that war was not glorious but painful and destructive.
Another major difference is the use of rhyme and rhythm. In ‘The Charge’ ‘shell’ ‘ hell’ and ‘well’ are used to link words together so they relate. Another example is where line 21 ‘ thundered’ rhymes with line 26 ‘ Hundred’. The use of this type of rhyme makes us feel even more sympathetic towards the soldiers as they were still carrying on after being thundered at with cannon balls and guns. Normally every 4th and 8th line rhyme but every now and again it is irregular so we know something has emphasis placed upon it. Whereas in ‘Dulce’ every other line rhymes ‘sacks’ ‘backs’ ‘sludge’ ‘trudge’. This is a very regular rhyme and has an even pace, which may be perceived as the marching soldiers footsteps.
Rhythm in ‘ The Charge’ is very different to that in ‘Dulce’. Tennyson uses repetition with small changes ‘rode the 600’ ‘ not the 600’ ‘ left of 600’ ‘noble 600’. He uses this to show the progression of the soldiers and how brave they are. It also emphasises how many men died. ‘ Cannon to right of them, cannon to left of them, cannon in front of them’ this also shows Tennyson’s use of repetition with small changes to show how the soldiers were surrounded. The rhythm in ‘ The Charge’ could be perceived as the horses galloping. However the rhythm in ‘Dulce’ is completely different. When the rhythm breaks down it adds more excitement ‘Gas! Gas! Quick boys’ shows the rhythm change in the poem. Another example is when the message is given the rhythm of this is again completely different to that in the rest of the poem. This again adds more excitement and emphasis.
In conclusion, there are several similarities and many differences between the two poems. The main similarity is that both poems are about war and a mistake made during it. The most important difference between the two poems is the poet’s attitude to war. Tennyson thinks war is harsh and difficult but he thinks it brings out the best in the soldiers this makes them noble and therefore should be honoured he thinks this because he did not fight in the war so his view is an idealistic one. Whereas Owen thinks war is a destructive and pointless thing because he fought in the war and knew exactly how hard it was. People’s attitudes to war changed after WW1 as everybody knew or lost someone in the war. Owens poem may have helped people change their views on war from thinking it was glorious like Tennyson to destructive like Owen’s .In my opinion ‘Dulce’ is the most effective because of this. I also think that Owen shows his opinion in a clearer way through his message at the end. The use of ‘my friend’ includes the reader and makes the poem seem more personal.
Stephanie Meachen 10DST English 10.2W
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