Charge of the Light Brigade + Bayonet Charge Flashcards
(10 cards)
Point 1
Both poems portray the horrors of war, portraying conflict (at least somewhat) negatively
Point 2
Both poems present the senselessness of war, however while COTLB focuses on the bravery, BC takes the individual soldier’s perspective and highlights the brutal reality of war. In this way, COTLB acts as propaganda by presenting a heroic (albeit critical) view of war, whereas BC criticises conflict by showing the horrific impact
COTLB evidence 1
“jaws of Death”
“mouth of Hell”
“Cannon to the right of them / Cannon to the left of them / Cannon in front of them”
“Storm’d at with shot and shell”
“Not the six hundred.”
COTLB evidence 2
“Some one had blunder’d”
“Boldly they rode”
“When can their glory fade?”
“Honour the charge they made!
COTLB analysis 1
“jaws” and “mouth” uses zoomorphism to make the valley seem like a predator, and therefore more menacing. By comparing the battlefield to the “mouth of Hell”, the speaker invokes hell as a symbol of torture and terror, suggesting the light brigade endure such torments on the battlefield
Anaphoric repetition of “cannon” emphasises the overwhelming mass of cannons and stresses how dangerous this situation as they are surrounded by enemy guns (‘right;, ‘left’, ‘in front’)
The speaker also uses the imagery in “Storm’d at with shot and shell” to highlight the dangers they face. The sibilance in this phrase mimics the whooshing sounds of artillery shells and therefore makes the imagery of the battlefield more vivid.
The fourth stanza finishes with “Not the six hundred” which feels mournful, therefore portraying the reality of war negatively as it results in so many casualties.
COTLB analysis 2
The speaker informs us of a mistake made - one which caused a huge number of deaths. Despite this horrific mistake that leads one to question conflict, the poem focuses on the bravery of the soldiers. The soldiers are presented to know about the mistake (“the soldier knew”) but understand that it is not their place to dispute orders (repetitive “Theirs not to make reply”, etc)
The speaker praises them:
The adverb “boldly” is used to describe them -> presents them as courageous
The rhetorical question could be suggesting that the glory of those who sacrifice themselves in battle should never fade
The command makes the speaker’s intentions clear : “Honou the charge they made!”
The exclamative final line “Noble six hundred!” makes it clear that the speaker believes the soldiers are honourable due to their willingness to sacrifice themselves.
BC evidence 1
“Suddenly he awoke and was running - raw / in raw-seamed hot khaki, his sweat heavy”
“Like a man who has jumped up in the dark”
“a yellow hare that rolled like a flame and crawled in a threshing circle, its mouth wide open silent, its eyes standing out”
Enjambment
“yelling alarm”
BC evidence 2
“In what cold clockwork of the stars and the nations was he the hand pointing that second?”
“The patriotic tear that had brimmed in his eye sweating like molten iron from the centre of his chest”
“King, honour, human dignity, etcetera / Dropped like luxuries”
BC analysis 1
“Suddenly he awoke and was running - raw / in raw-seamed hot khaki, his sweat heavy”
“Like a man who has jumped up in the dark”
“a yellow hare that rolled like a flame and crawled in a threshing circle, its mouth wide open silent, its eyes standing out”
Enjambment
“yelling alarm”
Poem starts in media res - the poem begins with a sense of confusion and chaos with the adverb “suddenly”
The awkward use of caesura and enjambment in the first two lines conveys the disorienting chaos of warfare. Enjambment is used throughout the poem to the same effect. The repetition of the word “raw” creates an image of pain, and the verb “running” suggests a frantic feeling due to the fast pace. The alliteration emphasises the soldier’s panic.
The simile “like a man who has jumped up in the dark” presents the soldier as vulnerable as he is unable to see.
The ambiguity of whether the ‘yellow hare’ is real or a metaphorical image intensifies the chaotic confusion of the battlefield. The following image of the hare “like a flame” and crawling in a “threshing circle” with its “eyes standing out” is disturbing (the hare seems delirious due to its spinning in circles, and the imagery of the eyes bulging out of its head clearly presents the hare to be in pain). This could be showing the effect of conflict on nature, extending the impact of war beyond humans and therefore presenting war as having horrible consequences.
The “yelling alarm” uses auditory imagery to portray a sensory overload that the soldier feels, and conveys this experience as confusing, therefore presenting the horrors of war
BC analysis 2
The soldier describes once crying a “patriotic tear” implying that he once believed in honouring his country by going to battle. However, it know causes intense pain (“molten iron” is hot and dangerous). This simile (?) reflects the expectation vs reality aspect of war. His ‘eye’ represents war propaganda, causing him to believe in war. His ‘chest’ represents his own lived experiences, and the reality that war is painful.
Rhetorical and metaphorical question “in what cold clockwork of the starts and nations was he the hand…?” suggests that war is inherently senseless and tragic as the soldier feels that he is merely a cog is the machinery of war and therefore has no control over the his situation. The harsh ‘k’ and ‘st’ sounds convey the violent atmosphere.
The asyndetic list of reasons for going to fight are implied to be meaningless in the battlefield as they are compared to ‘luxuries’ in the simile-> they can’t help the soldier in the chaos of war, they are irrelevant. The poet adds sarcasm with the word ‘etcetera’ which undermines war
