GCSE English Literature Paper 2 Section C Unseen

GCSE English Literature Paper 2 Section C: Unseen Poetry

Unseen Poetry There are two questions on unseen poetry. The first question is about one poem and worth 24 marks. The second question asks you to compare a new poem with the first and is worth 8 marks.

Question 1 35 mins The first question will ask you to analyse a poem you have not read before. Read the poem once through.

Now read the question and underline the key words. 27. 1 How does the poet present theme of loss?

27. 1 How does the poet present theme of loss? Now reread the poem and highlight any words, phrases or images in the poem which relate to the key words in the question.

27. 1 How does the poet present theme of loss? Pronoun ‘you’ Now attach terminology to the bits you have highlighted Personification Met. Repetition

27. 1 How does the poet present theme of loss? Now choose which you think are the best three points to answer the question. Be selective and consider: • Variety of points • Variety of techniques • Do NOT use the final image in the poem • Number them chronologically

Variety 27. 1 of points Variety techniques How does the poet present theof theme of loss? Do NOT use the final image in the poem Number them chronologically Pronoun ‘you’ 1 Personification Met. 3 Repetition 2

Turning your Plan into an Essay These annotations on your poem are your essay plan. In the exam you will write one analytical paragraph about each point. Finish your essay with an analytical paragraph on the final image in the poem (which relates to the question) and the writer’s message.

The poet presents theme of loss when he writes ‘since you left’. The second person pronoun ‘you’ suggests that the speaker is writing about a very specific person that they have lost. Also, the word ‘left’ tells us that the speaker once lived with the person who has now gone. The phrase ‘since you left’ is repeated further down the poem, implying that even over time the sense of loss isn’t getting any easier. Contextually, the loss could be through the death of the person they’re talking about, but it could also be that there has been a relationship break down and therefore the person has left. The reader feels sad and sympathetic for the speaker. Even though we are clearly reading a very personal poem about two specific people, many readers can share the sense of loss that the speaker is experiencing.

27. 1 How does the poet present theme of loss? Example final analytical paragraph The poet’s final image is effective because it emphasises the intense emotional pain that the speaker is experiencing. The use of the verb “weeping” suggests deep sorrow. He personifies the pillows as “weeping in to the sheets”. This powerful image reminds us of their close domestic relationship and physical intimacy. By finishing the poem in the most private room of the house, the poet is suggesting his grief is for a lover.

Question 2 The second question will ask you to compare another poem you have never seen before with the first one. 10 mins

First read the question and underline the key words. 27. 2 In both ‘Funeral Blues’ and ‘The House is not. . . ’ the speakers describe feelings of loss. What are the similarities and/or differences between the ways the poets present these feelings? (8 marks)

Now read the poem. Highlight one or two specific points you can compare with the first poem (in a way which answers the question). Similar: Domestic imagery Diff: Builds up to outside imagery and images of nature.

Unseen Comparison For this question you have only 10 minutes. Don’t waste time with an introduction or generic comments. Make an interesting specific point of comparison immediately.

Unseen Comparison Both poets use images of domestic life to describe their feelings of loss. Normal uses “Cooker”, “TV” and “kettle”, whilst Auden talks about “clocks” and “telephones”. Whilst the speaker in Henry Normal’s poem becomes more private in his grief using imagery of the bedroom where they may have shared intimate moments, Auden wants the whole universe to share in his grief ending the poem with the desire for the “sun”, “moon” and “stars” to disappear in recognition of his loss.

1. Find three other specific ways you could compare these poems. 2. After you have selected the points of comparison. Write 1, 2 or 3 analytical paragraphs.