Cunningly covering his tracks Distractions Unseen Poetry Mock

Cunningly covering his tracks Distractions Unseen Poetry Mock Review Look at the key quotes from Alan Bod’s poem ‘Autumn’. Does he describe Autumn in a positive or negative way? How do you know? Why does he refer to images like ‘cunningly’, ‘robber’, ‘accomplice’ and ‘chaos’ within his poem? What is Bold trying to tell the reader about Autumn? How does he use his language to get across this message to his readers? Refer to specific quotes and techniques. The wind is his accomplice An air of chaos So branches shake Glows red with a quiet rage Changes the temper of the earth Grabbing the green stuff Till the normally placid sky The theft chills the world Like an experienced robber All dead leaves are suddenly blown

Learning outcomes • To describe the key language and structural features of both ‘Autumn’ and ‘Today’ • To explain the effects of these features on the readers • To evaluate the effectiveness of our mock exam answers based on success criteria

Let’s look at the exam question again. The question asks you to focus on how Autumn affects the landscape AND the people In ‘Autumn’, how does the poet present the effects of the season of autumn? [24 marks] Success criteria: 1) 2) 3) 4) Clear ideas written in a formal manner Regular use of quotes to support ideas Techniques analysed and effects explained A central focus on the key theme from the question.

What we need to work on as a group in terms of the first unseen poetry question: • Making sure we include what language techniques are used by the writer • Explain the effects of the techniques on the reader • Discuss how structure is used by the writer to create effects on the reader

Analysing Language in ‘Autumn’ Why is the simile used to compare the Autumn to an experience robber? What effects does Autumn have on the landscape? Autumn arrives Like an experienced robber Grabbing the green stuff Then cunningly covering his tracks With a deep multitude Of colourful distractions. And the wind, The wind is his accomplice Putting an air of chaos Into the careful diversions So branches shake And dead leaves are suddenly blown In the faces of inquisitive strangers. The theft chills the world Changes the temper of the earth Till the normally placid sky Glows red with a quiet rage. Why used the aggressive verb ‘grabbing’? Why use the image of ‘green stuff’? How does the personification here help to get across the effects of Autumn to the reader? Why does the writer describe Autumn as ‘cunningly covering’? What does the use of alliteration and personification here get across to the reader about the effects of Autumn? Why is the wind described as an accomplice? What motif is used throughout this poem and why? How might the ‘strangers’ feel here? Why? How does the Autumn change the world when the ‘theft’ is described as ‘chilling the world’? Why is it significant that the sky seems to ‘rage’ at what has happened because of Autumn?

How does the poet present the effects of the season of autumn through language? • It seems as though the poet wants us to think of Autumn as violent, immoral and ultimately a thief. The regular use of personification and the aggressive verbs included make this clear to the reader. • The Autumn robs the world of its greenery, it helps to throw dead leaves into the people who are unknown to the Autumn, referred to as ‘strangers’. • Because of Autumn, the world is chilled, the sky which is normally calm becomes enraged angry. • It is as if the poet wants us to see Autumn as criminal, that it takes far more than it gives. Bold’s use of a crime motif throughout the poem really helps to emphasise these ideas to his readers.

Structure within ‘Autumn’ Generally we did a good job on analysing some language techniques and features, but very few of us looked at structure. We need to do this! The poem is made up of one stanza, but there is some use of punctuation and caesuras (pauses within a poem). Why are there so few pauses in this poem? What does it do to the pace and why might the poet want to do this? Why is the wind given its own caesura? Why would the poet want to pause here? Why would the poet want to divide up the poem like this? Autumn arrives Like an experienced robber Grabbing the green stuff Then cunningly covering his tracks With a deep multitude Of colourful distractions. And the wind, The wind is his accomplice Putting an air of chaos Into the careful diversions So branches shake And dead leaves are suddenly blown In the faces of inquisitive strangers. The theft chills the world Changes the temper of the earth Till the normally placid sky Glows red with a quiet rage.

Using all the analysis and evaluation completed today… • Read the feedback given to you on your mock exam and respond to it in red pen. • Make changes to your mock exam answer based on: • How much you discussed the language and its effects within ‘Autumn’. Do you need to include further analysis? • How much you discussed the use of language techniques in and the structure of the poem. Did you explain how and why they affect the reader?

t uplifte c m e r f r a e d p w o p en e z e h c t bre a l n u l o o c bursting releasin g d e h c t e s d n a h g n i d l o h Look at the adjectives and verbs used to describe the arrival of spring in ‘Today’. Discussion: How is this language so very different to the language used in Autumn? What might this be? Extension: What is the writer trying to say to us?

What we need to work on as a group in terms of the second unseen poetry question: • Making sure we include what language techniques are used by the writers in both poems. • Explain the effects of the techniques on the reader in both poems • Discuss how structure is used by the writer to create effects on the reader in both poems. • This question is worth 8 marks – be careful with your time management!

‘Today’ throw rip the little door from its jamb taking a hammer to the glass paperweight ‘Autumn’ Grabbing So branches shake Suddenly blown Chills the world Glows red with a quiet rage Both poems use quite violent and aggressive verbs and imagery, but for very different reasons. The violence in ‘Autumn’ is the season attacking the world and its people, stealing from them. The violence in ‘Today’ is targeted at the Winter and about releasing the world and its people from its stasis and isolation.

• Read the feedback given to you on your mock exam and respond to it in red pen. • Make changes to your mock exam answer based on: • How much you compared the use of language and structure within both poems. • What similar or different effects these techniques have on readers. Self assessment Success criteria: • Clear points comparing how the presentation of choice is shown in both poems. • Use of quotes from both poems. • Use of techniques from both poems. • Connectives to link points together. • Link sentences used to make comparisons.

Plenary: Battleships! You have each been given a 10 x 10 grid. You can now draw your navy onto your paper! Each player's fleet consists of the following ships: • 1 x Aircraft carrier - 5 squares • 1 x Battleship - 4 squares • 1 x Cruiser - 3 squares • 2 x Destroyers - 2 squares each • 2 x Submarines - 1 square each • To describe the key language and structural features of both ‘Autumn’ and ‘Today’ • To explain the effects of these features on the readers • To evaluate the effectiveness of our mock exam answers based on success criteria Each person talks about one thing they’ve learnt from today’s lesson. If the other person is happy with the answer then they can choose one square to fire at. Once all the boats are hit then that player wins the game!

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