Year 9 - English
Reading 'Propping Up the Line', a short story about World War One by Ian Beck
Literary perspectives from the First World War
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Study Guides
This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
In this unit, pupils explore and compare texts written about the First World War. They first read Beck's 'Propping up the line', Mansfield's 'The Fly' and Wilfred Owen's 1917 letter home to his mum. They finally read Brittain's 'Testament of Youth', and then plan and write a comparative response.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to explain what happens in 'Propping Up The Line', including commenting on some of the choices Beck made.
Key Notes
- 'Propping Up The Line' is a short story by Ian Beck written using a third person narrative voice.
- Beck was inspired to write the story to "honour" his grandfather who was gassed in the trenches during World War One.
- Gas attacks killed about three percent of people immediately.
- There were long term physical and psychological effects for those who survived gas attacks.
- Many people who write about World War One try to convey the horrors of gas attacks in their work.
Vocabulary To Learn
- third person narrative: when the person telling the story isn't a character in the story and tells us about the characters using their names, or 'she', 'he', 'they'
- short story: a fictional text which is shorter than a novel and can often be read in one sitting; a writer might focus on one event, or linked events, and evoke a particular tone or mood
- Wilfred Owen: a British soldier and poet (1893-1918) best known for his poems about World War One
- simile: a language technique whereby a writer describes something by comparing it to something else using 'like' or 'as'
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Anyone who breathed in gas died immediately.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Explain this English learning goal in two key points.
'Propping Up The Line' is a short story by Ian Beck written using a third person narrative voice. Beck was inspired to write the story to "honour" his grandfather who was gassed in the trenches during World War One.
2. Define this language term and use it in a sentence. 'third person narrative'
when the person telling the story isn't a character in the story and tells us about the characters using their names, or 'she', 'he', 'they'.
3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.
Mistake: Anyone who breathed in gas died immediately. Correction: Gas attacks killed about three percent of people immediately, but there were long term physical and psychological effects for those who experienced gas attacks.
More Lessons In This Unit
- Analysing the presentation of the gas attack: Ian Beck's 'Propping Up the Line' Study Guide
- Comparing texts about World War One in comparative analytical paragraphs Study Guide
- Comparing texts about World War One using comparative topic sentences Study Guide
- Creative writing in the third person inspired by Katherine Mansfield's 'The Fly' Study Guide
- Debating different interpretations of Katherine Mansfield's 'The Fly' Study Guide
- Exploring the presentation of the boss in 'The Fly' by Katherine Mansfield Study Guide
- Ian Beck's 'Propping Up The Line': Alice's experiences on the Home Front Study Guide
- Improving a letter: deliberate verbs and precise adjectives Study Guide
- Improving the style of a letter: sentence structure and rhythm Study Guide
- Katherine Mansfield's 'The Fly' (1922): exploring character foils and symbolism Study Guide
- Letter writing: planning, using Vera Brittain's 'Testament of Youth' as stimulus Study Guide
- Letter writing: planning, using Wilfred Owen's 1917 letter as stimulus Study Guide
- Reading Katherine Mansfield's short story, 'The Fly' (1922) Study Guide
- Skim reading and close reading: 'Testament of Youth' by Vera Brittain Study Guide
- Skim reading and close reading: Wilfred Owen's 1917 letter to his mother Study Guide
- Symbolism and motif in Ian Beck's short story, 'Propping Up The Line' Study Guide
- The presentation of trauma in Ian Beck's short story, 'Propping Up the Line' Study Guide
- Understanding why people write about war Study Guide
- Using sentence structure to create rhythm in writing about World War One Study Guide
- Vivid descriptive writing using Ian Beck's 'Propping Up The Line' as stimulus Study Guide
- World War One: propaganda and trench warfare Study Guide
- Writing a letter as a soldier in the trenches of World War One Study Guide
- Writing a letter from the British home front: tone, audience and purpose Study Guide
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