V4 poems so far & literary devices review

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• vwo
• Leerjaar 4

You survived test week!

Today's class

Funeral Blues

The Martian - extra

HW next week: 

Of Course Unit 3.1 - read text & answer q. 1-7

Period 3

Literature & writing test:

Poetry - literary devices general & poetry explanation

Writing an informal e-mail

Literary analysis novel (list) handi in

Unit 3 test:

vocab/expressions/grammar

Questions "Funeral Blues"

ANSWER THE QUESTIONS IN GROUPS OF 3-4 -> 10-15 MIN.

1) Explain the title

2) Why should the aeroplanes circle be ‘moaning’? 

3) Explain stanzas 1/2/3.

4) Why should all the items mentioned in stanza 4 be gone?  

5) Find as many literary devices as you can. Use the back of your poetry booklet AND find & explain hyperbole; assonance

Funeral Blues - W.H. Auden

Read the poem and in groups of 3- 4:

a) explain the title

b) why are aeroplanes moaning?

c) what is this poem about?

d) What is stanza 3 about?

e) Find as many literary devices as you can in this poem

Funeral Blues  - W.H. Auden (1907 - 1973) 

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone, 

Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone, 

Silence the pianos and with muffled drum.          

Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come. 

 Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead  

Scribbling on the sky the message He Is Dead, 

Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,  

Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves. 

He was my North, my South, my East and West, 

My working week and my Sunday rest, 

My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song; 

I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong. 

 

 The stars are not wanted now; put out every one; 

Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun;               

Pour away the ocean and sweep up the wood; 

For nothing now can come to any good. 

 

Funeral Blues - W.H. Auden

Elegy

A poem lamenting the death of a public person, or a loved one;

4 stanzas (=group of lines forming a unit in a poem), 4 lines   per stanza;

     

fixed rhyme scheme AABB;

Funeral Blues - key

a) title - funeral = someone died; blues = sad music

b) symbol  - sth. is literally what it is AND stands for sth. with a deeper meaning

c) imagery  - the use of pictures in words: metaphor, simile, symbol

d) hyperbole - deliberate exaggeration

e) assonance - repetition of similar vowel sounds in 2 or more words close to each other/in close proximity

Symbolism

 An object representing another, to give an entirely different meaning that is 

much deeper/ more significant.

Symbolism in "Funeral Blues"

Q 1) What does it mean to "Stop the Clock", "Cut off the phone", "Silence the piano" ?

Q 2) What do "black cotton gloves" symbolize?

Q 3) "He was my North, my South, my East and West" - what do these words symbolize?

Imagery in "Funeral Blues"

The use of particular words that create a visual representation of ideas in our minds (symbols, metaphors, simile)

Q: What comes to mind when you hear the words "blues", "moaning", and "muffled drum"?

Hyperbole in "Funeral Blues"

A hyperbole is an unreal exaggeration to emphasize a real situation.

Common hyperboles (everyday use):

1. She's so heavy, she weighs a ton!
   
2. I'm dying of shame!
   
3. What a dumb action: you must have a pea-sized brain!
   
4. It took him ages to solve the problem
   

What have you learned about the poem Funeral Blues? (literary devices)

If you were a Martian, 

1. How would you describe a refrigerator?
2. How would you describe "taking a shower"?
3. How would you describe "falling in love"?

4. Come up with one "Martian" description of human behaviour 

or a "thing" on earth & turn it into a poem 

From June to December - 1

1 Prelude 

It wouldn't be a good idea 

To let him stay. 

When they knew each other better - 

Not today. 

But she put on her new black knickers 

Anyway. 

 

The way the sun lights up the sky - 

I think of little else but you. 

 

I hardly sleep - an hour or two; 

I can't eat much and this is why - 

You know exactly what to do. 

 

The movie in my mind is blue - 

As June runs into warm July 

I think of little else but you. 

 

But is it love? And is it true? 

Who cares? This much I can't deny: 

You know exactly what to do; 

I think of little else but you. 

4 The Reading 

In crumpled, bardic corduroy, 

The poet took the stage 

And read aloud his deathless verse, 

Page by deathless page. 

I gazed at him as though intent 

On every word he said. 

From time to time I'd close my eyes 

And smile and nod my head. 

 

He may have thought his every phrase 

Sent shivers down my spine. 

Perhaps I helped encourage him 

To read till half past nine. 

 

Don't ask what it was all about - 

I haven't got a clue. 

I spent a blissful evening, lost 

In carnal thoughts of you. 

5 Some People 

Some people like sex more than others - 

You seem to like it a lot. 

There's nothing wrong with being innocent or high-minded 

But I'm glad you're not. 

6 Going Too Far 

Cuddling the new telephone directory 

After I found your name in it 

Was going too far. 

It's a safe bet you're not hugging a phone book, 

Wherever you are. 

7 Verse for a Birthday Card 

Many happy returns and good luck. 

When it comes to a present, I'm stuck. 

If you weren't far away 

On your own special day, 

I could give you a really nice glass of lager 

8 Love Story 

I thought you'd be a pushover; 

I hoped I wouldn't hurt you. 

I warned you this was just a fling 

And one day I'd desert you. 

 

So kindly in your spectacles, 

So solid in your jacket, 

So manly in your big white car 

That must have cost a packet. 

 

I grew to like you more and more - 

I didn't try to hide it. 

Fall in love with someone nice? - 

I'd hardly ever tried it. 

 

The course of true love didn't run 

Quite the way I'd planned it. 

You failed to fall in love with me - 

I couldn't understand it. 

9 Spring Onions 

Decapitating the spring onions, 

She made this mental note: 

You can tell it's love, the real thing, 

When you dream of slitting his throat. 

10 I'll Be Nice 

I'll be nice to you and smile - 

It's easy for a man to win - 

But I'll hate you all the while 

 

I shall go the extra mile 

And condone your every sin - 

I'll be nice to you and smile. 

 

You will think I like your style; 

You'll believe I've given in 

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

Safe as an atomic pile, 

Good as nitro-glycerine, 

I'll be nice to you and smile. 

 

I'll say hypocrisy is vile 

And give a reassuring grin 

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

Set against my wits and guile, 

Manly strength won't save your skin. 

I'll be nice to you and smile  

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

From June to December - 2

2 A Serious Person 

I can tell you're a serious person 

And I know from the way you talk 

That what goes on inside your head 

Is pure as the whitest chalk. 

 It's nice to meet serious people 

And hear them explain their views: 

Your concern for the rights of women 

Is especially welcome news. 

I'm sure you'd never exploit one; 

I expect you'd rather be dead; 

I'm thoroughly convinced of it - 

Now can we go to bed? 

From June to December - 3

3 Summer Villanelle 

You know exactly what to do - 

Your kiss, your fingers on my thigh - 

I think of little else but you. 

It's bliss to have a lover who, 

Touching one shoulder, makes me sigh - 

You know exactly what to do. 

You make me happy through and through, 

The way the sun lights up the sky - 

I think of little else but you. 

 

The movie in my mind is blue - 

As June runs into warm July 

I think of little else but you. 

 

But is it love? And is it true? 

Who cares? This much I can't deny: 

You know exactly what to do; 

I think of little else but you. 

4 The Reading 

In crumpled, bardic corduroy, 

The poet took the stage 

And read aloud his deathless verse, 

Page by deathless page. 

I gazed at him as though intent 

On every word he said. 

From time to time I'd close my eyes 

And smile and nod my head. 

 

He may have thought his every phrase 

Sent shivers down my spine. 

Perhaps I helped encourage him 

To read till half past nine. 

 

Don't ask what it was all about - 

I haven't got a clue. 

I spent a blissful evening, lost 

In carnal thoughts of you. 

5 Some People 

Some people like sex more than others - 

You seem to like it a lot. 

There's nothing wrong with being innocent or high-minded 

But I'm glad you're not. 

6 Going Too Far 

Cuddling the new telephone directory 

After I found your name in it 

Was going too far. 

It's a safe bet you're not hugging a phone book, 

Wherever you are. 

7 Verse for a Birthday Card 

Many happy returns and good luck. 

When it comes to a present, I'm stuck. 

If you weren't far away 

On your own special day, 

I could give you a really nice glass of lager 

8 Love Story 

I thought you'd be a pushover; 

I hoped I wouldn't hurt you. 

I warned you this was just a fling 

And one day I'd desert you. 

 

So kindly in your spectacles, 

So solid in your jacket, 

So manly in your big white car 

That must have cost a packet. 

 

I grew to like you more and more - 

I didn't try to hide it. 

Fall in love with someone nice? - 

I'd hardly ever tried it. 

 

The course of true love didn't run 

Quite the way I'd planned it. 

You failed to fall in love with me - 

I couldn't understand it. 

9 Spring Onions 

Decapitating the spring onions, 

She made this mental note: 

You can tell it's love, the real thing, 

When you dream of slitting his throat. 

10 I'll Be Nice 

I'll be nice to you and smile - 

It's easy for a man to win - 

But I'll hate you all the while 

 

I shall go the extra mile 

And condone your every sin - 

I'll be nice to you and smile. 

 

You will think I like your style; 

You'll believe I've given in 

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

Safe as an atomic pile, 

Good as nitro-glycerine, 

I'll be nice to you and smile. 

 

I'll say hypocrisy is vile 

And give a reassuring grin 

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

Set against my wits and guile, 

Manly strength won't save your skin. 

I'll be nice to you and smile  

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

From June to December - 3 cont.

I hardly sleep - an hour or two; 

I can't eat much and this is why - 

You know exactly what to do. 

 The movie in my mind is blue - 

As June runs into warm July 

I think of little else but you. 

 But is it love? And is it true? 

Who cares? This much I can't deny: 

You know exactly what to do; 

I think of little else but you. 

In crumpled, bardic corduroy, 

The poet took the stage 

And read aloud his deathless verse, 

Page by deathless page. 

I gazed at him as though intent 

On every word he said. 

From time to time I'd close my eyes 

And smile and nod my head. 

 

He may have thought his every phrase 

Sent shivers down my spine. 

Perhaps I helped encourage him 

To read till half past nine. 

 

Don't ask what it was all about - 

I haven't got a clue. 

I spent a blissful evening, lost 

In carnal thoughts of you. 

5 Some People 

Some people like sex more than others - 

You seem to like it a lot. 

There's nothing wrong with being innocent or high-minded 

But I'm glad you're not. 

6 Going Too Far 

Cuddling the new telephone directory 

After I found your name in it 

Was going too far. 

It's a safe bet you're not hugging a phone book, 

Wherever you are. 

7 Verse for a Birthday Card 

Many happy returns and good luck. 

When it comes to a present, I'm stuck. 

If you weren't far away 

On your own special day, 

I could give you a really nice glass of lager 

8 Love Story 

I thought you'd be a pushover; 

I hoped I wouldn't hurt you. 

I warned you this was just a fling 

And one day I'd desert you. 

 

So kindly in your spectacles, 

So solid in your jacket, 

So manly in your big white car 

That must have cost a packet. 

 

I grew to like you more and more - 

I didn't try to hide it. 

Fall in love with someone nice? - 

I'd hardly ever tried it. 

 

The course of true love didn't run 

Quite the way I'd planned it. 

You failed to fall in love with me - 

I couldn't understand it. 

9 Spring Onions 

Decapitating the spring onions, 

She made this mental note: 

You can tell it's love, the real thing, 

When you dream of slitting his throat. 

10 I'll Be Nice 

I'll be nice to you and smile - 

It's easy for a man to win - 

But I'll hate you all the while 

 

I shall go the extra mile 

And condone your every sin - 

I'll be nice to you and smile. 

 

You will think I like your style; 

You'll believe I've given in 

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

Safe as an atomic pile, 

Good as nitro-glycerine, 

I'll be nice to you and smile. 

 

I'll say hypocrisy is vile 

And give a reassuring grin 

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

Set against my wits and guile, 

Manly strength won't save your skin. 

I'll be nice to you and smile  

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

From June to December - 4

4 The Reading 

In crumpled, bardic corduroy, 

The poet took the stage 

And read aloud his deathless verse, 

Page by deathless page. 

I gazed at him as though intent 

On every word he said. 

From time to time I'd close my eyes 

And smile and nod my head. 

He may have thought his every phrase 

Sent shivers down my spine. 

Perhaps I helped encourage him 

To read till half past nine. 

 

Don't ask what it was all about - 

I haven't got a clue. 

I spent a blissful evening, lost 

In carnal thoughts of you. 

 

From June to December - 5 & 6

5 Some People 

Some people like sex more than others - 

You seem to like it a lot. 

There's nothing wrong with being innocent or high-minded 

But I'm glad you're not. 

6 Going Too Far 

Cuddling the new telephone directory 

After I found your name in it 

Was going too far. 

It's a safe bet you're not hugging a phone book, 

Wherever you are. 

When it comes to a present, I'm stuck. 

If you weren't far away 

On your own special day, 

I could give you a really nice glass of lager 

8 Love Story 

I thought you'd be a pushover; 

I hoped I wouldn't hurt you. 

I warned you this was just a fling 

And one day I'd desert you. 

 

So kindly in your spectacles, 

So solid in your jacket, 

So manly in your big white car 

That must have cost a packet. 

 

I grew to like you more and more - 

I didn't try to hide it. 

Fall in love with someone nice? - 

I'd hardly ever tried it. 

 

The course of true love didn't run 

Quite the way I'd planned it. 

You failed to fall in love with me - 

I couldn't understand it. 

9 Spring Onions 

Decapitating the spring onions, 

She made this mental note: 

You can tell it's love, the real thing, 

When you dream of slitting his throat. 

10 I'll Be Nice 

I'll be nice to you and smile - 

It's easy for a man to win - 

But I'll hate you all the while 

 

I shall go the extra mile 

And condone your every sin - 

I'll be nice to you and smile. 

 

You will think I like your style; 

You'll believe I've given in 

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

Safe as an atomic pile, 

Good as nitro-glycerine, 

I'll be nice to you and smile. 

 

I'll say hypocrisy is vile 

And give a reassuring grin 

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

Set against my wits and guile, 

Manly strength won't save your skin. 

I'll be nice to you and smile  

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 

From June to December - 7

7 Verse for a Birthday Card 

Many happy returns and good luck. 

When it comes to a present, I'm stuck. 

If you weren't far away 

On your own special day, 

I could give you a really nice glass of lager 

From June to December - 8

8 Love Story 

I thought you'd be a pushover; 

I hoped I wouldn't hurt you. 

I warned you this was just a fling 

And one day I'd desert you. 

So kindly in your spectacles, 

So solid in your jacket, 

So manly in your big white car 

That must have cost a packet. 

I grew to like you more and more - 

I didn't try to hide it. 

Fall in love with someone nice? - 

I'd hardly ever tried it. 

 

The course of true love didn't run 

Quite the way I'd planned it. 

You failed to fall in love with me - 

I couldn't understand it. 

 

From June to December - 9 

9 Spring Onions 

Decapitating the spring onions, 

She made this mental note: 

You can tell it's love, the real thing, 

When you dream of slitting his throat. 

From June to December -  10

10 I'll Be Nice 

I'll be nice to you and smile - 

It's easy for a man to win - 

But I'll hate you all the while 

 I shall go the extra mile 

And condone your every sin - 

I'll be nice to you and smile. 

You will think I like your style; 

You'll believe I've given in 

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 Safe as an atomic pile, 

Good as nitro-glycerine, 

I'll be nice to you and smile. 

 I'll say hypocrisy is vile 

And give a reassuring grin 

But I'll hate you all the while. 

 Set against my wits and guile, 

Manly strength won't save your skin. 

I'll be nice to you and smile  

But I'll hate you all the while. 

Villanelle

A 19-line poem, 6 stanzas consisting of 5 tercets (3-line stanzas), followed by a quatrain (4-line stanza). 

Rhyme scheme: aba-aba-aba-aba-aba-abaa.

The first and the third line of the first tercet are repeated alternately until the last stanza. 

The last stanza includes both repeated lines (= couplet).

Question: Which parts in the poem From June to December are villannelles?  

Limerick

A short, humorous poem that pokes fun.

It has a five-line fixed rhyme scheme (aa bb a -> a lines long; b lines short)

Question: Which part in the poem "From June to December" is in fact a limerick?

Read the poem "From June to December"

What does the title suggest about the relationship? Name 2 things

Read part 2 of the poem "From June to December"

What kind of person is the man?
What is the woman interested in?

Read part 3 of the poem "From June to December"

Part 3 = a Villanelle (form of poetry)
1) What is the rhyme scheme? Which other part is a villanelle?

What is the turning point in the poem, at which part does the relationship change?

Give the number of the correct part

What is a limerick? Explain in full

Give the part in which you can find a limerick.
What is off with the last word?

Read part 8 of June to December

What does the girl not understand in the last stanza of part 8?

Read part 8 of June to December

What does the girl not understand in the last stanza of part 8?

Read part 9 of June to December

How does the girl feel about the guy? Quote evidence from the text

Read part 9 of June to December

How does the girl feel about the guy? Quote evidence from the text

Read part 10 of June to December

Is she over him? Why (not)? Quote evidence form the poem

Read part 10 of June to December - Explain its meaning



Set against my wits and guile,
Manly strength won't save your skin.
I'll be nice to you and smile
But I'll hate you all the while.

Who wins in the end: the boy or the girl? Why?

In which two parts can you find a villanelle in the poem "From June to December"?

From June to December - questions part 1

Q. 1  - What is the narrator thinking in stanza one "Prelude"? What's her attitude towards the other person?

Q. 2 - How does the other person present himself in part 2 - ‘A serious person’?  

Q. 3 - What does the narrator really want in part 3 - Summer Villanelle? 

Q. 4 - In part 5 ‘Some people’ the narrator talks about ‘innocent or high-minded’ and refers to part 2 (serious person). Can you find the expression that means "innocent" in part 2? What type of literary device is this?

Q. 5 - In ‘going too far’, why is she cuddling the telephone book?  

Q. 6 -When (which part) does the relationship change? 

 

From June to December - questions part 2

Q. 7 What does she not understand about the relationship in the last stanza of Love Story?

Q. 8 - The narrator is angry in ‘spring onions’, how do you know?  

Q. 9 - In ‘I’ll be nice’, what can you say about how she feels about him? Is she over him?

Q. 10 - What does the narrator mean by the last stanza of part 10:  Set against my wits and guile, Manly strength won't save your skin. I'll be nice to you and smile  But I'll hate you all the while. 

Q. 11 - Can you explain the title? How does this refer to their relationship?

First Love  - Jan Owen (b. 1940) 

It happened in Physics, 

reading a Library art book under the desk, 

(the lesson was Archimedes in the bath) 

I turned a page and fell 

for an older man, and anonymous at that, 

hardly ideal – 

he was four hundred and forty-five, 

I was fourteen. 

‘Eureka!’ streaked each thought 

(I prayed no-one would hear) 

and Paradise all term 

was page 179 

(I prayed no-one would guess). 

Of course 

my fingers, sticky with toffee and bliss, 

failed to entice him from his century; 

his cool grey stare 

fastened me firmly in mine. 

I got six over dues, 

suspension of borrowing rights 

and a D in Physics. 

But had by heart what Archimedes proves. 

Ten years later I married: 

a European with cool grey eyes, 

a moustache, pigskin gloves 

Questions to First Love

1) What happens in Physics?  What is she reading and when?

2) What happens  because she cannot get enough of the book? Why can she not get enough of the book?

3) Who is the man in the book? 

4) Why does she mean by "Paradise"?

5) Why can she not get the person in the book to this century? ("Fail to entice him to this century")

6) Why does her husband eventually look like & why (check title)?

Incident                     Norman MacCraig (1910-1960) 

I look across the table and think 

(fiery with love) 

Ask me, go on, ask me 

to do something impossible, 

something freakishly useless, 

something unimaginable and inimitable 

Like making a finger break into blossom 

or walking for half an hour in twenty minutes 

or remembering tomorrow. 

Incident - continued       Norman MacCraig (1910-1960) 

I will you to ask it. 

But all you say is 

Will you give me a cigarette? 

And I smile and, 

returning to the marvelous world 

of possibility 

I give you one 

with a hand that trembles 

with a human trembling. 

The incident

1) What is this poem about?


2) What can you say about the person speaking and the other person he is speaking to (relationship wise)?


3) " I will you to ..."  -> what does this mean?

The incident

4) What does the following mean:
Ask me, go on, ask me 
to do something impossible, 
something freakishly useless, 
something unimaginable and inimitable 
Like making a finger break into blossom 

5) What do you call this comparison in stanza 1  (underlined)? 

6) What actually happens?  

The incident - key

1) He (= narrator)  is really in love with her (or the other person), but it might be one-sided, and (s)he has no idea how he feels

2) He tries to force him/her to ask him a question by sending out "vibes"  with his mind

3) So he can prove his love to him/her

 4) Ask me, go on, ask me 
to do something impossible, 
something freakishly useless, 
something unimaginable and inimitable 
5) Like making a finger break into blossom =  Simile 

6) She asks him something easy/simple/mundane, so he cannot express or prove his love to her

Explain the literary device &
give an example from one of the poems:
A pun

Explain the literary device &
give an example from one of the poems:
A metaphor

What is a simile?
Can you find an example of this in
From June to December

Explain the literary device &
give an example from one of the poems:
Alliteration

Explain the literary device &
give an example from one of the poems:
Repetition

Explain the double meaning of the title/poem
The Lesson

What are:
Caxtons
in "A Martian sends ..."

1) What is the literary device used in this poem " A Silly Poem"? 2) Who are Hamlet & Ophelia?

Said Hamlet to Ophelia,
I'll draw a sketch of thee,
What kind of pencil shall I use?
2B or not 2B?