SPCC / EL & L Dept / F1 / 2019-2020

Name: _ Simon_ Set: __ () Date: _18th March, 2021__

Exploring theme of poem

Though related to the concept of a moral, or lesson, themes are usually more
complicated and ambiguous. To describe the theme of a poem is to discuss the
overarching abstract idea(s) being examined in the poem. A poem’s subject is
the topic of the poem, or what the poem is about, while the theme is an idea that
the poem expresses about the subject or uses the subject to explore.

The theme of a poem may be stated explicitly, but more often it is implicit, and
must be determined by a close reading. Common themes include love, death,
loss, the importance of self-knowledge, the contrast between ideals and reality
and the dangers of power, among many others. For example, a writer may
choose a subject of snow for his poem and the theme of a poem may actually
be appreciating the wonder of life.

Readers can identify the poem’s theme by considering the poem’s rhythms,
feelings, and sounds as well as its diction (the way words are pronounced) and
word-choice. Besides, poems often contain imagery, which refers to concrete
descriptions. Metaphor and simile, which refer to comparisons, are also
common and are often used in conjunction with imagery. All these elements can
help you understand the meaning of the poems. Therefore, readers should pay
careful attention to what the author chooses to compare and the imagery used
throughout the poem when interpreting them. In this unit, you are going to
explore several poems and see how the themes are illustrated in them.

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 SPCC / EL & L Dept / F1 / 2019-2020

The poem below is part of a Navajo chant for thunder, which brings rain. The Navajo
sang the song during the Mountain Chant Ceremony.

Twelfth Song of the Thunder

from the Navajo (translated by Dr. Washington Matthews, 1887)

The voice that beautifies the land!

The voice above,
The voice of the thunder.
Within the dark cloud
Again and again it sounds,
The voice that beautifies the land.

The voice that beautifies the land!

The voice below:
The voice of the grasshopper.
Among the plants
Again and again it sounds,
The voice that beautifies the land.

Watch the clip shown by teachers and answer the following questions.
1. What is the poem about?
_The voices of thunder and grasshoppers. _____________________________________
2. What is imagery?
_Pictures a poet creates in reader’s mind with their words. ________________________
3. What is a symbol?
_Words or things that stand for something else. They are figurative, not literal. _______
4. What is a theme?
_It is a universal lesson. It is not specific to the poem, but could be apply to life in
general.
5. What are the images used in the poem?
_Thunder, clouds, grasshoppers and plants. ____________________________________
6. How to find the theme of the poem?
Step 1: _Ask “How do imagery, sound and symbols shape the meaning of this poem?” _
Step 2: _Write what lesson the poem could teach us based on the nates taken. ________

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 SPCC / EL & L Dept / F1 / 2019-2020

Step 3: _Double check that your lesson is universal. _____________________________

Dreams by Langston Hughes

1 Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.

5 Hold fast to dreams

For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.

PART 1
Make a list of things you want to accomplish in your life. Apart from getting into
the desired university or reaching a career goal, is there anything else that you
want to accomplish in your life?

Get more five-stars characters in GI

Become a master of go game (chess)
Fly in the sky with man-made wings

Why do we need dreams?

Why can't we live without it? I
don’t have time for such thing.
Life goes on anyway.

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 SPCC / EL & L Dept / F1 / 2019-2020

Part 2
Answer the following questions about the “Dreams” poem by Langston Hughes.

1. Which lines are repeated? Why?

_Lines 1 and 5. To stress on the importance of holding fast to dreams. _____

2. What is the rhyme scheme of this poem?

_ABCB ADED____________________________________________________

3. Identify the literary devices used.

_Personification – dreams die. Metaphor – life is a broken winged bird,
symbolism_

4. Why do you think the writer chose these devices? How do they help you
create images in your mind after reading the poem?
_They are similar in some points; they help me understand the relationship
between dreams and life. ___________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________

5. What is a broken wing? Why do birds need wings? What are birds meant to
do? What is a barren field? What do these images imply?
_A broken wing: a wing which is useless; Birds need wings to fly to get food__
_Birds meant to fly around freely; A barren field: a place where no plants grow_
_These images imply that a person needs to have a dream to have a
meaningful life. ___________________

6. What is the theme of the poem? How do the devices and other features help
convey this theme?

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 SPCC / EL & L Dept / F1 / 2019-2020

_It is that having a dream is important to us, and it uses birds and their wings to
show the relationship between dreams and lives. ________________________

7. In your own words, explain how how life is not so good without dreams.
_You may lose directions without a far goal, and may have less power to do
work. And, the life will be meaningless also. ____________________________
_______________________________________________________________

8. In groups, write an extension of the poem describing something abstract

using a similar approach i.e. Hold fast to happiness or Get rid of gloominess.
Share it with the class.