the charge of the light brigade ozpw3u8xr6s
TRANSCRIPT
The Charge of the Light Brigade
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzpW3u8XR6s
What can we see in this picture?
Context
The Crimean War 1854-1856• Britain and France against
Russia• Began after the Turkish Empire
collapsed and Russia wanted to extend power south. Allies landed in Crimea and took control of Sebastopol.
• War in Crimea, southern Russia.
• British cavalry (men on horseback) called the Light Brigade
Heroic and Stupid
Charge of the Light BrigadeThe British cavalry commander mistook his orders to retake some guns
held by the Russians. Instead he told his men to charge the main Russian position, which was at the head of a valley bristling with artillery. The 600 horsemen obeyed but two thirds were killed or wounded. The Charge is the best known example of heroism and stupidity of war.
Poem based on newspaper report
Journalist W.H.Russell reported on the Charge in The Times:
At the minutes past eleven our Light Cavalry Brigade advanced…They swept proudly past, glittering in the morning sun in all the pride and splendour of war…At the distance of 1200 yards the whole line of the enemy belched forth, from thirty iron mouths, a flood of smoke and flame. The flight was marked by instant gaps in our ranks, by dead men and horse, by steeds flying and wounded or rider less across the plain…They flew into the smoke of the batteries; but before they were lost from view the plain was strewn with their bodies. Through the clouds of smoke we could see their sabres flashing as they rode between the guns, cutting down the gunners as they stood… The flank fire of the batteries on the hill swept them down…at thirty five minutes past eleven not a British soldier, except the dead and the dying, was left in front of the Russian guns.
Rhythm
There is a regular fast-paced rhythm to the poem created by:
• Regular number of syllables in the lines (5-7);
• End rhymes • Repetition of line structures
and words• Repetition of variation of
last line.
What is the rhythm of the poem imitating and what is the effect of this?
Order and Obey
‘Forward the Light Brigade!’
Was there a man dismayed?
Not though the soldier knew
Some one had blundered:
Their’s not to make reply,
Their’s not to reason why,
Their’s but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
The commander had made a disastrous mistake. Why didn’t the men question the order to charge at the Russian guns?
Sounds of war
Cannon to the right of them,Cannon to the left of them,Cannon in front of themVolleyed and thundered;Stormed at with shot and
shell,Boldly they rode and well,Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of HellRode the six hundred.
Flashed all their sabres bare,Flashed as they turned in airSabring the gunners there,Charging the army, whileAll the world wondered:Plunged in the battery-smokeRight through the line they broke;Cossack and RussianReeled from the sabre-strokeShattered and sundered. Then they rode back, but notNot the six hundred.
Sounds of war
Cannon to the right of them,Cannon to the left of them,Cannon in front of themVolleyed and thundered;Stormed at with shot and
shell,Boldly they rode and well,Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of HellRode the six hundred.
Flashed all their sabres bare,Flashed as they turned in airSabring the gunners there,Charging the army, whileAll the world wondered:Plunged in the battery-smokeRight through the line they broke;Cossack and RussianReeled from the sabre-strokeShattered and sundered. Then they rode back, but notNot the six hundred.
The repetition of the word ‘cannon’ with its short
syllable sounds explosive
The monosyllabic words after ‘cannon’ sound like a fast-paced, relentless
bombardment of shells
The onomatopoeic words ‘volleyed’, ‘thundered’ and
‘stormed’ all have high energy and evoke the sounds of anger, of
aggression, of war
The repetition of the onomatopoeic word ‘flashed’ with its quick sounding vowel sound
gives us a sense of the speed of the attack and of death
The drawn out vowel sound of the
onomatopoeic word ‘plunged’ help us to
imagine the utter despair of the men as if consumed
by smoke
The onomatopoeic word ‘shattered’ helps us to imagine the men and
valley as broken
Throughout these stanzas there is assonance of the harsh short vowel sounds, ‘o’,’u’ and ‘a’ (as in ‘plunged’ and ‘wondered’, ‘Cossack’ and ‘volleyed’ and ‘cannon’
and ‘flashed’). The harsh landscape of war is evoked by these aggressive sounds.
Imagery
‘Into the valley of Death rode the six hundred.’
‘Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.’
How does Tennyson use metaphor and personification to capture the horror of the Charge?
Imagery
‘Into the valley of Death rode the six hundred.’
‘Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.’
How does Tennyson use metaphor and personification to capture the horror of the Charge?
Tennyson metaphorically describes the place of battle as the ‘valley of Death.’ This is a powerful image as it suggests
that death is all around the men and that they cannot escape it. The Russian gunmen were at the head of the valley
looking down from a strong vantage point at the cavalry; the British had little
hope of victory. The valley is defined forever by the fallen men; it now
belongs to Death.
Tennyson personifies Death and Hell. The ‘jaws of Death’ evokes a powerful image of inescapability – the men have been
gripped by something savage and Death will not release its hold over the men. The ‘mouth of Hell’ also conjures an image of sheer horror. It is as if the earth has opened up to consume
the men – they will die terribly. The men’s lives have been snatched from them suddenly and violently.
Pride, splendour, glamour
W.H. RussellThey swept proudly past,
glittering in the morning sun in all the pride and splendour of war…with a halo of steel above their heads, and with a cheer which was many a noble fellow’s death cry, they flew into the smoke of the batteries…breaking through a column of Russians and scattering them like chaff
TennysonRight through the line they broke; Cossack and RussianReeled from the sabre-strokeShattered and sundered.Then they rode back but notNot the six hundred.
Stormed at with shot and shellWhile horse and hero fellThey that had fought so wellCame through the jaws of Death,Back from the mouth of Hell,All that was left of them,Left of the six hundred.
Tennyson’s voice – stanza six
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!
What does Tennyson think of the soldiers? What do you think that he felt about the Charge?