2. Eac
Each guided poetry lesson will cover a different poem from the 17 in the anthology.
It is important to remember that you will NOT be allowed to take your annotated anthology in to the exam.

3. Eac

4. Eac

5. Cozy Apologia by Rita Dove
AO1
What does the word ‘cozy’ make you think of? What does it suggest about the atmosphere of the poem?
The poem is written in first person. How does this affect your response as a reader?
Autobiographical poem in which Dove expresses her love for her husband, Fred.
Cozy Apologia depicts a contented relationship against a backdrop of a hurricane.

6. AO3 Context Rita Dove is the youngest ever American Poet Laureate
AO3 Context Rita Dove is the youngest ever American Poet Laureate. She is the first African American to hold the position.
Rita Dove is the youngest ever American Poet Laureate and the first African American to hold the position.
The poem, written in 2003, refers to her struggle with society’s opinion about whom she should love. Dove is of African American descent while her husband, Fred is of German descent.

7. The poem mentions ‘Big Bad Floyd’ which is a reference to Hurricane Floyd, a powerful storm that ripped along the Atlantic Coast in 1999, killing many people and causing $6 billion dollars worth of damage.
Glossary Cozy- American spelling of ‘cosy’ Exudes – oozes/pours out Drying matte – drying to a dull finish Dappled mare – horse with a mottled coat Furrowed brow – wrinkled forehead Reminiscences – memories Sissy- girly Cussing up – blowing up Aerie – a bird’s nest on a cliff or mountaintop Melancholy – deep sadness

8. What’s it about?
Waiting for a storm to hit, the speaker stays snug and safe in her study. Though Hurricane Floyd disrupts the business of daily life, it also allows time for daydreams. So, with time on her hands, the speaker finds herself daydreaming about her partner.
Everything the speaker sees, from the rain outside to the ink on the page, reminds her of her partner. She pictures him as a knight in shining armour, protecting her. He's a vivid contrast, she thinks, to the 'worthless' boys she used to date. She's embarrassed by how content their cosy, ordinary lives have made them. Yet she draws comfort from filling the 'stolen time' resulting from the hurricane's approach with thoughts of Fred.
The word 'apologia' means 'a defence'. A paraphrase of the poem's title might be, 'A Defence of Cosiness'.
Which poems could we compare it to? Sonnet 43; Valentine; She Walks in Beauty; Afternoons; Manhunt

9. Stanza one: Dove dedicates her poem to her husband – Fred
Stanza one: Dove dedicates her poem to her husband – Fred. She affectionately pens her feelings and includes a medieval image of Fred being her hero and setting her free.
Stanza two: Dove reminisces about her childish crushes at school. The storm is a metaphor for the bad and awkward memories of these crushes. Towards the end of the stanza, she pushes away the memories and the ‘day-to-day’ activity and focuses on her admiration for Fred.
Stanza three: Dove and her husband are nestled away from the storm and are content and happy. Perhaps her idealised view of love isn’t necessarily evidenced in her experiences, suggesting that we shouldn’t settle for ordinary. She could also be challenging others and their opinion of her marriage.

10. First person narrative – suggests autobiographical.
Reader is immediately made aware that the poem is dedicated to a specific person – Fred.
Symbol of understanding – shedding light – her partner understands her.
For Fred
I could pick anything and think of you— This lamp, the wind-still rain, the glossy blue My pen exudes, drying matte, upon the page. I could choose any hero, any cause or age And, sure as shooting arrows to the heart, Astride a dappled mare, legs braced as far apart As standing in silver stirrups will allow— There you'll be, with furrowed brow And chain mail glinting, to set me free: One eye smiling, the other firm upon the enemy.
‘anything’ emphasises the bond between the speaker and her partner. Romantic – anything she sees in front of her reminds her of her partner.
sure, as, arrows – alliteration confident in her love.
Cliched simile of arrows and hearts. Sees partner as her hero. Medieval imagery of a knight in chainmail rescuing a damsel in distress.
Direct address to her partner. He is her protector – always safe with him.

11. Unexpected full stops in the middle of lines
Unexpected full stops in the middle of lines. Suggests the coming storm is disrupting her thoughts.
Sibilance in first two lines emphasises the speed of modern life.
This post-postmodern age is all business: compact disks And faxes, a do-it-now-and-take-no-risks Event. Today a hurricane is nudging up the coast, Oddly male: Big Bad Floyd, who brings a host Of daydreams: awkward reminiscences Of teenage crushes on worthless boys Whose only talent was to kiss you senseless. They all had sissy names—Marcel, Percy, Dewey; Were thin as licorice and as chewy, Sweet with a dark and hollow center. Floyd's
Verb ‘nudging’ personifies hurricane.
Hurricanes are normally named after women. This hurricane is male and it compels the speaker to think of men before her partner who caused turmoil in her life.
Sibilance of the boys from her youth contrasts unfavourably with the image of the strong hurricane and the earlier portrayal of her partner as a strong knight.
In 1950, a formal practice for storm naming was first developed for the Atlantic Ocean by the U.S. National Hurricane Center. At that time, storms were named according to a phonetic alphabet (e.g., Able, Baker, Charlie) and the names used were the same for each hurricane season; in other words, the first hurricane of a season was always named “Able,” the second “Baker,” and so on.
In 1953, to avoid the repetitive use of names, the system was revised so that storms would be named after female names. By doing this, the National Weather Service was mimicking the habit of Naval meteorologists, who named the storms after women, much as ships at sea were traditionally named for women.
In 1979, the system was revised again to include both female and male hurricane names.
Simile – reinforces their weakness and awkwardness.
Not real men.
Superficially pleasant but dark underneath –capable of causing pain.

12. Their relationship is good but she acknowledges it’s not perfect.
The speaker and her partner are protected from the storm.
Cussing up a storm. You're bunkered in your Aerie, I'm perched in mine (Twin desks, computers, hardwood floors): We're content, but fall short of the Divine. Still, it's embarrassing, this happiness— Who's satisfied simply with what's good for us, When has the ordinary ever been news? And yet, because nothing else will do To keep me from melancholy (call it blues), I fill this stolen time with you.
Reinforces idea that the poet is writing about her own experiences. Both partners are writers.
Sibilance highlights the smoothness of the relationship.
Aware that their relationship has no drama and may appear boring to others who crave drama.
He stops her from feeling low. He makes her happy.
She wants nothing but him.
Direct address to her partner again.

13. Structure
Stanza one is made up of five rhyming couplets, to make a rhyme scheme AABBCCDDEE.
Rhyme scheme starts to break down, as if reflecting the disruption of the oncoming storm.
New rhyme scheme emerges: ABABCCDDDD. A suggestion of order and its progressive disruption thus representing the oncoming storm on the page.

14. The poem is written in relaxed, informal language, with lots of conversational digressions, as the poet flits from subject to subject. This disjointed feel is emphasised by the use of dashes to break up the text and by sentences that finish abruptly part of the way through a line. It's as if one thought interrupts another, in the flow of ideas.
The speaker uses a metaphor, comparing her partner to a knight in shining armour. The imagery of a knight rescuing his maiden is echoed by the simile 'sure as shooting arrows to the heart'. Elsewhere, Dove uses a simile to suggest her old boyfriends were sweet but insubstantial: 'thin as licorice and as chewy,/ Sweet with a dark and hollow center'.
The hurricane itself is personified as 'Big Bad Floyd' who 'nudges' and 'cusses' in his 'oddly male' way and this helps make the connection with the actual men in the poem.
These disjointed images help to suggest the writer’s daydreaming state of mind to the reader