1. Write at least two sentences in answer to each of these questions. a. What is the main message of the poem?
b. Choose three images that highlight what you think is the poet’s main message. c. How do you feel about the poem and what the poet says?
2. In this poem, the poet uses simple but powerful natural images. What do these images represent, in your opinion?
POINT: In my opinion, the simple but powerful natural images represent the strong, natural connection and bond between a mother and her child.
ILLUSTRATE: We see this in a number of images. I particularly like the image in the second stanza: ‘I tiptoe in./I lift you up/Wriggling/In your rosy, zipped sleeper.’
REMEMBER:
A metaphor is a comparison of things without using the words ‘like’, ‘as’ or ‘than’.
EXPLAIN: In this stanza, the poet uses short, simple lines and monosyllabic language, which allows the reader to easily imagine this moment – a woman lifting her child from her cot in the early hours. I particularly enjoyed the metaphor later in this stanza when the poet compares the baby to a bird because I have often thought that babies are tiny and delicate, just like little birds. I was also impressed by the use of the verb ‘wriggling’ as this reminds me of a tiny creature trying to feed itself.
P. 77
There are two settings in ‘Night Feed’ – one is inside and one is outside. Choose your favourite image from either setting, explain why you like it and then draw or fi nd a picture that you think best represents your chosen image, labelling it with a line from the poem. You can present this information in a ‘Poetry in Pictures Poster’ template.
K
Go to your Writing Skills Book to see this template and to develop your answer to this question.
