Compare 'Charge of the Light Brigade' and 'Dulce et Decorum est' considering each poets attitude to war.

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Compare ‘Charge of the Light Brigade’ and ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ considering each poets attitude to war

Both the poems ‘Charge of the Light Brigade’ and ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ are written in times of war, with both poets detailing the events. ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’, written by Alfred Tennyson in 1854, during the Crimean War, details the charge of an English Cavalry of 600 men against the well-protected batteries of the Russians. This mistake lead to the death of over 400 British soldiers. ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ (translated as ‘It is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country) was written by Wilfred Owen during World War One, follows the story of a gas attack and the death of a soldier. Although both poems focus on aspects of war, the poets’ attitudes to conflict differ dramatically. Tennyson chooses not to focus on the horrific events of war, but instead honours the hero’s the battle has produced, ‘Honour the Light Brigade, noble six hundred!’. In contrast, Owen describes the terrible events of World War One in which he took part. Owen’s intension seems to be to shock and disgust the reader and convince them that Tennyson’s glorified views of war are totally false. Owen conveys the horror of war through the story of a soldier’s death. Writing in such a way personifies war, allowing the reader to not only see war as a general event, but to see the devastating effects conflict can have an individual soldiers and their families.

Due to the poet’s differing attitudes to war, the mood and atmosphere within both poems are understandably different. ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’ creates a rousing view of war. Tennyson has an almost childlike view of war, believing that heroics are the most important and certainly the most interesting aspect of war, ‘Boldly they rode and well’, ‘Flashed all their sabers bare’. It is therefore obvious that the bravery and heroics of the Light Brigade create a patriotic atmosphere. However, Tennyson also reveals a disturbing side of patriotism within his writing. He reveals that, by making the decision to send the Light Brigade into battle, ‘Someone had blundered’. He then goes on to say that the job of the soldiers was ‘not to make reply, theirs not to reason why’. This would suggest that, although there is an overriding sense of patriotism , Tennyson is also hinting at problems concerning authority. The line ‘theirs but to do and die’ reveals the overwhelming blind devotion of the soldiers and their sometimes misplaced trust in authority.

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In contrast to ‘Charge of the Light Brigade’, ‘Dulce et Decorum est’ suggests a bitter and reflective mood. Owen has obviously been deeply scared by his time spent in the army and this is demonstrated by his description of the horrific death of a fellow soldier that has likely haunted him greatly. Owen uses very vivid similes such as ‘bent double, like old beggars’ and ‘knock kneed coughing like hags’ in order to help convey scenes that, within the 21st Century, we cannot begin to imagine. This use of similes is repeated further into the poem when Owen describes the soldiers ...

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