November, 1806 is set in Prussia. This is told to us by the footnote at the bottom of the poem, which tells us that ‘The Battle of Jena, on 14th October 1806, resulted in the complete over throw of Prussia by the French under Napoleon’. The settings of these poems all involve British me in some way, as it is either the British army (“The Charge of the Light Brigade” and “Drummer Hodge”) or the threat of Britain being invaded by some one (“To the Men of Kent” and “November, 1806”).
In The Charge of the Light Brigade, the mood of the “light brigade” is of loyalty and undying reverence to the queen. They are brave because they are riding into a line of infantry and the infantry are covered very well by artillery. It is very jingoistic as it calls the “light brigade” noble and it says that we should “honour the light brigade” because of the “wild charge they made”.
In Drummer Hodge, the only reference to a mood of the character is unknowing as he never expected to die so quickly or be buried in the middle of nowhere with no real grave.
In To The Men of Kent, there is distinct mood of being proud in the men of Kent. This poem is also jingoistic about Britain, this gives the poem a possible purpose of recruitment as it makes people feel a duty to their country, calling Kent the “Vanguard of Liberty”.
In November, 1806, the mood is that the narrator is nervous about the fact that Napoleon has been able to defeat Prussia and he might now come and try to invade England. The moods are therefore very different for each poem, each one having a different mood entirely.
There is quite a lot of imagery in the four poems. in The Charge of the Light Brigade, there is a constant reference to biblical imagery. In lines three, seven, and sixteen there is the repeated image of the valley of death from psalm twenty-three (“Lo should I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no ill”). This also refers back to the fact that the “light brigade” trust their superiors to not get them killed, and therefore they do fear no ill. This brings in the imagery of the cavalry seeing the officers as their metaphorical “shepherds”, i.e. “the lord is my shepherd”. Lines twelve to fifteen (“Their’s not - and die”), tell us that the soldiers were, at the time of the order, seen to be a lower-class to the rest of the army, as they are being sent in first, to almost certain death. It almost objectifies them and really shows what the hierarchy of the period was like to live in but at the end of the poem, a lord says that they should be revered because they are brave. I am assuming that this would have been quite disrupting to the social circles back in the royal court and upper classes. In lines twenty-four and twenty-five, there is the image of the riders being devoured by death (“JAWS of Death” and “MOUTH of Hell”) this shows the futility of the situation that the riders have been put in.
In Drummer Hodge, the fact that he only has a ‘kopje-crest’ to mark where he is buried shows how unimportant he was and also the futility of his life in the army. This is emphasised in line twelve in the words “strange stars” and “gloam” (gloam – gloom, darkness). In line four of verse one, it says, ‘foreign constellations west’, and in the fifth and sixth lines of verse three, it says, ‘strange-eyed constellations reign, his stars eternally’. This is cosmic imagery. This could mean he will never be forgotten by his family (‘his stars eternally reign’) but it also brings in an element of fate, almost as though his fate was written in the stars.
In To The Men Of Kent, line seven, it says, ‘Of your fierce war, may ken your glittering lance’. This could mean that the French would be scared of the men of Kent because they know what they are like. In line three, it says, ‘haughty brow’. This personifies Britain and gives Kent a bit more strength in words, as it is not just any brow; it is a ‘haughty brow’ meaning that it is tough. In line twelve, the word “parleying” could be referring to the possible threat of invasion from the French. In line twelve also, the words “Britain is in one breath” could mean that the “Men of Kent” only have one chance to defend Britain against the French. This makes the poem more jingoistic as the British are now putting all their faith in the “men of Kent”.
In November, 1806, in line seven, it says ‘by our own right hands it must be wrought’ meaning that to do something right, you have to do it yourself. This could also be referring to the fact that Victorian society and, in fact, society up until the seventies, believed it better to be right handed and left-handed children were encouraged to write with their right hands.
