The Charge Of The Light Brigade Flashcards
What is the narrative
The Charge of the Light Brigade” is set on a battlefield in the Crimean War (1853-56). It describes a real cavalry charge that happened during the Battle of Balaclava on October 25, 1854 a battle that ended in disaster, with most of the British cavalry killed in action
What is the context
The poem recounts an assault by a brigade of British cavalry under the command of Lord James Thomas Brudenell, Earl of Cardigan, which cost the lives of 113 men and injured 143 others
What is the structure
“The Charge of the Light Brigade” consists of six stanzas of varying length. Many of the lines are written in dactylic dimeter, which means there are six syllables in each line, with two stressed syllables and four unstressed syllables
What is the form
It has 6 stanzas and a total of 55 lines
What are the language techniques
Tennyson’s depiction of events was written shortly after he read about the Charge in the Times newspaper. He similarly views the men’s actions as heroic and uses alliteration, a strong rhyme and rhythm, as well as personification and onomatopoeia to help put his views across
