Work in pairs to discuss the following statements: You should always feel safe with your family. Spending time with family has its difficulties. Parents do not always get it right.
Understand
1. Identify the cause of conflict in this poem. 2. Who does the mother hold responsible for the incident described?
Explore 3
1. Find two poetic techniques used in the poem. Do you think these techniques are effective?
2. The mother is ‘standing behind the kitchen table’ when she speaks. Why is this detail significant?
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3. How do you know that the son was badly affected by his father’s actions? 4. Suggest an alternative title for this poem. Explain your choice.
5. Choose a poem that you have studied that deals with conflict in some way. Perhaps the speaker had a difficult decision to make or maybe the poem recalls a disagreement of some kind.
(a) Name the poem and the poet. (b) What kind of conflict is there in the poem? (c) How was the conflict dealt with in the poem? (d) Choose one image that stood out to you in this poem and explain your choice. OR
Choose a poem that you have studied that deals with a serious incident within a family unit.
(a) Name the poem and the poet. (b) How does the poet portray the incident, the family or both? (c) Choose one image from the poem that you found effective and explain your choice. (d) What did you learn from this poem?
Create 1. Write a poem that deals with the theme of conflict.
2. You have been given the opportunity to interview one member of the family portrayed in this poem. (a) Which family member would you choose? Explain your choice. (b) Write the text of the interview in transcript format.
