Hello, there.

Great to see you today.

Thank you for joining me in today's lesson.

My name is Mr. Barnsley, and I'm really excited to continue our exploration of the poetry in the Edexcel Belonging Anthology together.

In today's lesson, we're gonna be taking a deeper dive into Bronte's poem "Mild the Mist Upon the Hill".

So if you haven't already looked at this poem, read through it a few times, make sure you understood it.

Maybe you should start there before you do today's lesson.

You're also gonna need to make sure you've got a copy of the anthology in front of you 'cause we are going to be looking through it and reading through it together.

All right, I think it's time for us to get started.

Let's go.

So let's have a look at today's outcome then, shall we? By the end of today's lesson, you're gonna be able to explain how Bronte uses language and structure to express her viewpoint.

Some keywords to look out for, nostalgia, melancholic, romanticism.

These are all words that you might have looked at before, particularly when looking at this poem.

So if you need a reminder, you can pause the video and read the keyword definitions.

But two words I really want to draw your attention to are euphony, which is a harmonious succession of words which have a really pleasing sound, and idealised, to think of or represent someone or something as being perfect.

So if you do want to take a moment to read through the definitions of each of these words, now is the time to pause the video and then press play when you're ready to continue.

Okay, so in today's lesson, we're gonna be analysing the poem "Mild the Mist Upon the Hill" and we're gonna be breaking this lesson down into two learning cycles.

Firstly, we're gonna be thinking about how Bronte potentially creates a nostalgic tone in her writing.

And in the second half of today's lesson, we're gonna be thinking about how other people might argue that actually Bronte's creating a melancholic tone.

So let's start by focusing on nostalgia.

So as I said, we're reading this poem today and there are many people who interpret Bronte's poem as having a nostalgic tone.

I want you to think about which words in the poem really stand out because they help create this sense of nostalgia.

So you're gonna need to make sure you've got your anthologies open on "Mild the Mist Upon the Hill".

And if you've got a partner, you can do this activity with them.

But don't worry if you're working independently, you can just think through this question by yourself.

So pause the video and find those words that create the sense of nostalgia.

All right, over to you.

Lots of good discussion going on there.

I heard many of you picking out words and phrases like Izzy did, words like dreamy, gone back, the other years, the years from the past.

All of those things were jumping out on the page to you and, of course, you might have picked out some other things as well and that's fantastic.

So I really want us to focus on this quotation from the end of the poem.

"Dreamy scents of fragrance pass that breathe of other years." I want us to think about that sensory language we can see in that quote, particularly that word scent, smell and fragrance, almost like a perfume.

How do those create a nostalgic tone? Over to you for this one.

Pause the video, and if you've got a partner, you can discuss with them.

Otherwise, you can think through this independently.

Okay, over to you.

Some great ideas there.

Really well done.

I had lots of you saying that actually, the sense of smell is something that can really evoke strong memories that can often take us back to a really particular time or place.

And you might start thinking about now, oh yeah, those smells I really remember from when I was little, or that smell that really makes me think of this one holiday or this one place that I visited.

So we know that sensory language, particularly smell, can be really helpful in evoking these really strong memories.

But this phrase also talks about the idea of breathing of other years, these smells that breathe of other years, how might the idea of breathing other years also evoke a sense of nostalgia? Again, over to you for this one.

Discuss in pairs or think through it independently, but give this a go.

All right, pause the video and press play when you think you've got some ideas.

Yeah, great discussions going on there.

I heard lots of you talking about breathing is what we do to live.

So if we're breathing in other years, like really almost like we're bringing these years from the past back to life, making them come alive.

They feel really alive to the speaker.

Now, I want us to focus on this other quotation, "And 'neath my father's sheltering roof." What do the words 'neath, underneath, 'neath and sheltering suggest to you? Again, over to you, discuss or think independently, but just see how many ideas you can come up with.

All right, pause the video, give it a go and press play when you've got some ideas.

Yeah, some really great discussion there.

I really liked what I heard some of you saying and I want to shine a spotlight on this.

Some of you were saying that like if you're beneath something and you're sheltering, it feels really safe.

There's a real sense of protection that we get, that comes across in this line from Bronte's poem.

Now, I wonder what those words then, beneath and sheltering, what do they suggest about the speaker's memories of childhood? Again, I'm gonna hand this one over to you to either discuss or think through by yourself.

But what do these words beneath and sheltering suggest about the speaker's memories of childhood? All right, pause the video, give it a go and press play when you're ready to continue.

Welcome back, some really great ideas there and I really liked it those of you're saying, actually, this really suggests that Bronte's childhood or the speaker's childhood, sorry, was happy, full of really safe feelings, and those memories are bringing back that feeling of being really safe and secure.

Well done if you said something similar.

So as well as the connotations of the language, it's also really helpful for us to analyse the sounds that are created through the poems. And throughout the poem, there are lots of long vowel sounds and repetition of consonants such as M and S.

And all of these together really create this sense of euphony.

Remember, euphony is something that's really harmonious to the ear.

So how might this sense of euphony enhance nostalgia or this nostalgic tone throughout the poem? What do you think? Over to you for this one.

Pause the video, have a think in pairs or independently, and press play when you think you've got some ideas.

Yeah, really interesting there.

And I heard lots of you saying, actually, it's just really pleasurable and really comforting these sounds, and we can then associate these ideas of pleasure and comfort to the speaker's memories.

Fantastic if you said something similar to that.

All right, let's pause for a minute then and check our understanding of everything we've discussed so far.

So true or false now.

Bronte evokes a sense of safety in the speaker's memories.

Is that true or is that false? Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you think you've got an idea.

Yes, well done if you said that was true.

Let's justify that now, shall we? So is it A, the use of words such as sheltering creates a sense of safety and comfort? Or is it B, the use of fricative sounds evoke a sense of safety and comfort? Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you think you've got the right idea.

Yeah, great work if you said A.

B, a fricative sound, a "f" sound, that's not the sound that we hear particularly throughout this poem.

We hear euphony, kinda some softer consonants like M's and S's and the long vowel sounds.

So it's the euphonic sounds that really evoke that sense of safety and comfort, and, of course, words such as sheltering.

Right, let's think about structure then and we really wanna think about how structure can be used or perhaps how Bronte has used structure to a nostalgic tone.

So we might represent the regularity of a rhyme scheme.

A rhyme scheme is very regular.

We might represent it using the image that you can see on the screen.

Let's think about then, what might regularity suggest about the speaker's memories? What might regularity suggest about the speaker's memories? Pause the video, over to you to have a think, have a discuss and press play when you've got some ideas.

Welcome back.

It can be tricky talking about structure, but I heard some really great ideas there.

I really liked you saying, actually, there's something really peaceful, relaxing about regularity.

We know what's coming, we know what comes next.

It feels very predictable, and sometimes predictability can make us feel really safe and secure.

It can make us feel really content, so all of these ideas that you might have had when talking about why Bronte might have used this regular rhyme scheme.

All right, again, let's do another check then.

Which interpretation of the regularity of the rhyme seems most appropriate for Bronte's poem? Is it Laura's argument where she says, "The regularity of the rhyme evokes a sense of peace since it implies there is nothing unexpected or erratic"? Or is it Izzy who says, "The regularity of the rhyme suggests a sense of control and implies the speaker can access their memories whenever they want"? Which of these feels the most appropriate for the poem? Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you think you've got the answer.

Yeah, great work if you said Laura's.

Okay.

For this, it feels like the poem is all about creating this feeling of peace and content and that works probably better with our understanding of the poem.

Sometimes a regular rhythm can suggest a sense of control, but in this case, it doesn't feel like a logical interpretation for us to be making.

So well done if you went with Laura.

Okay, over to you now for our first task in today's lesson.

Now, we know Bronte is widely considered a romantic poet and romantic work often features nostalgia, specifically this longing for the past.

So to what extent do you think Bronte's "Mild the Mist Upon the Hill" is adhering to, is following this idea of romantic nostalgia? I want you to write a short answer, no more than a paragraph.

Some things I want you to consider.

How is the past presented? Is it presented in an idealised form as if it's almost perfect? How the euphonic sounds might feed into these ideas of longing for the past? How the regularity of the rhyme might suggest a longing for the past? All right, over to you then for this.

You're gonna want to pause the video and give this your best shot.

I know you can do it.

We've had some great discussions so far.

So pause the video, give this a go, and press play when you think you're ready to continue.

Welcome back, some really, really great work there.

It was great to see you all concentrating so hard and a special well done to those of you who checked your spelling, punctuation, grammar before you put your pen down.

You know that is what I like to see.

Okay, before we move on, let's take a moment to reflect on our writing and maybe compare it to the work of one of our eight pupils.

So we're gonna read Izzy's response, and as we're reading, you can think two things.

Is my idea similar to Izzy's in any way? And are there any differences and are there any ideas that I would like to take and maybe add them to my own work? All right, let's read Izzy's work together then, shall we? "I think Bronte's "Mild the Mist Upon the Hill" does correspond with romantic nostalgia because the past is presented in an idealised way.

Words such as beneath and sheltered evoke feelings of safety and comfort; furthermore, the euphonic sounds enhance this idealised version of the past by creating a harmonious, pleasant atmosphere throughout the poem.

Moreover, the regularity of the rhyme also adds to this view because it associates a sense of peace and contentment with the past." All right, why don't you pause the video now, have a moment, reflect on your own writing, and think are there any of Izzy's ideas that I would like to add to mine? All right, pause the video and give this a go and press play when you're ready to move on.

Okay, welcome back.

We're now gonna move to our second interpretation of the poem and this time thinking about why some people might view Bronte's poem has actually being melancholic.

So as we discussed, we know that there are more than one way that people might interpret this poem, nostalgic or melancholic.

Over to you now to think about which words in the poem really create this sense of melancholia.

You're gonna want a copy of the poem in front of you.

So make sure your anthologies are open on the right page.

You can do this in pairs if you've got a partner or you can work through this independently.

All right, over to you then.

Which words in the poem create this sense of melancholia? All right, pause the video, give this a go, and press play when you think you are done.

Welcome back, I can see you looking really closely at the text there.

That's great to see.

You might have picked out some similar words to Laura who picked out the words sorrow, wept or cried, and tears.

Okay, these all create a sense of melancholy.

There's a real sense of sadness here, almost as if you know, someone has been very emotional perhaps.

So one other technique that Bronte uses is pathetic fallacy, and she uses this throughout the poem.

This is where we attribute human emotion to non-human, inanimate objects, or often we associate pathetic fallacy with the weather where we kind of add these human emotions to the weather that really starts to kind of reflect and create the mood or tone of a piece, in this case a poem.

So I'm gonna hand over to you now to see if you can be the detective and see if you can find examples of pathetic fallacy in this poem.

So pause the video and either do this in a pair or work through this independently, but make sure you've got the poem open, pause the video, give this a go and press play when you think you found some pathetic fallacy.

Yes, welcome back.

I heard lots of you talking about the images of the storms in the poem.

Some of you focusing in that cloudy evening, and I really like when people were talking about how the day had wept its fill.

All of these we could say are a use of pathetic fallacy.

Now I want you to think about what is the effect of this pathetic fallacy in this poem? Over to you for this one.

Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you've got some ideas.

Well done, I heard lots of you linking it back to this word melancholy.

It creates this melancholic atmosphere that actually runs throughout the poem.

So true or false then, the pathetic fallacy in the poem creates a melancholic tone.

Over to you.

Is that true or is that false? Pause the video, have a think, and press play when you've got an idea.

Well done if you said that was true.

Let's justify it then.

Is it a the A, the reference to the clouds weeping creates a melancholic tone.

Or is it the reference to the day weeping which creates a melancholic tone? Pause a video, have a think, and press play when you think you've got the right answer.

Yes, well done, it is the day that wept.

Right, now let's consider the structure of the poem.

So I want to start by getting you to read the opening two lines aloud and think, do they have the same rhythm? So pause the video, read them aloud nice and loudly, nice and confidently and see if you can spot, do they have the same or a different rhythm? All right, over to you.

Pause the video, give this a go, and press play when you are done.

Great work there.

Some wonderful reading aloud I must say.

I wonder if you noticed the following: "Mild the Mist Up on the Hill".

Seven syllables.

"Mild the Mist Up on the Hill".

Seven.

Let's a look at the second line.

Telling not of storms tomorrow.

Eight syllables.

So you can see they're very similar, but they do not have the same rhythm.

How might this alternating rhythm feed into this idea of melancholia? What do you think? Pause the video, have a think.

Discuss with a partner if you have one or just think through this independently.

Pause the video, work through this question and press play when you think you're done.

Hmm, tricky question this one, but I heard some of you giving this a really good go.

I heard lots of you talking about it feels like the voice is fluctuating, changing, and that could mean the emotions of the speaker are fluctuating and changing.

So rather than creating this almost peaceful and contented to tone that we talked about in the first learning cycle, this suggests a slight sense of unease.

And so this is really useful for justifying, if we wish to, arguing that there is a melancholic tone here.

All right, again, let's pause to check our understanding of that.

Which interpretation of the alternating rhythm feels most appropriate for a melancholic tone? Is it Laura who says, "I think the alternating rhythm creates a sense of freedom and nonconformity that runs throughout the poem?" Or is it B, Izzy who says, "I think the alternating rhythm creates a sense of fluctuating emotions that evoke a sense of sadness?" Which of these feels most logical and appropriate for the poem that we are reading? All right, pause the video, have a think, and press play when you've got the right, when you think you've got the right answer.

Yeah, great work if you said that was Izzy's response there.

Again, an alternating rhythm could represent freedom in a poem, but it doesn't feel like it would fit as a logical, appropriate inference in this poem.

Okay, so we've always got to think what feels logical and appropriate for the poem that we are analysing.

All right then, over to you then for our second task in today's lesson.

When we consider the images that create a melancholic tone throughout "Mild the Mist Upon the Hill", they aren't attached to the speaker.

Instead, quotations such as the following associate melancholia with nature.

So the day has wept its fill, the damp stands in a long, green grass, this cloudy evening fall.

So why do you think that Bronte might have crafted the poem in this way to associate nature with melancholy? How does that feed into her romanticism when we know romantic poets kind of always wrote about nature and often kind of in a nostalgic positive way? So how can we make this link of melancholy linking to nature? How might that feed into this idea of romanticism? All right, this is a tricky question, so I think we should do it as a discussion if you've got a partner and just kind of throw some ideas out between you.

But if you're working by yourself, don't worry.

You can make a few notes and don't worry if you want to go through different ideas until you find the one that feels right for you.

All right, over to you.

Pause the video, give this discussion question a go, and press play when you think you're done and you've got some ideas that you're ready to share.

Welcome back.

Really well done.

That was a tricky question, so it was great to see you persevering with that.

And if you didn't feel like your first answer really worked, you thought, okay, I'm gonna reflect on that and see if there's another idea that I might want to bring.

We're gonna finish the lesson then by reflecting on the discussions we had and comparing our thoughts to the ideas of Laura and Izzy and seeing whose ideas more closely aligned to ours, but also see if there's a different opinion that I might not have heard and I think, oh yeah, I'm gonna take that on board and I might make a note of that because that might be helpful for my analysis of this poem in the future.

So Laura said, "Perhaps the melancholia associated with nature evokes the romantic longing for the past where nature was treated with respect." So actually this sadness comes from the idea that the romantics didn't believe that nature was always treated with the reverence, the respect it deserved.

So maybe Laura's interpretation of the poem is that's why Bronte is making that connection between nature and melancholy.

Izzy says, "Perhaps by personifying nature through the melancholy and the pathetic fallacy, Bronte is encouraging the reader to forge a connection with nature." So actually, this is all about us forging those relationships, those connections with nature.

Why don't you pause the video and think about who you agreed with, who you disagreed with, and if there are any ideas that you might like to take forward in your understanding the poem in future.

All right, pause the video, have a think, have a reflect, and press play when you're ready to move on.

All right, fantastic work today, particularly in that second learning cycle 'cause there was some really tricky conversations that you were having and it was great to see you discussing this poem with confidence.

On the screen, you can see a summary of all the learning that we've covered in today's lesson.

Let's go through that together so you can feel really confident before you move on to your next lesson.

So we might interpret Bronte's poems evoking either nostalgia or melancholia.

The use of euphonic sounds and irregular rhyme associate a sense of peace with the speaker's memories.

Arguably, Bronte is adhering to romantic nostalgia in presenting a longing for the past.

Whether use of pathetic fallacy and alternating rhythm could create a sense of melancholia.

And arguably, the melancholia is associated with nature rather than the speaker.

Fantastic work today.

I've been so pleased to be learning alongside you.

I really hope you do join me for a lesson in future.

Have a great day and I hope to see you all soon.

Bye-Bye.