New
New
Year 8

Using a motif in your writing

I can successfully use a motif in my writing.

New
New
Year 8

Using a motif in your writing

I can successfully use a motif in my writing.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. A motif is a recurring image or ideas.
  2. Writers use motifs to build up imaginative layers of meaning.
  3. Shakespeare uses a motif of light to show Romeo’s impression of Juliet.
  4. Motifs need to be dynamic, using a range of techniques.
  5. You can use metaphors, personification and comparison when creating a motif.

Keywords

  • Yonder - some distance away, over there

  • Envious - wishing you had what someone else has

  • To entreat - to beg or implore

  • Dynamic - characterised by energy or action

Common misconception

It is easy to confuse motifs with extended metaphors.

A motif uses recurring elements that can employ a range of techniques. An extended metaphor is a sustained comparison across a text.

Encourage pupils to consider how they could use a range of images. Darkness or snow would be imaginatively rich.
Teacher tip

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which of the following is the best definition of personification?
Correct answer: giving human characteristics to a non human object
representing an idea through symbols
describing a scene in vivid detail
using exaggerated language for effect
Q2.
Which of the following is the best definition of a metaphor?
a comparison between two things using "like" or "as"
a figure of speech in which contradictory terms appear close by
Correct answer: a figure of speech where one thing is said to be another thing
the repetition of sounds at the beginning of words
Q3.
If we use a word literally, how do we use it?
to convey abstract meanings
to convey its opposite meaning
Correct answer: to convey its exact orginal meaning
to convey its multiple meanings
Q4.
When we make comparisons, what are we doing?
analysing figurative language to infer its hidden meaning
Correct answer: identifying similarities and differences between two or more things
using words with accuracy and precision
writing in an exaggeratedly formal style
Q5.
Which famous playwright wrote the play 'Romeo and Juliet'?
Correct Answer: William Shakespere, Shakespeare
Q6.
In the following speech, Romeo says, "But soft! What light through yonder window breaks?/It is the east, and Juliet is the sun." What is the motif that Shakespeare is using?
Correct answer: light
window
east
Juliet

6 Questions

Q1.
Match the words on the left with the synonyms on the right
Correct Answer:yonder ,there

there

Correct Answer:envious ,jealous

jealous

Correct Answer:entreat,plead

plead

Correct Answer:dynamic,energetic

energetic

Q2.
Which of the following is the best definition of a motif?
a recurring pattern of sounds to unity a text
Correct answer: a recurring image or idea throughout a text
an elaborate comparison between two things
the central theme in a liteary text
Q3.
Match the techniques on the left with their definitions on the right.
Correct Answer:literal,taking words in thier usual or most basic sense

taking words in thier usual or most basic sense

Correct Answer:metaphorical,using a figure of speech that says someting is another thing

using a figure of speech that says someting is another thing

Correct Answer:personification ,when human characteristics are given to non human things

when human characteristics are given to non human things

Correct Answer:comparison,examining similarities and differences between two or more things

examining similarities and differences between two or more things

Q4.
Which sentence below is an example of a metaphor?
The stars danced in the night skhy.
The wind howled like a wolf.
Correct answer: She is the light of my life.
The waves crashed against the shore.
Q5.
If I say that the car quarrelled with me, what literary device am I using?
metaphor
onomatopoeia
simile
Correct answer: personification
Q6.
If you wanted to use the motif of darkness, which of the following would you not use?
shadow
night
Correct answer: bright
midnight
black