New
New
Year 11
AQA

‘Power and Conflict’ poetry: writing a sophisticated comparative response

I can explore nuanced similarities and differences between poems, supported with evidence and analysis.

New
New
Year 11
AQA

‘Power and Conflict’ poetry: writing a sophisticated comparative response

I can explore nuanced similarities and differences between poems, supported with evidence and analysis.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Identifying nuances in theme and perspective will construct a purposeful comparison.
  2. Gather ideas for both texts before planning so you know which evidence you can use.
  3. Ensure your thesis statement summarises both poems, links to the question and focuses on the entirety of both texts.
  4. Topic sentences should be specific, precise and express duality.
  5. Evidence should be embedded into analytical paragraphs.

Common misconception

'My Last Duchess' and 'Checking Out Me History' are written over 100 years apart, thus won't make for the most effective comparison.

When looking at poems to compare, look closely at similarities between big ideas and you can find nuanced links between poems that are written in different socio-political contexts.

Keywords

  • Marginalised - treated as if less important

  • Thesis - the primary argument or central idea presented in a piece of academic writing

  • Topic sentence - a sentence that introduces the main idea or theme of a paragraph, guiding its content

  • Embedded - information or objects that are firmly and deeply fixed within something else

  • Tentative language - words or phrases that express a lack of certainty when presenting ideas

This lesson explores a nuanced comparison between two poems that may not initially be chosen for comparison. Feel free to adapt this lesson to look at another pair of poems that students may not initially link together.
Teacher tip

Equipment

You will need access to a copy of the AQA Power and Conflict Anthology for this lesson.

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
  • Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
  • Depiction or discussion of serious crime

Supervision

Adult supervision required

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).

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6 Questions

Q1.
Where does a thesis statement appear in your essay?
Correct answer: introduction
main body paragraph
conclusion
Q2.
What does 'oppressed' mean?
free
Correct answer: burdened with unfair treatment
lasting a short time
disconnected from reality
Q3.
How does oppression occur in 'Checking Out Me History'?
Agard describes that he received a diverse curriculum
Agard's native country was overcome with tyrants
Correct answer: Agard was denied the opportunity to learn about his heritage in Guyana
Q4.
What is the form of both 'Checking Out Me History' and 'My Last Duchess'?
ballad
sonnet
Correct answer: dramatic monologue
Q5.
Match the method to the type of evidence.
Correct Answer:caesura,structural evidence

structural evidence

Correct Answer:light imagery,language evidence

language evidence

Correct Answer:a poet's Romanticism,contextual evidence

contextual evidence

Correct Answer:dramatic monologue,form

form

Q6.
What is tentative language?
language that expresses certainty
language that expresses an opinion
Correct answer: language that expresses possibility

6 Questions

Q1.
Starting with the first, put the steps below which outline your comparative analysis paragraph in the order you'd complete them.
1 - a clear, relevant topic sentence linked to your thesis statement
2 - embed evidence into analytical sentences
3 - analyse one poem before analysing another
4 - use tentative language for personal interpretations
Q2.
'Checking Out Me History' explores colonial power whilst 'My Last Duchess' predominantly explores...
matriarchal power
institutional power
Correct answer: patriarchal power
Q3.
‘Checking Out Me History’ explore how…
Correct answer: marginalised groups triumph over oppressors
colonial power oppresses identity
marginalised groups cannot reclaim control
Q4.
A thesis statement should…
focus heavily on contextual information
discuss one poem in a lot of detail
Correct answer: introduce both poems and summarise their key ideas
summarise multiple themes across two poems
Q5.
How do we see evidence of marginalised groups triumphing over oppressors in 'My Last Duchess'?
Correct answer: The Duke's narrative is shaped by his wife's behaviour.
The Duchess suffers a tragic death.
Correct answer: The Duchess' "spot of joy" in the portrait is a mark of her defiance.
Q6.
Concealment is relevant in both 'My Last Duchess' and 'Checking Out Me History', whilst the Duke seeks to conceals the identity of his late wife through a curtain, Agard...
conceals the truth about his education.
had European history concealed from him.
Correct answer: was denied the opportunity to learn about his own heritage and identity.

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