Hello, everyone.

It's lovely to see so many of you here today.

Welcome to another lesson from the World at War Poetry unit.

My name is Dr.

Clayton, and I'm here to guide you through your learning today.

So, today's lesson is a sixth lesson from the World at War Poetry unit, it's called Analysing "In Flanders Fields".

Today we're going to focus on John McCrae's use of specific linguistic techniques, and then the use of natural imagery and euphonic sounds as well as his use of structural devices in order to see what effect he may have been trying to have on the reader's perspective on dying and fighting at war.

The key words that we'll be using and are learning today are natural imagery, symbolise, soothing, reassuring, and consequence.

The definitions for our keywords are appearing on your screen now.

These words will help you to unlock your learning today and you'll see them throughout the learning material.

If you can, try to use them in your discussions and written work today.

So, we have three learning cycles in our lesson today.

In the first learning cycle, we're going to focus on McCrae's use of natural imagery.

We're not only gonna think about the broad application of natural imagery in poetry, but we're also gonna zoom in on specific examples from "In Flanders Fields" to consider their effect.

We're then gonna analyse the use of euphony "In Flanders Fields" and consider how this contributes to the overall tone of the poem.

And then, finally, we're going to analyse McCrae's use of structural devices, namely caesuras and refrains, in order to add to the overall message of the poem.

So, what I'd like to start off by doing is considering the bigger picture of why poets might choose to use natural imagery in their poems. I'd like you to start off with a discussion around why you think this may be.

Pause the video and take a few moments to consider.

Amazing, I had some fantastic ideas there around how we generally think of natural imagery and being in nature as calming, and therefore writers might be trying to create a calm atmosphere by using lots of natural imagery.

You might also have said that using natural imagery will help the reader better visualise the environment.

Generally, poets want you to be immersed in the atmosphere of their work because it helps to build a stronger emotional connection.

You might also consider the idea that using natural imagery as opposed to manmade imagery may help the overall concept or idea of the poem seem natural rather than artificial.

This is especially true of love poems. Finally, the poets may use natural imagery to make a comment about the relationship between humans and their environment.

So, really focus on what the images of nature actually are and how healthy they might seem.

In "In Flanders Fields" specifically, the first and arguably most memorable natural image we have in the poem is that of the poppy.

The opening line of the poem is, "In Flanders Fields the poppies blow." In order to think about how we can interpret this image, I'd like you to discuss the following questions.

Firstly, what do you think flowers in general might symbolise? So, think about how people generally feel when they receive flowers, but also the longevity of flowers and what that might signify.

Remember, this is a poem about war, so how might flowers relate to that theme? Secondly, think about the image of the poppy specifically, with the red petals growing out of the battlefield, what do you think that might symbolise? Finally, there is some contention around the final word of the first line as some publications have used the word grow, but the original punch publication uses the word blow, so we're gonna go with that one.

Why might McCrae have included the specific image of poppies blowing in the wind? Why add that detail? Pause the video and take a few minutes to consider.

Amazing, some great ideas there.

I particularly liked the ideas around how important flowers are to us emotionally.

When we want to add a bit of brightness or hope to someone's day, we think about sending them flowers.

You might also have said that while flowers are beautiful in bloom, they don't last long, especially when they've been cut.

Therefore, there's also a sense that flowers not only are youthful, but also represent ideas of fragility.

In the concepts of a war poem, they could symbolise both the youth and fragility of the soldiers.

In terms of the poppy itself, some of you may know that poppies have long been associated with sleep or death because poppy seeds are effective in inducing sleep, and for centuries poppies have also been placed on gravestones to represent the eternal sleep that is death.

The fact that poppies have red petals could also represent the blood of the soldiers, especially since they grew out of fields of battle.

In terms of the image of the poppies blowing in the wind, we may consider the idea of how flowers being moved against their will by an external force might represent the fragility of the soldiers and how they're not in control of their own lives.

As a general rule, writers also add in these images that appeal to our senses to allow us to better inhabit the scene and add that emotional connection to the poem as well.

Now, we're going to consider the image of the bird within the poem, the quote is, "The larks, still bravely singing, fly scarce heard amid the guns." What I'd like you to consider are the following questions to help us interpret the poem.

So, what do you think the image of birds in general might symbolise? What do you think bird songs specifically might symbolise? Think about when you generally hear bird song and what that might mean.

Finally, scarce means not enough, so the perm is saying that we can hardly hear the bird song over the sound of the guns.

Why is that detail important? Pause the video and take a few moments to consider.

Amazing, I had some great ideas there.

I particularly liked the discussions of how we can interpret different birds in different ways.

We generally associate birds, such as ravens and crows, with death since they are scavenger birds, and magpies with greed since they collect shiny objects.

In general though, we can think of birds as symbolising freedom because of their ability to fly.

Then, we generally hear bird song in the morning and therefore we might associate it with new beginnings and hope since it happens at the start of the day.

Finally, we might think of the image of the guns as showing that hope and freedom are being pushed down and repressed by the war, but they're not gone entirely because we can still hear the bird song even if it's faint.

Finally, we're going to look at light imagery in the poem through the quote, "We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow." And I'd like you to discuss the following questions.

What do you think dawn might represent? Consider the fact that dawn is at the beginning of the day.

Then, think about what sunset might represent.

Again, think of the fact that sunset is at the end of the day and light is disappearing.

Finally, why might McCrae have associated these specific images of light with the soldiers? Why have they experienced both dawn and sunset? Pause the video and take a few moments to consider.

Amazing, some really good ideas there.

I particularly liked how some people were noting how important the idea of light is within a text since it can be incredibly revealing to think about which moments or characters are in the light since we think of light as revealing morality and purity.

Thinking about dawn specifically, since dawn happens at the beginning of the day and light is starting to overcome the darkness of the night, we might say that dawn represents a new beginning or a new hope.

A sunset is the opposite.

Since it is at the end of the day where light is falling away to darkness, we think of a sunset as representing an ending.

Finally, McCrae might have used this light imagery to show the soldiers have experienced life, but now have reached the end of their life through death.

We might also think of light has shown that the message of the poem is that there is still hope amidst the death.

Now, for a quick check for understanding.

What I'd like you to do is match the natural image with the symbolism.

So, what do flowers symbolise? What do birds symbolise? What does sunset symbolise? And what does dawn symbolise? Your options are new beginnings, freedom, youth, beauty and fragility, and endings.

Pause the video and take a few moments to make your selections.

The correct answers are that flowers represent youth, beauty and fragility, birds represent freedom, sunset represents endings, and dawn represents new beginnings.

So, very well done if you selected those answers.

We're now onto our first task of the lesson.

What I'd like you to do is bring together the ideas we had at the beginning of the learning cycle around why poets might use natural imagery in general, and then marry that with a specific imagery of "In Flanders Fields" to answer the question, why do you think McCrae chose to use natural imagery in the poem? You might think about the following questions, what idea or concept do you think McCrae might be saying is natural? And why do you think he would include so many images associated with hope? Pause the video and take a few minutes to form your answer.

Amazing, everyone.

You might have said that since the poem is from the perspective of the soldiers who have died for their country, McCrae's use of natural imagery could be suggesting it's natural for men to die for their country.

Arguably, McCrae utilises so many images associated with hope in order to reassure the reader that although men are dying, there is still hope for humanity.

You're all doing amazingly well, everyone.

We're now onto our second learning cycle of the lesson.

In this learning cycle, we're going to look at the euphony in "In Flanders Fields" and think about what that might represent.

So, euphony is a literary device which is derived from the Greek word euphonos, which means sweet-voiced.

To better understand the term, we can break it down into the prefix eu, which means good.

Thinking about the prefix of a word is a really useful way of building your vocabulary as it will help you unlock new words.

For example, understanding the prefix eu means you'll be able to instantly see that words such as euphoric means something good.

Phoney comes from the Greek phone, which means sound, specifically the human voice.

Now, what I'd like you to do is take that information and think about how the notion of being sweet-voiced can apply to poetry.

Pause the video and take a few moments to discuss your ideas.

Amazing, I had some great ideas there specifically around how poetry is very similar to the lyrics of a song since there is an emotion and a beat behind poetry, and therefore being sweet-voiced might mean the way a poem is using words or phrases to create a pleasing or soothing sound to the ear.

We're now going to explore what euphony looks like in a bit more detail to help you know how to recognise it.

What I'd like you to do is sound these letters out phonetically after me, L, K, M, G, B.

After having said them aloud, which letters do you think make pleasing or soothing sounds? Pause the video and take a few moments to consider.

Well done, everyone.

You might have noticed the L and M make a softer sound while K, B, G make quite an abrupt, harsh sound.

Euphony involves the use of harmonious consonants such as L, M, N, and soft F and V sounds.

It can also involve the use of long vowel sounds.

In order to analyse euphony, focus on the idea of these sounds being soft sounds.

They create a softness and sense of calm, whereas harsher consonants, those plosive sounds, such as K and B, create a harsh, tense mood instead.

So, what I'd like you to try and do is say the following quote aloud after me, "We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, loved and were loved, and now we lie." Pause the video and try saying the quote aloud to yourselves.

Amazing work, everyone.

This is a really useful exercise to do with any poem.

Try and say the words aloud to yourself and see how it sounds to you.

Now, what I'd like you to do is discuss the following questions.

How do the words from this quote sound when read aloud? Where can you spot euphonic sounds? Pause the video and take a few moments to discuss.

Amazing.

Well done, everyone.

You may have spotted the following euphonic sounds.

There's a mixture of long vowel sounds such as the E in we, as well as euphonic consonants throughout with the L, B, and F sounds.

You can see euphonic sounds by comparing how you say the words glow and now.

With glow, you have a long soft O sound while now sounds more abrupt rather than soft.

Now, for a quick check for understanding.

Which of the following are considered euphonic sounds? A, consonants such as L and M, B, consonants as K and B, long vowel sounds, or, D, short vowel sounds.

Pause the video and make your selections.

The correct answers are A consonants such as L and M, and C, long vowel sounds.

So, very well done if you selected those answers.

You're all doing really well, everyone.

We're now onto our second task of the lesson.

What I'd like you to do is take the information we just covered on euphonic sounds and discuss why you think McCrae chose to use the device of euphony in "In Flanders Fields".

Consider the following questions in your response.

What mood does it give the poem if the sounds are pleasing and soft? Then, think about McCrae's message to the reader, why mighty want the poem to sound pleasing and soothing? Pause the video and take a few minutes to discuss.

Amazing work, everyone.

You might have said that using euphonic sounds creates a soothing tone to the poem.

This could be considered as adding to the hopeful mood that McCrae creates through his use of natural imagery.

Secondly, McCrae's message is a call to arms to the reader.

By using euphonic sounds throughout the poem, it could mean the poem is more likely to be repeated since it has pleasing sounds to it.

Furthermore, it could also provide a sense of reassurance through the soothing sounds to the reader as they're called upon to continue the fight.

You're all doing incredibly well, everyone.

We're now into our final learning cycle.

We're going to analyse McCrae's use of the structural devices in "In Flanders Fields".

The first structural device that we're going to consider is the caesura.

A caesura is a pause near the middle of a line in poetry, usually denoted or shown by a full-stop.

For example, "Nothing beside remains.

Round the decay." As you can see, there's a full-stop in the middle of the line and that is a caesura.

What I'd like you to discuss is why a poet might want the reader to pause in the middle of a line.

What might the effect be? Pause the video and take a few moments to consider.

Amazing work, everyone.

I had some great ideas there.

I really liked the ideas I heard around how the full-stop stops the reader in their tracks, and this not only draws attention to the word before the caesura, but also could conceptually suggest that something has come to an end because a full-stop ends a sentence, and therefore ends a thought.

Now, we're going to discuss McCrae's use of the caesura in "In Flanders Fields" through the quote, "We are the Dead.

Short days ago." What I'd like you to discuss are the following two questions.

What might this full-stop after dead emphasise? And why do you think McCrae might want the reader to pause after dead? Pause the video and take a few moments to consider.

Amazing work, everyone.

I really liked the discussions around how the caesura after the word dead is particularly poignant because death is the ultimate end for every life.

For McCrae to use the caesura there, it might reinforce the idea the soldier's lives have ended.

In terms of why McCrae might want the reader to pause here, we might say the wider picture could be that McCrae wants us to pause and remember the consequences of war, it ends human lives.

It could also remind the reader that the soldier's role in the war has come to an end, someone else needs to take up the fight.

There's also a second caesura in the poem that's really useful to analyse in order to expand our understanding of what the effect of a caesura might be.

The second quote is, "The torch; be yours to hold it high." Now, this has a semicolon rather than a full-stop, but it's still a caesura.

What I'd like you to think about is what might the torch symbolise? Why would McCrae want the reader to pause here? Then, thinking about the semicolon specifically, a semicolon denotes a connection between two ideas rather than ending something since it's primarily used to join together two sentences with a similar idea.

So, why do you think McCrae might have chosen to use a piece of punctuation that suggests a connection rather than a piece of punctuation that suggests an ending? Pause the video and consider your ideas.

Amazing work, everyone.

I had some great ideas there.

I really liked the ideas around what a torch might symbolise given the phrase pass the torch and how that suggests you're passing responsibility onto someone else to carry on, much in the same way as the dead soldiers are passing responsibility onto the reader.

As well as this, given that a torch creates light in the darkness, we generally think of it as symbolising hope.

McCrae might have wanted the reader to pause and consider they are the ones who will have to carry on the fight, they are the cause for hope.

Similarly, since the semicolon denotes a connection and a torch might symbolise the passing on of responsibility, McCrae might have used this to emphasise the fight is continuing and the dead soldiers are passing on the responsibility to the reader.

They are the ones who must carry on the fight, it doesn't just end with the deaths of the soldiers.

Now, for a quick check for understanding.

Which two of the following are likely reasons for McCrae including a caesura after dead? A, to give the reader a break, B, to emphasise the soldier's lives have ended, C, to pause and consider the consequences of war, or D, to show there is no more hope.

Pause the video and make your selections.

The correct answers are B, to emphasise the soldier's lives have ended, and C, to pause and consider the consequences of war.

So, very well done if you selected those two.

The second structural device that we're going to look at is the refrain.

A literary frame in poetry is a line, phrase, or single word that is repeated periodically within the poem.

What I'd like you to do is discuss why you think a poet might want to repeat a line, phrase, or single word.

What might the effect have on the reader? Pause the video and take a few moments to consider.

Amazing work, everyone.

I really liked discussion around how repeating an idea gives it a suggested importance, but also conceptually might suggest that something is repeating itself over and over again.

The refrain in the poem is "In Flanders Fields".

This line is repeated three times and is the first and last line of the poem.

Flanders was the location of the Battles of Ypres that McCrae fought in.

So, what I'd like you to do is just why you think McCrae might want to repeat and emphasise the location of the soldier's bodies.

Pause the video and take a few moments to consider.

Amazing work, everyone.

You might have said that McCrae may have wanted to emphasise the sight of the soldier's bodies to ensure that the reader remembers the human consequences of war.

Furthermore, he may have repeated the line to show that the battle continues in "In Flanders Fields" as well as part of his call to arms the reader.

Now, for a quick check for understanding.

Is it true or false that McCrae used a refrain "In Flanders Fields" in the poem? Pause the video and make your selection.

The correct answer is true, so very well done If you selected that one.

Now, I'd like you to justify your answer by selecting which of the following statements is the most valid interpretation of the refrain in the poem.

Is it A, the refrain helps the reader to visualise where the soldier's bodies are buried? Or B, the refrain helps the reader to remember there are bodies buried in Flanders Fields.

Pause the video and make your selection.

The correct answer is B, to help the reader remember that are bodies buried in "In Flanders Fields", so very well done if you selected that one.

You're all doing really well, everyone.

We're now onto our final task of the lesson.

What I'd like you to do is complete the following table to summarise the effect of the structural techniques.

So, what is the effect of the caesuras, and what is the effect of the refrain? Pause the video and create your answers now.

Amazing work, everyone.

You might have said that the caesuras emphasise that the war has ended the soldier's lives through the full-stop after dead, but also that the semicolon after torch emphasises that now someone else has to take up the fight.

You also might have said the refrain emphasises the human consequences of war by repeating where the soldier's bodies lie.

Amazing work today, everyone.

Here's a summary of what we covered today.

We said the natural imagery arguably suggests it's natural to die fighting for your country.

The euphonic sounds create a soothing tone which offers reassurance to the reader, and the structure of the poem emphasises the deaths of the soldiers and reinforces McCrae's call to arms. Well done for today, everyone.

I hope you enjoyed the lesson, and I hope I'll see you next time where we're going to consider how to plan and write an analytical essay about McCrae's poem in "In Flanders Fields".

Goodbye, everyone.