‘The Falling Leaves’ To understand the impact of context on a poem To explore the use and purpose of an extended metaphor

What is Context? The background, environment, setting, or surroundings of events or occurrences. Circumstances forming a background of an event, idea or statement, allowing the audience to understand the story or a literary piece. Knowing the context is important in writing to provide information, new concepts, and words to develop thoughts.

Margaret Postgate Cole (1893-1980) Cole was dedicated to political issues from an early age. She was an atheist, feminist and socialist, and went to Cambridge University. She became a pacifist during the First World War. In addition to writing poetry, she was involved with many of the big social and political issues of her time. She campaigned against the policy of conscription – when ordinary men are forced to join the armed forces and fight in the war. In the late 1930s she rethought her approach to pacifism and supported military intervention in the Spanish Civil War as a way of directly challenging the rise of fascism in Europe. She was a teacher for most of her life. Atheism = the belief of the absence of god. Feminism = the equal treatment of men and women. Socialism = a political system where money, property, and resources are controlled by the public or the state. Pacifism = opposition to war, military, and violence. Fascism = government built around dictatorship and intolerance

Thence = then, afterwards Gallant = gentleman-like, thoughtful Multitude = crowd Withering = sarcastic, arrogant Slain = killed, murdered Pestilence = plague, disease Strewed = scattered Flemish clay = Belgian ground/soil Today, as I rode by, I saw the brown leaves dropping from their tree In a still afternoon, When no wind whirled them whistling to the sky, But thickly, silently, They fell, like snowflakes wiping out the noon; And wandered slowly thence For thinking of a gallant multitude Which now all withering lay, Slain by no wind of age or pestilence, But in their beauty strewed Like snowflakes falling on the Flemish clay. Literally, what is the poem about? Figuratively, what could the falling leaves represent?

Rhyme Semantic Fields Alliteration Past verbs Present verbs Adverbs Similes Today, as I rode by, I saw the brown leaves dropping from their tree In a still afternoon, When no wind whirled them whistling to the sky, But thickly, silently, They fell, like snowflakes wiping out the noon; And wandered slowly thence For thinking of a gallant multitude Which now all withering lay, Slain by no wind of age or pestilence, But in their beauty strewed Like snowflakes falling on the Flemish clay.

Rhyme Alliteration Past verbs Present verbs Adverbs Similes Today, as I rode by, A I saw the brown leaves dropping from their tree B In a still afternoon, C When no wind whirled them whistling to the sky, A But thickly, silently, B They fell, like snowflakes wiping out the noon; C And wandered slowly thence D For thinking of a gallant multitude E Which now all withering lay, F Slain by no wind of age or pestilence, D But in their beauty strewed E Like snowflakes falling on the Flemish clay. F Semantic field of nature Semantic field of violence Semantic field of sound

Subject of Poem The Falling Leaves is a woman's response to the huge number of men who died in the First World War. When it began in July 1914, the war was very popular with the British public. It was seen as a way of punishing an aggressive Germany and politicians confidently predicted that it would be over by Christmas. By November 1915, when The Falling Leaves was written, thousands of soldiers were dying for the sake of a few hundred metres of gained territory. In 1915 alone, the French lost over one million men, the Germans more than 600,000 and the British more than a quarter of a million.

Attitude of the Poet Most poetry of the First World War was written by the men who fought in it. It tends to focus on violent action or the death and despair that follow it. The Falling Leaves provides an interesting female point of view. It expresses the feelings of someone who is not on the battlefield but yet who still feels the loss it brings. There is a great contrast between the quiet, normal everyday life the poet is leading (going out for a relaxing ride) and the violent events happening in the war. Being so far away, the poet is also able to see the war in perspective. Instead of the death of an individual friend, she sees thousands of bodies returning.

Extended Metaphor Natural Element Element of War Brown leaves Tree Wind Snowflakes Flemish clay

The central metaphor of autumn leaves falling _______________ the soldiers who are dying in Flanders. The sight of leaves ‘dropping’ reminds the speaker how many soldiers – ________________________ – are being killed. Cole also shows the difference between the leaves and the soldiers: the leaves are _______________ with age but the soldiers’ lives have been cut short while they are young, _______________________ . This __________________ the horror of war. ‘brown’ ‘in their beauty’ symbolises  emphasises ‘a gallant multitude’

How is nature used to present conflict in the poem ‘The Falling Leaves’? A point, including the name of the poet, the title of the poem, the technique used and its purpose At least one piece of evidence that is supporting the point An explanation of the figurative and literal meaning of the evidence An explanation of how the evidence proves the point An analysis of the language used, including the connotations of keywords An analysis of the technique used, including the effect of the technique An analysis of the poet’s intentions, including their effect on the reader

How is nature used to present conflict in the poem ‘The Falling Leaves’? In her poem “The Falling Leaves,” Margaret Postgate Cole uses the extended metaphor of nature to present conflict as ______________. This can be seen in the line “___________________.” Literally, the line describes ______________, but figuratively it describes _______________. This shows that conflict is __________________. The word “___________” connotes _____________. The extended metaphor is used because _______________. By using the extended metaphor, the poet wanted to ______________, and make the reader ________________.