Prime Time 5, Transition, Coursebook mit Audio-CD

What is poetry for you? a) In groups of three or four, discuss the following questions about your attitude towards poetry. Be prepared to share your ideas with the class. • What is your experience with reading poetry in school? • Have you ever read poetry outside school? If yes, describe when and how you got the idea. • Do you have a favourite poem? If yes, tell the others about it. • Have you ever tried to write poetry? If yes, briefly talk about it. b) Have a look at the three quotes about poetry below. Say what you think they mean in your own words. 2 Word bank structure • stanza • line • part • to consist of … • rhyme pattern • stress • atmosphere • feeling • monotonous • lively • to describe • to deal with • to discuss • to express feelings • to express views • metaphor • main message • form • content • interpretation • rhythm • mood • metre W Poetry is the rhythmical creation of beauty in words. (Edgar Allan Poe) e poet doesn’t invent. He listens. (Jean Cocteau) Poetry is life distilled 4 . (Gwendolyn Brooks) A winner of the Young Poets of the Year Award This poem was among the winners of the Young Poets of the Year Award a few years ago, an important poetry competition organised by the British Poetry Society. a) Read the poem and describe what it is about in your own words. b) Have a look at the three quotes in task 2b again. How do they relate to this poem? c) As a member of the jury, would you also have made this poem a winner of the competition? Give reasons. Down in the greenhouse Summers ago I went tomato picking in the greenhouse. I remember it so well – e hot, sticky smell of the air around us Contrasting with the cool, strangely calming smell of the fruit, Shiny, red and speckled, Wonderfully dierent from all others, It was the one for me. Small and round But hard at the same time. My sister always gulped hers down Quick as a ¬ash. I remember her face. Not me. I peeled o the skin Oh, so very gently, One strip at a time, en placed it on my tongue And shut my mouth. I heard the buzzing of the bees In their own world Working for their queen, e rustling of leaves, and My mother laughing at our messy faces. Flora omas 3 4 to distil: to extract the essential meaning of something 135 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv