1Metaphors

I'm a riddle in nine syllables. An elephant, a ponderous house, A melon strolling on two tendrils. O red fruit, ivory, fine timbers! This loaf's big with its yeasty rising. Money's new-minted in this fat purse. I'm a means, a stage, a cow in calf. I've eaten a bag of green apples, Boarded the train there's no getting off.

2You're

Clownlike, happiest on your hands,Feet to the stars, and moon-skulled,Gilled like a fish. A common-senseThumbs-down on the dodo's mode.Wrapped up in yourself like a spool,Trawling your dark as owls do.Mute as a turnip from the FourthOf July to All Fool's Day,O high-riser, my little loaf.

Vague as fog and looked for like mail.Farther off than Australia.Bent-backed Atlas, our travelled prawn.Snug as a bud and at homeLike a sprat in a pickle jug.A creel of eels, all ripples.Jumpy as a Mexican bean.Right, like a well-done sum.A clean slate, with your own face on.

Two poems with which to practise a linking essay...

QUESTION

The poems “Metaphors” and “You’re” are essentially about the same thing. Compare and contrast Sylvia Plath’s feelings, style and imagery in the two poems. Do they have the same theme?

PLAN

Construct a ‘Mind Map’ with a branch for each aspect of the question -

feelings, style, imagery and theme.

From these branches, use a separate sub-branch for each poem.

From this you should notice the similarities and differences.

It might be an idea first of all to do a quick Mind Map for each poem so you don’t leave anything out in the overall Mind Map.

From this we can draw up a rough outline of the essay.

HAPPY,

EXPECTANT

HAPPYCON

CERN

E

D

OU

T O

F

CO

NTR

OL

FEELINGS

SYLLABLES

METAPHORSRYHME

HERSELF (TO BABY)

HERSELFSPEAKER

CONNECTEDCOMPLICATED

SIMPLE LOAF

NEGATIVEP0

SITIV

E POSITIV

EBIRTH THEME

/ YOU’REMETAPH RS

A useful model for a simple essay like this one is:Tell them what you’re going to tell themTell themTell them you’ve told them

1. Introduction - similar subject but different attitudes, differences in style,

differences in imagery, etc. (tell them what you’re going to tell them!)

Body of essay (tell them!)

2. Feelings, differences and similarities. Give examples.

3. Imagery - similarities, differences. Lots of examples.

4. Other aspects of style: rhymes - similar; syllable counting - similar;

verbs - different / same.

5. The speaker / subject of the poems - different.

6. Themes. Same but one has sense of ominousness

7. Conclusion. They are similar in style and theme but the tone is different

(tell them you’ve told them!)