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This Is Poetry (HL 2019) videos: W.B. Yeats
September 1913
An Irish Airman Foresees His Death
Easter 1916
The Second Coming
Sailing to Byzantium
The Stare's Nest By My Window
In Memory of Eva Gore-Booth and Con Markievicz
Swift's Epitaph
from Under Ben Bulben
Politics
SEPTEMBER 1913
This video showcases ‘September 1913’ as performed by Stephen James Smith and Enda Reilly. List the three emotions that in your opinion come across most strongly in this performance.
AN IRISH AIRMAN FORESEES HIS DEATH
This video contains a montage of clips from various action movies. Watch the video carefully, then answer the following questions:
• Which clip is your favourite?
• In your opinion, which clip best conveys the exhilaration of travelling at great speed or of controlling a powerful machine? How does the clip achieve this?
EASTER 1916
Watch the video below and explain in your own words why the Rising happened and what those who organised it hoped to achieve.
THE SECOND COMING
Based on your viewing of the video below, what topics do you anticipate will be tackled by ‘The Second Coming’? What do you anticipate will be the tone of the poem? Do you expect a joyful, optimistic piece or one filled with anxiety and dread? Write a paragraph describing your responses to these questions.
SAILING TO BYZANTIUM
This video depicts Byzantium. What do you imagine the poet might find fascinating or appealing about this ancient civilisation?
THE STARE'S NEST BY MY WINDOW
Watch the video below and answer the following questions:
• When did the Irish Civil War begin and end?
• Describe in your own words why it was fought.
• Mention one major event that took place during this conflict.
• Mention one leader associated with each side.
Watch the video below and answer the following questions:
• Why was Thoor Ballylee so important to Yeats?
• In what year did he move from this tower?
• What happened to the tower after he left it?
• What happened to the tower in 2015?
IN MEMORY OF EVA GORE-BOOTH AND CON MARKIEWICZ
This video depicts Lissadell House in Co. Sligo. After watching the video carefully, answer the following questions:
• What recent projects have been undertaken with regard to the house and its gardens?
• What features of the house and its gardens strike you as appealing? Are there any features of the property that strike you as unappealing?
• Is it a place where you personally would like to live or spend part of every year? Give a reason for your answer.
SWIFT'S EPITAPH
Google the term 'satire', then watch the video below. Who or what is being satirised in this extract? How is the satire being carried out? Is it easy to see why creators of satire, like Swift, might require moral courage?
FROM UNDER BEN BULBEN
This video contains a reading of the entire poem. Does hearing the full poem make you think or feel differently about the two parts that feature on your course? Give reasons for your answer.
POLITICS
This video contains newsreel footage from 1938, the year in which the poem was written. What significant political events were happening in Europe? How would you characterise the mood and atmosphere of the time, based on watching this footage?