Hello, and welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Miss Halliday, and I'll be teaching you today.

Thank you so much for joining me.

It's an absolute pleasure to have you all with me today.

I'm really looking forward to getting started with today's lesson because we're gonna be focusing on creative writing today, specifically Gothic creative writing.

And I'm really excited to hear all your incredible ideas and suggestions to get your readers feeling really unsettled and creating that really ominous and unnerving atmosphere that we know is typical of the Gothic genre.

So let's get started.

So today's lesson is called Using Figurative Language to Create an Atmosphere.

And by the end of today's lesson, you will be able to use figurative language to establish a foreboding atmosphere in your own Gothic writing.

How exciting.

Here are some keywords that you'll need for today's lesson.

We've got figurative language, foreboding, ethereal, gnarled, and angular.

Here are the definitions of these keywords.

Figurative language is words or language that is meaningful, but it's not literally true.

Foreboding is a sense that something bad will happen.

Ethereal means extremely delicate and light in an otherworldly kind of way.

If something is gnarled, it's knobbly, rough, and twisted with age.

And finally, angular means having really sharp angles or corners.

If you'd like to take a moment to pause the video and jot these definitions down in your own time, then please feel free to do just that now.

Here's our lesson outline for today.

We're gonna start by looking at a model and analysing it to see how the writer has created this ominous atmosphere.

We're then going to moving on to you creating your own figurative language, which I'm really looking forward to, as I can't wait to see your responses.

But let's start, first of all, by analysing a model together.

Let's begin with a quick discussion.

What is figurative language? And can you give any examples of methods that you know use figurative language? So I'm going to invite you now to pause the video while you discuss those two questions with the people around you, or consider them independently if you are working on your own.

Off you go.

Brilliant discussions.

And what a great start to the lesson As I can see, many of you already have a really solid understanding of what figurative language is.

Let's hear from Sam, one of our fantastic Oak pupils.

They're going to clarify for us what figurative language is and what methods we might see that use figurative language.

So Sam says, "Figurative language is words or phrases that are meaningful but not literally true.

It is language that helps to describe one thing by making subtle comparisons to another thing.

Similes, metaphors, personification, pathetic fallacy, and zoomorphism are all examples of figurative language methods." And thank you, Sam, for that clarification.

I heard many of you saying the same thing in your discussions, so really well done there.

Let's check for understanding before we move on to looking at that model.

Which of the following is not an example of a figurative language method? Is it a, pathetic fallacy, b, similarly, c, alliteration, or d, zoomorphism? Pause the video and make your answer selection.

Fantastic work if you selected c.

Alliteration is not a figurative language method, it's where two or more words begin with the same letter, therefore, no subtle comparisons are being drawn between two things that are not the same.

So, well done if you've got alliteration, you are absolutely right.

Great start to the lesson.

So let's have a look at an example of figurative language used in descriptive writing together.

I'll read the example, you follow along.

My eyes were immediately drawn to the immense chandelier, which hung lifelessly from the centre of the ceiling.

There was nothing else in the room.

And so I found that, though I've tried to divert my attention elsewhere, my eyes remained fixed upon the chandelier.

There was something disturbing about it.

So what I'd like you to consider now is, well, what atmosphere do you think has been created here? And which words in this part of the description really contribute to creating that atmosphere? So, again, I'm gonna invite you to pause the video while you consider those two questions with the people around you.

Off you go.

Fantastic discussions and some really insightful suggestions made there.

Let's have a look at some of the things that you might have said.

So first of all, a really foreboding and ominous atmosphere has been created here, and that's been done through the use of words like lifeless, hung, fixed, and disturbing, because all of these words are quite negative words with quite kind of disturbing connotations, and they all really contribute to the writer creating that foreboding and ominous atmosphere.

So a massive well done if you identified and managed to pick out those key words that really contributes to the atmosphere of this piece.

Let's carry on reading.

Perhaps it was the way its wrought-iron branches stretched out from its swollen body, like the angular legs of a giant spider, perhaps it was the way each hanging bead snatched the light from the broken windows and threw it back around the room in harsh, exposing white beams. So, again, some questions for you to consider here.

Well, what has the chandelier been compared to, and why is this a good object for comparison for a Gothic description? So, again, I'm going to invite you to pause the video while you consider those two questions, again, either independently or with the people around you, whatever you feel most comfortable with.

Off you go.

Again, some really brilliant discussions there.

And here's one of the ideas I heard that I liked best.

So I heard somebody saying that the chandelier has been compared to a giant spider and that actually spiders are often thought of as very Gothic creatures because they are often, for some people, definitely me, objects of fear.

If I see a spider in my house, you can bet that I am running my way straight out of that front door.

And I don't think I'm alone in that.

So I think quite a few people have fears of spiders.

So by comparing the chandelier to a spider, we are suggesting that the chandelier is something to fear.

So a massive well done if you got that, really great analysis work.

Let's carry on reading.

The crystals look like thousands of tiny eggs.

Ugh.

I imagined them all cracking at once, and a torrent of leggy, black, wriggling, spindle-like creatures pouring from the great ceiling, smothering me, consuming me.

The chandelier was both ethereal and horrifying simultaneously, the craftsmanship was impressive, but the awful droop of the wrought-iron legs gave the piece a physical, but also psychological, presence that dried my throat and quickened my pulse.

Ugh.

Some really disgusting descriptions there that are very, very Gothic.

So the questions I'd like you to consider now are, well, how does the writer bring the description back around to the spider comparison, and where do we see the idea of contrast that is typical of the Gothic genre? And finally, how does the writer show the narrator's fear? So I'll invite you to pause the video now while you discuss those three questions, either with the people around you, or just jotting some ideas down if you're working alone.

So off you go.

I'm really looking forward to seeing what you come up with.

Fantastic discussions.

And, again, really nice to see some people kind of tie in their ideas to the text by using evidence from the paragraph on screen, that's exactly what we need to be doing in English.

So really well done for doing that.

So first of all, the writer compares different aspects of the chandelier with different parts of the spider, so that's how the writer kind of brings the piece back around to this extended metaphor of the chandelier being like a big spider.

And using an extended metaphor and bringing the piece back around to the same comparison really gives the description coherence, but also that flow, and that's really important in a piece of descriptive writing.

If we're using lots of different figurative language, that can become quite confusing for the reader, as that does not create a really vivid picture in the reader's mind if we're saying, you know, "One minute it looks like a spider, and the next minute, it looks like a bear," or whatever.

So we need to be quite consistent with our use of figurative language to give the piece coherence.

Now the idea of contrast is evident in the comparison of the chandelier, which is normally an object of beauty with a spider, which, as we've said, and certainly for me, is an object of great fear.

We also see that juxtaposition of ethereal, which obviously means beautiful in an otherworldly kind of way with horrifying.

And that disturbs the narrator more because they feel really conflicted, and they're not quite sure how to feel.

So this makes 'em feel quite unsettled and kind of unsure about how to interpret this huge chandelier.

Now, this kind of juxtaposition, it's quite disturbing for a reader as well because we're not quite sure how to feel about this chandelier.

We know that we're not getting a good feeling about it, but then the narrator also says, "It's quite beautiful." So that kind of contrast in description unsettles the reader, and that is really typical of Gothic literature.

And finally, the writer shows the narrator's fear through the dried throat and the quickened pulse.

So the writer actually shows the narrator's fear through their reaction to the chandelier.

We are not told that the narrator is frightened or uncomfortable in the presence of the chandelier, but actually, we're shown that through their physical response to the chandelier.

And actually, the narrator's fear makes us also feel unnerved and frightened too, because we're viewing this through the eyes of the narrator, So we're trusting that the narrator's instinctive reaction is probably the right one, and we're kind of going with that instinct and adopting the same view of this chandelier.

So it's really clever how the writer is shaping our view of this ornament.

So, well done if you've got those ideas.

Great work.

So onto our first task of the lesson.

Now Izzy says, "Well, this comparison is effective because the chandelier and the spider share physical similarities." And what I'd like you to discuss is, well, what similarities do the spider and the chandelier share? So I'd really like you to kind of picture a chandelier in your mind's eye and a spider, and think about how they look physically similar, and what characteristics they might share that are similar, and why that would make this a really powerful use of figurative language.

So then the second question I'd like to consider is, well, why is using figurative language so powerful? What effect does it have on you as the reader? So I'm going to invite you now to pause the video while you discuss those two questions with the people around you.

And before we share some ideas as a group, remember to be really respectful in your discussions and give everybody a chance to speak, and listen carefully when other people are expressing their ideas and opinions, as that's what respectful listening looks like.

So pause the video, and off you go.

Some fantastic discussions there.

I'm really impressed with how respectful you listen to one another and how many of you are able to identify lots of similarities between the spider and the the chandelier's physical appearances.

So really well done there.

So Sam points out that, "Like a spider, the chandelier kind of has arms that branch out from a central point.

Also, like a spider, which hangs from its own web, a chandelier hangs from the ceiling." So we're starting to pick up on some of those similar characteristics and similar physical attributes.

And, "Additionally, the crystals on the chandelier arguably look like dew drops or eggs on a web." So if you imagine kind of a web in the morning sun, it might kind of glean with little crystalline drops because of all the spider's eggs on the web, and it's actually making me feel really uncomfortable to even think about spider's eggs, but that just proves what a great object for comparison this was because it would give many people, just like me, who have a real fear of spiders, a very kind of icky and uncomfortable feeling that is very typical of the Gothic genre.

And Alex adds, "The writer's use of figurative language creates really vivid imagery." So we can almost picture this horrible chandelier that looks like a massive spider.

"I can imagine the exact way the chandelier is hanging because I'm able to compare it to the way I know that a spider hangs from its web.

I can picture the arms of the chandelier more easily because I was told they look like the legs of a spider." So when using figurative language, it can be really useful to choose an object that you think many people will be familiar with to compare to the kind of focus of your description.

So, well done, 'cause I heard many of you discussing similar ideas, and I've been really impressed by how much you've been able to understand figurative language, and really appreciate how well it was used in that model.

So, well done.

So onto the second part of the lesson now, where you are going to have a go at creating your own figurative language and getting really creative with your use of methods.

So as I said, you are going to use figurative language to write a paragraph of Goth description in response to this image.

What a great image to use as a stimulus.

I'd like you to discuss now, well, what is it that makes this a Gothic setting? Which Gothic conventions does this a adhere to? So what I'm gonna get you to do now is pause the video while you consider those questions, again, either with the people around you, or just bullet-pointing some really quick ideas if you're working from home on your own.

So pause the video, and off you go.

Fantastic discussions, and great to hear so many of you using that word conventions when you were talking about what makes this a Gothic setting.

So as Alex points out, "This setting is really isolated, which makes it very Gothic.

I also imagine it would be quite dark there too, as the trees look really close together.

If I imagine that there's some more of a shade of red, we have very Gothic colours in this picture, reds and dark browns." So thank you to Alex for clarifying in what way this could be a really Gothic setting.

Brilliant work, and I think some really good ideas there for you to take forward in your own descriptions.

So what I'd like you to do now is discuss, well, how do you think it would feel to be standing in this setting at night perhaps? Pause the video while you try and come up with some emotions that you might feel, or some adjectives to describe how it would feel to be here at night.

So pause the video, and off you go.

Fantastic work.

And it was great to see so many of you feeling the same way that I would feel if I was standing in this Gothic setting, because I really don't think I would like it, I feel like I'd just, you know, be able to imagine all the horrible creatures underneath my feet, like spiders and, you know, bats and stuff hovering around.

And some of the noises that you might hear in this forest at nighttime would be utterly terrifying, I think.

So in terms of some words that I heard that I really liked, here's a collection of my favourite ideas.

So we've got creepy, I heard someone say, which is absolutely true.

I think it'd be so creepy to be standing in this wood, it's horrible.

Eerie, another fantastic word that means kind of creepy and unnerving.

I think that this forest is really eerie.

Uncomfortable, definitely.

Unnerving, certainly.

Very lonely as well, I really like that, because we said earlier, didn't we, that this looks like quite an isolated setting? So I think you would feel really lonely standing in here.

Very frightening.

Yes, absolutely.

I would be terrified if I was left alone in this forest, especially at night.

Vulnerable, yep, definitely kind of open to attack or open to kind of, you know, a misfortune in some way.

I think definitely you'd feel very vulnerable standing here, and unsettling, a hundred percent.

I would not be able to relax if I was standing here at nighttime.

To be honest, I wouldn't be able to relax if I was standing here in the day.

But imagine all that darkness and, you know, imagining things into the space.

Ugh, no, it's not for me.

I would feel really uncomfortable here.

So, well done to the people who came up with those ideas.

Brilliant work, and great imagination.

So as Alex points out, all of these words is how you need to make your reader feel.

You achieve this by creating a really foreboding and ominous atmosphere to make them feel as unsettled as you would feel if you were standing in this forest.

So some reason are really, really interesting question.

And Sam says, "Well, how do you create an ominous and foreboding atmosphere then?" And Alex replies, "Well, you've got to find something else that is ideally an object of fear or concern to compare it to.

You would then choose vocabulary carefully to bring your ideas to life." And we've just seen that done really well in the description of the chandelier in learning cycle one.

So I'd like you to take what you've learned and try to discuss, well, what could you compare the trees or the leaves to that would definitely frighten or unsettle your readers? So I'm going to invite you now to pause the video.

If you want to do this as a bit of a mind map and get some ideas flowing, then that's absolutely fine, or you can just do it as a discussion task.

It's completely up to you.

At this point, we are just generating some ideas.

So I'm really looking forward to seeing what you come back to our group with to share with everybody else.

So pause the video and have those discussions now.

Fantastic discussions, and some really brilliant and really kind of creative ideas raised there.

So before we share some of those ideas, I'd like to just check for understanding.

True or false, the object or thing that you compare your setting with should match the atmosphere that you are trying to create, is that true or false? Pause the video and make your answer selection.

And well done if you identified it is in fact true.

What I'd like you to do now is justify your answer.

So I'd like you to read both justifications and decide which you think is the right one to prove that the statement is true.

So pause the video, and off you go.

And a massive well done if you correctly identified that a was the correct justification, because for Gothic settings, you should try and compare your setting to something that people really tend to fear so that you can unsettle your reader.

So a massive well done if you've got a, great work.

So let's share an idea that I heard somebody come up with that I really, really liked and that I think would be really useful to many of you when you're writing up your Gothic description later in the lesson.

So somebody mentioned that they were going to compare their trees to ancient and gnarly fingers that were gonna reach out to grab you.

And I just think that is a brilliant idea because that really kind of feeds into this sense of entrapment or kind of enclosure in this forest, because we get this feeling that the forest is really threatening, and this idea that somebody might be grabbed by the trees that are like big fingers, ready to grab you, is utterly terrifying.

So I think that would be a really fantastic object for comparison there.

I also heard this idea that somebody could compare the trees to kind of veins that intertwine with one another.

And, again, I think that's a really effective kind of Gothic object for comparison because veins kind of remind us of bodies or kind of injuries or wounds.

You know, I don't particularly have very positive connotations when I think of the word veins, if I'm honest.

So I think that that would work really nicely in the Gothic description if you were to describe the trees as kind of vein-like and intertwining with one another in the way that veins do under our skin.

Ugh, ugh, even thinking about is making, giving me the ick of it.

So, yeah, I think that'd be a really good object for comparison there.

Fantastic work.

So what I'd like you to do now is discuss, well, which of these ideas do you like the best, and why? And if at all possible, I think it'd be really useful for you to discuss this with somebody else.

So if you are able to work with somebody else, then please make use of them and have a quick discussion about which of these ideas you like and how you might use them.

So pause the video, and off you go.

Great discussions.

And it's really nice to see kind of a 50-50 split there, really, because these are both brilliant ideas and I think they would both work really, really well.

So it doesn't really matter which one you picked because I think you've just got to go with the one that you feel most confident about or most passionate about.

So, well done for those discussions and great interactions with one another.

So Sam states, "Well in terms of the leaves on the floor, well, I might compare the leaves to dead bodies strewn lifelessly across the floor." And Alex adds, "I'm imagining that the leaves are dark red, so I'm thinking I could say that all the leaves look like a river of blood." So in terms of figurative language here, you can use figurative language to describe different aspects of the scene.

So we've just talked about how we can use figurative language to describe the trees.

And now, here, we've got two fantastic ideas as to how we can describe the leaves in a really vivid but very disturbing way.

So thank you to Sam and Alex for their ideas.

And just like we did before, I'd like you to discuss, well, whose idea here do you like best, and why? So which comparison do you think will be most effective to use for the leaves on the forest floor? So, again, pause the video and discuss this with the people around you.

Off you go.

Thank you.

And, again, really brilliant discussions, and a real split there in opinion.

Again, it's fine, whatever you chose, because both of these are fantastic ideas that would really contribute to creating a very foreboding and ominous atmosphere that is typical of Gothic literature.

So, well done.

So now's the time to take all these ideas and put them into practise because you are going to choose one of the ideas that we just came up with, or you can use one of your own if you prefer your own ideas, that's absolutely fine, in fact, that's brilliant because you're being really creative, and you are going to take those ideas and write a brief description of this setting using figurative language.

So I really want you to experiment with figurative language in this task and get really creative with your choices of vocabulary.

Remember, you are writing a Gothic description, so you are trying really hard to unsettle your reader.

So in order to do that, you need to focus on what similarities your object of comparison has with the setting.

So here's some vocabulary that you might want to use in your description.

So you might want to use dense, dank, desolate, gnarled or gnarly to describe the trees, strewn, angular, arched, muddled, and decaying.

So some really unpleasant words there that would be brilliantly used in your Gothic description.

So remember, you are trying to unsettle your reader.

You are experimenting with figurative language.

Be really creative.

This is your opportunity to try new things and to really experiment with your use of language.

So don't be shy, have a go at it.

It doesn't matter if it doesn't quite work the first time, 'cause you can always have another go later.

Just be really creative, and let's see what you come up with.

So pause the video and have a go at this activity now.

Fantastic work.

And I was so impressed by how resilient you all were and how willing you were to just have a go and try something new.

It was lovely to see you all being so creative with your language choices.

So I'd like to undertake some self-assessment, and I think it can be really powerful sometimes to almost analyse your own work.

So that's what we're going to do now.

I would like you to reread your description and choose three words that you have used in your figurative language that help you to create a really foreboding atmosphere.

I'd like you to highlight these words and explain why you have used them.

So you might want to talk about what connotations these words have, or how you think your reader might respond to these words.

So here's an example of how you would do that.

So here's part of our description from earlier in the lesson, and we've got, "Its wrought-iron branches stretched out from its swollen body, like the angular legs of a giant spider." Ugh, what a horrible description.

But here we've said, "Well, I chose the word swollen to create a repulsive image of the spider I'm comparing my chandelier to.

And this creates a foreboding atmosphere because I am playing on the fears of my reader and unsettling them with the thought of a giant spider." Now, I've said it a few times this lesson, I am terrified of spiders, and the only thing I can think of that's more frightening than just a spider is a giant spider, okay? So here, this, you know, this person who's written this description is really playing on my fears in particular of this idea of a giant spider.

And I find this description utterly repulsive.

So it really works for me because it's really playing on my fears, and that word swollen is just vile in this context.

A swollen spider, ugh, how grim.

So there's an example of how you might talk about your language choices and the vocabulary that you've decided to use in your figurative language.

So what I'd like you to do now is pause the video while you undertake that self-assessment.

Enjoy it, because this is a really good opportunity for you to reflect on your own development.

So pause the video, and off you go.

Fantastic discussions.

And it was great to see how passionately so many of you were talking about your own vocabulary choices.

We've got some really talented young writers here, and that's really exciting to see.

So, really well done there.

So to summarise the learning from today, well, figurative language is words or phrases that are meaningful but not literally true.

And figurative language can be used to create really vivid imagery.

When choosing an object for comparison, you need to consider the atmosphere that you're trying to create.

So for Gothic descriptions, try to compare your setting to an object of fear or disgust because that will unsettle your reader.

And finally, remember, always choose vocabulary that contributes to the atmosphere that you are trying to create.

Thank you so much for coming to today's lesson.

It's been an absolute privilege and an honour to hear all of your fantastic and really creative ideas.

And I'm so impressed by how much knowledge and how much passion, enthusiasm, and creativity you are all demonstrating in that last task.

So, really, really well done.

I hope you have a lovely rest of your day, and I look forward to seeing you next time.

See you later.