Analysing the poem "Tissue." Hello and welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Mr. Young, and it is great to see you once again on another poetry lesson in this sequence.

So today's lesson is all about analysing the poem "Tissue" by Imtiaz Dharker.

So it's really, really important that you've got your copy of your anthology in front of you.

So, let's get started.

So today's learning outcome has a very clear learning objective related to the poem "Tissue." So by the end of today's lesson, everybody will be able to explain how Dharker presents her attitude to power in "Tissue." And remember, the anthology is called "Power and Conflict," isn't it? So we're always gonna be kind of relating them back to these concepts.

And today's lesson has some very important keywords, so let's take a look at what they are.

And before we do, I do encourage you to pause the video and jot these down and their definitions, particularly if this is the first time that you've come across these, 'cause we're gonna be using these quite a lot today in our understanding of the poem "Tissue." So, free verse, poetry that does not rhyme or have a regular rhythm, and the poem "Tissue" could certainly be described as being in free verse.

Quatrain, a stanza in a poem consisting of four lines, and the poem we're looking at today mostly is written in quatrains.

Extended metaphor, a type of metaphor that is developed throughout a piece of writing.

So keep your eyes peeled for what the extended metaphor is that Dharker uses in "Tissue." And finally, transient.

If something is transient, it is something lasting for only a short time only.

So we could really describe life as transient.

People often say that, don't they, life is short.

So today's lesson has two very clear learning cycles.

The first one is all about language.

We're gonna look at all of that rich, vivid, kind of wonderful language that Dharker uses throughout her poem "Tissue" and how we can link that back to power.

And again, in our second learning cycle, we're gonna look at something just as important, which is the poem's structure.

So all of those brilliant things that Dharker does on a structure level to really emphasise the power in the poem.

So let's get started with learning cycle one.

So I would like you to open your anthologies, please, your copy of your "Power and Conflict" anthology, and to read the poem, just to read that poem again, that brilliant poem, just to reacquaint ourselves with it.

So pause the video, read that poem, and then push play when you'd like to proceed.

Okay, excellent work on that.

Really excellent focus.

Really, really wonderful start to today's lesson.

And once again, I really hope that you enjoyed that poem as much as I do.

I think it's a really, really great poem that poses some really, really fantastic ideas in a really, really clever way.

So let's get started.

So what do you think is happening in this poem? So if you had to go home this evening or you spoke to a friend after this lesson and they ask you, "What is 'Tissue' about? Tell me, what is 'Tissue' about?" What would you say to them? So pause that video, have a quick discussion, and then push play when you'd like to proceed.

Okay, once again, a really, really great approach to that task, and I'm hearing some really, really fantastic answers.

Being able to condense a poem down to its kind of core ideas, its main ideas is a really, really good skill in English, and particularly useful when we're looking at poems in this anthology.

So well done for doing that.

So I would now like you to develop that a little bit more.

So can you choose a word from each stanza that you think summarises the main ideas of the poem, and why did you choose that word? So have a look at your poem again in the anthology, highlight a word or annotate a word, one word from each stanza that you think is the most important, that really helps summarise the main ideas.

So once again, pause the video, complete the task, and then push play when you'd like to proceed.

Okay, once again, really great effort on that, and we're kind of developing what we've just done in that discussion task, aren't we? We've kind of said what the poem is about and now we're trying to pick evidence, pick key moments in the poem that really support our understanding of its main ideas.

So we could have said the following things.

I think if I was doing this task, I may have done this for the first three stanzas.

I would've said alter.

I would've picked up on that word alter.

I would've picked up on the word Koran in the second stanza and maybe the word attention in the third stanza.

And you may have different words and that is absolutely fine, but this is just how I would begin to interpret the poem, how I would begin to understand its main ideas.

So why did I pick alter? Well, I would show that it kind of indicates to us the power paper has over our lives, because it can alter it, it can alter our lives in certain ways.

Really important idea.

For the second stanza, I've picked Koran.

And again, I've picked that because I think it shows paper is significant in our lives and it does form the basis of our religious texts.

You know, it could be the Bible, it could be the Koran.

In this instance, Dharker is focused on the Koran, and I think it really highlights the religious side of paper.

And finally, attention in that third stanza.

I think that word is really, really key by Dharker, and it shows we give paper our attention, particularly when it acts as a record of important things in our lives.

And Dharker speaks about the idea of it recording births and recording deaths here.

So I think these start to begin to show the importance of paper in our lives, which is certainly a key idea in the poem, isn't it? So well done for your hard work on this and well done if you picked up on anything similar or indeed anything different.

Okay, so I would like you to read the poem "Tissue" again.

And crucially, as you read this time, I would like you to think about how it links to power.

So we've spoken about what the poem is about, we've picked out some individual words.

Now I want you to bring that all back to power.

How does this poem link to power? So hit that pause button, jot down some ideas, and then just do push play when you'd like to proceed.

Okay, fantastic work on that.

Well done.

Remember, the anthology is called "Power and Conflict" for a reason.

That's because we always have to kind of think about and interpret these poems in light of those two concepts.

And really, really great discussions taking place there, and I really enjoyed those kind of conversations that spoke about power, but also powerlessness as well, which I think is a key theme in this poem.

So I would really be focusing on the main thing is the fragility of human power in this poem.

So the poem reflects on the fragility of human power structures, contrasting them with the enduring power of nature.

There's a reference made to that at the end of the poem.

Despite the apparent solidity of human creations like architecture and documents, they are ultimately transient and subject to decay.

So remember, transient, they don't last for a very long time.

And you might already be thinking about what kind of similarities there are to other poems in the anthology here.

So ultimately, we could argue Dharker reveals the transience of life by comparing it to paper, something fragile and impermanent when contrasted to the natural world.

And she speaks about that daybreak at the end of the poem, which is really, really powerful.

So the poem uses metaphor extensively, and in fact, two extended metaphors are used throughout the poem.

So we've got some images here, some lovely images.

We've got these kind of old documents on the left, and we've got these kind of old structures, these old buildings on the right.

So my task for you is as follows, so using the images below, what do you think the extended metaphors are and why does Dharker use them? You've read the poem a few times now, you're gonna be experts at this poem.

So what kind of extended metaphors have been used by Dharker? Use those pictures to support your discussions or support your ideas.

So hit that pause button, complete the task, and then push play when you'd like to see some feedback.

Okay, fantastic effort on that.

Being able to identify and interpret and analyse extended metaphors is a really, really challenging thing to do.

So you're doing incredibly well for picking up on that and interpreting it in the context of power.

So let's look at the first one.

So we've got this paper.

So I would say this kind of runs throughout the entire poem, doesn't it? But the speaker in the poem uses tissue or paper as an extended metaphor for life.

Dharker illustrates that paper seems powerful, but is ultimately fragile, very similar to human life.

Both are seemingly powerless when juxtaposed with the forces of nature and the passage of time.

So we've got that extended metaphor, paper as a stand-in for life.

But we've also got that other metaphor, haven't we, which is linked to buildings.

So Dharker also employs an extended metaphor of buildings and design.

The metaphor envisions an architect using paper, as it can be considered more powerful than conventional materials like brick.

So superb work if you were able to pick up on those in your own discussions and your own work.

Okay, check for understanding time then.

Let's see what we have remembered so far.

So which of the words below form part of Dharker's extended metaphor comparing paper to life? And remember, an extended metaphor is developed throughout a piece of writing.

So which words here does Dharker use to develop that metaphor? So hit that pause button, complete the task, and then push play when you'd like to see the correct answers.

Okay, it is of course A and B, and fantastic effort to everybody who identified that.

C and D, buildings and monoliths really are better suited to the other extended metaphor, aren't they, about building and design.

So well done for picking up on that.

Okay, we have reached our first practise task of today's lesson where we are going to put into practise all of those brilliant things that we've learnt so far in this learning cycle.

So we are gonna help out Alex.

We're gonna help out Alex with a little bit of his work.

So Alex is answering the following question, and that question is, how does Dharker present the theme of power in the poem? Once again, linking it back to power.

So I would like you to complete Alex's single paragraph outline developing his topic sentence about extended metaphor in the poem.

So let's take a look at what Alex has done already.

So Alex has got his topic sentence and he says, "Throughout 'Tissue,' Dharker highlights life as ultimately transient." Remember, short-lasting.

"She develops this effectively through her use of extended metaphor, repeatedly comparing life to paper." So that is a great start there by Alex, isn't it? It's a really high-level topic sentence that really presents a really interesting idea about power in the context of the poem.

So your task is to develop that even further.

I would like you to add some supporting detail to support that topic sentence.

So you could add particular words, particular phrases, particular evidence that links to that extended metaphor.

And then I would also like you to have a go at the concluding sentence.

How would you finish Alex's point after you've analysed that evidence? How would you bring it all together nicely to link back to his topic sentence? So super excited to see how you get on with this one.

So pause the video and then push play when you would like to move on to some feedback.

Okay, excellent work on that.

It's tricky, isn't it, sometimes to take somebody else's work and try and develop it as our own.

But it's a really, really important skill to be able to develop our analysis of poems like "Tissue." So I would like you to do a little bit of self-assessment for me then please.

Self-assessment is really, really important in improving our work, isn't it? So self-assess your single paragraph outline using the following questions.

And those questions are, does your supporting detail include evidence that supports Alex's topic sentence? Does your supporting detail include a range of evidence from across the poem? Have you included examples of where Dharker uses extended metaphor in the poem? And does your concluding sentence sum up your paragraph and make a link back to the original topic sentence? So pause the video now, complete those self-assessment tasks, and do set yourself a target for next time based upon them.

Okay, we have reached learning cycle two, where we're gonna look at the structure of the poem.

So Dharker does some really, really interesting things on a structural level to highlight the poem's significance in terms of power.

So let's just get started and see what they are.

So open your anthology and find "Tissue." You should have it in front of you when we're doing this, because we are going to look at the poem as a whole.

We're not gonna read it line by line, but we're gonna look at the structure.

So quick discussion questions for me then, please.

How many stanzas does the poem have and what kind of rhyme scheme does the poem have? Is it regular? So hit that pause button, complete the task, have a discussion if you're working in class, or do jot down some ideas if you're working independently, and then push play when you'd like to see some feedback.

Okay, excellent work on that.

And it really is interesting, isn't it, when we start to look at the kind of nuts and bolts of how a poem is put together.

So some answers we could have said are as follows.

So the poem has nine, non-rhyming stanzas of four lines each, and then one final one-line stanza.

As such, we would say it is mostly written in quatrains and in free verse, free verse because it doesn't really seem to have a regular rhyme or regular rhythm.

So discuss for me then please, how could we link this knowledge of form and structure to Dharker's wider ideas about power in the poem? So how can we link that to power? So hit that pause button, complete the task, and then push play when you'd like to continue.

Okay, some fantastic discussions taking place there, and it's a great skill to be able to analyse the structure and form of a poem in the context of the question, in this case, how it links to power.

So really, really well done on your fantastic discussions there.

So let's take a look at what we could have said.

We could have said, the poem uses irregular quatrains to reflect life's unpredictability and the delicate nature of tissue paper.

It lacks regular rhyme and has an unsteady rhythm, mirroring the fluttering of tissue paper and emphasising the fragile nature of human lives likened to it.

So we're using those things we've spotted in our analysis, you know, the quatrains, the free verse, and we are making really, really clever points about it analytically in terms of the questions.

So well done if you picked up on anything similar in your own discussions.

Okay, look at each stanza independently.

Using only one word, what would you say is the focus of each stanza? So have a look at that poem, open your anthology, have it in front of you, and then read it stanza by stanza and pick one individual word that you think really showcases the main idea in each stanza.

So hit that pause button, complete the task, and then push play when you'd like to continue.

Okay, fantastic work on that.

So hopefully you now have 10 words in front of you that you think really highlight the focus of each stanza.

Let's look at a student example.

So Sofia also completed the task.

So let's look at Sofia's summary.

So these are the 10 words that she has focused on, which she thinks is the focus of each stanza.

And Sofia has put paper, Koran, pages, buildings, maps, slips, brick, capitals, living, and then skin.

So my question for you is as follows, do you notice a shift at any point in the poem? And you may wish to look at your own 10 words as well and see if there's a shift in the words that you've identified too.

So hit that pause button, have a quick discussion, and then push play when you'd like to continue.

Okay, fantastic effort to everybody who identified that shift from eight to nine.

Before that, one to eight, these are all things created by humans, paper and buildings, before we get to 9 and 10 where it transitions to living and then skin.

So what is the significance of this? Well, we could say the first seven quatrains in the poem focus on material things.

However, the final two stanzas seem to focus more on human life, perhaps showing that true value and significance lies in human life itself and not the things that we create.

So just by kind of looking at the focus of the poem, the structural focus, we can actually make some really high-level points as well.

So well done if you picked up on anything similar in your own discussions.

Okay, check for understanding time for me then please.

The poem doesn't rhyme, so therefore we would say it is written in free verse, formal verse, or blank verse.

Which one is it? Hit the pause button, complete the task, and then push play when you'd like to see the right answer.

Okay, tricky one that one, isn't it? But it is absolutely free verse.

Some of the poems in the anthology are in formal verse, some are in blank verse, but this one is in free verse, because it doesn't rhyme, it doesn't have a regular rhythm, and we would say it is written in free verse.

Great job if you picked up on that.

Okay, we have reached our final practise task of today's lesson, so let's take a look at what it is.

So Alex is continuing his essay in response to the question, and that question was, how does Dharker present the theme of power in the poem? Alex has analysed the language in the poem, but needs to also discuss the poem's structure.

Can you mindmap some ideas on what Alex could include in his essay? So let's look at that question again.

How does Dharker use structure to present power? What things are significant? What things could be relevant for Alex's essay? Add them to your mind map and then push play when you'd like to continue.

Okay, fantastic effort on that.

I think sometimes we focus overly on the language and the language is really, really important, isn't it? But we should also be able to focus on the structure and the form of the poem too.

So here's how you could have approached this task.

These are some things we could have said.

Well, how does Dharker use structure to present power? Well, the poem uses irregular quatrains to reflect life's unpredictability and the delicate nature of tissue paper.

That's certainly something we could say.

We could also say it lacks regular rhyme and has an unsteady rhythm, mirroring the fluttering of tissue paper and emphasising the fragile nature of human lives likened to it.

We could also say the last line breaks the structure to focus on human skin, perhaps highlighting the value of life.

So looking at if there is a break of focus, for example, could be a really good structural point to make.

And we've also got the idea that the poem shifts from the material to the spiritual, with the last stanzas suggesting true value lies in human life and not what we create, whether that be from paper or brick.

So these are some things we could say structurally or in terms of the poem's form, and really great effort if you picked up on anything similar in your own mind map today.

Okay then, we have reached the end of today's lesson and it has been an absolute pleasure to teach you today all about this fantastic poem.

So let's recap exactly what we've learnt.

So firstly, paper is presented as seemingly important to our life, but it is ultimately insignificant.

This free verse poem, without regular rhyme, reflects the unsteady nature of tissue, power, and the transience of life.

The early focus is on paper tissue and its connection to human power.

The latter focus is on human tissue and life.

And finally, the poem uses an extended metaphor throughout, comparing tissue to human life.

It's been great to teach you today, and I really look forward to teaching you on another lesson in this sequence.

So thank you very much and goodbye.