Mod C: Into the World

Elective 1: Into the World

Prescribed Text: Selected poems by William Blake

From Songs of Innocence: ‘The Ecchoing Green’, ‘The Lamb’, ‘The Chimney

Sweeper’. From Songs of Experience: ‘The Chimney Sweeper’, ‘The Sick Rose’, ‘The

Tyger’, ‘London’

Module C: Texts and Society

For this elective you will study a prescribed text PLUS at least two related texts of your own choosing.

Questions to help FOCUS your study of Module C ...

Texts and Society

What context does this text reveal?

Texts and Society

What society does this text reveal?

Texts and Society

What situation does this text reveal?

Texts and Society

What attitudes are held by individuals or groups in this text?

Texts and Society

What beliefs are held by individuals or groups in this text?

Texts and Society

What techniques are used to reveal these different aspects of the society/situation

being represented?

Texts and Society

What form is the text?

Texts and Society

What language does the text use?

Texts and Society

Who/what grows up/transitions into a new phase of life in the text?

Into the World

How do characters in the text respond to the different experiences they encounter as part

of growing up or transitioning into a new phase of life?

Into the World

Do the characters grow or change as a result of these experiences?

Into the World

Why do these new experiences occur?

Into the World

What are the consequences of these experiences?

Into the World

How has the composer used the language and structural features of his/her chosen form to

alter your perspective of individuals who venture into new experiences?

Into the World

What is the name of the module we are studying?What is this module about?What is the name of the elective we are studying?What is this elective about?How many texts are you expected to write about?What is our prescribed text?

Pop Quiz

William Blake was born in 1757 in London, England.

William Blake

Uncomfortable with the restrictive nature of formal schooling Blake left early and was primarily self-educated.

William Blake

He completed an apprenticeship as an engraver and worked in this profession for most of his life.

William Blake

He began writing poetry and illustrating these yet despite his best efforts he did not achieve recognition for his poetry during his lifetime.

William Blake

Blake died in 1827.

William Blake

William Blake is considered one of the very first Romantic poets due to his interest in:

the spiritual condition of mankind his visionary beliefs about man’s relationship

with natureman’s relationship with the spiritual realm.

He was influenced by the bible yet he was resistant to formalised religion that took money from the poor and provided little in return.

William Blake

The main themes of his body of work are to do with ...

William Blake

the nature of the human soul

William Blake

religion and spirituality

William Blake

the corrupting influence of the modern world

William Blake

nature

William Blake

Context

William Blake’s poems are set in his own context – England during the second half of the 18th century.

William Blake

The era in which William Blake was writing is characterised by revolution.

William Blake

This period saw the French Revolution,

William Blake

The American Revolution

William Blake

Industrial Revolution

William Blake

This was a period of great change for society and for the role of individuals within society.

Blake’s context plays a significant role in the setting and content of his poems.

William Blake

His poems can be viewed as a social commentary on English society, particularly London.

The city itself birthed the character of both poems titled ‘The Chimney Sweep’ as well as being the main focus of the poem ‘London’.

William Blake

Audience

These poems were initially written for an audience of children however their subtle commentary on Blake’s society and his poetic skill make them enjoyable for adults also.

William Blake

Purpose

The selected poems of Blake have a didactic purpose as they are designed to instruct the reader in a particular lesson. They are also written to entertain the reader.

William Blake

Follow Your Ears.

It’s okay to ask, “What does it mean?” when reading a poem. But it’s even better to ask, “How does it sound?” If all else fails, treat it like a song. Even if you can’t understand a single thing about a poem’s “subject” or “theme,” you can always say something – anything – about the sound of the words.

How to Read a Poem

Does the poem move fast or slow?

Does it sound awkward in sections or does it have an even flow?

Do certain words stick out more than others?

Trust your inner ear:

If the poem sounds strange, it doesn’t mean you’re reading it wrong. In fact, you probably just discovered one of the poem’s secret tricks!

Read It Aloud.

Reading even part of the poem aloud can totally change your perspective on how it works.

How to Read a Poem

Become an Archaeologist.

When you’ve drunk in the poem enough times, experiencing the sound and images found there, it is sometimes fun to switch gears and to become an archaeologist .

How to Read a Poem

Treat the poem like a room you have just entered. Perhaps it’s a strange room that you’ve never seen before, filled with objects or people that you don’t really recognize. What kind of objects do you find? Are there more verbs than adjectives? Do you detect a rhythm? Are there traces of other poems or historical references to be found.

Be Patient.

You can’t really understand a poem that you’ve only read once. You just can’t. So if you don’t get it, set the poem aside and come back to it later. It’s a much bigger accomplishment to actually enjoy a poem than it is to be able to explain every line of it.

How to Read a Poem

Think Like a Poet.

Go through the poem one line at a time, covering up the next line with your hand so you can’t see it. Put yourself in the poet’s shoes: If I had to write a line to come after this line, what would I put? If you start to think like this, you’ll be able to appreciate all the different choices that go into making a poem

How to Read a Poem

“Look Who’s Talking.”

Ask the most basic questions possible of the poem. Two of the most important are:

“Who’s talking?” and “Who are they talking to?”

How to Read a Poem

The speaker of every poem is kind of fictional creation, and so is the audience. Ask yourself:

What would it be like to meet this person? What would they look like? What’s their “deal,” anyway?

Never Be Intimidated.

No poet wants to make his or her audience feel stupid. Sure, there might be tricky parts, but it’s not like you’re trying to unlock the secrets of the universe

Source: http://www.shmoop.com/poetry/how-to-read-poem/how-to-read.html

How to Read a Poem

For each term that appears on the screen, give a brief definition and an example.

Poetic Terms Quiz

Metaphor

Rhythm

Rhyme

Alliteration

Personification

Assonance

Symbolism

Onomatopoeia

Tone

Imagery

Quatrain

Simile

Stanza

Speaker

Metaphor:

A metaphor happens when one thing is described as being another thing. “You’re a toad!” is a metaphor – although not a very nice one. And metaphor is different from simile because it leaves out the words “like” or “as.” For example, a simile would be, “You’re like a toad.”

Rhythm

The way a poem flows from one idea to the next. In free-verse poetry, the rhythm seems to follow the poet’s natural voice, almost as if he or she were speaking to the reader. In more traditional poetry, a regular rhythm is established.

Notice how the accented syllables in the follow lines create the poem’s regular rhythm:

Whose wóods these áre I thínk I knów.

His house is ín the ´village though.

(Robert Frost)

Rhyme  

A rhyme has the repetition of the same or similar sounds at the end of two or more words most often at the ends of lines

Alliteration

Alliteration happens when words that begin with the same sound are placed close to one another. For example, “the silly snake silently slinked by” is a form of alliteration. Try saying that ten times fast.

Personification:

The treatment of an object or a quality as if it were a person.

Example:The beams of light skipped on the crest of waves.

Assonance

The repetition of vowel sounds in words.

Example:My stepmom shouted loud as a train.

Symbolism

A symbol is a word or object that stands for another word or object. The object or word can be seen with the eye or not visible. For example a dove stands for Peace. The dove can be seen and peace cannot.

Onomatopoeia:

Omatopoeia refers either to words that resemble in sound what they represent. For example, do you hear the hissing noise when you say the word “hiss” aloud? And the old Batman television show loved onomatopoeia: “Bam! Pow! Kaplow!”

Tone

The writer's attitude toward the material and/or readers. Tone may be playful, formal, intimate, angry, serious, ironic, outraged, baffled, tender, serene, depressed, etc.

Imagery:

Imagery is intense, descriptive language in a poem that helps to trigger our senses and our memories when we read it.

Quatrain:

A stanza with four lines. Quatrains are the most common stanza form.

Simile:

Similes compare one thing directly to another. For example, "My love is like a burning flame” is a simile. You can quickly identify similes when you see the words “like” or “as” used, as in “x is like y.” Similes are different from metaphors – for example, a metaphor would refer to "the burning flame of my love."

Stanza:

A division within a poem where a group of lines are formed into a unit. The word “stanza” comes from the Italian word for “room.” Just like a room, a poetic stanza is set apart on a page by four “walls” of blank, white space.

Speaker:

The speaker is the voice behind the poem – the person we imagine to be speaking. It’s important to note that the speaker is not the poet. Even if the poem is biographical, you should treat the speaker as a fictional creation, because the writer is choosing what to say about himself.

Dost thou = do youThee = you O’er = over Thy = your Thou = you Tho’ = although Thou art sick = you are sick

The sun does arise, And make happy the skies. The merry bells ring To welcome the spring. The skylark and thrush, The birds of the bush, Sing louder around, To the bells’ cheerful sound,

‘The Ecchoing Green’Symbolis

m Regular rhyme

scheme: aa/bb/cc

Repeated image

Personification

Alliteration

While our sports shall be seen On the echoing green. Old John with white hair Does laugh away care, Sitting under the oak, Among the old folk. They laugh at our play, And soon they all say: ‘Such, such were the joys When we all, girls and boys,

‘The Ecchoing Green’

Symbolism

Third person personal pronoun

Collective personal pronoun

(perspective)

Repeated image

In our youth-time were seen On the echoing green.’ Till the little ones weary No more can be merry; The sun does descend, And our sports have an end. Round the laps of their mother Many sisters and brothers, Like birds in their nest, Are ready for rest; And sport no more seen On the darkening green.

‘The Ecchoing Green’Dialogue

Simile

Repeated symbol

Symbolism; shifting tone

This poem creates an image of early Spring when the world comes alive with the sights and sounds of youth. Blake describes young children playing on a grassy area whilst their parents and extended family watch on. The ‘old folk’ reflect on a time when they too could run around all day like the little children. As the sun sets the children, tired from a day of playing and fun, run to the arms of their mothers.

‘The Ecchoing Green’

This poem, taken metaphorically, charts the swift movement from childhood fun to adulthood with ‘The sun’ being interpreted as a metaphor for life.

‘The Ecchoing Green’

It does however literally reveal the joys of childhood and the need for children to play. The poet subtly suggests that the pleasure and innocence of childhood is short-lived, with children finding it difficult to ‘be merry’ after a long day of playing when ‘the sun does descend’.

Into the World

Coming into the world, the children play their games on the Ecchoing Green without pause, excited by the prospect of living and growing up.

Into the World

This is similar to the joy and enthusiasm for new life held by the ‘sky-lark and thrush’ and the ‘birds in the bush’ that ‘Sing louder around/ To the bells’ cheerful sound.’

Into the World

Old John and the ‘old folks’ laugh at the joy of the children. This comparison is furthered with the image of the children retreating to the comfort of their mothers ‘like birds in their nest’.

Into the World

The wholesome and innocent imagery of this simile reminds the reader that play must always come to an end because the ‘sun does descend’. Blake tells us that the consequences of aging and the loss of innocence is that there will be no more sport and fun, ‘on the darkening Green.’

Into the World