Lesson video

Hello and welcome to today's English lesson.

Thank you so much for joining me today.

It's so great to see so many of you.

My name is Mrs. Butterworth, and in this lesson, we will be reading and exploring the poem, "Origin Story" by Eve L.

Ewing.

And I'm really looking forward to this lesson.

I think she's a really interesting person, and I think the poem is really great at exploring different themes and different ideas, which I think you'll find pretty interesting.

So let's get started.

So in this lesson, you would explore ideas of love and relationships in the poem, "Origin Story" by Eve L.

Ewing.

Now, before we delve into the lesson, let's look at those all important key words that we will use throughout the lesson to help us understand the poem and its key themes.

These words are lineage, familial, origin, idealized, and Afrofuturism.

Now, lineage is the members of a person's family who are directly related to that poem.

So you will notice in this poem, there is a lot about family lineage.

Familial is all about being related to family or the relationships between family members.

So you may talk about a familial relationship.

So that word is used to describe the relationship between family members.

You can use that word as a descriptive word or an adjective.

Origin is the beginning or cause of something.

So we see that word in the title of our poem.

And idealized is shown as perfect or better than something is.

So if you idealize something, you may present it as being slightly better as it is.

It also links to words like romanticize.

And we've got this word Afrofuturism.

Now, Afrofuturism is a specific genre that centers Black history and culture and incorporates elements like science fiction, technology, and futuristic elements.

So the outline of our lesson looks like this.

We're going to begin by reading the poem and responding to the poem, "Origin Story," and then we're going to move on to look at the context and explore the context in relation to the poem.

So let's just find out a little bit about the poet herself.

So the writer of "Origin Story" is Eve L.

Ewing.

Now, she was born in Chicago in 1986 where she still lives and works.

So some of you may have heard of Chicago.

It is a city in America in the USA.

She's an American writer and an academic focusing on education and racial inequality, as well as poetry and academic writing.

She has created Marvel comics like "Exceptional X-Men," "Black Panther," and "Ironheart." So perhaps some of you have heard of some of those comics.

She explores themes of identity, race, and womanhood in her work, focusing on the lives and voices of Black women specifically.

Now, think about this information as we move through the lesson, as you may wish to consider it as you read and explore the poem later on.

So you might begin to see some of these influences in the poem.

So you might see some references to where she was born perhaps, or some of her other writing coming into that poem.

So think about that information and hold it in your head.

And it might be useful as we read the poem.

Okay, so let's see what you remember.

Is the answer A, B, or C? Eve L.

Ewing was born and lives in A, New York; B, Chicago; or C, Los Angeles? Pause the video to come up with your answer now.

Okay, and are very well done to everyone that said B 'cause the answer is B, Chicago.

Now, one of the key themes in this poem is love and relationships.

So I'm going to show you a few images now.

So consider the following images.

There they are.

Okay? So what I would like you to do is using these images to help you, I want you to discuss, please, what different types of love and relationships might you expect to find in a poem? So what different types of love and relationships might you expect to find in a poem? So you've got your images there.

If you're working alone, you may wish to sit quietly and think to yourself or even jot down some ideas, but you'll need to pause the video to give yourself time to discuss that question.

So pause the video now.

Okay, great, well done everyone.

Should we feed back some ideas? So you may have some different ideas and that's fine, but let's just have a little look.

Anyway, so you may have discussed the following.

So you may have looked at this image and thought about things like romantic love in relation to things like heartbreak, passion, or intimacy.

So you've got that romantic love there.

This image, we've got that key word there, familial love.

So you might have come up with things like parental love or family love, but it's all kind of in that area, isn't it? That familial love.

And you might have come up with words like parents, siblings, or even generational bonds.

Then we have this image, so possibly friendship here.

So love or relationship between friendship.

So you might think of words like platonic love or the theme of loyalty or support.

And then finally, this one, so you may have thought about ideas like self and identity.

So that idea of self-love and self-acceptance.

So you might have thought about those sorts of words like celebration, self identity, self love amongst, when thinking about that image.

So now, we're going to read the poem.

So do make sure you have your copy of that ready now.

And then you'll need to please read the poem, and then I would like you to discuss what type of love and relationships are being presented and explored by the poet? So think back to those images and those things that we have discussed, those types of love.

And once you have read the poem, I'd like you to discuss please what types of love and relationship are being presented and explored by the poet? So you'll need to pause a video to give yourself time to complete those tasks.

So pause the video and off you go.

Okay, great.

Thank you, everyone.

Did you enjoy the poem? I really hope so.

I think it's a really beautiful, interesting, lovely poem.

I just really like it.

So hopefully, you did too.

And hopefully, you have some ideas about the types of love and relationships being presented.

So we have some of our Oak pupils here.

So let's see how they answered that question.

So Lucas here, he says he's picked up on romantic love.

So he says that romantic love is shown through the speaker's parents.

Their love is fragile and imperfect like a comic book, but still meaningful and worth remembering.

I like how Lucas has picked up that specific detail there of the comic book because that's a very important image in the poem, isn't it? And I can't help but think about Eve L.

Ewing's own experience as a comic writer and how she's kind of brought that in as well.

So great answer from Lucas there about romantic love.

Sofia has picked up on that familial love.

So again, that key word.

So that familial love is shown through the speaker's warmth and care when telling her parents' story.

And I think there is definitely that feeling there, isn't it? That reflecting on her parents' love and her familial love.

It just feels quite warm.

And I think what's lovely here is Sofia then goes on to say it reflects pride in her roots and respect for her family history.

So I think there's some lovely ideas there around the warmth towards her parents and the idea of pride and respect in her family history.

And then Izzy has said that the poem also explores identity and self love.

Absolutely.

And Izzy's gone on to say that the title "Origin Story" shows that by sharing her parents' past, the speaker is also learning about herself.

And I think that's a really perceptive point from Izzy.

Don't you think that she's thought about that title and thinking about that self-identity and self-love in relation to her past and her parents' love? So over to you now.

You need to decide who you agree with most and why.

So is it Lucas, Sofia, and Izzy? So you'll need to pause a video to discuss who you agree with most and why.

If you are working alone, you can think quietly to yourself or even jot some ideas.

But pause the video to get that done now.

Off you go.

Okay, great.

Lovely, lots of different ideas there about who agrees with who.

But now we need to do our true or false question.

So true or false.

The poem "Origin Story" primarily focuses on the love between friends and the theme of loyalty.

So is that true or false? Come up with your answer now please.

Okay, everyone feeling confident? Yeah, of course, you are.

So well done to everyone that said false.

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

So do pause the video to give yourself time to come up with your explanation.

Off you go.

Okay, so I'm going to share what I have you may.

Hopefully, you should have something similar.

So you may have noticed that actually, the poem centers on the speaker's parents' romantic relationship, exploring themes of love, memory, identity, and family.

So there isn't really a reference to the love between friends and the theme of loyalty.

It's much more about romantic love, familial love, and that self identity and self love.

I now want to think about the conventions of love poetry or poems about love.

So it might be worth just thinking about any poems that you have already studied or read that think about the theme of love or write about the theme of love.

Because arguably, the typical conventions of a love poem include an idealized presentation of love, particularly when a poem focuses on romantic love.

So we kind of have these expectations that there'll be some kind of idealized or romanticized presentation of love.

So we might think about things like describing love as perfect, eternal, or unchanging, suggesting love can conquer all obstacles, ignoring flaws or challenges in the relationship.

So only presenting it as this perfect romantic lovely thing.

Using romantic imagery, and I'm sure we've thought about these things like stars, hearts, or flowers.

Now, arguably, "Origin Story" challenges typical love poem conventions by presenting a more realistic view of love.

So arguably, it is putting forward this kind of realistic idea of love and relationships.

It's not trying to hide its flaws or its challenges or present it as something that conquers all or as internal or unchanging.

So it's really challenging those ideas.

So thinking about those ideas, I'd like you now to reread the poem.

Okay, so make sure you've got that copy to hand.

And then I would like you to find any examples where a realistic perspective of love and relationships is presented.

So we're looking for realistic.

So where perhaps Eve L.

Ewing presents challenge or an obstacle or something like that.

Okay, so pause the video so you can read that poem and get considering that question.

Off you go.

Okay, great.

So let's have a look at some examples now.

So you may have picked up that on line 15, from love to it, there is this description of love as fragile.

Okay, so she's not saying it's perfect or unchanging, she's describing it as fragile, which reflects the vulnerability and imperfection of real life relationships.

So it's not this strong, all in, all conquering thing.

She described it as fragile and reflects this kind of vulnerability and imperfection, which is a much more realistic perspective of love than we might expect.

From line 20, from never to last, it accepts that some love is temporary from the start.

So it's honest and grounded rather than romanticized.

And remember we are thinking about that word, that key word, idealized and idealistic, and how it links to that word romanticized.

So presenting a romanticized or idealistic view of love.

And she doesn't do that here.

So from line 25, from it to backing, it suggests that the love wasn't carefully preserved or protected, showing the everyday reality of relationships.

And then finally, from line 30, from A to ending, she acknowledges that love is temporary, but still meaningful.

So even though she's showing this realistic perspective of love, it doesn't lose the meaning.

It's still meaningful, it's still important.

Okay, let's see how much you remember from your readings.

So what does Ewing use to represent the fragility of love? Is it A, a record; B, a tambourine; or C, a comic book? Pause a video to come up with your answer now.

And a very well done to everyone that said, C, a comic book.

Well done.

So you have reached your first practice task.

So what I would like you to do is we're going to look at a statement, and then you are going to discuss it.

So the statement is, arguably, "Origin Story" both idealizes and challenges traditional ideas of love.

And I'd like you to discuss please to what extent do you agree with this statement? If you are working on your own, you can, of course, write the answer to this.

Jot down some ideas or think quietly to yourself.

So as you discuss this, I would like you to consider please how different types of love are presented.

Think about those ideas of romantic love, familial love, and self-love, how it subverts and uses the conventions of love, poetry, examples where Ewing idealizes love, and examples where Ewing presents love as realistic or imperfect.

Okay, so are we ready to get this task underway? Great, then pause the video and off you go.

Well done, everyone, and thank you for your discussions.

There were some really lively, interesting, and perceptive things being said there, and I think it's really important to acknowledge that there's lots of different ways we can interpret these poems, exploring lots of different ideas, and you've really exemplified that well in your discussion.

So well done.

So we have Andeep and Alex's answers here.

So let's read those to together.

So Andeep has said that Ewing shows love as both precious and flawed.

Romantic love is turned up, but vulnerable, moving beyond the usual perfect image.

Familial love feels authentic and grounding while the speaker's reflection hints at how personal identity is shaped by these complex bonds.

So a lovely response there from Andeep.

And then Alex says the poem uses familiar love poetry ideas, but twists them.

Love is treasured like a comic book, special yet fragile.

Ewing resists ideal idealizing love as eternal, instead showing it as worn and imperfect, revealing a universal, more honest understanding of human relationships.

So both of these are really lovely answers.

And I'd like you to just spend a few moments discussing who do you agree with most and why.

So think about your own discussions and maybe draw on those.

But you'll need to pause a video to discuss your answers.

Off you go.

Well done, everyone.

We are now halfway through and we have reached the second part of the lesson, which is all about exploring context.

Now, I'd like you to think please and discuss where might you have heard the term origin story before and what is it usually associated with? So where might you have heard the term origin story before and what is it usually associated with? Pause the video and get discussing.

Off you go.

Okay, thank you, everyone.

So an origin story, I'm going to explain what it is, and perhaps these are things that you have thought about in your own discussion.

So an origin story is a powerful narrative that explains how someone becomes special or important.

And I'm sure many of you have noticed that the idea is popular in comic books and superhero stories, whether that's films or TV or comic books.

That origin story is a very popular idea in those.

And it shows a person's journey and identity or how that superhero come to be that superhero, for example.

And Eve L.

Ewing, the poet, is also a Marvel comic writer.

So she connects her poem to this idea, which again is a really interesting link to her own biographical context.

Ewing's choice to tell a personal story and frame it as an origin story can be interpreted as, so we can think about interpreting it in the following ways.

That reclaiming, she does it to reclaiming the power to define her own identity and beginning.

So it can be interpreted as that.

Can be interpreted as elevating ordinary love and family history to something heroic and meaningful.

Challenging, whose stories are usually seen as worth telling or celebrating.

And placing value on Black lived experience in a genre, often centered on white male heroes.

So if you think way back to the start of the lesson when we were looking at that information on the writer, Eve L.

Ewing, we can start to see that biographical context coming in here.

So all of that information that we looked at coming in here, her links to comic books, her links to academic writing, and those themes that she likes to explore coming out here in this interpretation.

So over to you now.

Which answer best describes why Eve L.

Ewing might have chosen to frame her poem as an origin story? So you'll need to select A, B, C, or D, and you'll need to pause the video to do that now.

Off you go.

Are we ready for the answer? It's quite a tricky one.

This is next 'cause the answers are quite long, but hopefully, you have picked an answer and hopefully, you have picked C.

So to explore how family narratives shape individual identity and cultural legacy.

Now, remember that is just one interpretation.

There are many that we can explore in relation to this.

So well done everyone that got that right.

Now, Ewing has said that her work falls under the genre Afrofuturism from futurism.

Now, Afrofuturism is a cultural movement combining the following.

Black history and culture, re-imagining of the past and future, futuristic or science fiction themes, challenges to dominant versions of history, and offers new empowering possibilities.

So examples in popular culture of Afrofuturism include "Black Panther" and Marvel's "Ironheart," which is actually written by Ewing because we can see this idea of challenging dominant versions of history, those links to science fiction, the reimagining of past and future.

There is also a lot of music that considers itself part of the Afrofuturism movement.

So it's a really big movement encompassing lots of interesting art forms, ideas, and people within it.

Now, specific features of Afrofuturism include mythmaking or re-imagining the past, pride in Black culture and family lineage, blending the personal and the political, futuristic vision and survival.

And what I'd like you to think about is you may want to go back to the poem to look, but can you find examples of these features in the poem? So just read through those features again and then see if you can find any examples in the poem.

You'll need to pause a video to give yourself plenty of time to do this.

So off you go.

Great, thank you everyone.

So you may have discussed some of the following ideas.

So let's explore them together to make sure we've really got a grasp of this.

So you may have found examples of mythmaking or reimagining the past.

So an example of this is how Ewing reimagines herself as powerful through her superhero-like storytelling.

Okay, so the title "Origin Story" echoes how superheroes explain their powers, and she puts herself as the writer and the speaker of the poem in that position.

She is telling her story as if she is a superhero.

Now, pride in Black culture and family lineage.

So you may have thought about the fact that Ewing celebrates Black identity, beauty, and music throughout this poem.

So she uses examples of language linked to Black culture.

For example, Chaka Khan, who is a singer and an artist, and the Afro puff, which is a particular hairstyle.

You may have picked up on the blending of the personal and political.

Now, in this poem, the Speaker Ewing reflects on her parents' relationship and lineage.

So we can see there how she's blending her personal story with political ideas.

And what Ewing also does is she reveals how love, memory, and identity are shaped by wider systems and ideas.

So she does a lot here with this poem in terms of those specific features.

And the futuristic vision and survival.

Now, arguably this poem honors fragile stories to ensure they survive into the future.

So just the act of writing this poem and publishing it honors fragile stories.

So her story.

And the comic book metaphor really links to these ideas of preservation.

Okay, so we have A, B, C, or D.

Which of the following would not be considered a feature of Afrofuturism.

So which of the following would not be considered a feature of Afrofuturism? You'll need to pause the video to come up with your answer now.

Okay, well done to everyone that noted it was D.

Remember we were looking for not be considered, so not.

So the rejection of science fiction and future narratives.

Actually, it's the opposite of that.

Afrofuturism encompasses science fiction and future narratives.

So we have reached the second part, the second task in our lesson.

Okay, so this is your final task.

So just a little bit more work to do.

So really give it all that you have got.

And what I would like you to do, please, is I would like you to write a response to the question.

In what ways is "Origin Story" an Afrofuturist poem? Okay, so in your answer, you should include quotations and specific examples from the poem.

So we have spent a lot of time in this lesson reading the poem, picking out key examples, and discussing and exploring them.

So hopefully, you've got lots to draw on here.

And remember, those key features of Afrofuturism.

So make sure you include some of these.

Re-imagining history of the past, celebrating Black culture, and/or identity, blending personal experience with political ideas, and then finally using futuristic or hopeful things about survival and progress.

So as ever, you're gonna need to pause that video so you can get writing your response.

I look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Pause video.

Off you go.

And a very well done everyone.

I could feel the hard work on that final task, and all of you applying that new knowledge that you have.

So a very well done.

So let's look at an example answer.

So let's read this through together first.

So the title "Origin Story" hints at creating a new beginning, re-imagining personal and cultural history.

The poem celebrates Black identity through vivid images like Afro and Chaka Khan, which connect personal experience to wider cultural heritage.

It blends the personal and political, showing the father's activism through communist papers and the mother's creativity with music.

The fragile love compared to a comic reflects survival and hope as something precious passed through time despite challenges.

This mix of past culture and resilience points to a hopeful future, key features of Afrofuturism.

Now, let's at what this response has done successfully.

So we'll highlight these as we go along.

So it has successfully used quotations.

And you can see here that it has successfully identified key features of Afrofuturism.

So it's really packed in a lot into that little response.

So what I would like you to do now is I'd like you to use that idea to self-assess your own answer.

So have you included specific quotations and examples from the poem? So you might just wanna go through and check you have done that, and have you referred to specific features of Afrofuturism? So pause the video to get that final self-assessment and feedback task completed.

You are almost there.

Well done.

Very well done, everyone.

We have reached the end of the lesson.

So let's just remind ourselves of everything we have learnt and looked at today.

So we know that the speaker of the poem is most likely Ewing herself, sharing her own personal experience.

We know that the poem explores different types of love.

So those include romantic, familial, and love linked to self identity.

Arguably, the poem subverts the conventions of a love poem by offering a realistic presentation.

The title foregrounds the importance of placing value on Black lived experiences and re-imagining narratives.

And then finally, Ewing has said that her work falls under the genre of Afrofuturism.

So again, thank you so much for your hard work and thank you for joining me for this lesson.

I really hope to see you all again soon.

But until then, goodbye.