Module 9
Poem ACTIVITY 16
Warning by Jenny Joseph
When I am an old woman I shall wear purple With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me, And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves And satin sandals, and say we’ve no money for butter. I shall sit down on the pavement when I’m tired And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells And run my stick along the public railings And make up for the sobriety of my youth. I shall go out in my slippers in the rain And pick the flowers in other people’s gardens And learn to spit.
Vocabulary
sobriety – the state of being serious; thoughtful; not drunk pickle – food (especially vegetables like onions and cucumber) preserved in vinegar hoard – to store, accumulate more than one’s requirements beermats – small tablemats for a beer glass
You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat And eat three pounds of sausage at a go Or only bread and pickle for a week And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes.
But now we must have clothes that keep us dry And pay our rent and not swear in the street And set a good example for the children. We will have friends to dinner and read the papers.
But maybe I ought to practise a little now? So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised When suddenly I am old and start to wear purple.
1. Was the poem what you expected it to be about aſter having read the title? Explain.
2. Te poet plans to do many things when she’s old. 2.1 Mention four things.
2.2 Mention two of these things that you think are examples of unacceptable or even anti-social behaviour.
2.3 Explain why you think she wants to behave in this way when she is old.
5. Te poet seems to think that old people have strange and peculiar habits. Mention two.
6. Choose the correct answer and give a reason for your choice. Te tone of the poem is: A. serious B. ironic C. humorous D. childish E. sincere
168 FutureManagers
(2) (4) (2) (2)
3. Explain the contrast between the first two stanzas and stanza 3. (2) 4. Do you think old people are being stereotyped in this poem? Explain.
(2) (2)
(2)
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