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Year 10 - English

Analysing the poem 'Neutral Tones' by Thomas Hardy

'Love and Relationships'

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupis explore 12 of the 15 poems from the 'Love and Relationships' anthology. Pupils complete two lessons about each poem: one on understanding and one on analysis. Pupils study the poems in four groups, and they pause after each group to compare how those poems present common themes.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to explore how Hardy uses imagery to present a foreboding interaction during the breakdown of the relationship.

Key Notes

  • Hardy uses colour imagery to create a bleak and barren emotional landscape.
  • Hardy uses an oxymoron to convey the hostile and hopeless nature of the relationship.
  • Hardy uses personification to suggest how he feels misled by love.
  • Hardy uses ominous imagery to show how the relationship was ill-fated.
  • Analytical paragraphs should consider a writer's meaning, use of language and purpose.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • ominous: foreboding; suggests something bad will happen.
  • hostile: unfriendly or unwelcoming.
  • oxymoron: a language technique which combines two opposite ideas.
  • colour imagery: vivid descriptions of colours to evoke emotions or ideas.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • You need to include a reference to the wider context in every analytical paragraph.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain this English learning goal in two key points.

Hardy uses colour imagery to create a bleak and barren emotional landscape. Hardy uses an oxymoron to convey the hostile and hopeless nature of the relationship.

2. Define this language term and use it in a sentence. 'ominous'

foreboding; suggests something bad will happen.

3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.

Mistake: You need to include a reference to the wider context in every analytical paragraph. Correction: The best analytical responses only include relevant pieces of context and weave it subtly throughout. It is important to include context in your answer but it isn't necessary to include it in every paragraph.

More Lessons In This Unit

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