1. Coursework Assessment and Feedback
By now, you should have about 2300 words.
This includes:
All of Birdsong
5 Poems
The remainder of the word count should be for your play and five more poems

2. Birds in Birdsong Read the following example.
What areas of good practice can you see in relation to the analysis of the use of birds? (AO2)
Furthermore, Faulks may have selected a yellow canary for this scene because this colour connotes light and light is associated with hope and rebirth. Stephen however is still weary of this bird despite the first impressions of its gentle and gleaming aura. It is only when he reaches out to grasp it that he must 'lunge' for it, as the bird becomes violent. Its battering wings represent freedom and the strength to fight. It brushes his hand and flies past him, and as a result Stephen screams because he is so fearful of its capacity to brawl for its freedom whereas these soldiers can not. The soldiers feel physically trapped underneath the tunnel, but overall in this scene it is a metaphorical sense that the whole war is binding them, so much that Weir's body blocks Stephen's exit back to the light, and that this is the current reality of soldiers fighting a savage war. Though it is apparent when Weir finds himself unable to kill the canary, that a sense of morality returns, for the bird, being a symbol of hope, suggests that the soldiers are scared of hope and that it is innocent, having done 'nothing wrong'.

3. Referring back to the use of birds, an additional connotation of the canary is the state of being encaged, which again, emphasises the idea that the soldiers are trapped, although the colour yellow may overwhelm this idea, seeing as the bird, despite its reckless behaviour, is still in a state of innocence and goodness. This can also relate to the soldiers, because like the canary, there are confined to the war. They are pawns within the conflict of their leaders; they are innocent men forced to fight their battles for them, trapped in battlefields, mines and trenches, with the endearing, psychological battle to keep their sense of humanity and the hope to return home for the sake of their loved ones.
However, if we are to reconsider the use of a bird in this scene, and replace it with a Skylark for example, perhaps Stephen and Weir would have had a different reaction. The Skylark appears to have 'cryptic coloration' with 'streaky earth tones', typically brown which would allow for camouflage, as it befits the colour of the trenches. This may allow for a form of sympathy, as the skylark would parallel the state of the soldiers being adjoined to the mines and trenches. However, the skylark is mentioned within Part 2 of the novel, as they sing within the cloudless sky. It can be assumed that the sky was bright and blue, thus, the bird with it's dark colours would contrast the setting. Also, the skylark is depicted as a joyous and cheerful bird in this section, as to writers, the bird is a powerful representative of freedom, inspiration, hope and joy, yet still Stephen feels alone, which parallels the encounter with the canary as Stephen is terrified. The canary has the ability to fight , he does not. The Skylark is already free, and does not need to endure what they do. This could be why Faulks chose to write about 'the world at its instant of creation' considering there was no war or brutality to face, only freedom and happiness.

4. Now, look at your own analysis of the use of birds
Now, look at your own analysis of the use of birds. What good areas can you take out from the example we looked and use in yours?
Areas of Good Practice that I can use… 1. 2. 3. 4.

5. Introductions Highlight evidence of where this model shows each AO
In Sebastian Faulks' novel,Birdsong, the theme of dehumanisation is possibly the most prominent as well as most captivating. It is through this theme that Faulks highlights the incredible length of endurance that the soldiers of World War I were pushed to, having been subjected to the grim horrors of war. Faulks makes it evident that such horrors required a great deal of mental as well as physical endurance. Also, Faulks repetitively highlights the degradation of the men through multiple remorseless and uncivilised actions. It is a gruesome
portrayal of soldiers at war and it is this devastating reflection of the reality and effects of the war which traumatised many soldiers who returned home. Sebastian Faulks was one of the first war novelists who lifted the bandage that lay on top of the false propaganda and the true actuality of the war, through the use of graphic images, divulging the cold truth.
AO1
AO2
AO3
AO4

6. Introductions Highlight evidence of where this model shows each AO
In Sebastian Faulks' novel,Birdsong, the theme of dehumanisation is possibly the most prominent as well as most captivating. It is through this theme that Faulks highlights the incredible length of endurance that the soldiers of World War I were pushed to, having been subjected to the grim horrors of war. Faulks makes it evident that such horrors required a great deal of mental as well as physical endurance. Also, Faulks repetitively highlights the degradation of the men through multiple remorseless and uncivilised actions. It is a gruesome portrayal of soldiers at war and it is this devastating reflection of the reality and effects of the war which traumatised many soldiers who returned home. Sebastian Faulks was one of the first war novelists who lifted the bandage that lay on top of the false propaganda and the true actuality of the war, through the use of graphic images, divulging the cold truth.
AO1
AO2
AO3
AO4
Can you guess the question from the introduction ?

7. How are you going to mention the poems and the play in your introduction, without saying.. ‘Also, in the war poems…’

8. Can you guess the question from the introduction ?
What about in this one?
In the the novel Birdsong, by Sebastian Faulks, the author depicts the many ways in which the soldiers in the First World War were affected by the disastrous events of the war. Evoked by the descriptive and symbolic nature of his writing and through his shift in narrative perspectives, Faulks explores the various ways that the men are impacted by the war, physically, mentally and psychologically. Faulks explores various time frames throughout the novel, starting with pre-war France, during the war, and post war which inform each other. This allows a greater understanding of the effects of the war on the soldiers and the future generation. Faulks also uses naturalism to exhibit the horrors of the war that the soldiers endured and how it was beyond their control. The experience of the trenches is made vivid through the eyes of the characters within the novel, predominantly Stephens character who is more emotionally involved. It is clear from the very beginning of the novel that losing Isabelle has had an effect on how Stephen reacts to the war and this is what causes him to feel so coldly towards the loss of fellow soldiers. Poet, Siegfried Sassoon also conveys the effects of the war on soldiers, both emotional and physical. His accounts of the war appear more personal as he had first hand experience, serving the Western front and remaining in the Craiglockhart hospital for the rest of his days suffering from shellshock.
AO1
AO2
AO3
AO4
Can you guess the question from the introduction ?

9. Can you guess the question from the introduction ?
What about in this one?
In the the novel Birdsong, by Sebastian Faulks, the author depicts the many ways in which the soldiers in the First World War were affected by the disastrous events of the war. Evoked by the descriptive and symbolic nature of his writing and through his shift in narrative perspectives, Faulks explores the various ways that the men are impacted by the war, physically, mentally and psychologically. Faulks explores various time frames throughout the novel, starting with pre-war France, during the war, and post war which inform each other. This allows a greater understanding of the effects of the war on the soldiers and the future generation. Faulks also uses naturalism to exhibit the horrors of the war that the soldiers endured and how it was beyond their control. The experience of the trenches is made vivid through the eyes of the characters within the novel, predominantly Stephens character who is more emotionally involved. It is clear from the very beginning of the novel that losing Isabelle has had an effect on how Stephen reacts to the war and this is what causes him to feel so coldly towards the loss of fellow soldiers. Poet, Siegfried Sassoon also conveys the effects of the war on soldiers, both emotional and physical. His accounts of the war appear more personal as he had first hand experience, serving the Western front and remaining in the Craiglockhart hospital for the rest of his days suffering from shellshock.
AO1
AO2
AO3
AO4
Can you guess the question from the introduction ?