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Year 11
Edexcel

Analysing the poem 'Cousin Kate' by Christina Rossetti

I can explain how Rossetti uses language, form and structure to express her viewpoint.

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New
New
Year 11
Edexcel

Analysing the poem 'Cousin Kate' by Christina Rossetti

I can explain how Rossetti uses language, form and structure to express her viewpoint.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The poem takes the form of a dramatic monologue.
  2. It also uses many traditional ballad conventions.
  3. Juxtaposition may have been used to create tension in the poem.
  4. Rhetorical questions may have been used to convey confusion about the conflict women faced in society.
  5. Rhyme is used to emphasise and link meanings in the poem.

Common misconception

The speaker feels as though her cousin Kate has ruined her life completely.

While the speaker does feel that Kate has stolen the life she deserved/desired, she also feels that she can have the 'last laugh' since she has given birth to the nobleman's son.

Keywords

  • Incredulity - being unable or unwilling to believe something; disbelief

  • Pastoral - literature idealising rural life and nature, often contrasting with urban experiences

  • Anaphora - repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or sentences

  • Dramatic monologue - a poem where a single character speaks to a silent audience, revealing their thoughts

  • Ballad - a narrative poem, often set to music, using simple language, repetition, and a regular rhyme scheme

When exploring the use of rhyme in the third learning cycle, encourage students to rewrite the poem using synonyms for each rhyming word so the lines no longer have any rhyming pattern. Then read the poem aloud to hear the difference the rhyme schemes make.
Teacher tip

Equipment

You need access to a copy of ‘Cousin Kate’ by Christina Rossetti for this lesson. You can find this in the Edexcel Poetry Anthology (we will be using the ‘Conflict’ cluster).

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
  • Depiction or discussion of mental health issues
  • Depiction or discussion of sexual content

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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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
The speaker of 'Cousin Kate' is ...
Kate
the nobleman
Correct answer: Kate's cousin
Kate's mother
Correct answer: Kate's love rival
Q2.
At the end of 'Cousin Kate', the speaker reveals...
she has poisoned Kate.
Correct answer: she has given birth to the nobleman's son.
she has a plan to seduce the nobleman so he will leave Kate.
Q3.
Which of the following quotes from 'Cousin Kate' suggests that the nobleman has conflicted feelings for the speaker?
"Not mindful I was fair."
Correct answer: "His plaything and his love."
"O Cousin Kate, my love was true"
"I would have spit into his face."
Q4.
Which of these words could we use to describe Victorian society?
utopian
communist
matriarchal
Correct answer: patriarchal
Q5.
What is the speaker of 'Cousin Kate' implying when she says that Kate's "love was writ in sand"?
Kate's love for the nobleman is fleeting and will end quickly.
Kate's love is passionate to the point of being obsessive.
Correct answer: Kate's love is baseless; the speaker suspects she only loves him for his status.
Kate's love is empty and dry like the desert.
Q6.
What does the speaker of 'Cousin Kate' suggest most attracted the nobleman to both women?
Correct answer: They are both beautiful.
They are both kind and compassionate people.
They all have similar interests.
They are both younger than him.

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match each literary method to the correct definition.
Correct Answer:juxtaposition,placing two or more elements side by side to highlight their contrasts

placing two or more elements side by side to highlight their contrasts

Correct Answer:rhetorical question,questions asked for effect or to make a point, not requiring an answer

questions asked for effect or to make a point, not requiring an answer

Correct Answer:anaphora,repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive lines

repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive lines

Q2.
What does pastoral mean?
literature idealising religion and faith
Correct answer: literature idealising rural life and nature
literature idealising a particular historical period
literature idealising upper-class life
Q3.
Which of these are conventions of a dramatic monologue?
Correct answer: first-person perspective
an ABAB rhyme scheme
focus on traditional characters/settings
Correct answer: a silent audience
Q4.
Which of these are conventions of a ballad?
Correct answer: narrative storytelling
slow reveal of the character's personality
Correct answer: simple language and vocabulary
frequent use of enjambment
Q5.
Which rhyming patterns are used in 'Cousin Kate'?
Correct answer: ABAB
ABBA
Correct answer: ABCB
ABCC
AABB
Q6.
Which of these quotations links to the pastoral themes in the poem?
"my shame, my pride"
"Call me an outcast thing"
Correct answer: "your sport among the rye"
"He watched your steps along the lane"