1. Symbolism, Imagery, and Theme in Poetry
Friday, August 29, 2014—MYP

2. Quick Write: Painful Memories
What are your most painful memories? Have you overcome them? Is there anything you can learn from them?
Remember to write the title and the date (8/29/14) on the top.
You have 4 minutes to write and 2 minutes to revise.

3. Objective, Agenda, & Homework
Objective: Students will explain how an author’s use of symbolism or imagery affected the tone of a poem.
Agenda:
Quick Write with Revision
Focus Lesson: Symbolism and Imagery
Read “Do not go gentle into that good night”
Check for Understanding
Homework:
Have a book to read on Tuesday.

4. Focus Lesson: Symbolism
Symbolism: The use of a person, a place, an activity, or an object to stand for something beyond itself.
In the story “Through the Tunnel,” by Doris Lessing, the rocky bay represents challenge, danger, and adulthood; the beach represents safety for the main character.
= Innocence
= freedom,
America
= Peace

5. Focus Lesson: Imagery
Imagery: Descriptive words and phrases that recreate sensory experiences for the reader. Imagery appeals to one or more of the 5 senses (sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch) to help the reader imagine what is being described.
Examples:
In the poem “Incident in a Rose Garden,” by Donald Justice, the reader can imagine Death wearing a black coat, black gloves, and a black hat.
In the story “To Build a Fire,” by Jack London, the reader can picture the fire snapping, crackling, and dancing, which appeals to the senses of sight and hearing.

6. Focus Lesson: Symbolism vs. Imagery
When writers use both symbolism and imagery, they often use an object.
However, with imagery, the object is intended to help the reader imagine what is going on in the story; it does not have a meaning beyond itself.
With symbolism, the object is meant to represent an idea beyond itself.

7. “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas
Narrative Poem:
Settings:
A lingering sunset
A bolt of lightning
A green bay
A shooting star
The top of a mountain
Conflict: a fight against death
Characters:
The speaker
The speaker’s dying father

8. “Do not go gentle into that good night” by Dylan Thomas
Imagery:
Wise men, good men, and grave men
All of the settings he describes
Symbols:
Day = life
Night = afterlife or a void
Sunset = the moment of death
Sun = beauty and wonder in the world
Lightning, Meteors, Fire, etc. = the act of living life with intensity

9. Check for Understanding
On your notecard:
Your first and last name
The tone of the poem
An explanation of how ONE of the symbols or images helped create the tone you chose for the poem