Statement of Inquiry Through the creative use of structure, style and theme, it is possible for (narrative) poets to bring to life people, places, emotion and mystery.

Two Facts Built: The oldest parts of the castle have not been definitively dated, but the first written record of the castle is From 1150 to 1250, the castle was greatly expanded. Written: is a 392-line narrative poem by Lord Byron ( ). Written in 1816, it chronicles the imprisonment of a Genevois monk, François Bonivard, from 1532 to 1536.

The Story of The Prisoner of Chillon A prisoner is alone in a cell by the banks of Lake Geneva, in Switzerland, where he has grown old as a prisoner. He says that his father was killed for his political beliefs, and all six of his sons (the prisoners brothers) have suffered persecution for the same reason. Three of the six sons died outside of the prison: one was burnt at the stake and two died in battle. The narrator of your story, the prisoner of Chillon, was originally imprisoned with his two remaining brothers. He was the oldest of the three, so he tried to keep their spirits up, even though the three of them were chained to individual pillars in a large cell and couldn't even walk around.

The middle brother, who was an outdoorsy, huntsman type of guy, just couldn't bear to be imprisoned, so he gave up hope (and food) and died. Our prisoner was left with the youngest brother, who was cheerful and patient. But, unfortunately, he also wasted away and died. The prisoner almost gives in to grief, but is revived when he hears the singing of a bird outside his window. It reminds him that there's beauty and hope in the world. So he clings to that thought and survives. Years later (the prisoner stopped counting the days ages ago), the guards arrive to set him free. But he's been in jail so long that he doesn't know what to do with freedom once he has it. Everyone he loves is dead, and he has nowhere else to go.

Task: Your task is to write about a part of the story of the prison of Chillon. Here, you need to write in first person narrative point of view and tell the reader about your experiences in the dungeon. a)Plan your writing before you begin. b)Narrative: It’s as though you ARE the prisoner of Chillon. c)Think about language. Aim to describe the atmosphere of the location you are in. d)Use powerful language to describe your emotions. The prisoner experiences great hardship and emotional difficulty, so capture this accurately.

Day Or is it Who knows? Who cares. I’ve been here so long that there’s not much point even remembering what day of the week it is…. My brother was failing fast. I knew he had given up hope and had not long left to live. I reached out to touch his hand with mine to give him comfort, but the chains held me back, pinned to the wall… I heard it before I saw it, the most beautiful bird I have ever seen. It’s song was like nothing I’d heard before but everything I’d remembered….

Analysis of a stanza of the poem 1.Five minutes to work as a group, reading and jotting down notes on the stanza you have been given. Look up any words you are unfamiliar with. 2.Work carefully to answer the questions. Write your answers on a separate piece of paper.

Feedback 1.Introduce your stanza and explain what it is all about (who, what, when, where, how, why?). 2.Read the questions and answer them. 3.Choose five lines from your stanza. Read them to the class and explain what you liked about them. What do the lines reveal?

Features of Narrative Poetry What features of narrative poetry have you seen in Byron’s “Prisoner of Chillon”?

Homework: Please bring in some information about Lord Byron. Choose two of the following: Picture of him A picture of Chateau de Chillon A famous poem Where was he born and what was his life like in England? Why did he leave England? Three interesting facts about his life Three interesting facts about his time in Switzerland. How did he die? Something of your choice.

Starter To consolidate the work from our previous lesson on “The Prisoner of Chillon”, write a response to the section of the poem that you worked on. Title, author, which stanza? What happens in that stanza? What do you find most striking about this stanza? What is the effect of the stanza? Did you enjoy this part of the poem? Draw a simple pencil sketch directly underneath to capture the stanza. (1/2 page)

Elements of Romantic Poetry  Mid to late 18 th century  Encouraged readers to feel power and passion  Tried to capture personal experiences (of the poet or the subject)  Used imagination or showed the effect of imagination  Showed that nature is transformative  Demonstrated that imagination can be stimulated by nature  Encourages the reader to see the world in all its beauty  Tells of sadness and tenderness  It was hoped that poetry could help improve horrific social conditions  The supernatural  Faith in senses and feelings Summary: How can we tell that “The Prisoner of Chillon” is a romantic poem?