Alfred, Lord Tennyson: The Charge Of The Light Brigade

Alfred, Lord Tennyson:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred,_Lord_Tennyson

The Charge Of The Light Brigade:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzCOL6ewpPw

The Charge Of The Light Brigade

by Alfred, Lord Tennyson
Memorializing Events in the Battle of Balaclava, October 25, 1854
Written 1854
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.

'Forward, the Light Brigade!'
Was there a man dismay'd ?
Not tho' the soldier knew
Some one had blunder'd:
Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do & die,
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volley'd & 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.

Flash'd all their sabres bare,
Flash'd as they turn'd in air
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army while
All the world wonder'd:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right thro' the line they broke;
Cossack & Russian
Reel'd from the sabre-stroke,
Shatter'd & sunder'd.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
While horse & hero fell,
They that had fought so well
Came thro' the jaws of Death,
Back from the mouth of Hell,
All that was left of them,
Left of six hundred.

When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wonder'd.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred!
Analysis of the poem: http://www.sparknotes.com/poetry/tennyson/section9.rhtml

How to analyse poetry

Here is some help in the difficult art of analysing poetry.

These slides will introduce literary terms used in poetry analysis. It also gives tips on how to analyse a poem

The Language of Poetry:
http://www.slideshare.net/Briandoolan/the-language-of-poetry

Also look at this site:

http://suite101.com/article/how-to-analyse-poetry-a121137


This page should be a help for your essay:
http://suite101.com/article/how-to-analyze-a-poem-for-a-paper-in-a-college-english-class-a295573

Remember this is meant as an inspiration/help for your analysis.

Stephen Crane

Stephen Crane:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Crane

Realism and Naturalism in American Literature:
This page explains what these two trends in American Literature are about.
This should be helpful in order to understand An Episode of War.
http://faculty.bucks.edu/docarmos/RealismNaturalism.html

"War is Kind"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6D7aZmaNGls

an example of an analysis of the poem "War is Kind":
http://www.peejeshare.com/essays/analysis-stephen-cranes-war-kind-8821

The poem "War is Kind":

Do not weep, maiden, for war is kind.

Because your lover threw wild hands toward the sky

And the affrighted steed ran on alone,

Do not weep.

War is kind.
Hoarse, booming drums of the regiment,
Little souls who thirst for fight,
These men were born to drill and die.
The unexplained glory flies above them,
Great is the battle-god, great, and his kingdom --
A field where a thousand corpses lie.

Do not weep, babe, for war is kind.

Because your father tumbled in the yellow trenches,

Raged at his breast, gulped and died,

Do not weep.

War is kind.
Swift blazing flag of the regiment,
Eagle with crest of red and gold,
These men were born to drill and die.
Point for them the virtue of slaughter,
Make plain to them the excellence of killing
And a field where a thousand corpses lie.

Mother whose heart hung humble as a button

On the bright splendid shroud of your son,

Do not weep.

War is kind.

The American Civil War

information about the Civil War:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_War

A timeline for the Civil War:
http://www.historyplace.com/civilwar/

The Battle of Williamsburg: The Library of Congress


Who was the president during the Civil War?
take a look at this page:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/abrahamlincoln

Introduction

Man's experience with war has always been expressed through literature - poetry, novels, letters etc.

We will take a look at different wars and the impact they had on the writers and poets of their day.