Celebrate Alfred, Lord Tennyson's Birthday

By Dr. Marciene Mattleman

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - August 6th marks the birthday of Alfred, Lord Tennyson, born in 1809. The Poet Laurete of Great Britain succeeding William Wordsworth wrote poetry from a young age. He was published at 17 in a volume of poetry with his two brothers.

Tennyson is known for his short verses and is the ninth most quoted author in The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations. Among the most popular, still used today are, "Tis better to have loved and lost/Than not to have loved at all." "Theirs is not to reason why/Theirs is but to do or die."

Perhaps the most famous is "The Charge of the Light Brigade," a tribute to the British Cavalry in the Crimean War, written in just a few minutes. Beginning with, "Half a league, half a league, half a league onward," and ending with, "Into the valley of death, rode the six hundred."

It's summer, slower paced, time to relax….read some poetry. Read Tennyson aloud with friends and family.