1. “Genuine poetry can communicate before it is understood”
T.S.Eliot

2. Unseen Poetry

3. What does “Unseen” mean?
It will be a poem you have probably never seen before
You are being tested on your ability to “read and respond” thoughtfully
You are thinking about what the writer is trying to say
Every word of the poem will count

4. The Question Write about the poem and its effect on you.
You may wish to include some or all of these points:
The poem’s content – what it is about
The ideas the poet may have wanted us to think about
The mood or atmosphere of a poem
How it is written – words or phrases you find interesting, the way the poem is structured or organised
Your response to the poem

5. Content What it’s about What happens in each section
Is there an order or sequence?
Who’s speaking?
Story or idea?

6. Ideas What did the poet want us to think about? Is it a story
or an idea
or an expression of an emotion?
Is there a message?

7. Mood and atmosphere What is the tone of the poem?
How does it make you feel as you read it?
Think about the 5 senses
Think about the setting

8. How it is written Don’t just list or spot techniques
Pick out words or phrases that you find effective and try to say why
Think about the sound and rhythm of the poem. Does it have a beat? Or is it disjointed?
Look at repetition of sounds or words

9. Imagery: a quick reminder
An image in poetry (or in writing generally) is a picture in the reader’s mind created by the words used.
Literal images can be effective ; “roses in snow”. The reader sees this in an uncomplicated way.
Similes and metaphors are figurative images – they are built on comparison :
SIMILE – “The pigeon bursts like a city”
METAPHOR – “The sun died” - this is also an example of personification

10. How it is written 2 Think about the structure or form
Is it regular, uneven, awkward or easy to read. Does that tie in with the content?
Look at the first line of each stanza to see how the meaning develops
Look at the title and last line to give you a clue as to what the writer intended

11. Your Response
It’s perfectly acceptable to say you find a poem confusing or misleading if you can explain why
Try to be positive about some aspect of the poem or explain how you relate to an idea or event in it
Uses phrases to show your sadness, surprise, enjoyment, anger, frustration, empathy……
The examiner basically wants to know you have read and thought about this poem

12. Things you should NEVER write!
At first I didn’t understand the poem but after reading it a couple of times I think…
The poem has no rhythm
I think the poem needed to rhyme more because I like poems that rhyme…
I think the poet has done a very good job of writing this poem and they obviously thought carefully about it…

13. Ok – so let’s try an example
It is absolutely essential to get into the habit of reading the poem at least twice before even trying to think of what you will write.
Try to hear the poem aloud in your head – notice how it makes you feel and which words felt important as you read it.

14. TRAMP By William Marshall
He liked he said
rainbows and the sky
and children who passed him in the
street
without staring.
And he liked he said the
ordinary things

15. like
roses in snow
and the way he
remembered
the first time
the first time he
really smelt the
rain on
a green hillside
back home
just before the sun died

16. And he liked he said
thinking about
who slept beneath the red
brick roofs he
walked by in the
early part of the day
from Land’s End to John O’Groats.
but he said
as a full time tramp with no
other place to go he
was worried
where he would die -
Land’s End or John O’Groats.

17. Start by annotating …. Tramp He liked he said rainbows and the sky
Any tramp – no name
Like a child – a simple treat
The speaker is
someone reporting
The tramp’s opinions
He liked he said
rainbows and the sky
and children who passed him in the
street
without staring.
Most children stare - likes the ones who don’t – why?

18. Using P-E-E
Making sure you always use P-E-E-L statements in the poetry question

19. How to score
sustained response to situation/ideas or author's purposes
effective use of details to support answer
explanation of features of language interest
explanation of effects achieved/authors' purposes

20. How to score
qualified, developed response, exploring writers' ideas or methods
details from poem linked to authors' intentions and purposes
exploration of effects achieved/authors' purposes
qualified/exploratory response to writers' ideas or methods

21. Check your response Have you explained? Have you used details?
Is your writing on the poem sustained?
Are you beginning to explore?
Do you evaluate the writer’s techniques?

22. Remember: Read the poem carefully more than once
Annotate the poem quickly
In the exam, you have 45 minutes in total
Spend 5 mins reading the poem and annotating
Think about the poem.

23. Writing your answer Use P-E-E-L throughout
Don’t panic if you don’t get it all – it is not a trick!

24. Practice makes perfect
Practise annotating poems.
Remember to annotate in different ways: questions, points, meanings, links, language techniques, poet’s ideas
Thinking about the poems and questioning the ideas in them will help you be more confident in the exam.