Welcome to a Bastart Wean Or A poet’s welcome to his love- begotten daughter S6 Higher Burns

Homework for Friday In generations past, how did people react to an unmarried woman getting pregnant? Ask your family (or other adults) for old stories.

Bastard = a child born to parents who are not married Illegitimate = description of a child born to unmarried parents Guess … % of children born outside marriage… 1. in Burns’ time years ago 3. last year

% of children born outside marriage… 1. in Burns’ timeless than 5% years ago12% 3. last year51%

Does no-one care about illegitimacy today? How would your parents react if you got pregnant / fathered a child? How would they react if it happened in your 30s without being in a relationship?

Typical reactions to teenage pregnancy today:  Disappointment  Shock  Disgust  Supportive  Pity  "A mess"  Anger  "Ruined your life"

How do you think unmarried mothers were treated in the past?

 Social stigma  Shame  Go into hiding  Put away in an institution  Child removed  Forced adoption  "Sister"  Shotgun wedding  No inheritance

“Welcome to a bastart wean” Wean = Elizabeth, illegitimate baby of Burns and Elizabeth Paton, born on 22 May 1785 Burns had to attend church and sit on the cutty stool to be reprimanded publicly for his “offence”.

Task 1 Circle all the words which describe the child or his feelings towards her. Put a square around all the words which describe the church / community or his feelings towards them. What do you notice about the tone of each group?

Language techniques for task 2 Word choice: Colloquialism Personification Onomatopoiea Emotive word choice Imagery Sentence structure: Question Exclamation Short sentence Opposites: “Though X (bad), Y (good)

Task 2 Find evidence and analysis for each of the following. In each case, identify any language techniques used. 1.his attitude to the child 2.his attitude to the church (clergy and congregation) 3.his feelings about the mother of the child and the nature of their relationship 4.his view of self and feelings about his behaviour

Task 3 1.What promises does Burns make to the child? 2.What provision for her wellbeing does he suggest he will make? 3.Apart from financial aspects what other qualities/attributes does he wish for her? 4.What evidence from the poem supports the assertion that Burns would make a good father?

Write a paragraph analysing how Burns uses language effectively to describe his attitude to the Church and its punishment. Sample answer Burns is defiant in the face of the punishment issued on the birth. He describes the admonishment and public humiliation heaped upon him as a ‘feckless’ matter. This word literally means feeble and it has connotations of pointlessness or unimportance. Furthermore, its sound suggests a blunt harsh tone and when combined with the ‘f’ alliteration of ‘fash’ the sound helps create a tone of frustration and annoyance. Similarly, Burns compares the public chatter and the kirk’s reprimands to that of an ‘auld wife’s tongue’. By metaphorically judging what should be a serious reproach to the chatter of the local gossip, he shows insubordination. Thus, in several ways, Burns has reduced the serious attempt at rebuking his behaviour to a matter of trivia.

Burns is defiant in the face of the punishment issued on the birth. Good topic sentence Quotation in context Analysis of word choice – links to question about attitude Linking analysis of two related points Furthermore, its sound suggests a blunt harsh tone and when combined with the ‘f’ alliteration of ‘fash’ the sound helps create a tone of frustration and annoyance. This word literally means feeble and it has connotations of pointlessness or unimportance. He describes the admonishment and public humiliation heaped upon him as a ‘feckless’ matter.

Similarly, Burns compares the public chatter and the kirk’s reprimands to that of an ‘auld wife’s tongue’. By metaphorically judging what should be a serious reproach to the chatter of the local gossip, he shows insubordination. Thus, in several ways, Burns has reduced the serious attempt at rebuking his behaviour to a matter of trivia

Write your own response to this question, using two different examples. Write a paragraph analysing how Burns uses language effectively to describe his attitude to the child. Use what you have learned from the sample:  Keep quotation in context  Refer to relevant language technique  Link effectively between examples  Use good vocabulary

Writing Task 1 You have bought an expensive item which has failed / broken etc. When you tried to return it to the shop, you were badly treated and were refused a return. Write the letter of complaint you would like to send to their head office, using language to convey your attitude. Use the techniques from the poem.

Writing Task 2 Now write the letter of complaint you would actually send to their head office. Use more controlled language to convey a calm, responsible and authoritative tone.