Compare and Contrast Dulce Et Decorum Est and Charge of the Light Brigade
Compare and contrast “Dulce Et Decorum Est” and “Charge Of The Light Brigade”. What images of war do these two poems convey?
We have been studying the war poems Dulce Et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen and Charge Of The Light Brigade by Alfred Lord Tennyson. Dulce Et Decorum Est was written during the First World War from 1914 to 1918 whilst Charge Of The Light Brigade was composed in the 19th century, and describes a battle that took place during the Crimean War.
Both poems give a different impression of war. Wilfred Owen writes about the pity of war and his responsibility to warn other generations of the horror and propaganda of it, whereas Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem is about the honour, courage and glory of fighting in a war.
In Dulce Et Decorum Est, the title is Latin and appears in the last two lines “The old Lie; Dulce et Decorum est; / Pro patria mori”. The last two lines sum up Wilfred Owen’s feelings towards war. It translates “The old Lie; Sweet and honourable is to die for your country” He feels that war is sorrowful, that it definitely isn’t sweet or honourable to die for your country and that war is a propaganda to encourage young vulnerable people to lay their lives on the line.
Dulce Et Decorum Est tells the reader about the absolute horror and effects of the war on young men. The first verse is slow paced with a morose and almost eerie tone, and describes the scene and the soldiers. The first line, “Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,” portrays the exhaustion and shows that the young strong men have been badly affected as if they have gone through hell. Another simile appears in the second line that also illustrates their struggle “coughing like hags”, comparing them to old, poorly scraggly women which contrasts with the usual image of fine upstanding young soldiers. “Haunting flares” suggests that there is always a faint orange glow of gunfire that is ever present, looming over them waiting to strike, therefore haunting. Also flares are used in
We have been studying the war poems Dulce Et Decorum Est by Wilfred Owen and Charge Of The Light Brigade by Alfred Lord Tennyson. Dulce Et Decorum Est was written during the First World War from 1914 to 1918 whilst Charge Of The Light Brigade was composed in the 19th century, and describes a battle that took place during the Crimean War.
Both poems give a different impression of war. Wilfred Owen writes about the pity of war and his responsibility to warn other generations of the horror and propaganda of it, whereas Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem is about the honour, courage and glory of fighting in a war.
In Dulce Et Decorum Est, the title is Latin and appears in the last two lines “The old Lie; Dulce et Decorum est; / Pro patria mori”. The last two lines sum up Wilfred Owen’s feelings towards war. It translates “The old Lie; Sweet and honourable is to die for your country” He feels that war is sorrowful, that it definitely isn’t sweet or honourable to die for your country and that war is a propaganda to encourage young vulnerable people to lay their lives on the line.
Dulce Et Decorum Est tells the reader about the absolute horror and effects of the war on young men. The first verse is slow paced with a morose and almost eerie tone, and describes the scene and the soldiers. The first line, “Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,” portrays the exhaustion and shows that the young strong men have been badly affected as if they have gone through hell. Another simile appears in the second line that also illustrates their struggle “coughing like hags”, comparing them to old, poorly scraggly women which contrasts with the usual image of fine upstanding young soldiers. “Haunting flares” suggests that there is always a faint orange glow of gunfire that is ever present, looming over them waiting to strike, therefore haunting. Also flares are used in