The Prelude Stealing the boat by William Wordsworth

‘The Prelude’ (Stealing the boat) by William Wordsworth To identify the meaning of a poem through close language analysis To be able to respond To be able to comment on structural features and poetic creatively to a poem through devices in a poem analysis paragraphs LO: To be able to effectively respond to a poetry exam question

What you need to know • The Prelude is proclaimed to be one of the greatest works of literature ever written in English. It is a long autobiographical poem in 14 sections. The first version was written in 1798 but he continued to work on it throughout his lifetime. His wife Mary published it three months after his death in 1850. • The poem shows the spiritual growth of the poet, how he comes to terms with who he is, and his place in nature and the world. • Wordsworth was inspired by memories of events and visits to different places, explaining how they affected him. He described The Prelude as ‘a poem on the growth of my own mind’ with ‘contrasting views of Man, Nature, and Society’. • This extract describes how Wordsworth went out in a boat on a lake at night. He was alone and a mountain peak loomed over him; its presence had a great effect and for days afterwards he was troubled by the experience. To identify the meaning of a poem through close language analysis To be able to respond To be able to comment on structural features and poetic creatively to a poem through devices in a poem analysis paragraphs LO: To be able to effectively respond to a poetry exam question

First impressions The extract begins: ‘One summer evening (led by her) I found A little boat tied to a willow tree Within a rocky cove, its usual home. Straight I unloosed her chain, and. . . ’ What do you notice about: o The style: are the words easy/difficult to understand? o The location: what sort of place is being described? o The event: what is likely to happen? Now listen to the extract and read through your copy. http: //www. bbc. co. uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetryplace/thepreluderev 2. shtml To identify the meaning of a poem through close language analysis To be able to respond To be able to comment on structural features and poetic creatively to a poem through devices in a poem analysis paragraphs LO: To be able to effectively respond to a poetry exam question

The poem is a story? ! ‘The Prelude’ is a narrative poem (and a very long one at that!) This section we are reading is just an extract however, it still has a beginning, a middle and an end. Track the five distinct sections marking on your copy where they start and begin: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. The boy ‘borrows’ a boat and starts to row across a lake. The boy is enjoying his trip so decides to head further into the lake. The boy becomes afraid of something. The boy hurries back and returns home. Later, the boy thinks about what he experienced and tries to make sense of it. The poem is written in blank verse. To identify the meaning of a poem through close language analysis To be able to respond To be able to comment on structural features and poetic creatively to a poem through devices in a poem analysis paragraphs LO: To be able to effectively respond to a poetry exam question

Exploring detail Work your way through the questions printed on the copy of the poem. Then, complete the table below (make a neat copy in your books). An image of the natural world as a place of beauty and calm reflection ‘Small circles glittering idly in the moon’, To identify the meaning of a poem through close language analysis What this image suggests to me. . . An image of the natural world as a place that sometimes exerts a powerful and frightening force What this image suggests to me. . . ‘the grim shape / Towered up’ To be able to respond To be able to comment on structural features and poetic creatively to a poem through devices in a poem analysis paragraphs LO: To be able to effectively respond to a poetry exam question

Create a graphic representation • This poem is a self-contained story. You need to create a graphic representation of the poem which explains what happens within the extract. • Your images must be accompanied by quotations from the poem to highlight what is happening at each point. • Then you must summarise the action in your own words below the images. To identify the meaning of a poem through close language analysis To be able to respond To be able to comment on structural features and poetic creatively to a poem through devices in a poem analysis paragraphs LO: To be able to effectively respond to a poetry exam question

To summarise… Key vocabulary: s: Key theme the -The poweroorfld. natural w ary -The ordin ed to the transform ary. extraordin • You could compare ‘The Prelude: stealing the boat’ to: ‘London’ and ‘Storm on the Island’ All printed on your copy of the poem sheet. Key features: • This extract is written in blank verse. • Autobiographical. • From the Romantic period (a lot of emphasis on the power and beauty of the natural world) • An extract from a much longer poem.