Theme
It’s not plot. ;-)
The Highwayman
A Tragic Love Poem…
Is this the Highwayman and Bess?
• I don’t know, but they look pretty groovy!
The Highwayman
• By Alfred Noyes
• Characters
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The Highwayman
Bess
Tim the ostler
The landlord
The redcoats
• Setting
– The English
countryside
– The inn
– The inn yard
– Night
The Highwayman
• Part One
• Part Two
Figurative Language
• Metaphor
(comparison of two
things when one is
said to be the other)
– The moon was a
ghostly galleon
– The road was a ribbon
of moonlight
– His eyes were hollows
of madness
• Simile (comparison
using like or as)
– Burnt like a brand
– Hair like moldy hay
Rhythm
• Alliteration (repetition
of consonant sounds
in close proximity)
– Over the cobbles he
clattered and clashed
– He whistled a tune to
the window and who
should be waiting
there…
• Repetition
– Riding, riding, riding
Theme
• Some possible themes for “The
Highwayman” might be:
– True love never dies
– The nature of good and evil
– You can’t always judge by appearances
User Friendly
• Characters
– Kevin Neal
– Jeremy Neal
– Louis (Louise)
– Ginny Linke
– Chuck Linke
Idioms
• An idiom is a commonly used expression that is
not literally true.
“If Chuck catches up with me, I’ll be history. He’s
already threatened to rub me out for talking to
Ginny. I was so nervous afterward that I
completely bombed on my test. It’s all Louis’s
fault – he’s making me mess up. As if I didn’t
have enough trouble – I’m always striking out
with girls because I’m such a brain. If Louis
doesn’t knock it off, I’m going to have to pull the
plug on him.”
Themes
• The nature of love
• The nature of obsession
• The cost of jealousy
Annabel Lee
• Characters
– The narrator
– Annabel Lee
• Setting
– A “kingdom” by the
sea
– A sepulcher
– Night
Figurative Language
• Metaphor
– I was a child and she
was a child
– And this was the
reason that, long ago,
in this kingdom by the
sea, a wind blew out of
a cloud, chilling my
beautiful Annabel Lee
• Simile
– none
Rhythm
• Repetition
– In this poem, what sounds are repeated
regularly?
– What words are repeated?
Echo And Narcissus
• Retold by Roger
Lancelyn Green
• Characters (describe)
– Echo
– Narcissus
– Aphrodite
Echo and Narcissus
• Which of the following best fits the myth?
How is the theme revealed in the myth?
– We can’t love each other when we are too
involved with ourselves.
– Love is a powerful feeling we experience
whether we seek it or not.
– The effects of romantic love and self-love can
be devastating.
Vocabulary you should know
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Galleon
Claret
Rapier
Plaiting
Wicket
Ostler
Harry
Casement
priming
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Seraph
Coveted
Dissever
Sepulcher
Detain
Vainly
Unrequited
Parched
intently