Compilation of poems by Benjamin Zephaniah.

THE BRITISH

Take some Picts, Celts and Silures

And let them settle,
Then overrun them with Roman conquerors.

Remove the Romans after approximately 400 years

Add lots of Norman French to some
Angles, Saxons, Jutes and Vikings, then stir vigorously.

Mix some hot Chileans, cool Jamaicans, Dominicans,

Trinidadians and Bajans with some Ethiopians, Chinese,
Vietnamese and Sudanese.

Then take a blend of Somalians, Sri Lankans, Nigerians

And Pakistanis,
Combine with some Guyanese
And turn up the heat.

Sprinkle some fresh Indians, Malaysians, Bosnians,

Iraqis and Bangladeshis together with some
Afghans, Spanish, Turkish, Kurdish, Japanese
And Palestinians

Then add to the melting pot.

Leave the ingredients to simmer.

As they mix and blend allow their languages to flourish

Binding them together with English.

Allow time to be cool.

Add some unity, understanding, and respect for the future,

Serve with justice
And enjoy.

Note: All the ingredients are equally important. Treating one ingredient better than another
will leave a bitter unpleasant taste.

Warning: An unequal spread of justice will damage the people and cause pain. Give justice
and equality to all.
About the author

Dr Benjamin Obadiah Iqbal Zephaniah was born and raised in Birmingham, England. He
cannot remember a time when he was not creating poetry but this had nothing to do with
school where poetry meant very little to him, in fact he had finished full time education at the
age of 13. His poetry is strongly influenced by the music and poetry of Jamaica and what he
calls ‘street politics’. His first real public performance was in church when he was 10 years
old, by the time he was 15 he had developed a strong following in his home town of
Handsworth where he had gained a reputation as a young poet who was capable of
speaking on local and international issues.

To learn more about the author, visit Biography - Benjamin Zephaniah.

Guide for approaching a poem.

● Each poem should be read several times (preferably aloud).

● Make sure you have a general idea as to what the poem is about.
● Start your thinking with what in the words of the poem puzzles, interests or gives you
pleasure.
● Always try to locate whatever you think or feel about the poem in its words.
● Think about the number of different ways in which the words create meanings (this
will probably involve you in a consideration of figures of speech).
● Think about the particular arrangement of the lines.
 ● Think about what is contributed by the rhythms of the language.
● Think about the contribution of sounds, rhymes and stanza forms.
● Think about how all the above mentioned elements enact the poem's meaning and
impact.

But you must not stop there. A poem is not just lots of bits. All the words of a poem add up to
something - the poem as a whole. When, therefore, you study a poem, you should always do
so to write about the poem as a whole.

1. Read through the poems you have to study, trying to identify what kind of poems they
are.
2. What emotion does the poem chiefly appeal to?
3. What does the poet say in the poem?
4. What deeper meaning, if any, is there in the poem?
5. What methods or devices does the poet use to convey his particular vision or
experience to the reader?
6. Are there any personal or historical echoes or influences in the poem?
7. Does the poem appeal to you personally, or not, and for what reasons?

Adapted from:
Gill, R. (1995). Mastering English Literature. London.
Murphy, M. J. (1972). The Poet and Poetry. In Understanding Unseens. (pp. 90-91). George Allien
and Unwin, Ltd.

Song: Sunday, Bloody Sunday by U2.

TV show: The Crown (Netflix)

Season 1 Episode 3
Season 2 Episode 8

Season 4 Episode 8

Developing media analysis skills is an essential component of 21st century learning and the work
of teachers across all grade levels and classrooms. The ability to discern fact from fiction,
understand how an argument is constructed, how visuals might represent or misrepresent a time
and place, and examining the process and motivations behind video and audio production are
skills used in personal and public arenas beyond the school.

Questions for Viewing Films

● What assumptions does the film make about cultures and behaviors?
● What are the counter arguments to the narrative(s) presented in the film/TV show?
● To what extent does who wrote, directed, and produced the film matter to the
perspectives presented in the film/TV show?
● Why does who starred in the film/TV show matter?
● How does the director use symbolism to convey meaning throughout the film/TV show?
● To what extent does the film/TV show offer commentary on contemporary political,
social, economic, or cultural phenomena?
● Does the film/TV show pass the Bechdel test?
● How does this film/TV show compare to other films/TV shows on the same or a similar
topic?
● What changes could be made to the casting and what would it mean for the film/TV
show?
● How is conflict constructed and to what extent are those conflicts equitably resolved?
Consider person vs. person, person vs. self, person vs. nature, and person vs. technology.
● Are the solutions to conflict(s) presented in the film/TV show sustainable?

Taken from Teaching Film Analysis in the Humanities | NEH-Edsitement