This assessment will ask you to consider two unseen poems from the 20th and/or 21st centuries. In the first question, you will be asked to write about a previously unseen poem. In the second question, you will be asked to write about a second previously unseen poem, and compare it to the first.
You will be expected to consider the content and key ideas of each poem, and the poets’ use of language, structure and form. Section C assesses AO1 and AO2 – you are not assessed on your contextual knowledge.
Tackling Unseen Poems: Mr Taylor
In this video, YouTuber and English teacher Mr Taylor explains how best to analyse and compare two unseen poems. It's an oldie, but a goodie:
Timings
Leave yourself an hour to complete this section. Make sure you manage your time effectively!
Break this section up into 2 parts like you would for the anthology questions.
Spend 20 minutes on the first poem - this is worth 15 marks.
Question 1
Read through the poem more than once – your opinions may differ after you have read it twice.
Provide a summary of the poem as a whole:
This poem focuses on the emotions a mother feels when her child leaves home.
This is a poem centred on the chaos of a London Underground station during rush hour.
This is a clever poem that compares a city to a recipe.
Consider the title – is it self-explanatory or does it carry a deeper meaning? Use the title as a starting point as a way into the poem’s potential/possible meaning – explore the significance of the title: what clues about concepts/’big ideas’ has the poet left for us in the title?
The title "November" suggests that the events of the poem took place during the winter time, which tie in with the theme of death.
The title "Salome" is both the name of a biblical figure and the name of the central character in the poem, suggesting that there are some parallels.
Consider the voice of the poem – is the poet adopting a persona or writing as themselves. What's the effect of the voice?
The poet is speaking as if they are a child going to school for the first time, which makes us feel sorry for them.
The poet refers to themselves using the first person, suggesting that this is a lived experience and building a connection between the reader and the writer.
The poet speaks using the tone of a television presenter, which adds a sense of sarcasm and humour to the poem.
Consider if the poem is addressed to someone, for example is this an intimate poem written to someone in particular? If the poem is addressed to a specific person then you should consider the effect of this.
The poem is written using direct address - the writer uses the pronoun "you" - but it is unclear whether they are speaking directly to us, or to an imaginary reader.
The poet is speaking in the first person, as if they are talking to themselves - the poem is almost monologue-like, giving us an insight into their feelings.
Consider the aims of the poem – does it tell a story, describe an experience, protest about something, describe a place etc? What were the poet's reasons for writing the poem?
This is clearly a protest poem, as shown by the angry language and plosive alliteration.
As this poem is a sonnet, it is clear that the poet wanted to put across feelings of love and pride.
It's important to focus closely on the words used in the poem, their effect, and what they suggest.
Look for alliteration, spelling irregularities, slang words, metaphors, similes, personification...
Explore the semantic fields - is the poem positive? Negative? Happy? Sad?
Write about the mood and atmosphere conveyed in the poem – does it change at all? You should also pinpoint the words and phrases that help create this mood and atmosphere.
How it is written – words and phrases you find interesting, the way it is organised, and so on (Look at the significance of how the poem begins and ends. This is always significant.)
Consider the poet's reasons for writing the poem, which will include its theme or message.
Consider your personal response to the poem – does it connect with any of your own experiences or anything else you’ve read or seen? How do you feel about the poem as a whole?
Work your way through the poem chronologically and use short, embedded quotations to support your points.
Question 2
Start your comparison essay with an overview of the second poem you have been given.
Link it back to the first poem.
Introduce both poems, use the surnames of the poets, give a brief overview of both poems meaning and link the poems by stating if, or, how they are similar or different.
Both of these poems have an underlying theme of love and commitment, though one is focused on marriage and the other is focused on a love for a place.
REMEMBER:
Use connectives of comparison as you move between poems.
When you link between the poems (compare/contrast) ensure you are comparing ideas/language/structure and stay focused on the question.
Consider how the poems may be similar/different in terms of content.
Are they both about the same thing, or just similar ideas about a common thing?
Consider how the poems may be similar/different in terms of themes/messages.
If both poems carry the same themes, are the underlying messages different?
If the poems have different ideas, are the messages common?
Consider how the poems may be similar/different in terms of mood/atmosphere.
Focus on language used.
Consider how the poems may be similar/different in terms of style and structure.
Consider how the poems may be similar or differ in terms of the personal response they elicit.