Hello and welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Ms. Watson and I'm delighted that you've decided to join me today.

We are going to be looking again at that brilliant novel, "The Twisted Tree", and today's lesson we are going to be considering how Rachel Burge uses symbolism in the novel.

It will really help if you have your own copy and if the edition you have is by Hot Key Books and it is the 2019 edition.

That will make such a difference when I'm giving you page references.

So when you've got your book and you are ready, we'll make a start.

By the end of today's lesson, you will understand and be able to explain how symbols are used throughout the novel.

We are going to start with the keywords.

There are four keywords today, all really useful for unlocking your learning.

The first one is symbolism, the main focus of today's lesson, and that is where writers use symbols, that is usually a thing, a concrete thing, to represent something that isn't actually there.

And that thing that isn't actually there is usually an idea or a theme.

And we are going to meet again with the Norns, who in Norse mythology are the three wise women spinners who determined every allotted lifespan.

And we are going to be using the word prophecy.

And a prophecy is a prediction of what will happen in the future.

And the word supernatural.

The word supernatural means it is attributed to some force beyond scientific understanding.

Now, if you would like some time to familiarise yourself with the keywords, please use this opportunity.

Pause the video while you do that, and then rejoin the lesson when you're ready.

So the outline of today's lesson is this.

There will be two learning cycles.

We are going to start by looking at symbols in "The Twisted Tree", and then we are going to move on and you are going to write about symbols in "The Twisted Tree".

So let's look at symbolism, our keyword for today.

Symbolism is when writers use a symbol, that is likely to be a thing, to represent something that isn't there.

And symbols are often used to represent ideas or themes in a text.

Now I would like you to have a bit of a discussion.

I would like you to think about any symbols you have seen in "The Twisted Tree".

Think about things that appear often at moments of significance or tension or meaning, deep meaning.

Pause the video while you have that discussion, or if you are working by yourself, just pause the video and make a few notes.

Off you go.

So welcome back.

I'm so impressed with how well you know the novel.

Let me share with you these ideas.

You might have noticed these symbols: the ravens, blindness, the Norns, and the fog.

Now, they are all very different.

You know, we have a bird and we have people, and we have the weather, and we have a physical condition.

But what they have in common is that they all represent bigger ideas and themes in the story.

And now we are going to look at some of those symbols in a little bit more detail.

I would like you to think about what the ravens in the story could symbolise.

Pause the video and have a discussion, or pause the video and just make a few notes if you are working by yourself.

Welcome back.

What a great discussion.

Let me share some ideas with you.

You might have said that the raven represents death.

In literature they are indeed often associated with death.

And they are linked to prophecy and mystery, and they form this link between the living and the dead.

Did you say similar things or different? Now I'd like you to discuss what Martha's blindness in one eye might symbolise.

Okay? So pause the video, have that discussion, or pause the video and just make a few notes.

Off you go.

Welcome back.

Another great discussion.

Let's see what you might have said about the blindness in one eye.

You might have said partial vision.

She sees the real world and the world of the draugr.

Vulnerability, it's something she's extremely sensitive about.

Hidden truths.

And wisdom, because it links her to the Norse god Odin, who sacrificed one of his eyes to gain wisdom.

Really good thinking.

Let's move on.

And what about the fog? What could the fog in the story symbolise? Once again, I'd like you to pause the video while you discuss or make a few notes.

Off you go.

And welcome back.

I think the symbolism of the fog is one of the most interesting in this novel.

So you might have said that it symbolises family secrets.

You can't see in a fog, and Martha has been kept in the dark about some of the secrets in her family.

And mystery, that links with secrets as well.

And the unknown.

What is it in that fog? We can't quite tell.

It's unknown, it's scary.

And the supernatural.

Really well done.

Let's move on.

Now we're going to have a check for understanding.

Which of the ideas below might be symbolised by Martha's blindness in one eye? Is it A, death; B, wisdom; C, mystery; and D, vulnerability? Have a think.

Make your choice.

Did you say wisdom and vulnerability, B and D? Well done if you got the right answer.

Let's move on.

Now we can start to link these symbols directly to the text.

And I'm going to share with you some of the things the Oak pupils said.

And Jacob said, "The idea of the fog being associated with the supernatural is clearly linked to the draugr.

The draugr seems to only ever appear when there is fog around." Really well observed there, Jacob.

And Alex said that, "The ravens can definitely be seen to symbolise prophecies.

They act directly on the orders of Hel, with some of them communicating directly with Martha." And Jun said that, "The theme of hidden truths is totally symbolised by Martha being blind in one eye.

In fact, she is able to read clothes the moment she becomes blind in one eye." Which is a really good point.

Jun has picked up on the way that when Martha loses, partially loses one of her senses, another sense, the ability to read clothes, really comes to the fore.

Really interesting ideas there.

And now I want you to get your copy of the novel and to read the two descriptions of the following symbols in "The Twisted Tree".

The description of the ravens in the first paragraph of page 22 that begins with the word the, and the description of the fog in the second paragraph of page 60 that begins with the word I.

And you are going to find evidence from the text to support these ideas that Aisha says, "The description of the fog here really symbolises the supernatural and the unknown." And Alex says that, "For me, the description of the raven here seems to really symbolise a link between the living and dead." So you're gonna find evidence to support the ideas and you are then going to explain how it supports the pupils' ideas.

You are going to need to pause the video while you do that work.

So off you go, open the book on page 22 and start looking for evidence.

Well done.

I was really impressed with your focus here.

So I'm going to share with you some of the evidence you might have chosen for Alex.

Now remember, Alex said that, "For me, the description of the ravens here seems to really symbolise a link between the living and dead." And you might have said something like this, that the fact that the raven gets close to Martha when others don't could suggest it is special and perhaps it knows her already, and that we get a direct link to Mormor through the memory of her feeding ravens.

So perhaps there is a link there to Mormor.

And also that because ravens can be associated with the dead, the fact that it keeps cawing at her, at Martha, could suggest that it is sending a message, perhaps from the underworld.

And also that the raven stares at Martha, which suggests that it has human-like qualities.

Perhaps it is from a former ancestor of hers.

Really good ideas there.

Well done for your focus and thinking.

Let's move on.

You've made really good progress today.

You've looked at symbols, what they are, you have found symbols and you have linked symbols to the themes of "The Twisted Tree".

Now what you are going to do is write about symbolism in "The Twisted Tree".

And when writing about symbols in a text, it is really important to be able to explain where it appears in the novel and what it represents.

Sometimes we use the word represent to mean symbolise.

For example, we are introduced to the Norns in chapter 19 when Martha visits them in a dream-like state.

I still get the shivers when I remember that chapter, don't you? And they symbolise fate and destiny, and that's their symbolic charge throughout the novel.

They're saying to us that Martha's path is already predetermined, that whatever happens to Martha was always going to happen, and that whatever Martha does, she was always going to do.

And once we have identified where the symbol appears and what it represents, we can start to develop our analysis.

And a really good way to develop our analysis is to use these questions.

One, what does the symbol teach us about the character or plot? And two, what hidden meanings are being uncovered through the use of the symbol? And three, why has the symbol been used in this exact moment? So for example, if you were thinking about the Norns in chapter 19, you wanna think about why then? And the last question is, how does the symbol enhance our understanding of the text? Those four questions are really, really powerful tools to help you understand how symbolism is used.

Now let's have a check for understanding.

Why might a writer use symbolism in a text? Is it A, to make the story more confusing and therefore more of a mystery? Is it B, to express hidden meanings or ideas to the reader? Is it C, to create more vivid imagery for the reader so that they can picture the scenes better? Have a think.

Make your choice, A, B, or C.

Did you say B? That's the correct answer.

Symbolisms are ways of conveying meaning or ideas.

Well done if you got that right.

Let's move on.

Now I think you are ready to bring together what you have learned about symbols in "The Twisted Tree" and do this task.

I want you to choose one of the symbols that we have looked at this lesson and explain how it has been used.

So the symbols we've looked at are ravens, blindness, the Norns, and the fog.

And I want you to use the questions to guide you.

These are the questions.

What does the symbol teach us about the character and the plot? What hidden meanings are being uncovered through the use of the symbol? Why has the symbol been used in this exact moment? And how does the symbol enhance our understanding of the text? And I'm gonna give you some sentence starters, which I think you will find really helpful when it comes to writing down and expressing your ideas.

So here are the sentence starters.

Burge uses the symbolism of the, whatever you are going to put in there, for example, ravens, to suggest that.

And then you would explain what we learn about the character or the plot there.

And here, the, could be the Norns, could symbolise, and then what you think they could symbolise and why.

For that sort of sentence, you would be drawing on all the ideas we had from the mind maps at the beginning of the lesson.

And one last sentence starter: through the use of symbolism, Burge illustrates.

What is she conveying to us that really helps us understand her story? You are going to need to pause the video while you do this task.

So gather up all your ideas, your thoughts, and your notes.

Pause the video and off you go.

Welcome back.

And once again, I'd like to say well done for your focus.

And I would like to share with you what Jacob wrote.

I'm going to read it to you and I would like you to follow along.

"One important symbol that Burge uses is Martha's blindness in one eye.

Burge uses the symbolism of the blindness to suggest that Martha has a limited understanding of her family's secrets.

It shows how she can't fully see the truth yet.

This blindness makes Martha feel vulnerable and highlights the challenges she faces.

And here the blindness could symbolise the concealed knowledge and secrets within Martha's family that she is gradually discovering, suggesting that her quest for truth involves both physical and emotional challenges.

Through the use of symbolism, Burge illustrates Martha's journey to uncover hidden truths about her family, reflecting her vulnerability and the obstacles she must overcome." And I want to show you how he highlighted in green his comments on the way Burge uses symbolism.

So he talks about the limited understanding that is suggested by the symbolism and her vulnerability and the challenges that is also suggested by the symbolism.

And I would like you to return to your paragraph or paragraphs and identify where you have clearly explained Burge's use of symbolism in your answer.

Pause the video while you do that, and then return for the end of the lesson.

Now, before we say goodbye, I would like to summarise what you have been learning today.

You have been learning that writers use a symbol to represent something that is not literally there.

And that symbols in the novel include ravens, blindness in one eye, the Norns, and the fog, and that each symbol represents a key theme or idea.

And that to create and write an effective analysis of a symbol, you need to explain where it appears in the novel and what it represents.

Once again, thank you for coming to today's lesson.

It has been a great pleasure to teach you today.

I wish you a brilliant rest of the day and I look forward to seeing you again in another lesson about "The Twisted Tree".

Bye for now.