GCSE English AQA Poetry Guide - Power & Conflict Anthology inc. Online Edition, Audio & Quizzes: ideal for the 2024 and 2025 exams (CGP AQA GCSE Poetry)

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You link a huge range of references together, for a very high AO1 references mark. Examiners love a semantic field! They are also linked to an interpretation of the mother, for a high AO2 mark. Delicacy/ instability– paper is thinned and damaged by use, buildings are damaged by the elements, and human life is fragile. The theme of oppression is linked to the idea of control. It has strong links to the idea of inequality , because those being oppressed often belong to marginalised groups who are treated unequally. It can explore: In Paper 2, Section B, you will be given one of the 15 poems on the exam paper itself, and be expected to compare it thematically to one other poem from the anthology. You will have to choose this second poem, and you should be prepared to write about any of the 15 poems in the exam. This means you need to have a thorough understanding of each poem. Exam tip: In the final stanza Hughes lists the things that have become “luxuries” to the soldier, “king, honour, human dignity, etcetera”. All of these things were important to him before the battle, but during the battle are overtaken by his instinct to survive. Imagery

If you know the poems well, you will be able to demonstrate this knowledge and understanding in the exam. Learn the poems rather than learning lists of quotes The second stanza highlights the contrasts between the two worlds the war photographer moves between. This disturbs the photographer more than war itself as his hand ‘did not tremble then though seems to now’. ‘Rural England’ with its ‘ordinary pain’ and ‘fields which don’t explode beneath the feet of running children’ now seem unusual. The best place to revise is different for everyone. Some people like to revise in cafes while others prefer quieter places. Think about what the best environment is to help you focus. The most important thing when you revise is not to get distracted too often. Humanity –Dharker compares the delicacy of paper to buildings and structures that can easily be destroyed. The poem ends by drawing human life into this comparison, suggesting that human life is fragile like paper, but that the essence of humanity has the power to outlast structures and ideas.

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The first four lines of each stanza have a regular ‘abba’ rhyme to convey the consistency of the soldiers’ experience. The difficulties they are facing go on and on without change. However, some of the rhymes are half-rhymes, “knive us/ nervous”, “wire/ war” and “brambles/ rumbles”. This adds to the sense of unease. The men fear the effects of the weather and the constant threat of death. Language Owen includes alliteration and assonance to great effect in the poem. For example the repeated ’s’ sound in, “Sudden successive flights of bullets streak the silence”, reflects the sound of bullets whizzing past the soldiers. Assonance appears in the third stanza with the repeated ‘o’ sound, “soak… know… grow”. The length of the ‘o’ sounds could be interpreted to emphasise the monotonous nature of life in the trenches. Including historical facts or biographical information about the poet adds no value to your answers Words associated with movement also appear regularly in the first stanza, “running” and “stumbling”, to show how the soldier is constantly charging over the course of the poem. We see how difficult his progress is because of the “raw-seamed hot khaki” (Khaki was a type of clothing worn by soldiers) and the “field of clods”. The soldier’s effort and increasing terror is further shown by the use of words like “suddenly”, “running”, “sweat heavy”, “lugged” and “sweating”.

This is top level AO2 for your interpretation of quotations, and the way you link them across the poem. All your references have been linked to interpretations, so the AO1 references mark is really high too.The loss of life, and, as such, the loss of possible future relationships, or relationships developing Kamikazehas a fairly simple structure. There are seven stanzas, each with six lines. There is no rhyme and only a very basic rhythm. This simplicity means the reader focuses on the story itself and the tragedy of the events. The poem has only three sentences to give it the feeling of a story told orally. As we move between the sentences the speaker and time setting change as well. You need to think about what your interpretation is of why Garland has made these changes. Language and Imagery Wordsworth uses impressive imagery to describe the night. The gentle light of the moon and stars turns to darkness as the narrator becomes more troubled, “there hung a darkness, call it solitude”. The imagery becomes increasingly dark and disturbing. This is like a gothic tale or even a horror story in places. The poem is littered with personal pronouns, which we would expect in this sort of speech. However, they are important because they help to highlight the Duke’s arrogance and selfishness. They also often relate to his love of possessions, including how he treated his late wife (who he saw as a possession). How an individual’s power, pride and arrogance can lead someone to abuse their power or lead to their downfall

Power of identity –the speaker never identified with the biased version of history he was taught. Only when he examines the past for himself does he start to understand his own identity. He feels stronger for it. The power of places– the poem emphasises the power that places can have over us. This has a literal meaning as well as a metaphorical meaning of something lost.Throughout the poem Armitage uses colloquial language to make it seem as though the speaker is directly telling us his story. Phrases like, ‘On another occasion’, ‘legs it up the road’ and ‘end of story’ suggest the poem is in spoken English. ‘On another occasion’ also suggests the speaker has been through many similarly bad experiences. The phrase ‘probably armed, possibly not’ repeats to show how this guilt haunts him. Robert Browning was a Victorian writer who is famous for dramatic monologues in his poetry. He was very interested in European history and culture, which were the basis of much of his writing. My Last Duchess is based on a sixteenth century Italian Duke – Duke Alfonso II of Ferrara and his wife, the Duchess Lucrezia de Medici (who died at the age of 17). Content The core image in this poem is that of the huge statue which now lies in ruins. Shelley creates a really effective image for the reader, with the remains surrounded by desert. This emphasises the fact that the once great power of Ozymadias has completely gone. Themes The poem has 6 stanzas – one for each hundred soldiers of the Light Brigade. The form, rhythm and structure of the poem reflect the charge of the horses, and the vicious fighting. The first stanza is 8 lines long, followed by two 9 line stanzas mirroring the increasing pace of the charge. The fourth and fifth stanzas are particularly long (12 and 11 lines respectively) as Tennyson depicts the frenzied slog of the hand-to-hand fighting and dangerous retreat. The final short stanza reflects the loss of life. It leaves the reader pondering the message of the poem – “honour the charge they made”.