Flashcards for The Charge of the Light Brigade

Death and Hell (Personified Forces)

In Alfred, Lord Tennyson's "The Charge of the Light Brigade" (1854), Death and Hell are not just characters but rather twin personified forces that add a mythic, almost supernatural quality to the battlefield.

character

The Commander (Lord Raglan / Unnamed Officer)

In Alfred, Lord Tennyson's 1854 narrative poem The Charge of the Light Brigade, the Commander is an unnamed yet historically recognizable authority figure whose disastrous order triggers the entire tragedy.

character

The Individual Soldier

The Individual Soldier is a composite figure in Alfred, Lord Tennyson's 1854 narrative poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade."

character

The Light Brigade (The Six Hundred)

The Light Brigade—often referred to as "the six hundred"—is the central focus and tragic hero of the poem.

character

“Half a league, half a league, half a league onward,”

This famous opening line is delivered by the narrator in Alfred, Lord Tennyson's "The Charge of the Light Brigade" (1854), written as a response to the ill-fated cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War.

Narrative voice (Alfred, Lord Tennyson)

“Into the jaws of Death, into the mouth of Hell rode the six hundred.”

This line comes from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade," written in 1854 as a response to the disastrous cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War.

Narrator (Tennyson) · Stanza 3

“Cannon to right of them, cannon to left of them, cannon in front of them volleyed and thundered;”

This powerful line is from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's famous poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade," written in 1854 in response to the disastrous cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson (narrative voice) · Stanza 3

“Was there a man dismayed?”

This rhetorical question appears in the second stanza of Alfred, Lord Tennyson's famous 1854 poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade," which was written in response to the disastrous cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson (narrative voice) · Stanza 2

“Theirs not to make reply, theirs not to reason why, theirs but to do and die:”

This famous triplet appears in Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade" (1854), written in response to the ill-fated cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War.

Narrator (Tennyson) · Stanza 2

“Honour the charge they made! Honour the Light Brigade, noble six hundred!”

These closing lines of Alfred, Lord Tennyson's 1854 narrative poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade" mark the emotional and thematic high point of the work.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson (narrative/authorial voice)

“"Forward, the Light Brigade! Charge for the guns!" he said:”

This opening command comes from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's famous 1854 poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade," which was written in response to the disastrous cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War.

unnamed commanding officer (historically Lord Raglan/Cardigan) · Stanza 1

“Flashed all their sabres bare, flashed as they turned in air,”

This striking line is from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's famous narrative poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade" (1854), which he wrote in response to the tragic cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War.

Tennyson (narrative voice) · Stanza 3

“Into the valley of Death rode the six hundred.”

This opening line is delivered by the narrator in Alfred, Lord Tennyson's famous 1854 poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade," which was inspired by a tragic cavalry charge during the Battle of Balaclava in the Crimean War on October 25, 1854.

Narrator (Alfred, Lord Tennyson) · Stanza 1

“Then they rode back, but not — not the six hundred.”

This line is found near the end of Alfred, Lord Tennyson's 1854 narrative poem The Charge of the Light Brigade, which responds to the disastrous cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War (October 25, 1854).

Alfred, Lord Tennyson (narrator) · Stanza 6

“When can their glory fade? O the wild charge they made!”

These lines are from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's famous poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade," written in 1854 after the ill-fated cavalry charge at the Battle of Balaclava during the Crimean War on October 25.

Tennyson (narrative voice) · Stanza 6 (final stanza)

The Cannon

In Alfred, Lord Tennyson's "The Charge of the Light Brigade," the cannon symbolizes the overwhelming and indifferent destructiveness of war.

The Charge / Forward Gallop

In Tennyson's "The Charge of the Light Brigade," the galloping advance of the six hundred cavalrymen highlights the clash between blind obedience and unavoidable destruction.

The Six Hundred

In Alfred, Lord Tennyson's "The Charge of the Light Brigade," "The Six Hundred" symbolizes collective heroism, selfless duty, and the nobility of sacrifice.

The Valley of Death

In Alfred, Lord Tennyson's "The Charge of the Light Brigade" (1854), the Valley of Death marks the stark line between life and nothingness—a boundary that the soldiers willingly cross in their blind adherence to duty.

Repetition

Repetition drives the poem with a powerful force.

Anaphora

Tennyson uses anaphora with great precision throughout the poem.

Dactyl

The poem primarily uses dactylic meter, featuring a long syllable followed by two short ones, and this choice is deeply connected to its meaning.

Refrain

"Rode the six hundred" and its variations serve as a formal refrain that closes or anchors each stanza, lending the poem a balladic and ceremonial feel.

Alliteration

Alliteration fuels the poem's sonic energy during critical moments of violence and heroism.

Rhetorical Question

The poem's most morally charged moment comes in the form of a rhetorical question: "When can their glory fade?" in the final stanza.

Allusion

The poem makes a clear reference to the historical Battle of Balaclava, which took place on October 25, 1854, and to W. H. Russell's newspaper report that suggested the charge resulted from a mistaken order.

Personification

Death and Hell are portrayed as active forces in the poem.

Juxtaposition

Tennyson deliberately contrasts obedience with catastrophe throughout the poem.

Imagery

The poem's imagery is largely kinetic and sensory, immersing the reader in the action.

Elegy

Despite its martial energy, the poem ultimately serves as an elegy.

Apostrophe

The final stanza shifts into apostrophe as Tennyson speaks to an unnamed audience—hinting at future generations—with the commands "Honour the charge they made! / Honour the Light Brigade."

league

An old unit of distance, roughly three miles. Here it measures how far the soldiers must ride before reaching the enemy guns.

noun · Chapter 1

valley of Death

A narrow stretch of land surrounded by enemy guns on three sides, used here as a name for the killing ground the soldiers ride into, echoing the biblical phrase for a place of mortal danger.

phrase · Chapter 1

Light Brigade

A unit of fast-moving cavalry armed with light weapons, intended for speed rather than heavy assault, here ordered into a suicidal charge against artillery.

noun · Chapter 1

blundered

Made a serious, careless mistake. In this poem it refers to the catastrophic error in the military order that sent the soldiers into the wrong and deadly attack.

verb · Chapter 1

Theirs not to make reply

It was not the soldiers' place to answer back or question orders; their duty was simply to obey, no matter how fatal the command.

phrase · Chapter 1

reason why

To question or demand an explanation for an order. The soldiers are denied this right; blind obedience is their only role.

phrase · Chapter 1

do and die

To carry out one's duty even at the certain cost of one's own life. It captures the soldiers' total, unquestioning sacrifice.

phrase · Chapter 1

volley'd

Fired a rapid, simultaneous burst of shots or cannon blasts. Here it describes the continuous barrage of artillery the soldiers ride through.

verb · Chapter 1

thunder'd

Made a loud, explosive roar like thunder. Used here to convey the overwhelming, earth-shaking noise of the cannon fire surrounding the brigade.

verb · Chapter 1

jaws of Death

The open mouth of death, used as a vivid image for a place of almost certain killing, into which the soldiers willingly ride.

phrase · Chapter 1

mouth of Hell

An image of Hell's entrance, used to stress that the soldiers knowingly rode into a place of total destruction and near-certain death.

phrase · Chapter 1

sabring

Cutting or striking with a sabre, a heavy curved sword used by cavalry soldiers. It describes the fierce hand-to-hand fighting when the brigade reached the enemy guns.

verb · Chapter 1

shatter'd

Broken apart and destroyed, here describing the brigade after it has been torn to pieces by cannon fire and can no longer fight as a unit.

verb · Chapter 1

glory

Great honour and lasting fame earned through courageous deeds. Tennyson insists the soldiers' glory can never be forgotten, even though the charge was a military disaster.

noun · Chapter 1

wild charge

A reckless, headlong cavalry attack made with fierce courage despite impossible odds and certain destruction.

phrase · Chapter 1

honour

To publicly respect and celebrate someone's bravery or sacrifice. Tennyson uses it as a direct command, urging all of England to pay tribute to the fallen soldiers.

verb · Chapter 1