Hello, there.

Lovely to see you today.

My name's Mr. Barnsley.

Thank you for joining me as we continue to look at unseen poetry.

Today we're going to be looking at some comparative imagery.

Let's get started.

Alright, let's review our outcome today.

So, by the end of the lesson, you're gonna be able to understand and explain how comparative imagery has been used in a poem.

So, the four key words you should be looking out today are: conceptualise, which means to form a concept or an idea of something; vulnerable means to be able to be easily hurt, influenced, or attacked; to conquer means to overcome an obstacle, a feeling, or a desire; and transformation means the complete change in appearance or character of something or someone.

Look out for these words, and see if you can use them in your own analysis today.

So, we're going to be looking at comparative imagery in an unseen poem, and, at first, we're going to conceptualise and really make sure we understand this concept of comparative imagery, and, once we've done that, we're going to understand how it's been used in a poem.

So, let's start by making sure we understand this idea of comparative imagery, what it means and what we should be looking out for.

So, you'll often find poets use comparative imagery within their poems in order to symbolise or represent something to the reader.

So, they might use a simile, which is a figure of speech that involves comparing two things using the words like or as.

They might use a metaphor, which is a figure of speech that involves comparing two things using the verb to be.

So, say something is something.

So, let's consider how we might interpret the use of comparative imagery.

I want you to imagine that the subject of a poem has been compared to a tiger.

What connotations might that have? Why might someone compare someone to a tiger? Pause the video.

Have a think.

And press play when you've got some ideas of the connotations this comparison might have.

Over to you.

Pause the video, and have a think, and press play when you're ready to move on.

Well done.

I heard some great ideas there.

I wonder if you said it might suggest ideas of strength or courage or fearless.

I heard other people saying that this might command respect and admiration because tigers are these huge regal beasts.

Now let's consider how we might conceptualise, understand the concept, the idea of why and how comparative imagery is used.

So let's think about similes to start off.

By using a simile, the writer has said something is like something else, but it hasn't become it.

The subject and the tiger are still two different beings, okay? So if we compare a subject to a tiger using a simile, we're saying they're like each other, but they're two distinct beings.

What do you think the significance of this might be if the author has used a simile? What might be the significance of using a simile do you think? Pause the video.

Have a think.

And press play when you've got some ideas.

Okay, so you might have said that it suggests the subject seems different in some way, okay? But they've not changed who they fundamentally are, okay? If someone described me as being like a tiger, you know, obviously I'm a human being, you wouldn't necessarily describe me as being a tiger.

But, in that moment, something about me has changed slightly that makes me appear to be tiger like to the person who's describing me.

But fundamentally I haven't changed who I am.

Let's see how this is different if a poet decides to use a metaphor.

If they do, the writer is saying that something has become something else.

So the subject has become the tiger.

What do you think the significance of using a metaphor then might be? Pause the video.

Have a think.

And press play when you've got some ideas.

So here it might suggest that the subject has transformed and potentially fundamentally changed who they are in some way.

It suggests transformation rather than just similarities.

So even though we might feel like similes and metaphors could be used interchangeably, conceptually there is a difference between them.

So which of the following statements would you say are true? Is it a, that "Analysing comparative imagery "can be a really rich form of analysis?" Is it b, "Using a simile suggests that the subject "has completely transformed who they are?" Or is it c, "Using a metaphor suggests "that the subject has completely transformed who they are?" Pause the video.

Have a think.

And press play when you think you've found the right answer.

There may be more than one.

Pause the video.

Over to you.

Yes, well done if you said a and c.

Analysing comparative imagery can be a really rich form of analysis, but it's only a metaphor which suggests complete transformation.

Okay, well done if you got that correct.

Alright, over to you for our first task in today's lesson then.

I want you to imagining you're writing a poem about someone who conquers their fears.

Have a think, then.

What might you compare them to at the end of the poem to show that they have overcome their fears? You can do this as a discussion.

So, if you've got a partner, you can discuss with them.

Otherwise you can work through this independently.

It's now time for you to pause the video, think through this question, and try and come up with as many ideas as you can, but make sure you can justify your reasons for whatever it is that you choose to compare the subject to.

Alright, pause the video.

Give this a go.

Press play when you're ready to continue.

Welcome back.

It was great to hear so many interesting discussions there and some really fantastic ideas of what you might compare them to.

Two of our Oak pupils, Laura and Izzy, gave this task a go.

I want you to think about what they say, and decide whose idea you like best and why.

So, Laura said, "I would compare them to a lion "because that symbolises strength and fearlessness." Whereas Izzy said, "I would compare them to a butterfly "because that symbolises growth and transformation." Why don't you pause the video, and think, out of Laura and Izzy's ideas, who did you prefer and why? Pause the video.

Have a think.

And press play when you're ready to continue.

Okay, so in this first learning cycle, we really thought about the concept, the idea of comparative imagery and specifically the subtle differences between similes and metaphors.

But now I want us to understand how these have been used and do some analysis about how these techniques are used for effect in a poem.

So, in your additional materials you'll find a copy of Andrew Forster's "Mother, Diving." I want you to read that poem independently.

Pause the video.

Give this a go.

Over to you.

Great independent reading.

Now, whenever we read an unseen text, whenever we read a text for the first time, we really need to be making sure we understand what it's about.

So, again, I'm going to hand this back over to you.

How would you summarise this poem in one sentence? What do you think this poem is about? Pause the video.

Have a think.

And press play when you are ready, or you think you have an answer that you can share.

Some great summarising there.

I wonder if you said something similar to this.

The poem explores how a mother conquers her fears and dives off the high diving board at the pool.

Well done if you got that correct.

That shows that you understood that poem reading it independently.

Alright, what now I want you to think about, we're gonna dive in a little bit deeper and really focus on that comparative imagery.

So what I want you to discuss is which comparative image seems most evocative to you? What really stood out to you? What really grabbed your attention? What really made you feel certain things or emotions? Alright, you can do this as a discussion.

So, if you've got a partner, why don't you discuss your feelings about this poem together? But don't worry if you're working independently.

You can think through these ideas by yourself and even make a few notes.

Alright, pause the video.

Which comparative image seems most evocative to you? Remember to press play when you are done with your discussion.

Welcome back.

I heard some really great ideas, and it was really nice to see that everyone wasn't picking the same comparative image, that there were lots of different images that might be jumping out on the page to us.

So Laura said she really liked the comparison of a diving board and comparing that to a tongue.

She found that really evocative.

Whereas Izzy said the comparison of the mother to a dolphin really stood out to her.

Let's really deconstruct now some of the comparative imagery that's in this poem.

So let's start by the speaker comparing the diving board to a tongue.

What might the significance of this be? Pause the video, and, if you've got a partner, you can talk this through with them.

Otherwise you can think through this independently.

But what is the significance of comparing the diving board to a tongue? Pause the video.

Have a think.

And press play when you think you've got some ideas.

Some really interesting and creative inferences there.

I wonder if you said something similar to this.

Potentially, the comparison to a tongue could show how the mother's fear is consuming her.

We associate our tongue with our mouth, with food and consumption.

So maybe the fear of being on this diving board is completely consuming her.

That's a really interesting and creative response.

I wonder if you got something similar.

Don't worry if you didn't, and don't worry if you got something completely different, as long as you can justify it logically using the evidence that we have available from the poem.

Alright, next question then.

What does the specific verb taunting suggest about how the child views their mother at this moment? Pause the video.

Have a think.

Have a discuss.

Press play when you're ready to continue.

Some really nice ideas there.

Did you say something similar to what we've got on the screen? Perhaps we might see it as the child seeing their mother as vulnerable.

They're allowing something to affect them, and children might not always be used to seeing their parents so vulnerable like he sees his mother.

So, we also see, once the mother has conquered her fears, once she's overcome them, the speaker compares her to Johnny Weissmuller.

Now, Johnny Weissmuller was an Olympic swimmer, but he was also the first actor to play Tarzan.

Now, Tarzan is a character that was raised by gorillas in the jungle and has often been presented in films or images as being kind of a very strong and muscular build.

So what do you think the significance of this comparison of his mother who has conquered her fear to Johnny Weissmuller might be? Pause the video.

Have a think.

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

What's the significance of that comparison? Pause the video.

Over to you.

Some really great ideas there.

I really want to shine a spotlight on those of you who said something similar to this.

Potentially this comparison might represent how the speaker now feels really proud of their mother.

They're comparing her to someone who's incredibly accomplished.

Some really nice ideas there.

Do you think it's important then that the figure is a male role model rather than a female role model? What might the impact of that be? Why might the speaker, the child, be comparing their mother to a male role model figure? Pause the video.

Have a think.

And press play when you've got some ideas.

Welcome back.

Some really interesting ideas there.

I heard people talking about this stereotype of femininity and how that has, in the past, been associated with weakness.

So here there's been a real subversion, kind of a turning on its head of the maternal female stereotype being presented as something kind of incredibly brave and courageous.

Now, plenty of people will of course argue that mothers or women should not have to behave in a stereotypical masculine way to be presented as courageous and brave, but this might be, through the eyes of a child, the way that they were thinking.

We also know that the mother is compared to a dolphin.

What do you think the significance of this comparison might be? Again, it's time for you to pause the video, discuss with a partner if you have one, or think through this independently.

What's the significance of this comparison? Some great ideas there.

I heard lots of you saying that we generally consider dolphins to be a really positive creature.

They represent freedom 'cause they have, they're free in the ocean, and they're also seem to be very intelligent.

So perhaps Forster chooses this image to represent how conquering her fears is a really positive freeing step for the mother.

The mother is also compared to a guillemot which is a type of sea bird.

Again, what do we think the significance of this comparison might be? Pause the video.

Have a think.

And press play when you've got some ideas.

Again, words like freedom might have come to mind.

So, perhaps this image really shows how the mother has been released from her fears.

Everything that's been holding her back, she's now free from those things.

Some great ideas and inferences you've been making there.

Right.

True or false, then.

Arguably, the comparative imagery could suggest that the mother has subverted stereotypes.

Is that true or false? Pause the video, and have a think, and press play when you think we've got the right answer.

Well, if you said true, how can we justify that? Is it the comparison to a dolphin and guillemot show how the mother has subverted social stereotypes? Or is it the comparison to Johnny Weissmuller could show how the mother has subverted maternal stereotypes? What do we think? Pause the video.

Have a think, and press play when you think you've selected the right answer.

Yes, well done if you selected b.

The comparison to a role model could be argued as subverting maternal stereotypes.

But be careful.

Not all stereotypes are true, and some of them can be insensitive and offensive.

So we've got to be really careful about how we're talking about them here.

Alright, over to you then.

Which comparative image do you think is the most significant in showing the mother's transformation? I want you to write a short answer, a short paragraph.

You can choose between the comparative images of like Johnny Weissmuller, like a dolphin, or the metaphor, a guillemot.

You might want to consider, as you write, the connotations behind the image and whether that comparison is a simile or a metaphor.

Alright, over to you.

Pause your video.

Give us a go.

Best of luck.

Alright, welcome back.

Some really fantastic independent work there, and it was really pleasing to see so many of you checking your spelling, punctuation, and grammar before you put that pen down.

Great work.

Alright, let's now look at Izzy's ideas, and let's think and compare your response to Izzy's.

Izzy wrote, "I think the comparison to a guillemot "is the most significant "in showing the mother's transformation "because, not only does it evoke the ideas of freedom, "which demonstrate the mother's release from her fears, "but it's also the only metaphor which shows "that the mother is not just like a bird, "she has become one." So, really wanted to focus on the fact that there's a metaphor there which really highlights that transformation.

All right.

Why don't you compare your response to Izzy's.

Did you have similar ideas? Pause the video.

Reflect on your own work.

And then press play when you're ready to continue.

Okay, that's it.

We've reached the end of today's lesson.

You've done a fantastic job looking at comparative imagery in detail here.

Alright, let's have a quick look at this summary slide and make sure we feel really confident with this learning before we move on to our next lesson.

So we've learned today that analysing comparative imagery can offer a rich textual analysis.

We've also learned that, arguably, similes and metaphors are conceptually different.

The comparative imagery throughout "Mother, Diving" could show how the mother has found freedom.

The comparative imagery could also represent the mother subverting maternal stereotypes.

Alright, fantastic work today.

Thank you so much for joining me.

I do hope to see you again in one of our lessons in the future.

Alright, have a great day.

See you soon.

Goodbye.