"Education for Leisure" Carol Ann Duffy

• Engels
• Upper Secondary (Key Stage 4)
• GCSE

Goals for today 

Some techniques in "Education for Leisure"  

Exploration of some authorial choices made by the poet 

Further consideration of the poetic persona 

Supporting your assigned poetic persona personality

"Education for Leisure"
What ideas, associations,
concepts come to
mind from this title?

Reading to the punctuation 

Consideration of a poem by Carol Ann Duffy 

Note expansion to find salient points 

Concepts in the poem and techniques 

The poetic persona 

Do we have different topics or concepts in this poem? 

• Selfishness
  
• Isolation 
  
• Boredom
• Alienation 
  
• Anger 
  
• Greed 
  
• Materialism 
  
• Self-loathing

What concepts or topics
are highlighted in this
poem?

Which, according
to you is the "best" line
in this poem?

Answer these questions 

Who?

What? 

When? 

Why?

Answer these questions 

• Who? an unemployed young person who thinks he is a genius 
  
• What? He kills the goldfish (maybe kills or tortures the budgie and the cat) 
  
• When? Today, an ordinary day
  
• Why? Because he wants to play God for a day 
  
• Expand this kernel sentence: decides to take control 
  

Summary sentence

On an ordinary day, a young unemployed person, who thinks he is a genius and wants to play God for a day, decides to take control of his life by killing a fly and a goldfish and wanting to hurt others.

"As flies to wanton boys are we to the gods; / They kill us for their sport."

King Lear by William Shakespeare

Allusion 

‘wanton’: reckless, having no control or motive

‘for their sport’: for fun

1.  What does this quote mean and how is it referenced in the poem? 
   
2.  What does Shakespeare mean to the speaker, and how the speaker relates this to the squashing of the fly?
   
3.  What does the act of squashing the fly tells us about the poetic persona, their experience of the world and how they see themselves?  
   

"God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day."

Genesis 1:31

Allusion 

Goals for today 

Some techniques in "Education for Leisure"  

Exploration of some authorial choices made by the poet 

Further consideration of the poetic persona 

Supporting your assigned poetic persona personality

Affixes 

ARBOR

Root of the day

Arbor comes from two Latin and means "tree, grass or herb" 

Rate the word 1 to 4

1. I do not know the word, and I have never seen it before. 

2. I've heard or seen the word before, but I'm not sure what it means. 

3. I know the word and can recognise and understand it while reading, but I probably wouldn't feel comfortable using it in writing or speech. 

4. I know the word well and can use it correctly in writing or speech. 

Arboreal

Word of the day

Arboreal (n) - of, relating to, or resembling a tree

inhabiting or frequenting trees

The arboreal monkeys were swinging in the tree canopy. 

Colloquial

Caesura 

enjambment 

Stanza

Alliteration 

Allusion

End-stopped lines

Symbolism

Repetition 

Free verse 

How is the topic of alienation and narcissism explored in this poem? 

Pathetic fallacy

1. The speaker is deluded 

2. The speaker is violent , mentally unstable and a threat

4.  The speaker is alone and neglected by society

5.  The speaker feels he is a star or a genius or a god

3. The speaker is calm and cold-hearted

For your statement, find evidence that supports this claim. 

What techniques are used to aid in supporting the claim. 

The speaker is deluded 

You could consider: 

• Any boasts etc. you don’t think are true, and what they signify
  
• Use of the first-person pronoun
  
• The form of the poem (what is this called?)
  
• The structure of the poem – how sentences run on to the next line (what is this called?)
  
• Figurative language
  

The speaker is violent, mentally unstable and a threat

You could consider: 

• Powerful, violent language and imagery
  
• Short sentences – what do they convey?
  
• The form of the poem (monologue) and how it is structured (is there a pattern?)
  
• The end of the poem

The speaker alone and neglected by society 

You could consider: 

• The title – What does it tell us about the speaker’s experience of education?
  
• Any hints about the character’s life, e.g. where he lives
  
• Short sentences – what do they convey?
  
• The form of the poem (monologue) and how it is structured (is there a pattern?)
  

The speaker feels he is a star or a genius or a god

You could consider: 

• Words / phrases which suggest power, fame glory
  
• Any boasts etc. you don’t think are true, and what they signify
  
• Use of the first-person pronoun
  
• The form of the poem (monologue) and how it is structured (is there a pattern?)
  
• Figurative language
  

The speaker is calm and cold-hearted

You could consider: 

• Short sentences
  
• Use of the first-person pronoun
  
• How violent language and imagery is conveyed
  
• The form and structure of the poem
  

The speaker is calm and cold-hearted

You could consider: 

• Short sentences
  
• Use of the first-person pronoun
  
• How violent language and imagery is conveyed
  
• The form and structure of the poem
  

1. Make a new group containing one member of each group. 

2. Share your support for the claim your group investigated regarding the poetic persona. 

The use of … signifies… 

The structure / form reflects…

This perhaps refers to…

… might suggest that… 

The word … symbolises…

To add to what … said…

The poet criticises…

It could be argued that…

I disagree, because…

UK early 1980s

Read the article, published in The Guardian, in MB files.

1. Summarise the article in one sentence using who, what, when, how and why. 

2. What is your opinion? Should this poem have been banned in 2008? It was published in 1985. 

3. What issues were there in British society and among British youth when the poem was written? Research these riots: Handsworth, Birmingham; the Broadwater Farm estate, Tottenham and the Brixton riot (1985).  What possible causes for these unrests can you find? 

4. How do these issues affect the poetic persona?

5. Is the poem relevant today?

Rate the word 1 to 4

1. I do not know the word, and I have never seen it before. 

2. I've heard or seen the word before, but I'm not sure what it means. 

3. I know the word and can recognise and understand it while reading, but I probably wouldn't feel comfortable using it in writing or speech. 

4. I know the word well and can use it correctly in writing or speech. 

Arborist

Word of the day

Arborist (n) - a person whose job is to take care of trees and make sure that they are healthy and safe, for example by cutting off branches that are damaged:

Can you think of a job description or a description of somebody's belief or hobby that ends in -ist?

He sought advice from an arborist who said the roots must be in poor condition.

chemist, florist, pianist, dentist, bassist, motorist, vocalist, pasifist etc

Anger

Arrogance

Alienation

Insecurity 

Narcissism 

Materialistic 

Egotistical 

Selfish 

Malicious 

Desperation 

Isolation 

Violence 

Pick five concepts ,that interest you, and make for each a simile or metaphor that expresses that concept in a imaginative way. Focus for each concept on a different  sense. 

1

Concepts and topics we generated 

Pick one of these concepts. Make a "Things To Do" poem for that concept. 

This is a list poem detailing actions related to a concept. 

Example: 

Things to do today for arrogance: 

Touch the head, lightly of an afghan hound. 

Brown eyes, mirror my benificience 

2

Gustatory

Olfactory

Tactile 

Visual 

Auditory 

Enjambment forces a reader down to the next line, and the next, quickly. The reader needs to move forward in order to comfortably resolve a phrase or sentence. There is brief, momentary confusion at the end of the line. 

1. Find three examples of enjambment. 
   
2. How has Duffy used this technique to impel the reader to move to the next line in order to resolve understanding? 
   
3. What ideas, words or concepts gain focus through this technique? How does this support the message that Duffy is interested in? 
   

Goals for today 

Summative results and investigating formal and informal language usage

Feedforward on your paper 1 

Completing "Education for Leisure" 

Response to the banning of the poem from Duffy 

Rate the word 1 to 4

1. I do not know the word, and I have never seen it before. 

2. I've heard or seen the word before, but I'm not sure what it means. 

3. I know the word and can recognise and understand it while reading, but I probably wouldn't feel comfortable using it in writing or speech. 

4. I know the word well and can use it correctly in writing or speech. 

Arborio 

Word of the day

Arborio (n) - a type of Italian rice with short, fat grains

Named after Arborio, a town in Piedmont; the toponym is most likely linked to Latin arboreus (“wooden, tree-like”).

Toponym - a word that comes from the name of a place 

Arborio rice is also used for rice pudding.

1. Having too big of a mouth 

2. call the shots 

3. kids 

4. talk back 

5. on equal footing 

6. come to surface

7 (she) is done with it

8. All in all (conclusion) 

9. coming to light 

10. faking it 

11. around the half way mark

12. Bring (Krogstad) to her side

13. flip it onto him 

14. pull him onto her side 

15. getting sick of 

16. gloves are off 

coax/entice 

resolved 

In summation 

condemn 

persuade (Krogstad) to 

children 

disillusioned with 

on equal terms / on an equivalent basis 

arise/appear 

being too assertive 

emerge 

feigning 

respond/rejoin 

hold decision-making power 

without reservation 

half way through act II 

As a group join the correct informal term with the more formal term. 

1. Having too big of a mouth 

2. call the shots 

3. kids 

4. talk back 

5. on equal footing 

6. come to surface

7 (she) is done with it

8. All in all (conclusion) 

9. coming to light 

10. faking it 

11. around the half way mark

12. Bring (Krogstad) to her side

13. flip it onto him 

14. pull him onto her side 

15. getting sick of 

16. gloves are off 

Being too assertive 

hold decision-making power 

children 

respond/rejoin 

on equal terms / on an equivalent basis 

arise/appear 

resolved 

In summation 

emerge 

feigning 

half way through act II 

persuade (Krogstad) to 

condemn 

coax/entice 

disillusioned with 

without reservation 

17. switches gear 

18. didn't add up 

19. come to a head 

20. picture perfect life 

21. spin himself as 

22. curate a life 

23. shut down the conversation 

24. save her skin 

25. shows off 

26. acting dumb/play dumb 

27. second guessing himself 

28. guilt trip 

29. rise out of her shell 

30 women have to be at the feet of men 

1. Make a key in the right order 

2. Make a jumbled list 

3. Swap the jumbled list with another table 

4. Solve and give back for checking 

Point: The poetic persona is alone and neglected by society. 

Expand this point to construct a focused topic sentence. Remember; in order to do what? 

Evidence: 

“I have had enough of being ignored”

“boredom stirring in the streets”

“They don’t appreciate my autograph.”

“He cuts me off.”

Construct a paragraph with a detailed and specific topic sentence and using (parts of) the evidence and evaluating how this evidence supports your claim.  

Caesura occurs when a line is split in half.  The use of punctuation in these moments creates a very intentional pause in the text. You can consider how the pause influences the rhythm of your reading and how it might precede an important turn or transition in the text. 

1. Find three examples of caesura
   
2. How has Duffy used this technique to create rhythm or to introduce an important turn or transition in the text? 
   
3. What ideas, words or concepts gain focus through this technique? How does this support the message that Duffy is interested in? 
   

AWL

Goals for today 

Feedback and feedforward summative 

Reflection on the unit If This Is a Man

Reading "In Mrs Tilscher's class" 

WWW and EBI

• Read your feedback. 
• Look at the example parts of body paragraphs for criterion B. Collected from the internet. Consider what is the difference between each level criterion. Discuss in your group. 
  
• Complete your feedforward form in Teams general feed. 
  
• Complete your reflection feedback on this unit. 
  

ups and downs 

heavy 

to stick to 

build up of 

giving off a ...tone

Put into words 

zoomed out perspective 

Picking apart this quote 

get across 

play with emotions 

big of an effort 

accumulation of 

exploration of this quote 

convey

to influence

extensive effort 

tension 

extreme effort 

arduous 

distanced/objective tone 

emotional tension 

pursue  

"In Mrs Tilscher's Class" 

Reading to the punctuation 

On the sticky notes, write down in your groups something you see in the poem, something you think and something you wonder about. 

See, think, wonder 

In Teams content library there is a document "10 questions for poetry analysis". Answer these questions for this poem in your class notebook. 

Using questions to guide your understanding