English Component: "The Charge of the Light Brigade"

Light Brigade Poem Analysis

Before Reading Questions

What are some examples of times when people must obey an authority figure, even though they may not want to?

There are many times where people must follow orders from an authority figure. In the military, when soldiers are given an order by a commanding officer they follow it or resign. Anyone who has a job has at one point been given a task by their boss that did not want to do. Also when a law enforcement agent gives you an order you comply or risk getting arrested. There are many times where you will be given a task or a order that you don't agree with but comply with to avoid the possible consequences.


Must military commanders enforce harsh discipline on their soldier?

My answer would vary depending on the severity of the discipline used. Excessive force, such as hazing I disapprove of, but the standard, grueling drills I can accept of. The endless drilling is not only a way of physically preparing soldiers but a way of their commanding officers to assert dominance and put the soldiers into a state where they will follow orders diligently. In response to a mistake or misconduct I also approve of drilling as a way of disciplining.


Is it important for a military outfit to work as a team?

For a military outfit to survive in combat and succeed in a mission is imperative that they work as a team. A military outfit must function as one body with many different parts, playing off their own and each others strengths and weaknesses. They must look out for one another and watch over each. So yes teamwork is extremely important for a military outfit.


What are the consequences if a commander is unable to keep his or her troops under control during wartime?

The consequences consist of nothing good or favorable. Where the head goes the body follows, if the commanding officer is unable to control their troops then it will lead to the units failure of a mission, maiming or death.

After Reading Analysis

"The Charge of the Light Brigade" by Lord Alfred Tennyson is a tribute to the honor, courage and valor displayed by the Light Brigade during the conflict between Turkey, Russia, and later Great Britain known as the Crimean War. Tennyson wrote the poem on a napkin at a coffee shop after reading a newspaper article about the war. His message in the poem shows what his view of the war was as a citizen at home: he views war as a glorious thing with soldiers honorably defending their country.

The poem consists of six stanzas of different lengths with a weak rhyme scheme that varies from stanza to stanza. Tennyson uses the last lines of each stanza to build or release tension. He builds tension with the “600” going “into the valley of death”, then “into the jaws of death”, and “into the mouth of hell”. He defends their valor in defeat using the words “came thro' the jaws of death” and “back from the mouth of hell”. These descriptive lines give the reader a visual to the course of the soldier’s battle from slowly riding “half a league, half league, half a league onward”, to arriving at the “mouth of hell”, and then retreating from overwhelming numbers.

The “600” is an important reoccurring term that Tennyson uses to express different ideas about the brigade. At the end of stanza four, before the Light Brigade’s retreat, Tennyson writes “Then they rode back, but not, Not the six hundred”, noting that the Brigade is no longer the unit it once was. Tennyson views the Brigade’s defeat differently than most. England's involvement is viewed by many as one failure after another while Tennyson honors the effort the soldiers and the price that they paid on the battlefield. He honors their sacrifice in the last stanza writing "When can their glory fade? O the wild charge they made! All the world wondered. Honor the charge they made, Honor the Light Brigade, Noble six hundred".

Another reoccurring term, “cannon”, is used with description of scenery such as "into the valley of death" or “into the mouth of hell” to put the reader on the battle field and invoke strong emotions for the death of soldiers. The stanza that works the most to put the reader on the battlefield and reveal their desperate situation is also the most famous part of the poem: "Cannon to right of them, Cannon to left of them, Cannon in front of them Volley'd and thunder'd; Storm'd at with shot and shell, Boldly they rode and well, Into the jaws of Death, Into the mouth of Hell Rode the six hundred".

Overall the poem's message is very transparent, but there are several less obvious references. In the second stanza, Tennyson writes "Someone had blunder'd", this someone is never revealed but is most likely the commander of the Light Brigade, Lord Raglan. Lord Raglan failed in preparing and coordinating the troops and in anticipating the enemy, as well as, other tactical decisions. Another discreet message further implicates Lord Raglan, another discreet message within the same stanza states, "Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die". These lines show that a soldier is not question anything but to be happy to fight for their country despite the failures of their commander.