Poetry Revision activities

Hi Y11
Here are just some generic activities that you can do to revise the
Anthology Poems.
The Comics and Lit videos, and Mr Bruff 5 minute revision videos are
really useful.
Spend some time summarising key ideas and quotations for each
poem, then start to think of how to compare them. Mr Bruff has some
videos on this as well.
Thanks
Mr Ryan
Which poem? 8. Half a league, half a league…
1. I met a traveler from an antique
9. Dem tell me…
land…
10. I wander through each chartered
2. Our brains ache, in the merciless
street…
iced east winds that knive us…
11. On another occasion, we got sent
3. Suddenly he awoke and was
out…
running – raw…
12. Three days before Armistace
4. We are prepared: we build our
Sunday…
houses squat…
13. In his darkroom he is finally alone…
5. That’s my last Duchess painted on
the wall… 14. One summer evening (led by her) I
found…
6. Her father embarked at sunrise…
15. Paper that lets the light…
7. There once was a country… I left it
as a child…
Which poem?
1. The lone and level sands
stretch far away.
2. And blights with plagues the
marriage hearse
3. But nothing happens.
4. He earns his living and they do
not care.
5. turned into your skin.
6. Strange, it is a huge nothing
that we fear.
7. By day, and were a trouble to
my dreams.
8. His terror’s touchy dynamite.
9. and my shadow falls as evidence of
sunlight.
10. Which Claus of Innsbruck cast for
me!
11. his bloody life in my bloody hands
12. I carving out me identity
13. Noble six hundred!
14. your playground voice catching on
the wind.
15. Which had been the better way to
die.
Which poems would you choose to compare
if you had the following questions?
• My Last Duchess (focus on effects of human
power)
• Kamikaze (focus on inner conflict)
• Charge of the Light Brigade (focus on the effects
of war)
• Prelude (focus on the power of nature)
 Anthology Poetry – which poem?

My Last Duchess Charge of the Light

That’s my last Duchess painted on the Brigade
The Prelude wall…
One summer evening (led by Half a league, half a league…
Which Claus of Innsbruck cast for me! Noble six hundred!
Ozymandias London her) I found…
I met a traveler from an antique land… I wander through each chartered street… By day, and were a trouble to my
The lone and level sands stretch far away. And blights with plagues the marriage hearse. dreams.

Storm on the Island Bayonet Charge Remains Poppies

Exposure We are prepared: we build our Suddenly he awoke and was running – On another occasion, we got sent Three days before Armistace
Our brains ache, in the merciless iced east houses squat… raw… out… Sunday…
winds that knive us… Strange, it is a huge nothing that His terror’s touchy dynamite. his bloody life in my bloody hands your playground voice
But nothing happens. we fear.
catching on the wind.

The Emigree Checking out me Kamikaze

Tissue Her father embarked at sunrise…
War Photographer Paper that lets the light…
There once was a country… I left it as a History
child… Dem tell me… Which had been the better way to die.
In his darkroom he is finally alone… turned into your skin.
and my shadow falls as evidence of I carving out me identity
He earns his living and they do not
sunlight.
care.
Coming Soon!
Y11 trip to see GCSE Poetry Live! at the Bath Forum,
Monday 22nd January 2024.

The all-day event includes famous poets reading the

poems you will be studying for your Literature
Paper 2 exam.

£30.00 inclusive of ticket and coach.

When you receive your letter, please make your payments

online and return your as soon as possible to secure a
place.
You are invited to a
performance of Macbeth at
the Bristol Old Vic on Thursday
1st February 2024 at 2.30pm.

Tickets and a coach there is

£19. we will leave about 1.15
and return approx. 5.30pm

A text message about this has

been sent home with a link to
the payment info. A letter is
also on the school website.
 English Literature Paper 2
The exam is in three sections:

Section A: An Inspector Calls (answer

one question from a choice of two)

Section B: Anthology Poetry – answer

the Power and Conflict question

Section C: Unseen Poetry

Do both sections.

Spend 45 minutes on each section.

Check where the
questions are.

Circle:
• the An Inspector
Calls question,
• the Power and
Conflict Poetry,
• the section on
Unseen Poetry
 Poetry revision
• You need to know all 15 poems
• You will be given one of the poems in the exam paper
• You will have to compare it to another poem of your choice

Write the title of a poem then the 3 subheadings with 4 lines

between each
• Ideas
• Structure
• Methods
 Mind-Map the title of the poem…
Write down any words that you associate with the word below - maybe feelings
it evokes, connotations, ideas or emotions.

tissue

What are we learning? How to understand a new poem

Why are we learning this? To prepare for Literature Paper 2
Comics and Lit - Tissue

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UO4dXu3qhFY

Mr Bruff
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BSC2cKcgkMk
London
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7z-uUyrdyY

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McAbDpgtje0
Remains Ideas – presents the true horror of war (War Photographer, Bayonet Charge,
Simon Armitage Exposure), as well as the effects of conflict on domestic life (Poppies, Kamikaze,
War Photographer). He deals with the consequences alone (unlike Exposure but
like Bayonet Charge) – private hell.

Methods:
- Repetition is used to show guilt ‘probably armed, possibly not’ also
‘somebody else’ to deflect the blame. This repetition also shows that the
suffering is relentless and never goes away, even at home – it’s like a PTSD
flashback.
- Vague language represents the indescribable horror of war eg. ‘sort of
inside out’ – he was not prepared for what he did or saw.
- Sickness imagery – ‘drink and drugs won’t flush him out’ – he needs to be
cleansed, less dirty and corrupted.
- War imagery – ‘dug in behind enemy lines’ means the memory of the
looter is inside his head and he can’t get rid of it – he’s still at war.

Structure shift from ‘we’ at the beginning to ‘my’ at the end. The change (volta) is
halfway through ‘End of story, except not really…’ this makes it more intense and
personal.

Exposure Ideas
Wilfred Owen Owen presents war as futile (pointless). He wanted readers to understand the
intensity of waiting for battle and the anti-climactic feeling when nothing
happens. The adrenaline leads to PTSD (shell shock)

Methods – each stanza has a blunt opening sentence, a series of emotive words,
then an anti-climactic final line.
Rhyme scheme stays consistent throughout, adding to the feeling of monotony.
The last line though doesn’t rhyme with the others, adding to the sense of anti-
climax.
Nature is personified ‘knive us’ ‘grey army’

Structure – each stanza is structured in the same way to represent the

monotonous, yet stressful daily routines. Cyclical structure adds to the sense of
nothing happening.
Tissue Ozymandias London
Human power is Human power Human power is
expressed through expressed through expressed through
things such as paper – the statue – ‘his ownership of land
money, maps, religion works…’ palaces. ‘chartered streets’, and
and buildings and This power is the palaces and church.
‘monoliths.’ transient, statue is This creates misery.
However, this power is decayed ‘a shattered Blake does not suggest
not permanent visage’. that this will change – in
(transient)– it could ‘fly Nature is more fact, the ending offers
away’. powerful – ‘lone and no hope for the future.
Nature/God is more level sands stretch far Very negative - ‘Blights
powerful – ‘light’. away’ with plagues the
Positive view forward – Positive view forward. marriage hearse’.
‘turns into your skin.’
Making comparisons
• Tissue and London are similar because…
• A difference between the two poems is…
• The poem I like the most is… because…
 YOUR ANALYSIS

Spend 10 minutes making independent annotations

on your copy of each poem
 Knowledge organiser // Subject: English Y10 // Topic: Power and Conflict poems Dream BIG, Work Hard, Achieve More

Contextual information
1. Narrator meets a traveller who tells him about a statue in the middle of the desert. 5. The A tribute to the British cavalry ( soldiers on horseback) who died during
Ozymandias The statue is of an ancient & cruel ruler from a past civilization – Pharaoh Ramesses Charge of the Crimean War. The men were given an incorrect order to charge into
Percy Shelley II. The poem is about the temporary nature of power. Ultimately, power will fade, art the Light battle with swords, & meet the Russian enemy, who were armed with
1817 cannot immortalise power & nature will be long-lasting. Brigade guns. The cavalry were defenceless- yet still fought bravely. Tennyson
Alfred honours the soldiers and the way they selflessly faced the Russian army
2. London Narrator describes a walk around London & comments on the despair & misery that Tennyson despite knowing their chances of survival were slim.
William Blake he sees. Blake was influenced by the French Revolution & wanted social & political 1854
1794 equality. He wanted the people to rise up against the powerful ( church, monarchy)
& in turn free themselves. 6. Exposure An authentic poem based on Owen’s own experience on the front line.
Wilfred Owen It was a horrendous winter & the men are subject not to enemy
3. Extract This is only an extract of the poem & is autobiographical. It is about an over 1917-1978 attacks but to the brutality of nature. Nature is personified as the main
from The confident narrator who finds a boat & takes it out on the lake. Although confident to enemy & the men can only wait to die. It is an anti-war poem & stresses
Prelude. begin with & enjoying the scenery, the narrator sees the mountain appear on the the insignificance of man compared to nature. During the Somme, over
William horizon & is overwhelmed with its size & power. It causes the narrator to retreat & 60,000 British soldiers died in one night.
Wordsworth change his view of nature, he now realises its power. Wordsworth was a romantic
1850 poet (Romantics challenged people about they way they thought. They also saw
the power of nature over mankind.) 7. Storm on The narrator describes how a community are waiting to be hit by a
the Island storm. It is obvious that they have been hit before because of the
4. My Last A Duke is showing a visitor a portrait of his Duchess ( former wife) who is now dead. Seamus landscape of the island (houses squat). The narrator starts off confident
Duchess Whilst observing the painting he tells the visitor that the Duchess was flirtatious & Heaney but as the storm hits the power of the storm creates feelings of fear &
Robert displeased him. As he speaks we realise that the Duke was jealous & probably had 1966 trepidation.. Heaney grew up in a farming community in Ireland; much
Browning the Duchess killed. We learn at the end of the poem that the visitor has come to of his poetry uses agricultural/natural images. He could also be
1842 arrange the Duke’s next marriage & is representing the woman he is set to marry. referring to the troubles in Ireland and the conflict with the IRA.
Poem based loosely on the real Duke of Ferrara.

Themes – in the exam you will be expected 59. Effects of conflict 60. Place 61. Memory and loss
to compare two poems which are linked The Charge of the Light Brigade, Exposure, London, Kamikaze, The Prelude, The Emigree, Storm on The Prelude, My Last Duchess, Poppies, Remains,
thematically. Bayonet Charge, Remains, Poppies, War the Island War Photographer, The Emigree, Kamikaze,
Photographer, Kamikaze London, Exposure

62. Power of nature 63. Power of humans 64. Identity 65. Reality and brutality of conflict
Ozymandias, The Prelude, Storm on the Ozymandias, London, My Last Duchess, Tissue, My Last Duchess, The Charge of the Light Brigade, The Charge of the Light Brigade, Exposure,
Island, Kamikaze, Tissue, Exposure Checking out me History Poppies, Tissue, The Emigree, Kamikaze, Checking out me Bayonet Charge, Remains, War Photographer
History
 Contextual information
8.Bayonet Charge The poem focuses on a single solder’s experience of a charge towards
Ted Hughes enemy lines. It describes his thoughts & actions as he tries to stay alive. It is
1957 clear that the solder is not ready for the charge & could have been
sleeping. The soldier fears for his life & the patriotic ideals that encouraged
him to fight have gone. Hughes was a former RAF serviceman & often
looks at man’s impact on nature.
9. Remains Based on the account of a British soldier who served in Iraq, first
Simon Armitage published in a series of interviews by Channel 4 called ‘The Not Dead’. A
2008 group of soldiers shoot a man who’s running away from a bank raid. His
death is described in graphic detail & the soldier who is telling the story
can’t get the death of the man out of his head. He didn’t know if the man
was armed or not & the reader gets the impression that it was not an
isolated incident. Armitage explores the impact of conflict on soldiers.
10. Poppies A mother describes her son leaving home, seemingly to join the army. The
Jane Weir poem is about the mother’s emotional reaction losing her son to the war.
2009 She fears for his safety & after he leaves her she goes to a familiar place
that reminds her of him. Weir is a textile artist as well as poet & textiles
feature heavily here.
11. War A war photographer is in his darkroom, developing pictures that he has
Photographer taken in different warzones. As the pictures develop he recalls the death of
Carol Ann Duffy one man & remembers the cries of his wife. The photographer contrasts his
1985 experiences to rural England & focuses on people who do not seem to care
about war torn places. Duffy was inspired to write this poem by her
friendship with a photojournalist.
12. Tissue The poem uses tissue/paper as an extended metaphor for life. She
Imtiaz describes how life, like tissue is fragile. However, she also discusses
Dharker some of the literal uses of paper that are intertwined with our lives,
2006 such as recording names in the Koran- She then goes onto to discuss
how we are made from tissue ( living tissue which is our skin)
emphasising that life is fragile. Dharker has Pakistani origins & was
raised in Glasgow. Many of her poems looks at issues of identify.
13. The The speaker speaks about a city that she left as a child. The speaker has
Emigrée a purely positive view of the city. The city she recalls has since changed,
perhaps it was a scene of conflict, however, she still protects the
Carol Rumens memory of her city. The city may not be a real place but represent a
1993 time, emotion -perhaps the speaker’s childhood. According to Ben
Wilkinson (critic), Rumens has a ‘fascination with elsewhere.’
14. Kamikaze Kamikaze is the unofficial name given to Japanese pilots who were
Beatrice sent on a suicide mission. The mission was considered one of honour
Garland but this poem is about a pilot who aborted the mission. Hi daughter
2013 imagines that her father was reminded of his childhood & the beauty of
nature & life whilst on the mission. When he returned home he was
shunned by his family.
15. Checking The narrator discusses his identity & emphasises how identity is closely
Out Me linked to history & understanding your own history. In school he was
History taught British history & not about his Caribbean roots to which he
John Agard feels resentful. He mocks some of the pointless things he was taught &
2007 contrasts the nonsense topics with admirable black figures.
 Key term Definition Key term Definition Key term Definition

16. Alliteration Repetition of words in a sentence beginning with the 29. Internal A rhyme involving a word in the middle of a 41. Rhyme A pattern in a poem which is
same letter. rhyme line and another at the end of the line or in scheme identified by the rhyming sounds.
the middle of the next. 42. Rhyming Two lines, one after the other, that
17 Assonance Repetition of the same sound in words
couplet rhyme.
30. Two contrasting ideas near each other.
18. Blank verse Rhythmical lines of poetry without rhyme Juxtaposition
43. Rhythm A repeated pattern or sound in a
31. Metaphor Comparing something to something else poem.
19. Caesura A pause, usually using a piece of punctuation, in the which isn’t literal.
middle of a line of poetry. 44. Sibilance Repeated ‘S’ sounds in a poem.
32. Monologue A long speech by a character.
20. Colloquial Informal language, like slang. 45. Simile Comparing two things using ‘like’ or
language 33. Mood Words used to create an atmosphere or ‘as’.
feeling in a poem. 46. Stanza A section of a poem, like paragraph.
21. Dramatic A poem which is said by a fictional speaker which reveals
monologue their character.
34. Words which, when said aloud, sound like
Onomatopoeia the noise they are describing (crash/bang) 47. The overall layout of a poem- what
Structure happens and in which part.
22. Emotive Language or ideas used to provoke emotions
35. Oxymoron A figure of speech where opposite words 48. Tone This can refer to the speed or pace
23. Enjambment A line of poetry which runs onto the next line with no are used (‘exploding comfortably’). of a poem as well as the
punctuation at the end. atmosphere the words create.

36. Describing something by giving it human 49. Volta A sudden change in tone or shift in
24. First person Writing using the narrative voice of an individual using Personification characteristics. ideas, usually in the middle of the
the word ‘I’. poem.
37. Sonnet A 14 line poem, usually about love, with 50. Extreme exaggeration.
25. Form How a poem looks and the type of poem it is. strict rules about its structure. Hyperbole
51. A collection of words from the same
26. Free verse No regular rhyme or rhythm to the lines in a poem, like 38. Phonetic Words which are written as they sound. Semantic theme e.g war
natural speech. spelling field
27. Iambic Where each line consists of 10 syllables each with 5 39. Plosive Repetition of harsh ‘p’ or ‘b’ sounds. 52. Chorus Repeated phrases or sentences to
pentameter stressed and 5 unstressed syllables. add rhythm.

40. Rhetorical A question asked to the reader without 53. Using the same word, letter or
28. Imagery Words which create visual descriptions in a poem. question expecting an answer. Repetition phrase more than once.