CONTENTS

1. Short Bibliography of Edwin Morgan

2. In The Snack Bar

3. Trio

4. Hyena

5. Good Friday

6. Winter

7. Slate

8. Critical Essay

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NATIONAL 5 UNIT OF WORK - COVER SHEET.TITLE OF UNIT OF WORK: ' Edwin Morgan N5'

Coverage of outcomes in this unit of work

Create and produce detailed written texts by:

1.1 Selecting significant ideas and content, using a format and structure appropriate to purpose and audience

1.2 Applying knowledge and understanding of language in terms of language choice and technical accuracy

1.3 Communicating meaning at first reading

Take part in detailed spoken interactions by:

2.1 Selecting significant ideas and content, using a format and structure appropriate to purpose and audience Group discussion

2.2 Applying knowledge and understanding of language in terms of language choice Group discussion

2.3 Communicating meaning at first hearing

Group discussion2.4 Using significant aspects of non-verbal communication

Group discussion

1.1 Identifying and explaining the purpose and audience, as appropriate to genre Textual analysis/CE

1.2 Identifying and explaining the main ideas and supporting details Textual analysis/CE

1.3 Applying knowledge and understanding of language to explain meaning and effect, using appropriate critical terminology Textual analysis/CE

2.1 Identifying and explaining the purpose and audience

Analysis of documentary2.2 Identifying and explaining the main ideas and

supporting detailsAnalysis of documentary

2.3 Applying knowledge and understanding of language to explain meaning and effect

Understand, analyse and evaluate detailed written texts by:

Crea

tion

and

Prod

uctio

nAn

alys

is a

nd E

valu

ation

Understand, analyse and evaluate detailed spoken language by:

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These are the suggested outcomes for N5

*’The analysis of spoken language outcome’ would depend on the poetry that the class decided to cover. The element of group discussion could be used at any point during the poetry unit but it would be at the professional judgement of the teacher.

Edwin MorganBiography

Edwin George Morgan was born 27 April 1920 in Glasgow's West End. Soon after his birth his parents decided to move to Rutherglen, where he spent his childhood and attended a local school. After completing Rutherglen school, he went to Glasgow High School, and began his studies at Glasgow University in 1937. He interrupted his studies in 1940 to join the Royal Army Medical Corps, then returned to university in 1946. Edwin Morgan graduated the following year with a First Class Honours Degree, and became lecturer at Glasgow University, turning down a scholarship to Oxford; he took an early retirement in 1980 and hence ended his career as university professor. He died on 19 August 2010 at the age of 90 in his beloved home city of Glasgow.

Edwin Morgan has always been interested in many different areas, some of which include languages, technology, art, and film; he began to travel widely in the 1950s.

He translated poetry from the Russian, Hungarian, French, Italian, Latin, Spanish, Portuguese, German, and other languages.

In the early 1960s he began to experiment with Concrete Poetry.

Both, readers and critics have always been struck by the great variety in style, form and subject Edwin Morgan's work provides: From sonnet to concrete poem, from opera libretto to performance with jazz saxophonist Tommy Smith, his work is as wide-ranging as you could wish for, its striking inventiveness being just one of its special qualities. He wrote poems on film and theatre, Science Fiction poetry, Sonnets from Scotland, Glasgow Sonnets, Instamatic Poems, and Newspoems, to name but a few. He published numerous volumes of poetry, as well as collections of essays, most of which are available at Carcanet Press Ltd., Manchester and Mariscat Press, Glasgow.

His volume of Collected Poems (Manchester: Carcanet Press, 1990) is the largest, a very wide ranging collection.

After his celebrated translations of Rostand's Cyrano de Bergerac (Carcanet, 1992) and Racine's Phèdre into Scots (Phaedra, Carcanet, 2000), in autumn 2000 Edwin Morgan's first original dramatic work appeared: A.D. A Trilogy of Plays on the Life of Jesus (Carcanet, 2000) and was produced on stage by the Raindog Company in Glasgow.

He was announced Glasgow's first Poet Laureate in autumn 1999, and was awarded the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry in 2000. In June 2001 he received the prestigious Weidenfeld Prize for Translation, the winning book being the above mentioned Phaedra. (2001-2009)

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POEM #1 –

IN THE SNACK BAR

A cup capsizes along the formica,

slithering with a dull clatter.

A few heads turn in the crowded evening snack-bar.

An old man is trying to get to his feet

from the low round stool fixed to the floor.

Slowly he levers himself up, his hands have no power.

He is up as far as he can get. The dismal hump

looming over him forces his head down.

He stands in his stained beltless garberdine

like a monstrous animal caught in a tent

in some story. He sways slightly,

the face not seen, bent down

in shadow under his cap.

Even on his feet he is staring at the floor

or would be, if he could see.

I notice now his stick, once painted white

but scuffed and muddy, hanging from his right arm.

Long blind, hunchback born, half paralysed

he stands

fumbling with the stick

and speaks:

‘I want –to go to the-toilet.’

It is down two flights of stairs, but we go.

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I take his arm. ‘Give me-your arm-it’s better,’ he says.

Inch by inch we drift towards the stairs.

A few yards of floor are like a landscape

to be negotiated, in the slow setting out

time has almost stopped. I concentrate

my life to his: crunch of spilt sugar,

slidy puddle from the night’s umbrellas,

table edges, people’s feet,

hiss of the coffee-machine, voices and laughter,

smell of a cigar, hamburgers, wet coats steaming,

and the slow dangerous inches to the stairs.

I put his right hand on the rail

and take his stick. He clings to me. The stick

is in his left hand, probing the treads

I guide his arm and tell him the steps.

And slowly we go down. And slowly we go down.

White tiles and mirrors at last. He shambles

uncouth into the clinical gleam.

I set him in position, stand behind him

and wait with his stick.

His brooding reflection darkens the mirror

but the trickle of his water is thin and slow,

an old man’s apology for living.

Painful ages to close his trousers and coat –

I do up the last buttons for him.

He asks doubtfully, ‘Can I- wash my hands?’

I fill the basin, clasp his soft fingers round the soap.

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He washes, feebly, patiently. There is no towel.

I press the pedal of the drier, draw his hands

gently into the roar of the hot air.

But he cannot rub them together,

drags out a handkerchief to finish.

He is glad to leave the contraption, and face the stairs.

He climbs, and steadily enough.

He climbs, we climb. He climbs

with many pauses but with that one

persisting patience of the undefeated

which is the nature of man when all is said.

And slowly we go up. And slowly we go up.

The faltering, unfaltering steps

take him at last to the door

across that endless, yet not endless waste of floor.

I watch him helped on a bus. It shudders off in the rain.

The conductor bends to hear where he wants to go.

Wherever he could go it would be dark

and yet he must trust men.

Without embarrassment or shame

he must announce his most pitiful needs

in a public place. No one sees his face.

Does he know how frightening he is in his strangeness

under his mountainous coat, his hands like wet leaves

stuck to the half-white stick?

His life depends on many who would evade him.

But he cannot reckon up the chances,

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having one thing to do,

to haul his blind hump through these rains of August.

Dear Christ, to be born for this!

FIRST READING

Read through the poem carefully and think about what Edwin Morgan is trying to get you to think about.

In no more than 20 words summarise what you think the poem is about and what Edwin Morgan is trying to get us to think about.

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ANNOTATION

To be able to analyse a poem fully and to answer in-depth questions on the poem you must now work to annotate your poem.

Edwin Morgan has used a myriad of poetic techniques throughout this poem to create atmosphere and mood.

Task 1-

Using a red coloured pen, go through the poem and highlight any examples of the following:

Alliteration - The occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words

Onomatopoeia- The use of words (such as hiss or murmur) that imitate the sounds associated with the objects or actions they refer to. Adjective: onomatopoeic or onomatopoetic.

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Assonance -1. the use of the same vowel sound with different consonants or the same consonant with different vowels in successive words or stressed syllables, as in a line of verse. Examples are time and light or mystery and mastery

Fill in the table below with your findings

QUOTE POETIC TECHNIQUE Example‘cup capsizes’

Alliteration used to emphasises the sharp clattering sound of the cup falling on the floor.

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CHARACTERISATION

Edwin Morgan gives us a vivid description of the old man in the poem. He achieves this through imagery and clever use of language. Pick out the quotations that tell us as readers about the appearance of the man in the poem.

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Structure

What is noticeable about the structure of the poem? Does it have an even structure or does it vary from line to line?

Look at the structure of the poem when the two men are climbing. What does it add to the length and struggle felt by both men in the poem?

There are many examples of repetition throughout the poem. What do they add to the monotonous and hard task that is ahead of both of the men in the poem?

POEM #2 – TRIO11

Coming up Buchanan Street, quickly, on a sharp winter evening

a young man and two girls, under the Christmas lights-

The young man carries a new guitar in his arms,

5 the girl on the inside carries a very young baby,

and the girl on the outside carries a Chihuahua.

And the three of them are laughing, their breath rises

in a cloud of happiness, and as they pass

the boy says, “Wait till he sees this but!”

The chihuhua has a tiny Royal Stewart tartan coat like a tea pot-holder,

10 the baby in its white shawl it all bright eyes and mouth like favours in a

fresh sweet cakes,

the guitar swells out under its milky plastic cover, tied at the neck with

silver tinsel tape and a brisk sprig of mistletoe.

Orphean sprig! Melting baby! Warm Chihuahua!

The vale of tears is powerless before you.

Whether Christ is born, or is not born, you

15 put paid to fate, it abdicates

under the Christmas lights.

Monsters of the year

go blank, are scattered back,

can’t bear this march of three.

20 -And the three have passed, vanished in the crowd

(yet not vanished, for their arms they wind

the life of men and beasts, and music,

laughter ringing them round like a guard)

at the end of this winter’s day.

First Reading

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What do you think the poem is about?

Where is the poem set? What time of year is the poem set in?

Write down a quotation that shows how the poet establishes where the poem is set.

What do you think is significant about the title of the poem?

IDEAS

Lines 1-8

What is the significant of “sharp winter evening”? What does it establish about the weather and how does it alter the mood and atmosphere?

Who are the central characters in the poem?

What are the central characters carrying?

Consider the significance of their number, what they are carrying, and the Christmas lights.

What does the inclusion of the direct speech “wait till he sees this but!” add to the poem?

Look at lines 9-11

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Look carefully at the adjectives: What do all three have in common?

1. Add in the appropriate quotations that describe the carried items

2. What do the adjectives add to the descriptions of the items? Add your own analysis of each of the quotations in the last column below.

PICTURE QUOTATION ANALYSISExanple:‘The baby in its white shawl is all bright eyes and mouth like favours in a fresh sweet cake,’

This quotation compares the baby to ‘favours’ on a cake. Edwin Morgan does this to show the bright and youthful nature and joy that the baby brings.

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Discuss the effectiveness of the alliteration in line 11.

What do you notice about the structure in the middle of this poem? Why do you think Edwin Morgan has done this?

Discuss the change in register adopted in line 12. Why do you think Edwin Morgan has done this?

WORD CHOICE

Write a brief note on the following quotations.

What do these quotations mean?

What do they suggest to you?

‘Orphean Sprig’

‘Melting Baby’

‘Warm chihuahua!’

‘The vale of tears’

‘Abdicates’

‘Monsters of the year/go blank’

SENTENCE STRUCTURE

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Comment on the dash at the start of line 20?

What is the significance of its use here?

How else is a dash used in the poem?

How does Edwin Morgan use repetition in the poem?

Write down the quotations and lines in which it is clearly used.

OVERVIEW

Edwin Morgan seems to present an unusual view of Christmas in this poem. In what way do you think it is unusual?

POEM #3 - HYENA

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I am waiting for you.

I have been travelling all morning through the bush

And not eaten.

I am lying at the edge of the bush

On a dusty path that leads from the burnt-out kraal.

I am panting, it is midday, I found no water-hole.

I am very fierce without food and although my eyes

Are screwed to slits against the sun

You must believe I am prepared to spring.

What do you think of me?

I have a rough coat like Africa.

I am crafty with dark spots

Like the bush-tufted plains of Africa.

I sprawl as a shaggy bundle of gathered energy

Like Africa sprawling in its waters.

I trot, I lope, I slaver, I am a ranger.

I hunch my shoulders. I eat the dead.

Do you like my song?

When the moon pours hard and cold on the veldt*

I sing, and I am the slave of darkness.

Over the stone walls and the mud walls and the ruined places

And the owls, the moonlight falls.

I sniff a broken drum. I bristle. My pelt is silver.

I howl my song to the moon- up it goes.

Would you meet me there in the waste places?

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It is said I am a good match

For a dead lion. I put my muzzle

At his golden flanks, and tear. He

Is my golden supper, but my tastes are easy.

I have a crowd of fangs, and I use them.

Oh and my tongue- do you like me

When it comes lolling out over my jaw

Very long, and I am laughing?

I am not laughing.

But I am not snarling either, only

Panting in the sun, showing you

What I grip

Carrion with.

I am waiting

For the foot to slide,

For the heart to seize,

For the leaping sinews to go slack,

For the fight to the death to be fought to the death,

For a glazing eye and a rumour of blood.

I am crouching in my dry shadows

Till you are ready for me.

My place is to pick you clean

And leave your bones to the wind.

*Veldt-A term used to define certain wide open rural spaces of Southern Africa

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Meet the narrator…

The spotted hyena is a common dog–like carnivore found on the dry open plains of the Masai Mara and much of sub–Saharan Africa. Dark spots cover yellow–brown fur and their long muscular necks and powerful shoulders make them instantly recognisable. Hyenas are built for endurance — their large hearts help them pursue prey over great distances.

The plains of the Mara echo with the squeals and greeting whoops of this much maligned animal. Their infamous 'laughter' is actually a sign of aggression, fear or excitement. Hear and see our wild hyena clan from the comfort of your own home, streamed live from the wilds of Africa

What narrative stance is used by Edwin Morgan throughout Hyena?

What is so powerful about this?

What tone is achieved in the first stanza of the poem?

How do these words add to the tone in the first stanza?

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TRAVELLING

PREPARED PANTING

FIERCE

‘What do you think of me?’

Why has Edwin Morgan used a question to open the first Stanza?

How does this connect with the reader?

Looking at the second stanza, what image is painted of the Hyena?

Why do you think Morgan is comparing the Hyena to Africa?

TASK

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(Using the poem) place the corresponding quotations underneath and around the pictures

‘I have a rough coat like Africa’

‘Like Africa sprawling in its waters’

‘I am crafty with dark spots’

DISCUSSION POINT

OUTCOMES

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2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4

What do you think Edwin Morgan is trying to say about Africa by comparing it to a Hyena?

‘Do you like my song?’

What do you think Morgan means by a ‘song’?

What atmosphere is Morgan creating in the third stanza?

The third stanza is rich with imagery. Use this imagery to fill in the table below. Think about why Edwin Morgan has used the imagery he has. What does it add to the poem? How does it add to our feelings towards the Hyena?

FIGURE OF SPEECH ANALYSIS OVERALL EFFECT

‘When the moon pours hard and cold on the veldt’

The poet uses a simile here to describe the light of the moon. He describes the moon

The overall effect shows how the Hyena enjoys the cold night time.

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shining on the African land.

Use the space below to make notes on the relevance of each of the questions.

QUESTIONS

‘What do you think of me?’ ‘Do you like my song?’

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Very long, and I am laughing?

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‘Would you meet me there in the waste places?’

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Why has Edwin Morgan used questions throughout his poem?

What purpose do they serve?

What does each individual question force you to think about?

Documentary vs. Poetry

DOCUMENTARY POEM

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Watch the documentary and directly compare the ‘Hyena’ depicted in the poem with the Hyena discussed in the documentary. How does each type of text show the Hyena? Are there distinct differences?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JBvRUHoWYOI

I am waiting

For the foot to slide,

For the heart to seize,

For the leaping sinews to go slack,

For the fight to the death to be fought to the death,

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For a glazing eye and a rumour of blood.

I am crouching in my dry shadows

Till you are ready for me.

My place is to pick you clean

And leave your bones to the wind.

What examples of repetition are present in the last stanza of the poem?

How does Edwin Morgan build up tension in the last stanza?

What do the final two lines add to our understanding of the poem and the character of the Hyena?

THE BIG QUESTIONS

How does Edwin Morgan describe the setting in his poem ‘Hyena’? Give three examples using quotations.

Describe the appearance of the narrator in the poem? Give three examples using quotations.

Describe the mood of the poem and how it is achieved. Discuss imagery, repetition and rhythm here.

POEM #4 - SLATE

There is no beginning. We saw Lewis

laid down, where there was not much but thunder

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and volcanic fires; watched long seas plunder

faults; laughed as Staffa cooled. Drumlins blue as

bruises were grated off like nutmegs; bens,

and a great glen, gave rough back we like

to the think the ages must streak, surely strike,

seldom stroke, but raised and shaken, with tens

of thousands of rains, blizzards, sea-poundings

shouldered off into night and memory.

Memory of men! That was to come. Great

in their empty hunger these surroundings

threw walls to the sky, the sorry glory

of a rainbow. Their heels kicked flint, chalk, slate.

STAFFA

Staffa a small island off the West Coast of Scotland. It is made up entirely of volcanic material – mainly basalt. Its famous feature is Fingal’s Cave.

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DRUMLINS

Mounds of moraine (rocks, sand, gravel etc transported in glaciers) moulded by a glacier.

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GREAT GLEN

This is a fault line (a break in the crust) running from Fort William to Inverness. It was formed when the northern section collided with the southern section. Minor earthquakes (tremors) still occur along the fault line but they are rarely felt.

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What do Staffa, The Great Glen and Drumlins all have in common?

First reading

What is the poem about?

What are the places mentioned in the poem? Why do you think the poet has mentioned them?

Use the pictures below to identify the islands mentioned in the poem. Add a quotation underneath them.

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STRUCTURE

POETIC TERM

The Sonnet Form

A sonnet is a fourteen-line lyric poem, traditionally written in iambic pentameter—that is, in lines ten syllables long, with accents falling on every second syllable, as in: “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”

Annotate the poem with a rhyme scheme

What do you notice about the poems structure?

Look at the length of the lines in the poem? – How do they vary?

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What is significant about the way the poem is opened by Morgan?

Enjambment is the continuation of a sentence or clause over a line-break. If a poet allows all the sentences of a poem to end in the same place as regular line-breaks, a kind of deadening can happen in the ear and in the brain too, as all the thoughts can end up being the same length. Enjambment is one way of creating audible interest; others include caesurae, or having variable line-lengths.

Why do you think the poet uses ‘enjambment’ throughout the poem?

What does it add to the poem?

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Who is talking?

In ‘Slate’, by Edwin Morgan, we are given the idea that the poem has a voice.

Who do you think is talking to us in the poem?

‘We saw Lewis..’

What is the voice in the poem discussing?

Use the arrows below to annotate these sections of the poem

Ask yourself, what is the poet discussing here?

‘watched as Staffa cooled. Drumlins blue as

bruises were grated off like nutmegs; bens,

And a great glen, gave a rough back we like’

What is significant about the title of the poem?

‘Memory of men! That was to come’

What is the importance of this quotation? What type of Scotland is Morgan describing to us?

How does this link with the title of the poem ‘Slate’?

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The sequence begins with the words ‘There is no beginning’ and goes on to describe Scotland as it existed before there were people to see it, at the point of its geological formation: ‘We saw Lewis / laid down, when there was not much but thunder / and volcanic fires; watched long seas plunder / faults; laughed as Staffa cooled’.

Morgan is looking at Scotland before the human race lived there. Who do you think Morgan is referring to here?

Who? A hunger for what?

‘…Great.

in their empty hunger these surroundings

threw walls to the sky, the sorry glory

of a rainbow. Their heels kicked,flint,chalk,slate.

Whose heels kicked?

What do flint, chalk and slate have in common?

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POEM #5 - WINTER

The year goes, the woods decay, and after,

many a summer dies. The swan

on Bingham’s pond, a ghost , comes and goes.

It goes, and ice appears, it holds,

bears gulls that stand around surprised,

blinking in the heavy light, bears boys

when skates take over swan-tracks gone.

After many summer dyes, the swan-white ice

glints only crystal beyond white. Even

dearest blue’s not there, though poets would find it.

I find one stark scene

cut by evening cries, by warring air.

The muffled hiss of blades escapes into breath,

hangs with it a moment, fades off.

Fades off, goes, the scene, the voices fade,

the line of trees, the woods that fall, decay

and break, the dark comes down, the shouts

run off into it and disappear.

At last the lamps go too, when fog

drives monstrous down the dual carriageway

out to the west, and even in my room

and on this paper I do not know

about the grey dead pane

of ice that sees nothing and that nothing sees.

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First reading

What is the poem about?

What line in the opening of the poem tells us that this poem is about the changing of the seasons?

What metaphor does Morgan use to describe the Swan? Why do you think this is so effective?

What objects can the winter ice bear? Use quotations for your evidence

‘After many summer dyes’

What is noticeable about this quotation?

How is the word ‘dye’ used?

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What other spelling could symbolise some to the central themes and concerns throughout?

What does the poet say about the ‘dearest blue’?

Who’s talking?

What is the narrative stance in the poem?

Annotate the poem

There are several examples of repetition in the poem. Go through the poem with a red pen or pencil and underline the examples you can find. Repetition is a poetic technique used to emphasise a particular idea

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Ambiguity

am·bi·gu·i·ty (mb-gy-t)

n. pl. am·bi·gu·i·ties

1. Doubtfulness or uncertainty as regards interpretation: "leading a life of alleged moral ambiguity" (Anatole Broyard).

2. Something of doubtful meaning: a poem full of ambiguities.

‘At last the lamps go too, when fog

drives monstrous down the dual carriageway

out to the west, and even in my room

and on this paper I do not know ambiguity

about the grey dead pane

of ice that sees nothing and that nothing sees.’

What do you find ambiguous about the last six lines of the poem?

What could the poet possibly be considering?

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Think carefully about the following line:

‘…of ice that sees nothing and that nothing sees.’

What could the poet be describing here?

ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION

1. Annotate the poem highlighting all similes, metaphors and examples of personification in blue.

2. Write the examples into the table on the page, making sure to fully analyse the effect of the figure of speech.

FIGURES OF SPEECH + QUOTATION ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION

one stark scene cut by evening cries’Metaphor

This image shows the sharp tone of the cries in the night. He describes the sound as being so sharp it cuts, like ice.

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POEM #6 – GOOD FRIDAYThree o’clock. The bus lurchesround into the sun. “D’s this go –”he flops beside me – “right along Bath Street?-Oh tha’s, tha’s all right, see I’vegot to get some Easter eggs for the kiddies.I’ve had a wee drink, ye understand –ye’ll maybe think it’s a – funny dayto be celebrating – well, no, but ye seeI wasny working, and I like to celebratewhen I’m no working – I don’t say it’s rightI’m no saying it’s right – ye understand – ye understand?but anyway tha’s the way I look at it –I’m no boring you, eh? – ye see today,take today, I don’t know what today’s in aid of,whether Christ was – crucified or was he –rose fae the dead like, see what I mean?You’re an educatit man, you can tell me –-Aye, well. There you are. It’s been seentime and again, the working manhas nae education, he jist canny – jisthasny got it, know what I mean,he’s jist bliddy ignorant – Christ aye,bliddy ignorant. Well –” The bus brakes violently,he lunges for the stair, swings down – off,into the sun for his Easter eggs,on very

nearlysteady

legs.

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1. In short, what is the poem about?

2. What do you notice about the way you are forced to read the poem?

3. Where is the poem set? How do we know this?

What is ‘Good Friday’?

Do some research online and make notes about ‘Good Friday’:

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INSTAMATIC POETRY

"I tend to… cultivate some small area like that fairly intensively for a while and then perhaps just simply drop it and do something else altogether. The same thing is happening at the moment with what I call my Instamatic Poems. I began a while ago by writing short poems which were directly about events which I had either read about or seen in newspapers or on television. So it's a poetry which is very closely related to real life in that sense, but I gave myself the kind of restriction that the poem must be presented in such a way as to give a visual picture of this event, whatever it was, as if somebody had been there with an Instamatic camera and had just very quickly snapped it…"

Edwin Morgan

What clues are we given that ‘Good Friday’ is an instamatic poem?

What tense is the poem written in?

What is the narrative stance of the poem?

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o first person

o second person

o third person

How do we know that?

Who is the narrator in the poem?

o Add a quotation that will support your answer

STRUCTURE

What is noticeable of the structure of the poem?

What is the majority of the poem made up from?

What do you notice about the physical shape of Morgan’s poem as it develops?

Why has Edwin Morgan done this? What effect does it have on the meaning of the poem?

What does the shape add to the way the man gets off the bus?

Concrete Poetry

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Concrete poets make designs out of letters and words. Even though the visual pattern (shape) can really catch our eye, it is the language itself that makes a poem poetic.

What do we know about the man on the bus?

1. Using the picture below add any details that Morgan tells us about the man. Think about the following questions:

Where is he going?

What is he doing?

What is he discussing?

What has he bought?

2. Add quotations to the diagram to back up your statements

The man is on his way to bath street.

– “right along Bath Street?

-Oh tha’s, tha’s all right,

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Critical Evaluation

Select a poem by Edwin Morgan and apply it to one of the following questions.

Answers to questions in this part should refer to the text and to such relevant

features as word choice, tone, imagery, structure, content, rhythm, rhyme, theme,

sound, ideas . . .

1.. Choose a poem which made a lasting impression on you.

Explain briefly what the poem is about, then, by referring to appropriate

techniques, show how the poem has made this lasting impression.

2. Choose a poem which features an encounter or an incident.

By referring to appropriate techniques, show how the poet’s development of the

encounter or incident leads you to a deeper understanding of the poem’s central

concerns.

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EXAMPLE ESSAY PLAN 1

Choose a poem which made a lasting impression on you.

Explain briefly what the poem is about, then, by referring to appropriate

techniques, show how the poem has made this lasting impression.

1. Choose your poem

-Example-

‘Hyena’ By Edwin Morgan

2. Why did it make a lasting impression on you?

-Example-

The poem made a lasting impression on me as it had a sinister and cruel tone.

3. What , in brief, was the poem about?

-Example-

‘Hyena’ is about the nature and personality of a Hyena.

4. What four things did the poet do to make sure the poem had a lasting impression on you?

-List four techniques that the poet used to create a poem that had a large impact on you.

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-Example-

o Narrative voice

o Figures of speech

o Structure

o Questioning

Choose a poem which made a lasting impression on you.

Explain briefly what the poem is about, then, by referring to appropriate

techniques, show how the poem has made this lasting impression.

1.Choose your poem

2.Why did it make a lasting impression on you?

3.What , in brief, was the poem about?

4.What four things did the poet do to make sure the poem had a lasting impression on you?

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-List four techniques that the poet used to create a poem that had a large impact on you.

o

o

o

o

Assonance is the repetition of vowel (a, e, i, o and u) sounds.

Assonance is not about the letter. Assonance is about the sound.

Poets use assonance to speed a poem up or slow it down,

depending on the sound used.

Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds at the start of

a word.

Some alliteration creates hard sounds, for example use of the

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consonants b and d. Other consonants convey soft sounds, for

example use of f, l and s. These hard and soft sounds are also

used to speed a poem up or slow it down, depending on the

sound used.

Rhythm and rhyme

The rhythm of a poem is its beat, which is how it sounds when

it is read aloud. The rhythm is also about how it flows.

• Is it a fast or a slow poem?

• Do the words encourage you to read it at a certain speed?

• Does the poet use simple words or complicated ones?

• Is the subject of the poem weighty or frivolous?

These all affect how the poem is read, so they are all about the

poem’s rhythm.

Rhyme is the repetition of final vowel and consonant sounds in

words.Words that sound the same, or almost the same, attract our

attention and are easy to remember.

You need to take note of where the rhymes are in the poem – at

the end of every line or every alternate line? Where the rhyme

falls dictates the pattern and speed of the poem.

POSSIBLE GROUP TASK

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NATIONAL 5 UNIT OF WORK - COVER SHEET.TITLE OF UNIT OF WORK: 'Edwin Morgan Unit'

Coverage of outcomes in this unit of work

REVIEW TEACHER COMMENT REVIEW PUPIL COMMENT ON PROGRESS

Take part in detailed spoken interactions by:

2.1 Selecting significant ideas and content, using a format and structure appropriate to purpose and audience Group discussion

2.2 Applying knowledge and understanding of language in terms of language choice Group discussion

2.3 Communicating meaning at first hearing

Group discussion2.4 Using significant aspects of non-verbal communication

Group discussion

1.1 Identifying and explaining the purpose and audience, as appropriate to genre Textual analysis/CE

1.2 Identifying and explaining the main ideas and supporting details Textual analysis/CE

1.3 Applying knowledge and understanding of language to explain meaning and effect, using appropriate critical terminology Textual analysis/CE

2.1 Identifying and explaining the purpose and audience

Analysis of documentary2.2 Identifying and explaining the main ideas and

supporting detailsAnalysis of documentary

2.3 Applying knowledge and understanding of language to explain meaning and effect Analysis of documentary

Understand, analyse and evaluate detailed written texts by:

Anal

ysis

and

Eva

luati

on

Understand, analyse and evaluate detailed spoken language by: