2. A (12 marks)
Analyse the poets’ use of language
Analyse the poets’ use of structure
Clearly explain the effects on the reader
Use subject specific terminology
A (6 marks)
Relate the poems to their historical and social contexts

3. What is Tennyson’s ‘The Charge Of The Light Brigade’ about?
Knowledge
The poem tells the story of a tragic military mishap from the Crimean War, where 600 British cavalrymen were sent on a misguided mission to attack a valley lined with enemy cannons.
Skills:
Close reading of the poem, focussed on meaning and content.
Understanding:
Annotate your anthology to demonstrate your understanding.

4. What’s it about? Clear and intelligent interpretation of the poems A01
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
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.
Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
   Volleyed and thundered;
Stormed at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell.
They that had fought so well
Came through 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 wondered.
Honour the charge they made!
Honour the Light Brigade,
   Noble six hundred!
“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.
Flashed all their sabres bare,
Flashed as they turned in air
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
   All the world wondered.
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right through the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reeled from the sabre stroke
   Shattered and sundered.
Then they rode back, but not
   Not the six hundred.
What’s it about?
A01
Clear and intelligent interpretation of the poems
Select a wide range of quotations which justify your points

5. How does Tennyson feel for the 600 cavalrymen and how do you know?
Stanzas one, two and three describe the 600 cavalrymen approaching the battle.
Stanza four describes the battle.
Stanza five describes their retreat.
Stanza six summarises and honours the bravery of the 600 cavalrymen.
How does Tennyson feel for the 600 cavalrymen and how do you know?
Was someone to blame for the tragedy? How do you know?
Does Tennyson think the tragedy was inevitable or avoidable?
How does Tennyson portray the reality of war and battle?
Use these four questions to guide your annotations of the poem.
A01
Clear and intelligent interpretation of the poems
Select a wide range of quotations which justify your points

6. How is Tennyson’s ‘The Charge Of The Light Brigade’ written?
Knowledge
The rhythm, metre, stanza length and language devices are all used here to evoke the conflict Tennyson is describing.
Skills:
Close reading of the poem, focussed on language and structure.
Understanding:
Annotate your anthology to demonstrate your understanding.

7. Effective individual words/phrases
Identify examples of the following and annotate the poem, remembering to clearly explain the effect on the reader.
Repetition
Sibilance
Personification
Questions
Effective individual words/phrases
Imperatives
(commands)
A02
Analyse the poets’ use of language
Clearly explain the effects on the reader
Use subject specific terminology

8. The repetition, the meter (dactylic dimeter), and the rhyme all contribute to this poem having a ridiculously fast sense of pace and urgency.
What might Tennyson have been trying to mirror or reflect with this rhythm? Why would he choose to write this poem with this pacing?
The stanza lengths are inconsistent. The final stanza has been ‘cut short’, relative to the others.
What might Tennyson be trying to suggest about war through the lengths of the stanzas in the poem?
A02
Analyse the poets’ use of structure
Clearly explain the effects on the reader
Use subject specific terminology

9. Why was Tennyson’s ‘The Charge Of The Light Brigade’ written?
Knowledge
Tennyson describes the failed cavalry charge in a way that is implicitly critical of those responsible, and to honour the dead.
Skills:
Link contextual factors to textual details.
Understanding:
Annotate your anthology to demonstrate your understanding.

10. Relate the poems to their historical and social contexts
The Crimean War was fought between Britain and Imperial Russia from For the first time in history, newspapers carried eye-witness reports as well as detailing not just the triumphs of war but the mistakes and horrors as well.
The most significant moment in the Crimea came during the Battle of Balaclava. An order given to the British army's cavalry division (known as the Light Brigade) was misunderstood and 600 cavalrymen ended charging down a narrow valley straight into the fire of Russian cannons. Over 150 British soldiers were killed, and more than 120 were wounded. At home the news of the disaster was a sensation and a nation that had until then embraced British military exploits abroad began to question the politicians and generals who led them.
A03
Relate the poems to their historical and social contexts

11. How are ‘London’ and ‘The Charge Of The Light Brigade’ different?
Knowledge
Both writers make effective use of structure to make a point.
Skills:
Make connections between the two poems.
Understanding:
Write a fifteen minute essay response to the comparison question.

12. Compare the purpose of the consistently structured and organised stanzas of Blake’s ‘London’ with the purpose of the varying, changing stanza length of ‘The Charge of the Light Brigade’.
A01
Clear and precise comparison of the poems