Fireworks
What are the fireworks being compared to?
Flowers
The sea is being compared to ...
A dog
Who wrote the Night Mail?
W H Auden
Who wrote this poem?
Roger McGough
Who wrote this poem?
Alan Brownjohn
"Catherine wheels begin to flame
Like whirling marigolds"
This is a ......... (literary device)
Simile
This poem is about...
What is this poem about?
How many stanzas does this poem have?
3
The poem is set ....
(place and time)
In an alternate world in the future where there is only one rabbit and one patch of grass in England
"Burning showers", "An orchard of the sky", and "magic trees" are all examples of ......
(literary device)
Metaphor
The entire poem is an example of ...
(literary device)
Extended metaphor
What is the setting of this poem?
Beattock to Glasgow (300 points)
Scotland (200 points)
What is the effect of the lack of rhyme scheme/rhythm, and varying number of lines?
It highlights how young the speaker is.
What is the poem about?
A speaker's journey to visit the last living rabbit in England, and the disappointment upon their arrival.
How many stanzas does this poem have? (200)
What is the rhyme scheme? (200)
3 stanzas
ABAB CDCD EFEF
How many stanzas does this poem have? (200)
What is the effect of the run-on lines? (200)
3 stanzas
It reflects the movement and flow of the waves.
What is the personification in this poem?
The train being described as a "she".
What proof is there in the poem that shows the speaker is someone young?
Mispelled words (200)
The speaker is afraid of other children (100), and doesn't know what a teacher or a classroom is, and why there are railings all around the school. (100)
What is the irony of this poem?
Which THREE colours are mentioned? (250)
Which TWO types of flowers are mentioned? (250)
Crimson, blue and white
Marigolds and buds
How does the tone and mood shift throughout the poem?
It shifts from wild, dangerous and violent, to calm and peaceful in the last stanza.
Describe the change of pace in this poem.
At first, the pace is fairly consistent and slow, mimicking the slow steady incline of the train.
At one point, the train picks up speed, reflected through the short words/lines.
Finally, the pace is slow and consistent yet again through the longer sounding-words/lines as it reaches its destination.
"Sounds small and slimy" - s sound
Comment on the punctuation in the second stanza (transport stanza) and its effect.