Starter quiz
- What is an extended metaphor?
- a comparison between two things using 'like' or 'as'
- a direct comparison between two things
- a direct comparison between two things which goes across multiple lines ✓
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- ______ is information which allows us to understand the social, historical or cultural background of a text.
- 'context' ✓
- What is sibilance?
- the repetition of a vowel sound at the start of closely connected words
- the repetition of a consonant sound at the start of closely connected words
- the repetition of the 's' sound at the start of closely connected words ✓
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- What might be the definition of a civil war?
- a war between two countries
- a war between two groups of people in the same country ✓
- a war between multiple countries
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- A ______ is a group of words closely related in meaning.
- 'semantic field' ✓
- What connotations might we have of the word 'island'?
- isolated ✓
- remote ✓
- connected
- small ✓
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Exit quiz
- How does Heaney present nature in 'Storm on the Island'?
- as nurturing
- as brutal ✓
- as comforting
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- The conflict between Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland between the 1960s-1998 was known as...
- 'The Problems'
- 'The Troubles' ✓
- 'The Civil Unrest'
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- Which two interpretations are most commonly explored in relation to 'Storm on the 'Island'?
- the poem is a reflection of the power of nature ✓
- the poem reflects the destruction of nature on the island
- the poem can be seen as a reflection of the conflict in Northern Ireland ✓
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- What might the pronoun "we" used in 'Storm on the Island' suggest about the poem?
- suggests a sense of community ✓
- suggests a sense of detachment
- suggests a sense of upheaval
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- The ‘Storm’ in the title 'Storm on the Island' can be read as…
- a metaphor for a natural disaster Ireland had faced.
- a metaphor the political storm that raged in Northern Ireland. ✓
- a metaphor for Heaney’s familial conflict in the 1960s.
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- In 'Storm on the Island', Heaney uses a semantic field of __________ to describe nature in the poem.
- war ✓
- fear
- safety
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Worksheet
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Lesson Details
Key learning points
- ‘Storm on the Island’ can be read as a poem about the power of nature on the Aran Islands.
- Heaney may have been influenced by the conflict between Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland.
- ‘Storm on the Island’ was published in 1996, when the IRA were carrying out military operations in Northern Ireland.
- The storm can be read as an extended metaphor for ‘The Troubles’.
- 'The Troubles' refers to a violent thirty-year civil conflict in Ireland which led to around 3,500 deaths.
Common misconception
There is only one interpretation of the poem 'Storm on the Island'.
The poem can be a reflection of the power of nature, conflict between humans and nature, the political conflict or all.
Keywords
Extended metaphor - a metaphor that extends over the course of several lines
Civil - relating to citizens of the same country
Unrest - a state of disturbance, involving public disorder
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