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

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

Now, today's lesson will be focusing on using figurative language in non-fiction writing.

So we'll explore what figurative language is and then think about the effects that it creates and how we can use it in our own writing.

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

So in this lesson you will show an understanding of figurative language by exploring its effects and then using in your own writing.

Before we delve in, let's look at those all important keywords that will be popping up throughout the lesson.

These words are literal, figurative language, celestial, manna, and ambrosia.

Some interesting words there that we'll find in our text.

Now, literal means something that is factual or exact, and figurative language is kind of the opposite of this.

So this is like non-literal words and phrases, which develop a writer's meaning.

So those words, literal and figurative language will come side by side when we're looking at the use of figurative language.

And then the last three words will be found in our text.

Now, these words are celestial, and celestial means belonging or relating to heaven.

So ideas of religion there.

Manna is an interesting word.

Now in the Bible, this was food that God provided to the Israelites to sustain them during 40 years in the wilderness.

So it refers to this food, this godly like food.

And then ambrosia is a food of the Greek and Roman gods there.

So those last three words, you can see their connections to religion, heaven, and gods.

So the outline of our lesson looks like this.

We're going to begin by looking at De Quincy's use of figurative language before moving on to writing about school using figurative language of our own.

So let's get started on that first part.

So we're going to be focused on Thomas De Quincy's "Confessions of An Opium-Eater," which was written in 1821.

And I'm just going to give you a brief summary here of what that extract entails.

So first, De Quincy defends himself against the idea that he began taking opium purely for fun.

He says this is a "misrepresentation of my case." He then goes on to say that then De Quincy says that he took opium to relieve his stomach "pain," which "attacked" him.

Only opium relieved the pain.

Next, De Quincy recalls that he first took opium after waking up in terrible pain after sleeping with wet hair.

And then finally De Quincy explains how a friend suggested he take opium to relieve his pain and that he got the "celestial drug" from the chemist.

So that kind of summarises the main parts, the main points of this extract.

Now, in this extract De Quincy uses lots of literal language to explain how and why he first began taking opium.

So we've got that word, that key word there, literal, meaning something that is exact or factual.

So let's look at an some examples.

So for example, he says "During that season," 1804, "I was in London." "I went out into the streets." And "By accident I met a college acquaintance, who recommended opium." So this is literal language.

These are things that he actually did, actually experienced.

And it's describing what it is meaning to describe.

It's factual.

It's accurate.

However much of De Quincy's writing, particularly when he's talking about opium itself is figurative.

Okay? Now, figurative language is not literal.

It's often not realistic, and it often develops a complex idea about something or someone.

And figurative language is very much about evoking feelings, images, or ideas from a reader.

So it's a very clever tool that we have in our writing toolbox.

So figurative language is all of those things.

So let's look at an example from the De Quincy text.

So for example, he describes the chemist who gave him opium as an "unconscious minister of celestial pleasures." Okay, that's a really lovely description, isn't it? He doesn't just say the chemist.

He says he is an unconscious minister of celestial pleasures.

Now, this is not a literal description, okay? So he isn't just saying there is a chemist who is wearing a white coat behind a counter.

He's describing him as this minister of like heavenly pleasures.

So we start to develop more complex ideas about the chemist and De Quincy's perception of the chemist.

So by using that figurative language, we can start to, as a reader, develop our own feelings or ideas about the chemist, but also start to understand how Quincy views the chemist or see the chemist.

So I'd like you to discuss now, what do you think the figurative language suggests about the chemist, and De Quincy's perception of the chemist? So for example, De Quincy describes the chemist who gave him opium as an "unconscious minister of celestial pleasure." So you are going to discuss what do you think the figurative language suggests about the chemist and De Quincy's perception of the chemist? Okay, pause the video.

So, you've got time to discuss your ideas or think quietly to yourself.

Pause the video and off you go.

Great, thank you for those brilliant suggestions.

So you may have said something like this.

The "minister," so the word "minister" develops the idea that the chemist is a religious rather than scientific figure.

And that "celestial" connects opium to a heavenly experience.

So there's some really great ideas there in this figurative language that De Quincy is using, that this chemist is almost ministering this celestial thing.

So here is another example of De Quincy's use of figurative language.

So he says when he hears the word "opium," he hears "solemn chords strike upon his heart." So again, this is not a literal description.

And we'd start to develop complex ideas about how De Quincy feels when he hears the word "opium." Okay, so that figurative language is really creating some complex ideas and feelings.

And I'd like you to discuss, please, what do you think this figurative language suggests about how De Quincy feels when he hears the word "opium?" So what is that figurative language doing in helping De Quincy explain how he feels when he hears the word "opium?" Okay, pause the video so you can discuss your ideas.

Think quietly to yourself, or you may have an opportunity to jot some ideas down.

Pause the video, and off you go.

Okay, great.

Some really great suggestions there.

We're really starting to understand how figurative language works to convey particular feelings or emotions or even images around ideas in a text.

So you might have said things like "solemn chords," suggest he hears sad music, perhaps connecting to a funeral.

Or "strike," this really strong words, develop the sense of the power of the word opium, as strike means to hit.

And this idea of music is really interesting as well is it kind of evokes this really emotional response from De Quincy, like hearing music.

So A, B, C, D, which of the following quotations from De Quincy's "Confessions of an English Opium-Eater" are examples of figurative language? Let's read them through together first before you select your answer.

So A, the chemist "evanesced or evaporated." Opium is a "celestial drug." De Quincy's stomach issue "attacked" him.

And De Quincy went to bed with his hair "wetted." So which of these are examples of figurative language? Select your answer.

A, B, C, D, now.

Okay, and the answer is, it's actually A, B, and C.

So well done to everyone that noticed that those three answers are our examples of figurative language.

So we are onto our first task, Task A, and I'm going to give you four examples of figurative language from De Quincy's "Confessions of An English Opium-Eater." The first is opium is a "celestial drug/" Opium is "manna" or "ambrosia." The chemist shop is a "Paradise of Opium-eaters." And finally De Quincy's stomach issues "attacked" him.

Now, we've got those three keywords there, celestial, manna, and ambrosia.

So you may want to revisit the keyword slides just to make sure you understand what they mean and their connection to religion, God, heaven, and the Bible.

So we've got our four examples of figurative language here.

What I would like you to do please, is I would like you to discuss the effect of each example of figurative language.

And you can use the sentence terms to support.

So the use of figurative language, this develops the idea that.

The figurative language also suggests that.

And De Quincy is trying to help us understand that.

So you are really developing your explanations of this use of figurative language, okay? Think about those key words as well.

They'll really help you to understand that figurative language.

Everyone ready to go? Okay, gather what you need, and then pause a video so you can start your discussions.

Off you go.

Some lively discussions there.

Thank you so much everyone.

I really like how we're really starting to understand how effective figurative language is at presenting those complex ideas and emotions around a topic like the one we are looking at.

So figurative language is a really important thing to understand, and you are doing great.

So let's just look at an example of Jun's discussion.

So he is exploring the chemist shop is a "Paradise of opium-eaters." And he says this.

"This develops the idea that the shop is really good.

The figurative language also suggests that the chemist shop is really important to De Quincy." And finally, "De Quincy is trying to help us understand how much he likes the shop." Now, this is okay, but Jun's exploration is not specific enough.

You know, the idea that it's really good doesn't really tell us how De Quincy really feels about the shop.

So what Jun needs to do is he needs to explore the word "Paradise" much more carefully, really thinking about the specific meanings of the word and why De Quincy would choose that word over something else.

So what is the significance of that? Because saying that the shop is really important to De Quincy, yes, that's true, but it doesn't really link to the effect of that figurative language.

Why that word "Paradise?" What does it make us think? What does it make us see? What does it reveal about how De Quincy feels about that opium? So Jun has another go, okay? And he comes up with this instead, The chemist shop is a "Paradise of Opium-eaters." "This develops the idea that the shop is the best place for those who take opium, so wonderful that it is not of this world." Again, much more specific.

Well, done, Jun.

And "The figurative language also suggests that the chemist shop is not just an ordinary shop, but like a place of religious significance for De Quincy." And that's a really important point, isn't it? De Quincy uses lots of religious imagery and language to really elevate the importance of opium to him and how it makes him feel.

And here that idea of paradise is really important in linking to that religious imagery.

And "De Quincy is trying to help us understand how much he venerates or worships, respects, the chemist's shop, just like a religious person, venerates paradise." So it's not just this idea that you know the shop is good and it's really important to De Quincy.

He actually worships this shop.

It's beyond that.

This is much more specific.

He worships it.

It is almost like a place of religious significance.

So we can see how truly significant this is for De Quincy.

Now, Jun has made that exploration much more specific.

So you can see here it's so wonderful that it is not out this world, a place of religious significance, and he venerates worship or respects.

So we can see how Jun has made that even more specific.

So we're gonna look at another example of Jun's discussion.

So you might wanna start thinking about comparing this to your own.

So it says De Quincy's stomach issue "attacked" him.

"This develops the idea that the pain was really bad.

The figurative language also suggests that De Quincy didn't like the pain." And, "De Quincy is trying to help us understand how much pain he was in." Now, I want you to think about what we just discussed with Jun's last responses.

And I'd like you to discuss, please, how can Jun make his exploration of figurative language more specific? So exactly like we've just done, I want you to discuss that yourselves.

And as a little tip, you might want to consider these specific connotations of the word "attacked." So how we can use that word "attacked" to make the exploration more specific.

Okay, pause the video so you can discuss your ideas or sit quietly and think to yourself.

Okay, pause the video and off you go.

Good work so far everybody.

We are now swiftly moving on to the second part of our lesson, which is all about writing about school using figurative language.

So everything that we have learned so far in the first part of the lesson, we are now going to put into practise.

So De Quincy's "Confessions of an English Opium-Eater" is an autobiography.

He brings his autobiography to life, in part through his use of figurative language.

So although it is a nonfiction text, he still uses that figurative language to bring his story to life.

When you write a piece of nonfiction, you can also rely on figurative language.

Today, you are going to use figurative language to write about your first day at school.

Okay, so as I said, everything we've looked at so far we are now going to use to create our own piece of writing using figurative language.

So first off, we need to think of some ideas.

So Jun considers the aspects of school he would like to present, and how he could do that through his use of figurative language.

So we don't just want to jump straight into the writing, we want to do some thinking, some planning, start thinking about some ideas.

So Jun says that he'd "like to develop ideas about the noise and chaos of school," which is a great idea, "and how fun that feels to be in a buzzing environment! Perhaps I could use figurative language to compare school to a beehive, or a circus to develop these ideas." So that's a really great starting point here from Jun.

He's focused on a specific part that he wants to present, and then he's thinking about different ways that he could use figurative language to draw out those comparisons.

So now it's your turn.

So I'd like you to do exactly what Jun has done, and I'd like you to discuss, please, how would you like to present school in your paragraph using figurative language.

So think about specific ideas that you would like to present, and then think about what you could use, what figurative language you could use to describe them.

So use these sentence starters to help.

I'd like to develop ideas about.

And perhaps I could use figurative language to.

Okay, so in a moment you'll need to pause the video so you can discuss your ideas, or you may wish to quietly think to yourself, or even jot down some ideas for you to use later.

Okay, pause the video and off you go.

Some really fantastic and creative ideas there.

I liked, I think I had someone talking about how they wanted to describe how they felt quite overwhelmed, and how they had to move through the new school.

And this idea that perhaps you could describe it like a jungle 'cause then you've got all the noises, the different animal encounters, and the idea of kind of moving through this unexplored place, which I thought was a really good idea.

Lots of you thinking about how you could describe the noise of the place, maybe linking this to a type of music.

So lots of different ideas coming out there, which is fantastic.

So Jun has written an example paragraph about school.

So let's just read it through to together.

"School! I have heard of it as I have heard of the carnival, but no further.

My heart trumpets in triumph when I hear the word now! It was a grim Monday morning in September that I first saw the building.

School! The circus of schoolchildren, the festival of learning.

The reader may choose to think of school as just a pile of bricks, but I believe it is a theatre of experiences." So what I think's really clever here that Jun has done, he's actually emulated.

Jun has emulated De Quincy, by relying on some of his sentence structures, and I think that's a really clever thing to do.

So Jun has almost borrowed some of De Quincy's sentence structures to really bring his description to life, which is such a fantastic thing to do.

So we talk about this idea of emulating the writer's craft.

This is what we are talking about, stealing or borrowing some of those ideas.

And you can see that Jun has cleverly used figurative language throughout.

He talks about his heart trumpeting in triumph, the circus of school children, and this festival of learning, and this idea that it's gonna be a theatre of experiences.

So he very cleverly uses figurative language throughout.

What I would like you to do now is to pick one of those highlighted examples of Jun's use of figurative language and discuss its effects.

So why has he picked that figurative language? What does it make you see, think, or feel? What does it suggest about how he is feeling? Okay, so really explore the use of figurative language and what it does, okay? So you're selecting one example and discussing its effects.

Get ready to pause the video, and off you go.

Okay, fantastic stuff there.

We are really starting to think about those uses of figurative language.

I really enjoyed Jun's figurative use of circus.

You know, this idea of the chaos, and the noise, and the different types of people running around.

It was really effective in helping me imagine that, and feel it, and experience it.

Okay, so which pupil has used figurative language to describe their first day at school? So is it Lucas or Laura? Let's read the together first, and then you can decide.

So Lucas has written, "The school building was squat and solid before me.

The windows were large, the glass gleaned, and I could see the heads of other children moving to and fro inside." Then we have Laura.

"The school building was squat and solid before me.

The windows eyed me up, a wrestler sizing up their opponent.

' So which pupil, Lucas or Laura, has used figurative language? Pick your answer now.

Okay, well done to everyone that noticed that it was actually Laura that used figurative language there.

So this idea of the school almost being like a wrestler, sizing up their opponent is a really great use of figurative language as well.

So it's not using necessarily literal language, it's making that comparison to it being like a wrestler.

And we get that idea that she's feeling a bit intimidated, that it can feel quite scary.

Lucas's description is still really good.

It just doesn't include that figurative language.

It's much more descriptive about what he can literally see before him.

Okay, so second practise task.

And it's time to you to write your own paragraph describing your first day of school.

Now, your paragraph must include figurative language.

So exactly like we've seen in all of the examples.

This is what you are going to do.

So you are writing a paragraph describing your first day of school.

So you can, if you like, use the sentence starters from De Quincy's "Confessions of an English Opium-eater" to structure your paragraph.

So you'll see here, I've laid them out so you can use them to help you.

So, "School! I've never heard of it as I have heard of, but no further." "My heart, when I heard the word now!" "It was a grim Monday in September that I first saw the building." "School! The.

." Figurative language.

And, "The reader may choose to think of school as, but I believe it be.

." So you can use those sentence structures to help you write this paragraph a bit like Jun did earlier when we looked at his example.

Okay, so I think you've got everything you need in order to complete this task.

Fantastic.

Okay, so when you're ready, pause the video so you've got plenty of time to write these paragraphs.

Off you go.

Well done, everyone.

I really enjoyed hearing all of that hard work and so many of you emulating De Quincy's craft, which is fantastic.

It's a really, really lovely thing to see.

So what I just want to do quickly is I want us to recall how Jun explored De Quincy's use of figurative language.

So you may remember back to the first learning cycle that Jun talked about the "Paradise of Opium-eaters" quote.

So if you remember, he said that that figurative language is effective because it "develops the idea that the shop is the best place for those who take opium, so wonderful that it is not of this world." He also picked up on how the figurative language makes it seem like a place of religious significance.

And also how the figurative language "helps us to understand how much he venerates or he worships and respects the chemist shop, just like a religious person venerates paradise." So you can remember how we looked at Jun's explanation of figurative language.

So what I would like you to do now is to do that exact same thing, but with your own writing.

So I'd like you to select one example of figurative language from your own paragraph, and discuss its effects using the sentence starters below.

Okay? So pick one example of the figurative language to describe school and explain.

This develops the idea of that.

The figurative language also suggests that.

I'm trying to help my reader understand.

Okay? So using your own writing, you are going to discuss the effect of the figurative language.

Okay? So pause the video so you've got plenty of time to do this.

If you can't discuss, you may wish to sit quietly and think by yourself or jot down some ideas, but pause the video so you've got time to do this.

Off you go.

Fantastic work, everyone.

I definitely sense there are some amazing writers in our midst.

Some new De Quincys if you like.

So excellent work.

Let's just remind ourselves of everything that we have talked about.

We know that figurative language sees writers use non-literal words and phrases to develop complex ideas about something or someone.

We know that De Quincy uses figurative language in his autobiography to develop complex ideas about opium and the chemist.

You may also now going forward, as you start reading other writers, see their use of figurative language too.

And you also need to that when writing figuratively, you should consider the ideas you are trying to convey, and use words which develop this idea.

Again, thank you so much for your hard work.

I've really enjoyed today's lesson.

It's really lovely to see that non-fiction writing can be just as creative as other forms, isn't it? So I hope to see you all again in a lesson soon.

Until then, goodbye.