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Tasks: Ring Out Wild Bells by Alfred Lord Tennyson

Working on vocabulary:

Step 1: Look up the words found in the box below:

feud

redress

ancient

strife

want

minstrel

civic

slander

valiant

Step 2: Translate the lines from the poem found in the box below. Here you may want to work with a partner so you can discuss the best solutions.

Ring out the feud of rich and poor,


Ring in redress to all mankind.


Ring out a slowly dying cause, And ancient forms of party strife;


Ring out the want, the care, the sin,


Ring out, ring out my mournful rhymes But ring the fuller minstrel in.


Ring out false pride in place and blood, The civic slander and the spite;


Ring in the valiant man and free,

Step 3: Agree on a shared translation in class.

  • Re-read the stanzas these lines come from.

  • Did the translations make the stanzas easier to understand?

  • Do you need to understand these stanzas to understand the poem?

Study the poem:

Work in a group and study the poem together. Discuss what you find and write down shared answers.

  1. The last line of the poem tells us that this poem is written by someone who belongs to the Christian faith. Are there other examples from the text that make us think the poem is written by a Christian?

  2. Do you think the message of the poem is primarily religious? Explain why / why not using examples from the text.

  3. Study the rhyme scheme of the poem. What kind of rhyme is used? By clicking the box below, you can read about some commonly used rhyme schemes.

  4. What is achieved by using rhyme in a poem?

Some common rhyme schemes:


Alternate rhyme: This rhyme pattern means that the first and third lines rhyme at the end, and the second and fourth lines rhyme at the end, following the pattern ABAB. This rhyme scheme is used in poems with four-line stanzas.

Coupled rhyme: A coupled rhyme is when you have a two-line stanza where the lines rhyme with each other. The pattern is AA. Shakespeare liked to use coupled rhyme at the end of his sonnets.

Monorhyme: In a monorhyme, all the lines in a stanza or entire poem end with the same rhyme.

Enclosed rhyme: The first and fourth lines and the second and third lines rhyme with each other. The pattern is ABBA.

Discuss:

Discuss in a group or work individually and write down the answers:

  1. What changes would you like to see in the world, and why do you especially want to see these changes?

  2. How can these changes be accomplished?

Write:

Work with a partner or alone. Pick one of the tasks.

  1. Draw inspiration from the structure of Tennyson’s poem and make your own version where you focus on the changes you would like to see in the world.

  2. Write a persuasive text where you try to convince others of the importance and urgency of the changes you want to see in the world.


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