Lesson video

Hello, and welcome to today's English lesson, where we are going to be looking at, the use of language, in the poem, The mask of anarchy, and looking at Shelley's use of personification and contrasting images.

But before we begin, please make sure that you have something to write with and something to write on.

If you don't have that, please pause the video and go and grab it.

I'd also like you to make sure that you have all distractions out of the way, so you can fully focus on today's lesson content.

Great.

Let's get started.

Let's consider our agenda for today's lesson.

We're going to begin by considering the key themes in The Mask of Anarchy.

Then we're going to move forward with key vocabulary today that is the term tyrant.

Then we're going to look at the role of power in The Mask of Anarchy, before exploring Shelley's use of personification.

Then we're going to finish by applying all of our knowledge of The Mask of Anarchy to the page, there's lots to do so we better get started.

On the screen, you will see the five symbols that relate to the five key themes in many works of romantic poetry.

I'm not going to give you them, I'm just going to give you the symbols.

I want you to pause the video briefly and consider which of the five key themes you think Shelley explores in his poem, The Mask of Anarchy.

When you think you're done, and you've written them down, I want you to resume the video.

Okay, let's check.

Firstly, he explores to a degree, the idea of imagination and the importance of self.

Shelley, he is about the events that occurred at the Peterloo massacre, and that then prompts and inspires him to write a response in the form of his poem, The Mask of Anarchy.

Revolution, of course, he's work was inspired by the Peterloo massacre, where there were a series of 50,000 to be precise, members of the middle and working classes there to peacefully protest to create change.

And we can see the need for change in Shelley's poem, The Mask of Anarchy.

And finally, of course, oppression.

Shelley is criticising the in justices and the inequality suffered by the working classes through his poem.

And he finishes with the need for freedom to break free from the shackles, to break free from the chains and for the working classes to rise lifelines.

So now let's take a moment to look at how Shelley explores inequality, how he was influenced by the events that occurred in 1819 on the day of the Peterloo massacre, and how he writes about them, in his poem, The Mask of Anarchy.

So using this picture, as a prompt for the events that occurred during the Peterloo massacre, and how they're reflected in Shelley's poem, I want you to write me two or three bullet points to answer how does Shelley explores inequality.

When you're done, resume the video.

So, in the poem, inequality is explored in the first section, through the procession, where we have symbols of murder and fakery, deception, fraud, and anarchy.

These are in the guise of members of authority who represent these ideas.

They have power over the working classes, who don't have a voice.

And remember, we have hope, and even hope seems to have given up as a response to the oppressive authorities.

Then finally, hope does come through in this mysterious shape this mysterious mist like presence and anarchy is of course slain.

anarchy is no more, and so Shelley explores inequality through the working classes quest for freedom from oppression.

He begins though by detailing the oppression that has been suffered by the working classes, where he likens them to slaves, to really emphasise how much they have suffered in the hands of those oppressive authorities.

But then, as the poem finishes, we finish on the line that the working classes should rise like lions, and that they should free themselves from their chains.

So really, the end of the poem becomes a quest for freedom, and a quest for political reform in order to end inequality.

So today, our key term is that of a tyrant.

A tyrant is a cruel and oppressive leader.

Can you read that definition with me, please? A tyrant is a cruel and oppressive leader.

Let's look at how we can use the term in a sentence.

They feared their leader was becoming a tyrant.

My boss is a bit of a tyrant.

His ambition made him a tyrant.

So here we can see suggestions about how people have become cruel and oppressive leaders, how they have become tyrants, and tyrants are linked with those being in power those having authority.

Now, it's important to note that not everyone in authority or not all leaders are tyrants.

Not all leaders are cruel and oppressive.

But there are a select number of people who rise to leadership positions and become cruel and oppressive and we can call them tyrants.

Take a moment here to fill in the gap for the definition of the word tyrant.

Pause the video to write the definition and resume when you're finished.

Let's check.

A tyrant is a cruel and an oppressive leader.

Let's say that together, a tyrant is a cruel and oppressive leader.

Let's check her knowledge of tyrant a little bit more.

Which of the following sentences uses the word tyrant correctly? She was being tyrant to her employees.

His power made him a tyrant.

They wanted to overthrow their tyrant leader.

I want you to note down one, two and three.

Which of these sentences uses the word tyrant correctly? When you've noted them down, please resumed the video and we'll check our answer.

Great.

Let's see, what is the correct answer? His power made him a tyrant and they wanted to overthrow their tyrant leader are both correct answers.

She was being tyrant to her employees is incorrect.

This person has made the misconception that they can use the word tyrant in as a substitute for perhaps the word cruel or unkind.

But a tyrant is a person who possesses those qualities.

So it might say, she was being cruel to her employees.

She was being a tyrant.

We could use it in that manner.

I want you to have a go at writing your own sentence that uses the word tyrant correctly.

Pause the video to complete this task and resume when you're done.

Great.

I want to hear your sentence.

So after three, tell me your sentence one two three.

Great.

I wonder whether anyone was using their knowledge of The Mask of Anarchy from last lesson.

And whether they were starting to realise that the members of society who were in authority, those leaders who were wearing those masks of deception, perhaps were acting like tyrants? That's definitely something to consider.

So let's look at the role of power in The Mask of Anarchy.

So, let's start by considering who has the power in the poem.

On the left hand side, we've got the symbol for authority.

On the right hand side, we have a symbol for the working classes.

So after three, I want you to point at the symbol for who has the power in the poem, The Mask of Anarchy, one two three.

Hopefully, you selected the authorities who are represented at the start of the poem in a tyrannical fashion.

They are described as being tyrants, who are going through the streets and slaughtering innocent members of society.

However, Shelley suggests that someone else should gain power.

After three, I want you to point at the symbol for who should gain power, one two three.

Hopefully, you are pointing at the symbol for the working classes.

Now that doesn't mean that they need to immediately rise to the top but Shelley is suggesting that they should have more power over their own lives.

They should be metaphorically unchained.

unshackled.

And they should have a voice for their rights.

He thinks that they should have power and their own sense of freedom, which they did not currently have.

So, in order to look at the language in The Mask of Anarchy a little bit more, we need to consider this key language technique, that of personification.

So, personification is, when we give an object or a thing that is not human, human qualities.

Let's read that together.

Personification is, when we give an object or a thing that is not a human, human qualities.

Let's look at a couple of examples.

The flowers were dancing, flowers are not human and therefore they do not dance.

So here this writer has given them the human quality of being able to dance.

The leaves waved in the wind.

Leaves are not human and they do not physically wave and so this writer has given them the human quality of being able to wave.

Personification one more time means giving an object or thing that is not human, human qualities.

So, let's see if you're able to spot uses of personification in a text.

I want you to pause the video here and to read this extract.

As you read it, you are going to note down any uses of personification.

Let's read it through together to begin with.

The house smiled, as the moon dance playfully in the night sky.

The morning would soon come knocking, but the children were like stars holding on to the last moments of darkness before they gave way to the unstoppable power of the sun.

For now, happiness was in charge.

So pause the video here, reread this extract and note down any uses of personification that you can find.

Once you've completed the task, please resume the video.

Okay, let's see if you found all the examples of personification in this extract.

Let's take a talk through it together.

The pieces in bold are examples of personification.

The house smiled as the moon dance playfully in the night sky.

This writer has begun by stating that the house smiled, the house could not literally smile, and so the house has been given human qualities.

This is exactly the same that has happened to the moon.

The moon is described as having danced, as we know the moon does not dance that is a human quality.

So there's another use of personification.

The morning would soon come knocking, but the children were like stars holding on to the last moments of darkness before they gave way to the unstoppable power of the sun.

Here, we've got use of personification, as the writer suggests that the morning would come knocking, that's a physical action that would actually take place by a human.

So here, the idea is that the morning is soon going to appear, soon going to come knocking in replacement of the nighttime.

So that's the use of personification.

Well done if you didn't put like stars holding on to the last moments of darkness.

The use, of like stars here, is use of a simile and that's something that we've explored in our previous lessons.

So well done if you weren't caught out with the use of a simile.

Then in the final line, for now, happiness was in charge.

Here, happiness has been personified through the use of a capital H.

Let's look at that a little more closely.

The writer has personified happiness by giving it a capital H.

This suggests that happiness is a person, they are all consumed by happiness.

So the capital H personifies happiness, it makes it sound like a person, it suggests two things that happiness is a really powerful and really important thing.

So by personifying happiness in the extract, the writer is suggesting it is both a very powerful and a very important force.

A very happy, important, powerful thing.

So, you may have thought, ah, I can remember an example of personification and The Mask of Anarchy.

And if you thought that well done, Shelley personifies these ideas, Murder Fraud, Hypocrisy and Anarchy by giving them a capital letter at the start of the word.

This makes them powerful.

Perhaps he's suggesting that they are tyrants.

They are humans that act in a tyrannical fashion.

So, let's look at some key extracts from The Mask of Anarchy.

First of all, this key extract is going to explore a key theme as represented by the symbol.

After three, I want you to tell me what key theme is being represented, 123 Did you say oppression? If so, well done, because you are correct.

So, I would like you as I read this extract, this stanza from the mask of anarchy, to find me a line that suggests that the working classes are being imprisoned by their tyrannical leaders.

Let's read.

Tis to work and have such pay as just keeps life from day to day in your limbs as in a cell for the tyrants use to dwell.

Can you find me a phrase here, that suggests that the working classes are being imprisoned? After three, tell me the phrase you found, 123 Did you note this phrase here, in your limbs as in a cell for the tyrants use to dwell? Here it's been suggested that the working classes are kept in a type of cell.

Hopefully that image suggests one to you of imprisonment and confinement.

What other things can we associate to the term cell? imprisonment having a lack of power and control because you're unable to escape.

Oppression, being forced into this situation by those who are in power.

And of course, a loss of freedom, you are unable to escape, you no longer have a voice.

So, you have access to this stanza in your worksheet or downloadable resource, I suggest you make some notes around the phrase, as in a cell.

You can similarly note down the phrase as in a cell on your piece of paper and make some annotations around that phrase.

We're going to need to use those ideas later on in our writing.

You can pause the video here and annotate the phrase as in a cell with these ideas.

When you're done, please resume the video.

We're now going to move on to another stanza.

This stanza also looks at the theme of oppression.

Excellent.

Let's read it together.

This is slavery, savage men are wild beasts within a den, would endure, not as ye do, but such ills they never knew.

I would like you to review this stanza again, and choose for me a phrase that suggests the working classes are treated like animals.

You can note down this phrase and then resume the video.

Great.

Let's see what you chose.

Was it similar to this? Or wild beasts within a den would endure, not as ye do? Here, Shelley is suggesting that the working classes are treated like animals.

And in fact, he goes one step further by suggesting that animals would not even put up with the kind of treatment given to the working classes.

He's suggesting there, they're actually treated worse than animals.

We imagine that they are caged, because we can link that to the phrase in a cell from the previous slide.

What does this symbolise? Well, the idea that the working classes are treated like animals? It's a suggests that they are owned and they lack control.

They are controlled by higher authority, perhaps a tyrant.

It also suggests and emphasises their loss of freedom and their loss of power.

I suggest you, note down some ideas around the quotation or wild beasts within a den would endure, not as ye do.

You can do that on your downloadable resource.

Or you can note down the quotation on your paper and annotate it with some ideas.

Great.

Now we've looked at two stanzas that reflect the theme of oppression in the poem.

Let's now look at a stanza that reflects the theme of freedom.

Rise like lions after slumber, in unvanquishable number, shake your chains to earth like dew, which in sleep had fallen on you, ye are many they are few.

I want you to find me in this stanza, a phrase that suggests a shift, a change in power.

And I want you to note down that phrase, when you're done, resume the video.

Great.

What phrase did you find? Was it this one, rise like lions after slumber? We're going to look at that in a bit more detail in a second.

But first of all, I want you to find me another phrase here that suggests freedom, where does Shelley suggests freedom in this stanza, I want you to pause the video and note down this phrase and resume when you're done.

Great.

Did you get something like this, shake your chains to earth like dew, shaking the chains means ridding yourself and getting free of the chains that are surrounding you, that are controlling you, in order for you to be free to allow your freedom to begin.

So, let's look at the image of a lion in a bit more detail.

Because we've decided here that there's a shift in power.

A lion represents a leader and we know that leaders have authority and leaders have power.

This is something the working classes would never have experienced.

It represents and emphasises not just their power, but also their strength.

Shelley's also suggesting that they have a bravery in order to pursue their freedom.

As I said in our last lesson, Shelley doesn't suggest in the final stanzas of the poem, that everything is now perfect, and the working classes are free.

He's suggesting it's a journey they're going to go on, and to begin the journey, they need to be brave and rise like a lion after the slumber.

Here their bravery will allow them freedom, and it will allow them to break through those oppressive chains that they have been metaphorically confined by their whole life, due to the powerful authorities, the powerful tyrants who have oppressed them for years.

As with the previous two stances, I suggest you make some notes around these key quotations.

If you don't have a copy of it, you can copy down the quotation and annotate your ideas around it.

When you're done, please resume the video.

So, I want to finish today's lesson by considering how Shelley uses contrasting images.

On the one hand, we have the image of the working classes in a cell.

This is a really negative image that suggests that they are oppressed, controlled and lack freedom.

However, he contrasts this image with the image of a lion in the final stanza, where he suggests the working classes should rise like a lion.

This image is the complete opposite of those working classes being in a cell and it suggests bravery, strength and power that the working classes will have once they are free.

So let's see how we could write about this in a short paragraph.

We need to begin by suggesting to our reader that we know Shelley is using contrasting images.

So we would state that in our opening sentence.

Shelley contrasts images of power to provide hope for the working classes.

That's a great opener.

And it allows us to then go into more detail by telling our reader what those contrasting images are, and using quotations from the poem, which we've got on the screen.

Let's look at how this may look.

While the cell suggests imprisonment, and a loss of freedom, the lion symbolises the strength and bravery, the working classes need, to fight their oppressors and regain control through political reform.

Here we've gone into some real detail and we've used those quotations that are on the screen.

We said while, so on the one hand cell suggests imprisonment and loss of freedom, On the other, the lion symbolises the opposite strength and bravery.

And so the message that Shelley is trying to get through is the working classes need to fight their oppressors and regain control through political reform.

I wonder if we could have made this better by putting to fight their tyrannical oppressors and used our key word tyrant in this paragraph.

Maybe that's something you can do in your end of lesson task, which is, your task is to link the theme of oppression in The Mask of Anarchy to the quotation in a cell.

I want you to write a beautiful sentence that explains how the quotation, in a cell links to the key theme of oppression.

Pause the video now and complete that task.

When you're done, Please resume.

Right, Hopefully you've had some time to complete that beautiful sentence, an acceptable answer might read like this, He says the working classes are in a cell, which suggests they are oppressed and controlled by those in power.

That's a pretty good answer.

They suggest that the working classes are oppressed and controlled by those in power and they use the quotation in a cell really nicely, but I think that they could go into a little bit more detail and as always, they need to tell us who the he refers to, in this case, Percy Shelley.

Let's look at our good answer.

Shelly highlights the oppression of the working classes through his imagery of a cell, which suggests their entrapment and lack of freedom in the hands of tyrants.

Great stuff, we can see how this person has used our key word for today, tyrant, in their answer.

They also start their answer by referring specifically to Percy Shelley as the poet.

Rather than say he says, they use the analytical verb highlights, which is really good practise in our analytical writing.

So, if you want to, you're more than welcome to pause the video here and make any changes to your own answer.

Well done for all you've accomplished during today's lesson.

I hope you're now feeling more familiar with the 91 stanza poem, The Mask of Anarchy, and I look forward to writing about it in our next lesson.

Can you please make sure that you take away two or three key ideas to move forward with in your next lesson.

And as always, don't forget to complete the end of lesson quiz.

I'll see you next time.

Bye.