The Charge of the Light Brigade

BY LORD ALFRED TENNYSON

I
Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
Forward, the Light Brigade!
Charge for the guns! he said.
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
II
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.
III
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volleyed and thundered;
Stormed at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of hell
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.

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.

VOCABULARY

WORD MEANING

Valley an elongated depression between uplands, hills, or mountains,

especially one following the course of a stream.

Charge to attack by rushing violently against

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

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.

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

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.
 THE LIVING PHOTOGRAPH (by Jackie Kay)

My small grandmother is tall there,

straight-back, white broderie anglaise shirt,
pleated skirt, flat shoes, grey bun,
a kind, old smile round her eyes.
Her big hand holds mine,
white hand in black hand.
Her sharp blue eyes look her own death in the eye.
It was true after all; that look.
My tall grandmother became small.
Her back round and hunched.
Her soup forgot to boil.
She went to the awful place grandmothers go.
Somewhere unknown, unthinkable.
But there she is still,
in the photo with me at three,
the crinkled smile is still living, breathing.

STANZA 1
Line Meaning
1 My small grandmother is tall there, The personas grandmother looks
tall in the photograph.
2 straight-back, white broderie anglaise shirt, She is standing with good
posture, wearing an embroidered
lace blouse.
3 pleated skirt, flat shoes, grey bun, She wears the blouse with a
pleated skirt, non-heeled shoes and
her hair in a bun.
4 a kind, old smile round her eyes. She is smiling kindly.
5 Her big hand holds mine, Her big hand is holding the
personas hand.
6 white hand in black hand. The contrast of their skin colours
can clearly be seen in their linked
hands.
7 Her sharp blue eyes look her death in the eye. Her grandmothers blue eyes
suggests that her death is near.

STANZA 2
Line Meaning
8 It was true after all; that look. The personas reference of
death came true.
9 My tall grandmother became small. The grandmother became thinner
and more fragile.
10 Her back round and hunched. Her back became hunched.
11 Her soup forgot to boil. She became forgetful.
12 She went to the awful place grandmothers go. Soon, she passed away.
13 Somewhere unknown, unthinkable. Upon her death, she went to a
place that no one knows.

STANZA 3
Line Meaning
14 But there she is still, However, in the photograph, her
grandmother will always be alive.
15 in the photo with me at three, The persona was there years old in
the photograph with her
grandmother.
16 the crinkled smile is still living, breathing. Her grandmothers smile is still so
alive and real.
MORAL VALUE
We must treasure our loved ones when they are alive.
We must spend as much time as we can with our loved ones
while they are still living
When they pass away, all that will be left are the memories, as is
illustrated in the poem.
It is difficult to lose a family member.
It is always difficult to deal with the death of a loved one.
The persona loses her grandmother when she was younger but
she will always remember her.
We must never forget the importance of family relationship.
We should not forget to love and care for our family, especially
our grandparents who are the pillars of a family.
When they are old and sick, we must continue to take care of
them.

Summary of Stanza 1
The persona is looking at an old photograph of her grandmother and herself. She
describes the photograph her grandmother is standing tall and straight,
dressed in a white embroidered lace blouse with a pleated skirt, and flat shoes.
Her grey hair is pulled neatly into a bun. She is smiling kindly while holding the
personas hand in hers, giving her the security and comfort. As the persona
describes their linked hands white hand in black hand it is clear that they
come from a mixed race family. The last line seems to suggest that the persona
knows that her grandmothers death will come soon.

Summary of Stanza 2

While the first describes the photograph, in the second stanza, the persona is
remembering her grandmother later, when she is older and has become ill. The
persona recalls how her grandmother soon grows thinner and more fragile. Her
back is hunched and she becomes forgetful as is illustrated in the line, Her soup
forgot to boil. Eventually, she passes away and upon her death, she goes to an
unimaginable place.

Summary of Stanza 3
However, in the photograph, the personas grandmother will forever be alive.
She is still there, holding the hand of her three-year-old granddaughter, with her
smile looking so alive and real.

THEMES

The everlasting quality of a photograph

A photograph immortalizes a person or a moment. What is captured in a

photograph will remain alive forever.

In the poem, the personas grandmother has already passed away. However, in
the photograph, she will always be healthy and alive.

A photograph also allows us grandmother passes away to reflect on what

happened in the past and relive our memories.

Death

Death is a definite outcome for all of us.

In the poem, the persona recalls how her grandmother was once strong and
healthy but soon grows older and becomes ill.

In the end, the grandmother passes away and the persona is only able to relive
her memories with her grandmother through a photograph.