Starter quiz
- In 'Propping Up The Line', which activity in England transports Alfred back to life in the trenches?
- eating cake
- hanging up washing ✓
- having a steam bath
- the canary singing
- walking to work
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- In 'Propping Up The Line', Alfred describes the washing on the line and compares the clothes to flags. What method does Beck use to do this?
- personification
- simile ✓
- allusion
- theme
- adverbial phrasing
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- Wilfred Owen was a British soldier and poet, best known for his poetry about World War One. Which of these poems did he write?
- 'Mental Cases' ✓
- 'Dulce et Decorum Est' ✓
- 'Propping Up The Line'
- 'The Road Not Taken'
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- Wilfred Owen, a British soldier and poet, was best known for his poetry about World War One. What are his poems known for?
- their patriotism
- their stark depiction of war ✓
- as a comfort to those who have lost people in war
- as warnings against future wars ✓
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- In 'Propping Up The Line', Alfred listens to the washing in the wind and tries to catch his breath as saw what moving on the lawn?
- reflections
- shadows ✓
- objects
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- In 'Propping Up The Line', Alfred describes the washing on the line and remembers the barbed wire of the war and the ______ that were trapped in it.
- 'fragments' ✓
Exit quiz
- Starting with the first plot point, order this short sequence from 'Propping Up The Line' in chronological order.
- 1⇔Alfred raises the washing up so it can flap in the breeze.
- 2⇔Alfred compares the clothes to flags, men and uniforms.
- 3⇔Alfred closes his eyes and listens to the noises the washing makes.
- 4⇔Nell watches her father.
- 5⇔Nell sees how hard it is for her father to breathe.
- In 'Propping Up The Line', Alfred compares the washing on the line to the "fragments" trapped by barbed wire. What might this reveal about Alfred?
- his physical trauma
- his patriotism
- his emotional trauma ✓
- his breathing difficulties
- his use of motif
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- Many writers use ______ description to convey the horrors of the front line.
- 'vivid' ✓
- Wilfred Owen was a British soldier and poet. His poem 'Mental Cases' includes the line, "______ they must see these things and hear them".
- 'always' ✓
- Wilfred Owen was a British soldier and poet. His poem 'Mental Cases' includes the line, "their eyeballs ______ tormented Back into their brains".
- 'shrink' ✓
- Wilfred Owen was a British soldier and poet. His poem 'Mental Cases' includes the line, "Dawn breaks open like a wound that bleeds ______".
- 'afresh' ✓
Worksheet
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Presentation
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Video
Lesson Details
Key learning points
- Many writers use vivid description to convey the horrors of the front line.
- Beck shows the depth of Alfred’s trauma when the noise and sight of washing transports him back to the front line.
- A vivid description is the result of careful planning and close attention to methods.
Common misconception
You can only use single paragraph outlines to plan analytical writing.
We structure so much of our writing using paragraphs. All paragraphs, whether creative or analytical or something else, require a clear and carefully planned structure.
Keywords
Vivid - clear, powerful, realistic
Wilfred owen - a British soldier and poet (1893-1918) best known for his poems about World War One
Methods - the tools a writer uses to create their work; language choices, setting, characterisation are all examples
Single paragraph outline - a way to plan a paragraph in which you write the first and last sentence, and carefully consider the details you want to capture in the paragraph
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