The Charge of the Light Brigade

BY LORD ALFRED TENNYSON

I III

Half a league, half a league, Cannon to right of them,

Half a league onward, Cannon to left of them,

All in the valley of Death Cannon in front of them

Rode the six hundred. Volleyed and thundered;

Forward, the Light Brigade! Stormed at with shot and shell,

Charge for the guns! he said. Boldly they rode and well,

Into the valley of Death Into the jaws of Death,

Rode the six hundred. Into the mouth of hell

II Rode the six hundred.

Forward, the Light Brigade!

Was there a man dismayed?

Not though the soldier knew

Someone had blundered.

Theirs not to make reply,

Theirs not to reason why,

Theirs but to do and die.

Into the valley of Death

Rode the six hundred.

OVERVIEW

The Charge of the Light Brigade was written by Lord Alfred Tennyson. Those who
can still remember the poem Monsoon History would still remember the line
Reading Tennyson at six p.m. . Anyway, this poem was inspired by a true
event that happened during the Battle of Balaclava that occured on 25 October
1854 in the Cremean War between the British and the Russian. As the name
suggests, the Light Brigade was supposed to pursue a retreating Russion artelliry
battery, a task well-suited to a light calvary. However, due to miscommunication in
the chain of command, the Light Brigade was sent on a frontal assault against the
more well-prepared artelliry battery specialised in defensive fire.

Adapted from : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charge_of_the_Light_Brigade

THE POET

Lord Alfred Tennyson was born on August 6, 1809, in Somersby, Lincolnshire,

England. He is one of the most well-loved Victorian poets. Tennyson, the fourth of
twelve children, showed an early talent for writing. At the age of twelve he wrote a
6,000-line epic poem. His father, the Reverend George Tennyson, tutored his sons in
classical and modern languages. In the 1820s, however, Tennysons father began to
suffer frequent mental breakdowns that were exacerbated by alcoholism. One of
Tennysons brothers had violent quarrels with his father, a second was later
confined to an insane asylum, and another became an opium addict.

Tennyson escaped home in 1827 to attend Trinity College, Cambridge. In that same
year, he and his brother Charles published Poems by Two Brothers. Although the
poems in the book were mostly juvenilia, they attracted the attention of the
Apostles, an undergraduate literary club led by Arthur Hallam. The Apostles
provided Tennyson, who was tremendously shy, with much needed friendship and
confidence as a poet. Hallam and Tennyson became the best of friends; they toured
Europe together in 1830 and again in 1832. Hallams sudden death in 1833 greatly
affected the young poet. The long elegy In Memoriam and many of Tennysons other
poems are tributes to Hallam.

Source : http://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/lord-alfred-tennyson

VOCABULARY

WORD MEANING

League

an elongated depression between uplands, hills, or mountains,

Valley
especially one following the course of a stream.

Charge to attack by rushing violently against:

to break down the courage of completely, as by sudden danger or

Dismayed
trouble; dishearten thoroughly; daunt:

Blundered to make a gross or stupid mistake, especially through carelessness

 or mental confusion:

Volleyed to fly or be discharged together, as missiles.

Shell a hard, protecting or enclosing case or cover.

not hesitating or fearful in the face of actual or possible danger or

Boldly
rebuff; courageous and daring:

MEANING OF THE STANZA

Stanza 1

The light calvary was marching to the Valley of Death because the foes were no
match for them. It was like committing suicide. They were 600 of them riding horses
figthing in a battle. Their leader ordered them to move forward and consficate the
guns to prevent the guns from being carried away by the enemies.

Stanza 2

The soldiers were still moving foward. No one was discouraged by the fact that
somebody had made a foolish mistake by giving them a wrong order. They were not
in the position to answer any questions nor to ask why. They kept on moving
because it was their responsibility and they recieved order from their superior. Even
if the were fated to die, all the six hundred of them were still moving forward.

Stanza 3

The soldiers bravely fought the battle. They were attacked from their right, their left
but they still moved forward. True enough, they were also attacked from the front.
But they marched fearlessly to the Valley of Death and fought until their last
breaths.

MORAL VALUES

We should be brave in defending our country.

Appreciate the peace that we have.

Sometimes, it is good to ask questions.