Lesson video

Hi there, and thank you for joining me for today's English lesson.

My name is Mrs. Butterworth, and I will be guiding you through your learning today.

Now, in this lesson, we will be delving into the poem "The Schoolboy" by William Blake.

So we'll be analysing ideas of youth and nature, thinking about how Blake uses language and structure to explore those ideas.

Okay, are we ready to go? Great, then let's get started.

So in this lesson, you will analyse Blake's use of language and structure in his poem, "The Schoolboy." Now, before we delve into the lesson, let's look at those all important key words.

Hopefully you'll spot them popping up in the lesson.

These words are metaphor, imagery, connotation, limitation, and monotony.

You may have seen some of these words before, but let's just remind ourselves of those definitions.

So a metaphor is a word or phrase used to describe something as if it was something else, so we'll look at today how Blake uses metaphor in his poems. Imagery, I always think of imagery as almost like it's words creating an image, so descriptive language that creates vivid mental pictures.

And I think if you think about imagery and image, you'll remember that word.

Connotations are the implied meanings or emotions tied to a word beyond its literal definition.

So it's the things, it's a bit like word association, the things that we associate with specific words.

Limitation is a restriction or boundary that prevents full potential or freedom.

And monotony is a situation in which something stays the same and is therefore boring.

So we'll be exploring the idea of monotony when we move on to look at Blake's use of structure.

So the outline of our lesson looks like this.

We're going to begin by analysing the language in "The Schoolboy" before moving on to analysing the structure in "The Schoolboy." So I'd like you to look at the following words, and I'd like you to discuss, please, how might the following words link to "The Schoolboy"? Let's read the words together first.

Bird, nature, romanticism, school.

So just spend a few moments discussing those words and how they might link to "The Schoolboy." Pause the video, and off you go.

Okay, great.

So lots of ideas there, so hopefully we're starting to remember some of those key ideas in the poem.

So you may have discussed some things like bird links to themes of freedom, which we see in the poem.

The metaphor as well, so that is that really important metaphor in the poem, "Sits in a cage and sing." And nature, obviously nature is a very important theme in "The Schoolboy," and it's expressed as innocence and freedom in the poem.

And freedom and joy, that idea of the, "Skylark sings with me," so again, that real imagery of nature happening there.

Now, romanticism, you may have thought about how Blake is considered a romantic poet and how the poem aligns with romantic conventions.

You might also have thought about how the poem critiques societal oppression and values nature, much like the ideas of romanticism.

And then finally, school, in the poem, the school represents powerful oppressive institutions.

And Blake critiques School, doesn't he, as an institution using words like dismay, cruel, and drooping.

Okay, so I'd like you now to pick an answer.

Which answer best summarises "The Schoolboy"? Is it A, B, C, or D? Pause the video to read your options and come up with the correct answer.

Off you go.

Are you ready to hear the right answer? Fantastic.

Okay, and the right answer is B.

So well done to everyone that got that.

The poem critiques the institution of school and its negative impact on a child's natural joy and freedom.

So the first thing I want us to look at within the poem "The Schoolboy" is this idea of imagery.

Now, Blake uses the imagery of the seasons throughout the poem, and they can be tracked like this.

Stanza one, "I love to rise in a summer morn." Stanza two, "But to go to school in a summer morn." So we've got summer in stanza one and summer in stanza two.

Stanza four, "And forget his youthful spring." Stanza five.

Stanza six.

Stanza six, "How shall the summer arise in joy or the summer fruits appear?" And then finally stanza six again, "Or bless the mellowing year.

When the blasts of winter appear." So considering that seasonal imagery and how it has been tracked, I would like you to discuss, please, what do you think Blake's seasonal imagery suggests about childhood and growing up? So you'll need to pause the video to give yourself time to discuss your answers.

If you are working alone, you may wish to sit quietly and think by yourself or even write down some ideas.

We'll feed back in a moment, but pause the video now.

Okay, fantastic.

So let's just feed back some ideas.

So think about what you discussed or what you thought about, and you may have some of the following.

Blake uses the summer morn and youthful spring to represent childhood freedom and innocence.

The blasts of winter at the end symbolise the harshness and inevitable decline of childhood, reflecting the loss of joy and the oppressive forces of adulthood.

You may have noticed as well that kind of move from summer to winter really shows that difference between the freedom and joy of nature and that contrast with school and the loss of innocence.

And arguably, Blake uses seasonal metaphors to reflect the passing of childhood and the limitations imposed by society.

So, which season does Blake not explicitly mention in "The Schoolboy"? So there is one season that he does not explicitly mention in "The Schoolboy." So which one is it, A, B, C, or D? Pause the video to come up with your answer now.

Okay, so hopefully we have an answer, and hopefully that answer is C, autumn.

He references spring, summer, and then finally winter, but we have no mention of autumn explicitly.

I would now like us to look at the following words from the poem.

We have the word cage, drooped, nip'd, and strip'd.

Let's really focus on these individual words, and I'd like you to discuss what connotations do these words have? So remember that word connotations, we're thinking about what kind of ideas or emotions we associate with those words.

So discuss what connotations do these words have? Remember if you are working alone, you may just wish to think quietly to yourself or write down some ideas.

But when you are ready, pause the video and off you go.

Okay, so shall we share some ideas? Okay, so you may have come up with the following.

So cage has these real connotations of imprisonment, being trapped, confinement, limitation, and restriction.

It's a really powerful word, isn't it, cage within that poem.

Drooped, we get this feeling of being weakened, maybe a burdened state, and it really reflects restriction and diminished hope.

You can almost imagine like the drooped wings.

Nip'd is an interesting word, isn't it? And I guess this has connotations of stunted growth or potential cut short, and it invokes this enforced limitation and restriction.

And then strip'd is really quite a harsh word, isn't it? And it's got these connotations of exposure, vulnerability, desolation, and even punishment, that idea of being strip'd.

So this language all links to the idea of imprisonment and restriction, so let's look at some statements on that.

So these statements explore how Blake uses the language of imprisonment and restriction to critique oppressive institutions.

So by using cage and drooped, like we just looked at, Blake emphasises the contrast between freedom and confinement.

He really uses those contrasts well, doesn't he? Showing how societal constraints diminish the child's spirit and natural development.

And the use of nip'd and strip'd evoke violent imagery, okay, linking the child's loss of joy to punishment.

So Blake uses these harsh verbs to suggest how oppressive forces aggressively strip away innocence and potential.

And when you look at the poem, there is a real contrast between these harsh verbs and some of the other moments of imagery, like the imagery of nature at the birds really contrast with the nip'd and the strip'd harsh vocabulary.

So I'd like you to just discuss for a moment, in what other ways could the words cage, drooped, nip'd, and strip'd be interpreted? So I'd just like to hear your ideas now.

So pause the video so you can discuss them.

Off you go.

Okay, thank you.

I really loved hearing your own suggestions there.

So it's true or false time, Blake's use of the words nip'd and strip'd suggests gentle guidance and nurturing of childhood growth? Is that statement true or false? Pause the video and give me your answer.

Okay, have we all come up with an answer? Okay, well done everyone that said that is false.

But I now need you to explain why that statement is false.

So again, pause the video and we'll share our answers in a moment.

So I'll give you an example of an answer here.

Hopefully you have something similar.

So the words nip'd and strip'd imply a harsh violent suppression of childhood growth and freedom.

So they don't suggest guidance and nurturing, it's much more harsh and violent.

So I'd like you please to look at your copies of the poem and I would ask you please just to skim and scan through the poem, so just remind yourself of the poem.

And I want to see if you can notice how the poem starts with I, but then shifts to the child.

So as you skim and scan the poem, see if you can notice that.

So pause the video just to give yourself time to do that.

Off you go.

Okay, have you spotted it? Great, so what I want you to think about now is why do you think Blake chooses to make this shift? And how might it link to the themes of institutional oppression and individuality? Okay, so pause the video to discuss your answers to those questions.

Off you go.

Okay, fantastic.

So Jun has very kindly offered his answer here.

So let's just read that through together.

So Jun has said that, "Blake's shift from I to the child could suggest how institutional education diminishes individuality.

The move from personal to general might reflect a loss of identity, reinforcing the idea that rigid schooling suppresses natural freedom and growth.

It's a really great detailed answer from Jun." So I'd like you please to discuss to what extent do you agree with Jun, and why? So pause the video just to read through the answer again and then discuss your answer to the question.

Okay, pause the video.

Okay, so your first practise task, what I would like you to do, please, is I would like you to write an analytical paragraph to answer the following question.

How does Blake use language to critique the institution of school? So you should include a topic sentence to explain the focus of the paragraph, identify key language techniques, use at least two quotations from the poem as evidence, and refer to Blake's intentions.

Now think about everything we've looked at so far with relation to seasonal imagery, the connotations of those words, the use of words connected to imprisonment and confinement, the metaphor of the caged bird.

There's lots of things in there that you could pick out to write about.

But I'm gonna hand over to you now, so make sure you have everything you need, everything you need to complete a written paragraph, and I look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Pause the video and get going.

Okay, great work everyone.

And I really like how lots of you focused on different things.

So some of you picked up on that seasonal imagery, some of you talked about the shift from I, so some really good stuff happening there.

So we have Jacob's answer here and we're going to check his work against the checklist.

So first of all, Jacob has his topic sentence.

Blake presents school as a force that destroys childhood freedom and oppresses the individual.

And then he uses some quotations, the violent verbs nip'd and strip'd evoke aggression and loss, suggesting school stifles natural development.

And he also identify techniques and intentions.

So this harsh imagery reinforces how rigid education crushes individuality and autonomy, aligning with Blake's critique of institutional control and enforced conformity.

So that's lovely what Jacob has done there in that he has identified the technique, the imagery, but also really linked it to Blake's purpose and what Blake is trying to do.

So it's over to you now.

I would like you please to check your own work using the checklist, please.

Pause the video to give yourself time to reread your work and check you have done all those things.

Off you go.

Once you have done that, I would like you please to give yourself a what went well and an even better if.

So, use the checklist to help you.

So, for example, if you maybe didn't include many quotations, that could be your even better if.

Okay, pause the video and set yourself those targets.

Okay, so that's the first part of our lesson completed.

We are now moving on to think about the structure in "The Schoolboy." So I'm going to show you a representation of the stanzas in "The Schoolboy," so the shapes of the stanzas.

So they look like this.

We've got stanza one through to six.

And I want you please just to take a moment to discuss what do you notice about the length and structure and how might this link to Blake's themes? Okay, so you'll need to pause the video to give yourself time to discuss your answers or think quietly to yourself.

Off you go.

Great, thank you everyone.

Lots of you noticing how those standards are really equal and very rigid and controlled.

And you notice that "The Schoolboy" is made up of six equal stances of five lines.

Now, why has Blake done that? Well, this structure could represent the rigid structure of school life.

So it could directly reflect that with no room for freedom or flexibility.

It could also reflect the institutional discipline imposed on children.

So again, the idea of control and oppression, mirroring the control schools have over students.

So again, this structure could link to Blake's own perspective on the institution of school.

Okay, true or false, "The Schoolboy" has an irregular structure, reflecting the freedom and flexibility of school life.

Is that statement true or false? Pause the video and come up with your answer now.

Okay, well done, everyone that noticed that was false, but I need your explanation please, so pause the video to come up with your explanation now.

Okay, so here is an answer.

Hopefully you have something similar.

Well, "The Schoolboy" has a regular structure, so not an irregular structure, with six equal standards, which could symbolise the rigid controlled nature of school life rather than freedom or flexibility.

So the poem follows a consistent ABABB rhyme scheme.

So I'm going to read a stanza to you now and just notice how the words at the end of the lines rhyme.

Okay, so I'll read it aloud and you can follow along.

"I love to rise in a summer morn, where the birds sing on every tree; the distant huntsman winds his horn, and the sky-lark sings with me.

O! What sweet company." Okay, so you can see that rhyme scheme there.

And now it's over to you to do some reading.

So I would like you now to read the poem aloud, exactly like I just did, but now it's your turn.

And I'm hoping that by reading the poem aloud, you'll really start to hear the rhyme and the rhythm emerge.

As you're reading the poem aloud, I'd like you to consider these questions.

What do you notice about the rhyme scheme? Does it add a sense of order or structure? What do you notice about the rhythm? Is it regular or irregular? And how might the rhyme scheme and rhythm reinforce or contrast with the poem's message about childhood or education? So there's lots for you to think about there, but do read the poem aloud and then discuss those questions.

So you'll need to pause the video to give yourself time to do this.

If you're working alone, you could read the poem quietly and then think about the questions to yourself and/or even write down some ideas.

Okay, I'm looking forward to hearing some wonderful poetry.

Pause the video and off you go.

Wonderful, thank you so much for trying that.

As I keep saying, I really do think there are such benefits in reading poems aloud.

I think it really helps you to hear the rhythms, the rhymes, and to really kind of visualise what it is that the poet is trying to do.

So thank you for trying that for those that were able to.

So we have an answer here from Sam, so let's see how Sam answered those discussion questions.

So Sam has said that, "The regular rhyme scheme creates a sense of structure and order, reflecting the monotony of school life and critiquing the rigid institutions that impose control.

The rhythm is mostly regular, emphasising the repetitive controlled nature of education.

Together, the rhyme and rhythm highlight the lack of freedom in childhood, reinforcing the constraints and monotony imposed by institutionalised schooling." A really great answer there from Sam.

So what I would like you to spend a few moments doing is just to reread Sam's answer and then to discuss to what extent do you agree and why? So pause the video to give yourself time to do that.

Off you go.

Okay, so question time.

Which statement best describes the effect of the regular rhyme scheme in "The Schoolboy"? Is it A, B, or C? Pause the video to pick your answer now.

Okay, hopefully we're feeling confident and we have our answer ready.

And well done to everyone that said B, it reflects the monotony and structure of school life, highlighting its repetitive nature.

Great stuff.

Let's keep going.

So we are on our second practise task, and what I'm going to ask you to do is very similar to the first practise task, but this time we are focusing on structure.

So all of the last few things we have thought about, and I'd like you please to answer the following question, how does Blake use structural features to critique societal institutions such as school? So you should identify specific structural features.

So you might talk about rhyme, rhythm, or the layout of the stanzas.

Analyse the effect of the feature, and explain how Blake uses that feature to emphasise his themes.

So we have done a lot of work on this already, you've had some fantastic discussions, so you have done the hard bit.

Now you just need to use all of that information to answer that question.

Okay, so when you are ready, pause the video and I look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Off you go.

Okay, thank you so much for your hard work on that task.

It really is impressive.

And remember, when you are analysing poetry and other literary texts, it's really good to have an understanding of structure and form as well as language.

And putting that all together makes for really impressive and effective analysis.

So just spend a few moments checking your work, and I'd like you to self-assess your work and tick where you have identified a specific structural feature, analysed the effect of the feature and explained how Blake uses the feature to emphasise his themes.

Okay, so pause the video just to give yourself time to self-assess your work.

Off you go.

So that marks the end of the lesson, and are very well done to all of you, and thank you for your hard work.

So we need to remind ourselves of everything we have learned this lesson.

We know that arguably Blake uses metaphors of seasonal change to represent childhood passing.

Blake uses the language of imprisonment and restriction to critique oppressive institutions.

The language of cage and nip'd could represent how institutional education creates restrictions.

The alternating use of I and the child could represent how institutional education removes individuality.

The regularity of the poem could reflect how monotonous Blake felt institutional education was.

So again, a very well done, and I look forward to seeing you all again in another English lesson soon.

Until then, goodbye.