PT3 POEMS

By Noorhasyimah Munira

THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

ABOUT THE POEM

Setting
Literary
devices

Langua
ge &
Style

Persona

Eleme
nts of
the
poem

Tone &
Mood

Themes

Messag
e
Moral
Values

A FIGHTERS LINE

By Marzuki Ali

BASIC INFORMATION
The poet
Marzuki Ali
Born in Terengganu in 1945. Writes poetry, plays and
short stories since 1960s.

Overview
This poem is about an old soldier. He is sad because
he is old and weak. He thinks about the past when he
fought for the countrys independence. The present
times makes him worried. The countrys freedom is in
danger. He urges the younger generation to fight

MEANING OF LINES
Lines 1 -2
The persona says that he is old and tired. He is no longer as
strong as he was before
Lines 3 -7
The persona has suffered much. He fought for the countrys
independence. What he has done for the country cannot be
described
Lines 8 10
Sitting in his wheelchair, the persona can only look at what
is happening around him. He cannot do anything because

MEANING OF LINES
Lines 11 14
What is happening today is too much for the persona. He is
sick and does not have much time left. He is unhappy to see
dishonesty and corruption in his country is getting worse
Line 15 19
The persona urges the younger generation to do something
to uphold justice. He wants them to be brave and united.
Line 20 21
The persona is too weak to say or do anything. The next
generation must be the ones to do something to improve

ELEMENTS OF THE POEM:

SETTING, PERSONA & THEMES
Setting

Persona

Place:
Independen
t country
Time:
Some years
after the

An old
soldier who
has fought
for the
independen
ce of his

Themes
Love for
ones
country
Courage
and
sacrifice

ELEMENTS OF THE POEM:

MESSAGE,
MORAL VALUES, TONE & MOOD
Moral
Tone &
Message
values
Mood

Love our
country
Be brave
Unity is
strength

Patriotism
Publicspiritednes
s
Courage
Unity and

Sad
Weak and
tired
Worries
about the
nation

ELEMENTS OF THE POEM:

LANGUAGE
& STYLES, LITERARY DEVICES

Language & Styles

Free verse (21
lines)
First person point
of view
Sounds like a
speech

Literary devices
Imagery
(ln 1 old and
worn)
Metaphor
(ln 8, ln 12
wheelchair and
crippled years)
Contrast
(ln 16, ln 19 wake up, form

VOCABULARIES QUIZ!!

sufferin
gs

sacrific
es

deceit

remna
nts

cripple
d

crushe
d

LEISURE

By William Henry Davies

BASIC INFORMATION
The poet
William Henry Davies
Went to America but returned to live in England.
Loves writing poems about the countryside.

Overview
In the poem, the poet is describing a life that has
no time for leisure. He wonders what good is life if
we are too busy with our problems to enjoy the
beauty of nature or to notice other people. The

MEANING OF LINES
Lines 1 -2
The poet wonders about the purpose of a life that is so full
of worry that we cannot find time to enjoy the little things in
life
Lines 3 -4
He wonders what would happen if we have no time to relax
under a tree and quietly enjoy the scenery in the
countryside
Lines 5 6
Rushing about, we will miss out on the wonders of nature,
such as squirrels cleverly hiding their nuts

Lines 7 - 8
If we had no leisure, we would not notice the beauty of nature,
such as streams sparkling I the sunshine
Line 9 - 10
If we are too busy, we would not notice a lovely maiden or watch
her graceful movements
Line 11 - 12
We would not stop to wait to see the lovely maiden complete the
smile that started with her eyes
Lines 13 -14
The poet thinks that a life that is so full of worry that we have no

ELEMENTS OF THE POEM:

SETTING, PERSONA & THEMES
Setting

Persona

Themes

Place: The
English
countryside
there are
farms with
sheep and
cows, there are
woods with
wild animals
like squirrels
and beautiful

Could be the
poet himself.
He thinks and
wonders about
life
He believes
that life should
be enjoyed by
being outdoor
He wants

The
importance of
leisure.
Managing time
Appreciating
nature

ELEMENTS OF THE POEM:

MESSAGE,
MORAL VALUES, TONE & MOOD

Message
Dont be
too busy to
enjoy life
Manage
your time
well

Moral values

Tone & Mood

Being
grateful or
life
Love for
nature
Moderation

Thoughtful,
questioning
Reminding,
warning
Regretful

ELEMENTS OF THE POEM:

LANGUAGE
& STYLES, LITERARY DEVICES

Language & Styles

Literary devices

7 stanzas couplet
Rhyme scheme:
aa, bb, cc, dd, ee,
ff, aa
First person point
of view

Imagery
(sheeps and
cows, streams
sparkling in the
sun)
Simile
(stanza 4
sparkling water
in the streams to
stars)

VOCABULARIES QUIZ!!

glanc
e

leisur
e

benea
th

bough
s

broad

enrich

I WONDER

By Jeannie Kirby

SYNOPSIS
The persona is asking questions about the mysteries of nature and
the universe. She wants to know why the grass is green and not
another colour, why we can see the effects of the wind but not the
wind itself.
The birds can build nest but who taught them, and also who told
the trees to remain still. She also wants to know if we can see half
of the moon, where is the other half. She goes on to question who
lights the stars and what makes the lightning flash.
She continues to question who paints the rainbow in the sky and
hangs the clouds high up in the sky. Finally, she thinks that even if
her dad knows the answer, he will not tell her. That itself, is a
mystery.

MEANING OF LINES
Lines 1 - 2
The poet is amazed and curious about the colour of the grass
and the unseen wind.
Lines 3 - 4
The poet continues to ask more questions about birds and their
nest, and the trees standing still.
Lines 5 - 6
The poet wants to know when we can only see half of the moon,
where the other half is?

MEANING OF LINES
Lines 7 - 8
The poet continues to ask questions about the universe. She asks
about the stars who lights them up? And what causes lightning?
Lines 9 - 10
She wants to know about the rainbows and clouds. Who painted the
rainbows and who hung the clouds in the sky?
Lines 11 - 12
The poet is very interested to know the answers to all the questions
and she thinks her dad will not tell her even if he knows.

Centres
around
the
mysteries
of nature
and the
universe

There are many

questions about
nature that we
do not have the
answer to.

TONE, MOOD, AND

ATMOSPHERE
The atmosphere and mood created by
the poet is one of curiosity and
The tone thoughtfulness
The persona
The persona
used is
is
uses direct
pensive
questioning
and simple
thinking
certain
approach of
seriously and
aspect of
just asking
quietly about nature and
questions.
something the universe.

THE RIVER

By Valerie Bloom

SYNOPSIS
The persona describes
the river as it is, its flow,
movement and the
sounds
it makes.
At times,
the river
is calm and
makes pleasant soothing
sounds but there are times
when
it flows
fast the
withriver
rage.
When
this
happens,
can
be dangerous like a monster and it
will swallow everything that gets
in the way including us.

MEANING OF LINES
Lines 1 - 4
The poet likens the river to a person who travels from
place to place and who has no home.
It flows without any fixed destination and stops at
different place to rest.

Lines 5 - 8
The river winds freely through the valley and hill
making sudden twist and curves like a person going
through trials and tribulations in his life. It travels
like someone who is restless and easily bored.

MEANING OF LINES
Lines 9 - 12
As the river flows, it hoards or collects little things that
may be of value.
These little treasures are buried deep in the river bed
and unless someone finds them, they will remain hidden
Lines
16
for a 13
long- time.
The river makes cheerful sounds as he travels. The poet
likens the sound to a baby gurgling happily.
It uses the imagery sucking his thumbs to explain the
movement and the sounds that the river makes as it
flows.

MEANING OF LINES
Lines 17 - 20
The river is calm and makes sounds that are soothing to the ears
like the melody of a song and it moves as if it is dancing.
The scenes at the countryside is quiet and the sounds can be
heard from far away.

Lines 21 - 24

The river can sometimes be dangerous too, like a monster. The

river behaves like a hungry and angry monster by the way it
gobbles the trees that are in its way.
The port advices the reader to be wary of the river as it can be
dangerous. The poet likens the river to life where things may not
appear to be what they really are.
We need to prepare for the unexpected and not take things in life

THEME

The theme is our

journey in life.

The poet describe

the river in human
terms and our
journey in life is like
the river, where we
have good and bad
days.

In life, we must be
prepared for
uncertainties and
learn not to take
things for granted.

TONE, MOOD, AND

ATMOSPHERE
The tone used in the poem is one of the
light heartedness and yet there is a
sense of seriousness.
The mood and the atmosphere the poet creates in the
poem depicts the many encounters we face in life
- the joy, pain, tribulation, innocence, anger, greed and
bitterness.

MR NOBODY

By unknown author

SYNOPSIS

Mr Nobody is blamed
and responsible for
all the mischief and
naughty things that
happen around the
house

cracking the plates,

leaving the door ajar,
pulling buttons from
shirts, scattering
pins, not oiling the
door, placing damp
wood on the fire,
dirtying the carpets,
leaving finger prints

Mr. Nobody is blamed

for all these things
because the poet
does not want to take
the blame. In reality,
Mr. Nobody did not
exist.

MEANING OF LINES
Stanza 1

Stanza 2

The poet is telling is that he knows a man

who is playful and naughty.
The man is very quiet like a mouse, who
comes out only at night in peoples home to
cause trouble but no serious harm is done.
No one knows how this man looks like but
we know that he is the one who cracked the
plate.
Mr. Nobody is blamed and responsible for
tearing the books, leaving the door slightly
open, pulling out the buttons from the
shirts, throwing around the pins.
He is also responsible for not oiling the
door, thus it makes a squeaky noise.

MEANING OF LINES
Stanza 3

Stanza 4

The poet continues to describe what

Mr. Nobody did. He puts wet wood on
the fire and the kettle wont boil.
He dirties the carpets with his muddy
and stanza
forgetscontinues
where he the
placed the
feet
The last
papers.
description of Mr. Nobodys
mischievous behaviour such as
leaving finger prints on the door, not
closing the blinds on the window and
therefore the curtains fade, and
spilling the ink and leaving his boots
around.

THEME
Mr. Nobody, who actually does not exist, is
blamed for all the naughty things done.
By doing so, the poet does not get blamed.
In life, it is so easy to find someone to blame
rather than take responsibility for our mischief
and mistakes.

TONE, MOOD, AND

ATMOSPHERE
The
poet
uses a
matter
-offact

There is
no guilt
or
regret
for
blaming

HEIR CONDITIONING

By M Shanmughalingam

SYNOPSIS
The poem is a question
and answer session
between a child and his
grandparents. The child
is curious to know how
the grandparents lived
without modern
technological
advances such as air
conditioning that
makes life easier.

The grandparents
response is that
although they did not
live in a period of
modern technological
advances, their lives
were stress- free. There
were no traffic jams
and pollution. There
was also a lot of lush
greeneries and less
destruction of nature.
Now, money has
become a god and
the people today seem
to be focused on just
getting more money as
values and beliefs
become secondary.

MEANING OF LINES
The grandchild
questions the
grandfather and
mother.
Was the grandfather
able to breathe
before air
conditioners were
created?

Stanza
1

Was life difficult

without modern
technology?
Was the
grandmother
irritated or flustered
and anxiously
fanning herself with
paper fans to keep
cool?

Were they able to

communicate with
people who lived far
away?

MEANING OF LINES
The grandparents
responded to the
child. They said that
although they lived
at time where
modern technology
made life easier, life
was without stress,
traffic jam and
pollution.

Stanza
2

Forests, streams,
and hills were not
destroyed or
polluted, as opposed
to now where they
have to make way
for the sake of
progress.

The grandparents
says that modern
technological
advances has
resulted in people
worshipping money
as the new god.

THEME
It is a comparison of the lifestyles of two
different generations. The generation of
modern technological advances worship
money:
As it is the only way to pay for
conveniences, However, such conveniences
come with a price:

- A new god which is money

- Destruction of nature

TONE, MOOD, AND

ATMOSPHERE
The poets
tone is one
of
bewilderme
nt and
caution.

The
atmosphere
and the
mood in
this poem is
one of
disappoint
ment
(grandpare
nts)

In
retrospect,
the poet
compares
the past
with the
present.