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IGCSE English Literature

Paper 1: Section B (Poetry)

Songs of Ourselves:

Excerpts from the Anthology

POEMS FOR EXAMINATION IN JUNE AND NOVEMBER (Years 2013, 2014, 2015)

Contents

110. Sujata Bhatt, ‘A Different History’

111. Gerard Manley Hopkins, ‘Pied Beauty’

112. Allen Curnow, ‘Continuum’

113. Edwin Muir, ‘Horses’

114. Judith Wright, ‘Hunting Snake’

115. Ted Hughes, ‘Pike’

116. Christina Rossetti, ‘Birthday’

117. Dante Gabriel Rossetti, ‘The Woodspurge’

118. Kevin Halligan, ‘The Cockroach’

119. Margaret Atwood, ‘The City Planners’

120. Boey Kim Cheng, ‘The Planners’

121. Norman Maccaig, ‘Summer Farm’

122. Elizabeth Brewster, ‘Where I Come From’

123. William Wordsworth, ‘Sonnet: Composed Upon Westminster Bridge’

Key Information

← English IGCSE is comprised of the study of two subjects, English Language and English Literature, for which you get two separate grades.

← We will, this half of term, be studying 14 poems from the anthology in readiness for Literature Paper 1, an examined paper lasting 2hrs 15.

← This paper will ask you to answer on three different texts (one prose piece and one play) and as such, these poems represent 1/3 of your Literature Exam

← The exam is open-book (no annotation); all sections carry equal marks (25)

← The Poetry question will give you a choice of three questions: one passage-based and two essay questions

← There are four, equally weighted Assessment Objectives

◦ AO1: UNDERSTANDING OF CONTENT

Show detailed knowledge of the content of literary texts in the three main forms (Drama, Poetry, and Prose);

◦ AO2: IDEAS AND INTENTIONS

Understand the meanings of literary texts and their contexts, and explore texts beyond surface meanings to show deeper awareness of ideas and attitudes;

◦ AO3: ANALYSIS

Recognise and appreciate ways in which writers use language, structure, and form to create and shape meanings and effects;

◦ AO4: PERSONAL RESPONSE

Communicate a sensitive and informed personal response to literary texts.

Some useful advice:

← Do a lot with a little

← Question word choice

← Get to know the mark scheme really well

← Look for multiple connotations: never be satisfied with one interpretation. Argue with yourself.

← Happy Poetic Device Hunting!

← Theme > Form and Structure > Language

← PEEE.... Extended PEEE

Poetry Mark Scheme

[pic]

Structuring Notes and Essays

THEMES (T=IFA)

Ideas

• Ideas relate to Thinking and Understanding. They are usually expressed as Abstract Nouns, and focus on the key ideas that the poem deals with; what the poem is essentially about (e.g., Democracy, Socialism, Equality, Loneliness, Cruelty, Conformity, Culture, Identity)

Feelings

• Feelings relate to personal and emotional states within the poem – usually expressed as nouns or adjectives (fear, happiness, satisfaction, pleasure)

Authorial Intention

• If Ideas and Feelings are the ‘what’ (what is the poem about?), then Authorial Intention is the ‘why’ (why does the poet write it?). What is the point of the poem; what is the poet’s intention, their purpose, their moral imperative. What do they need to communicate to you? The Authorial Intention is the attitude and purpose of the writer outside of the poem. Remember that a poem is a construction: it is an idea constructed of words. These words – their meanings, their sounds, their length, their position in the poem itself – all have been specifically chosen because they best convey the ideas of the poet. Everything is there for a reason and a purpose – what is it?

FORM AND STRUCTURE

Form

• Best thought of as a silhouette. Form relates to the external shape of a text, determined by how it is presented on paper, organised by stanzas, lines, syllables, rhyme, justification. It is a simpler thing to comment on because it is visible and usually requires specific technical identification (e.g., free verse, stanzaic, sonnet, haiku, couplets, heroic/rhyming couplets, meter and stress, iambic pentameter/blank verse, followed by explanation)

Structure

• Best thought of as an x-ray, the skeleton. Structure is more interesting because it goes beyond the visible: it is about the internal development and relationship between parts, displaying the organic relationship between ideas, feelings and attitudes within a text. It also relates to line length, end-stopping/enjambement, punctuation and pace, and an exploration of why this structure was chosen.

LANGUAGE

• Best thought of as the internal organs of a poem. Linguistic devices are what give the poem colour and meaning: you must be confident both in terms of technical identification as well as depth of analysis.

1. Letter-level: think about particular letters, syllables and shapes and textures of these and what effect they have: the impact of Alliteration, Assonance, Sibilance, Cacophony, Half Rhyme, Plosives, Soft/Hard Consonants, Short/Long Vowels, Repetition.

2. Word-level: think about what kinds of words are chosen and for what purpose: Verbs, Imperatives, Participles, Pronouns, Nouns, Adjectives, Lexis, Semantic Fields. Think also about the ways words are used to develop ideas, specifically in terms of Figurative Language: Anthropomorphism, Onomatopoeia, Metaphors, Personification, Similes.

3. Sentence-level: think about how words are grouped and linked and for what purpose: for example, Imagery, Emotions, The 5 Senses, Colours.

A technical knowledge is all well and good; however, knowing WHAT is not enough. Do not just identify and label. The critical questions of analysis are:

WHY?

HOW?

TO WHAT PURPOSE?

WITH WHAT EFFECT?

WHO CARES? – MAKE ME CARE

Thematic Links

| |Identity and Language |Time |

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|Form |Structure |

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Language

|Features/Technical Term |Example (line reference) |Analysis; relevance to theme and message |

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Personal Response

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