Comparison of Dulce et Decorum Est and Charge of the Light Brigade
Compare and contrast the two poems Dulce et Decorum Est (Owen)
with Charge of the Light Brigade (Tennyson), paying particular
attention to the writers’ attitude to war.
The attitudes of poets towards war have always been expressed
vigorously in their poetry, each poet either condoning or condemning
war, and mitigating their attitudes in whatever way possible.
I aim to explore the change in the portrayal of war before and during
the twentieth century, and also the structures and devices poets use
to convey their views persuasively, and justify them. For this job I
have chosen to write about “Charge of the Light Brigade” written by
the poet Alfred Lord Tennyson and “Dulce et Decorum est” by the poet
Wilfred Owen. These two poems describe war, and scenes from war, with
varying levels of intensity and reality and also from different
viewpoints.
Written during the Crimean War Tennyson’s “Charge of the Light
Brigade” mirrors the sentiments expressed in the Battle of Balaclava.
This event took place in 1854 and is still remembered as one of the
most famous triumphs in British history. The truth is that Lord
Raglan suicidally led his troops " Into the valley of Death ", where
they were massacred. Lord Tennyson was the poet Laureate at the time
of the Crimean war, but did not witness any fighting and was not
involved in it but his clever and effective use of literary devices in
his poem ensure that this military fiasco was remembered as a glorious
victory. Tennyson puts across a message to remember, respect and
honour the soldiers for what they have given up their lives to do for
their country.
“Dulce et Decorum est” however, was writt...
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suggesting that the writers of glorious war poems have even lied to
the young people, and sent them to the front line to die in their
millions, in awful conditions and distressing situations.
Having explored both poems, I feel that the one which brings about the
biggest response from me is “Dulce et Decorum est”. This is because of
the striking graphic imagery he uses, the way he describes the effects
of the war on him, and also because of the way he directs the poem at
the reader personally, using phrases such as “you” and “my friend”. In
my opinion, “The Charge of the Light Brigade” does not have the impact
and the realism to convey the opinions contained in it effectively and
forcefully. I feel is a more imaginative, outlook on war than Wilfred
Owen’s graphic poem. The thing I did like about Tennyson’s poem was
the excitement and passion and pace.
The first poem we are going to look at is ‘The Charge of the Light
So he saw saw how war affected everyone because his job in the was was to carry the injured to get help. He saw what happened to everyone. So when he said “humanity I love you” it is ironic because at the end of the poem he said “humanity I hate you” which is a more accurate description of his feeling towards all of humanity, so what he means with this quote is that the governing leaders or every power are putting people 's lives in their pockets and then not caring so they sent them off to die in the war (WWI) because over 14 million soldiers died. They sat down and forgot that their are people dieing so they can sit down and drink tea. Just like Kat said “Give 'em all the same grub and all the same pay/And the war would be over and done in a day." (Chapter 3, pg. 41) if everyone got paid the same and everyone did their part then the war would be over a lot faster. Furthermore in Russia (when it was called the Soviet Union) Vladimir Lenin said, “Hundreds of billions of capital have been invested… bringing death, hunger, ruin... to the peoples.” This shows that the world was put into a crisis because of the “criminal war”. which
...his life. The battle was very intense and the poem gives a great description of the
...eaks of Rivers’. This clearly demonstrates how truly important the issue of slavery was to him and how his life had become symbolized by the poem.
Like millions of Americans or hundreds them that never really enjoy a poem I’m definitely one of them. There is so much anger in this poem that it quickly grabs my attention and pulled me into his world. I have never knew that such a poem could express such a strong emotion on paper, and even though, I don’t consider myself a communist lover I can clearly understand why he might have been one. His world was clearly different from mine and through his words I was able to feel his pain and suffering because of it. For people that never consider reading a poem they should give it a try because one’s never know what they will find.
Charge of the light brigade and O captain my captain are poems about the defects of war and the impact it can have on people and the nation. Both authors give their perspective of war and how it impacts them. In order to do so they use literary devices to give their opinions. Charge of the Light Brigade and O Captain My Captain both share a theme of war but the authors give their own point of view of war using metaphors, personification, and tone.
In this essay you will notice the differences and similarities between ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’ and ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’. ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’ was written in nineteenth century by Alfred Lord Tennyson. In contrast, ‘Dulce Et Decorum Est’ was written in the twentieth century by Wilfred Owen. The main similarity we have observed is that they both capture war time experiences. However, the poets’ present these events using their own style, and the effect is two completely different observations of war.
The message he conveys at the concluding of the poem addresses the propaganda as an unjust campaign.
...people think more about the life in which they live everyday. His poems connected to his life, e.g. the poems about nature in The Beautiful Changes connected to his life on a large property and its connections to his time on the battlefield. Wilbur closed out his National Book Award acceptance speech by saying: “Writing poetry, then, is an unsocial way of manufacturing a thoroughly social product. Because he must shield his poetry in its creation, the poet, more than other writers, will write without recognition. And because his product is not in great demand, he is likely to look on honors and distinctions with the feigned indifference of the wallflower. Yet of course he is pleased when recognition comes; for what better proof is there that for some people poetry is still a useful and necessary thing -- like a shoe” (“Richard Wilbur”, National Book Foundation).
One of my favorite aspects about the poem is how he shows his empathy for the heroes he describes. Instead of telling the reader, “I have empathy for the heroes who rise to confront challenges”, he assumes the role of the heroes in action and describes the events in first person to show the reader examples of courage. One line in the poem reads, “I do not ask the wounded person how he feels, I myself become the wounded person.” When I first read this line, I had difficulties understanding what he meant by “become the wounded”. However, after reading the poem, a couple of times I realized that he means that he can empathize with the heroes. To further show his empathy, he assumes the role of the heroes and narrates the events in first person, while using “I” “me” and “my” instead of “he” or “she”.
The two poems, 'Dulce et decorum est' and 'Who's for the game?' are both very different war poems. Although they were both written about the First World War, they both had different purposes. The poems have aspects in which they are similar, but they also have very big differences.
As poet laureate and patriot, Alfred, Lord Tennyson was very influential in 19th century England. He successfully showed the ignorance of the English Army leaders while still reflecting his strong nationalist views in an attempt to create propaganda for the Crimean War in his poem, “The Charge of the Light Brigade.” The charge was a tragic incident that took place in 1854 during the Crimean War, which was England, France and Sardinia against Russia, when English Army generals blundered and sent over six hundred soldiers on a charge that was destined for disaster. The solders were known as the Light Brigade and the charge resulted in over two hundred deaths to soldiers and over three hundred deaths to horses. In this horrific aftermath, Tennyson responded to this event by writing a poem which went on to become a classic. Tennyson was a strong nationalist and very political. He was moved and troubled when he received news of the tragic charge. The poem became a form of propaganda for the Crimean War due to Tennyson glorifying the sacrifice of the soldiers by using his exceptional writing skills. Although this poem is regarded by many as propaganda, he included the word blunder in the poem which showed the ignorance of the Army leaders.
people want to continue to read the poem a few more times. His was of
This poem just shows how great the talent of Walt Whitman really is. All of the imagery and structure of this poem are astounding. Like I said this was one of Whitman’s most famous poems and I can see why. Just reading the poem without looking for any hidden meanings is a refreshing experience. This is a great example of what the reader can find when they truly study the work and find alternative meanings behind a
sense of closeness to the topic of his poem. In the very beginning of the poem we