Teacher Instructions

The poetry analysis question on the AP Literature and Composition exam allows students an

opportunity to demonstrate their skills of close reading and knowledge of poetic forms and language

by composing an analysis. The challenges are many: because of students’ limited experience with

poetry in general, they often struggle with the language of pre-20th century writers, the multiple and

often subtle meanings and themes within a single poem, and the manner in which technique leads to

universal theme. But with increased exposure to poetic forms, forums for discussion, and

opportunities to write and receive effective feedback, they can gain confidence in their abilities to

write about poetry.

Suggested Teacher Instructions:

Step 1—Title: Student handouts will include a copy of the sonnet “For That He Looked Not upon Her.”

Ask students to consider the title and the possible meanings of the title. Notice that the title sets up a

conflict between two people—a man and a woman—and that the words of “look[ing} not Upon Her”

hints at the likelihood of a romance or relationship. Allow students to offer thoughts about the meaning

of the title and the importance of the negative word “Not.” There are no right or wrong answers but

with your directed questioning, they should be able to make conclusions about the content of the poem

based upon the title alone. The key word in the title, however, is “That.” What is “That”? Ask students

to consider the answer prior to reading the poem.

Before reading the poem, notice the form and shape. It is a sonnet of 14 lines, with three quatrains and

a couplet, true to the English sonnet tradition. By the very nature of this form, shifts occur between

quatrains and before the couplet. Without belaboring this idea, ask students to watch for the shifts in

tone, in point of view, and in subject, and to mark them as the reading proceeds. You may need to

review information about poetic forms, either before beginning this lesson or now, if your students do

not know about sonnets or other kinds of poetic forms. This review should be brief, but when students

encounter the word “form” in the prompt later, this information will be helpful.

Step 2—The Poem: Read the poem aloud, slowly and carefully, pausing between quatrains for

emphasis. When you have finished the oral reading, ask students questions like these:

Describe the point of view of the speaker. Who IS the speaker and what do we know about him?

Remember, the speaker and the poet are two distinctly different people.

What is the problem posed in the poem?

What is the solution presented in the poem?

(How does the form of the sonnet help us to see these ideas?)

Quatrains 2 & 3 focus on metaphors. What are the metaphors? How do the metaphors develop

our understanding of both the problem and the solution? How are these metaphors of the

mouse and the moth similar? How are they different?

Where are the shifts? Are the shifts in tone? In language? In something else?

Does the speaker express just one attitude? Or is his attitude complex, meaning that he may feel

more than one way about the subject?

Examine the title of the poem again. What is “That,” now that we have a better understanding

of the tone, point of view, and figurative language? How does the answer relate to the meaning

of the poem?

What is this poem really about?

Step 3—The Prompt: Read the prompt together. Ask students to highlight the key words of the prompt.

Then ask them to rewrite the prompt in their own words in the form of a question. Example: What is

the speaker’s complex attitude toward the woman in the poem and how is it developed? Display three

or four examples of such questions on the board or screen and guide students in selecting the best one.

Together make small revisions to wording as needed, and then settle on a question the entire class can

use.

Note: “complex attitude” will need discussion – it is very important that students recognize the word

“complex” as meaning “more than one.” You may need to come back to this idea multiple times as they

discuss and then write about the attitudes of the speaker. Upper half essays will address the complexity

of the attitude, not the complexity of the poem or the language.

Step 4—Annotation: Now return to the poem and with your students, annotate in the space on the

right concrete evidence that can be used to answer the question of the prompt.

The following page contains the prompt and the poem, and the prompt and poem appear in the student

handout as well. On these teacher pages, you have been provided an explication of the sonnet which

focuses on both the concrete and the abstract elements of the prompt. Please remember that these

notes of explication are intended to provide you with some possible ways to read and analyze the poem.

They are in no way the absolute or only way to approach the poem; they are merely suggestions. As you

work with your students to deconstruct Question 1, consider adding your own interpretations to those

in the notes and guiding your students to discover a valid response to the prompt on their own.

Suggested Annotations for Teachers

Prompt: The following poem is by the sixteenth-century English poet George Gascoigne. Read

the poem carefully. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the complex attitude of

the speaker is developed through such devices as form, diction, and imagery.

For That He Looked Not upon Her

You must not wonder, though you think it strange,

To see me hold my louring1 head so low;

And that mine eyes take no delight to range

About the gleams which on your face do grow.

The mouse which once hath broken out of trap

Is seldom ’ticèd2 with the trustless bait,

But lies aloof for fear of more mishap,

And feedeth still in doubt of deep deceit.

The scorchèd fly which once hath ’scaped the flame

Will hardly come to play again with fire,

Whereby I learn that grievous is the game

Which follows fancy dazzled by desire:

So that I wink or else hold down my head,

Because your blazing eyes my bale3 have bred.

Quatrain 1: In direct address, the speaker explains

why he no longer wants to look at “her.” The image

of his head held low to avoid her shows his attitude

of avoidance and bitterness. He knows she is

attractive and is drawn to her but won’t let himself

“take delight” in looking at her. This is introducing

the complexity of his feelings. Word pairs like

“louring/low” and “gleams/grow” also emphasize a

conflict.

Quatrain 2: The extended metaphor/image of the

mouse which has survived the trap also presents the

complexity of feeling. The mouse won’t be enticed by

the bait again but is nearby—though “aloof”—while

eating its food in a state of distrust and anxiety.

Quatrain 3: The second extended metaphor/image,

this time of a “scorched” fly which, like the mouse,

has narrowly escaped agonizing death, is similar. It is

easy to make the connection to the speaker’s wish to

avoid future unhappiness. He sees the woman who

has hurt him as a trap and source of pain. But even

with his knowledge of all that she can do to harm

him, he still acknowledges her, desires her, perhaps

needs her.

Final Couplet: The speaker repeats his explanation of

why he holds his head down and won’t look at this

woman to whom he speaks. She has bred misery in

him, and more importantly, he doesn’t trust himself

around her. It is the classic head versus heart

conundrum, and this encompasses his complex

attitude.

Note: The form of the 3 quatrains and couplet allows

the poet to show the image of the tortured lover in

three ways. The rhyme scheme is standard and

predictable, suggesting that nothing new is going on

here. It’s the way of love, for all time. Diction

emphasizing deceit and pain and beauty all

1 gloomy 1 Enticed 3 misery

(1573)

contributes to the speaker’s dual feelings. The images

of the speaker himself, along with two creatures who

have been injured and barely have escaped with their

lives set up comparisons that emphasize the

speaker’s state of mind and feeling.

Students’ answers to the question of the prompt will become the thesis statement of their essay – as

well as the basis for their introductory paragraph. Rather than start over, you may want to ask students

to review their own introductions and thesis statements from their mock exam essays and revise them

at this point, using what they’ve just learned to guide them.

Thesis statements/introductory paragraphs from student sample essays are below. Discuss each one

with students and ask them to identify the strongest example. Students have these same sample thesis

statements in their handout. Which one does the most thorough job of answering the question of the

prompt?

(1) As the speaker in George Gascoigne’s poem “For That He Looked not Upon Her” proves, the

adage “once Bitten, twice shy” grants the spurned the chance to move on. The use of animal

imagery, diction associated with deception and illusions, and a rhyme scheme emphasizing the

final couplet develop the speaker’s wariness of trusting a past lover once again.

(2) Throughout “For That He Looked not Upon Her” the poet uses various poetic devices to

highlight the speaker’s wariness of women who have made him a victim of deception and lost

love.

(3) People who learn from their mistakes are often those who have learned the hard way and

never forget it. In “For That He Looked not Upon Her” the poet George Gascoigne develops a

speaker’s complex attitude toward a woman who has deeply affected him. Gascoigne

implements such devices as vivid imagery, stylistic diction, and various syntactical techniques

to convey the speaker’s mind.

(4) In George Gascoigne’s sonnet “For That He Looked not Upon Her,” the dejected and

emotionally wounded speaker expresses his rational need to avoid looking at his love because

people sometimes feel the inexplicable pull toward an object of desire despite possible

detrimental effects.

Step 5—Body Paragraphs: Ask students to examine body paragraphs from sample student essays and

direct them to complete the tasks, either individually or in small groups. Students have these sample

paragraphs in their handout.

SAMPLE A: In the following paragraph, highlight the textual evidence in one color and the analysis

(commentary) in another color.

The speaker begins by addressing a possible ambiguity before his lover may “think it strange” that he

does not look at her. Indeed, the reader may be at first mystified as to the speaker’s motivations

because, paradoxically, the lover “take[s] no delight” to look at his love, despite the fact that attractive

“gleams” “grow” upon her face. However, by methodically presenting the analogies of a mouse caught in

a trap and a scorched fly, the speaker explains why he acts the way that he does. While this standard

and rigid form is effective in proving the speaker’s point and supporting his argument, it at first seems a

little too rigid to convey the depth of his emotions.

SAMPLE B: The following paragraphs have potential but need more analysis—more connection to the

speaker and discussion of theme. Help guide students to revise the paragraphs by adding sentences of

evidence/detail and commentary.

Gascoigne also uses imagery to compare his feeling of trustlessness. He describes how after a mouse has been tricked once by a trap, it “is seldom ‘ticèd with the trustless bait.” This show an example of trust being lost. The mouse no longer is tempted by the bait. Similarly, a fly who has “’scraped the flame will hardly come to play again.” The author gives us another example of the situation. The fly learns to stay away from the flame. Gascoigne’s attempt to paint a picture shows that once trust has been lost it is hard to regain.

The English poet also uses form to structure his poem in a persuasive manner. His use of the “scorched fly” and “mouse” are an attempt to appeal to the reader. This gives the reader an opening to connect to

the poem. The poem is strategically given a persuasive form.

SAMPLE C: The following paragraph is from a high-scoring essay. Ask students to highlight words,

phrases or sentences that exemplify the scoring guide descriptors of “persuasive analysis,” “consistent

and effective control of language,” “apt and specific textual references,” and “perceptive.” Encourage

them to share observations with classmates.

Through animal imagery, the poet implies that the experience of the mouse mirrors that of the speaker.

As a mouse who escapes a trap will not be fooled by “trustless bait,” the speaker will no longer let

himself be deceived by the trustless face of a woman. His wise caution, however, is not just out of

intelligence but of “fear of more mishap,” emphasizing his still fragile state as a recently scorned lover.

The alliteration of the final “doubt of deep deceit” stresses the speaker’s dread of having his heart

broken once more. Gascoigne solidifies the speaker’s trauma stating, “The scorchèd fly which once hath

‘scaped the flame / Will hardly come to play again with fire” (9-10). Using another parallel of animal

imagery, the poet highlights the speaker’s unwillingness to be caught by a new “flame,” a common

metaphor for a woman. There is no sense for the speaker to allow himself to be burned once more, so he

no longer looks for love because he fears the pain it will bring. Gascoigne’s use of both diction and

animal imagery highlight the speaker’s justifiable avoidance of future love out of fear of its emotional

aftermath.

Step 5: Ask students to identify in their own mock exam essays over Question 1 (Poetry Analysis) their

strongest body paragraph and to rewrite it in the space provided on the handout. Then as they work in a

small editing group, they can revise problem sentences and add at least three sentences (or a certain

number of words) to improve the overall impact of their writing. As your own class time permits,

consider requiring students to revise and rewrite at least one of their mock exam essays in its entirety.

Step 6—Extension Activity: The following modern poems address a conflict similar to that experienced

by the speaker of Gascoigne’s sonnet. Create your own prompt about the development of the speaker’s

attitude and ask students to address the prompt in a 40-minute timed writing to practice writing poetry

analysis.

(1) What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why,

What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why,

I have forgotten, and what arms have lain

Under my head till morning; but the rain

Is full of ghosts tonight, that tap and sigh

Upon the glass and listen for reply,

And in my heart there stirs a quiet pain

For unremembered lads that not again

Will turn to me at midnight with a cry.

Thus in winter stands the lonely tree,

Nor knows what birds have vanished one by one,

Yet knows its boughs more silent than before:

I cannot say what loves have come and gone,

I only know that summer sang in me

A little while, that in me sings no more.

by Edna St. Vincent Millay, 1892 - 1950

(2) Never Give all the Heart

Never give all the heart, for love

Will hardly seem worth thinking of

To passionate women if it seem

Certain, and they never dream

That it fades out from kiss to kiss;

For everything that’s lovely is

But a brief, dreamy, kind delight.

O never give the heart outright,

For they, for all smooth lips can say,

Have given their hearts up to the play.

And who could play it well enough

If deaf and dumb and blind with love?

He that made this knows all the cost,

For he gave all his heart and lost.

by W. B. Yeats, 1865 – 1939

(3) I am not yours

I am not yours, not lost in you, Not lost, although I long to be Lost as a candle lit at noon, Lost as a snowflake in the sea. You love me, and I find you still A spirit beautiful and bright, Yet I am I, who long to be Lost as a light is lost in light. Oh plunge me deep in love—put out My senses, leave me deaf and blind, Swept by the tempest of your love, A taper in a rushing wind.

by Sara Teasdale, 1884 - 1933

Question 1 (Poetry Analysis)

Student Handout

Prompt: The following poem is by the sixteenth-century English poet George Gascoigne. Read

the poem carefully. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the complex attitude of

the speaker is developed through such devices as form, diction, and imagery.

For That He Looked Not upon Her

You must not wonder, though you think it strange,

To see me hold my louring4 head so low;

And that mine eyes take no delight to range

About the gleams which on your face do grow,

The mouse which once hath broken out of trap

Is seldom ’ticèd5 with the trustless bait,

But lies aloof for fear of more mishap,

4 gloomy 5 enticed

And feedeth still in doubt of deep deceit.

The scorchèd fly which once hath ’scaped the flame

Will hardly come to play again with fire,

Whereby I learn that grievous is the game

Which follows fancy dazzled by desire:

So that I wink or else hold down my head,

Because your blazing eyes my bale6 have bred.

(1573)

3 misery

Thesis statements/introductory paragraphs from student sample essays are below. Which one does

the most thorough job of answering the question of the prompt? Justify your choice.

(1) As the speaker in George Gascoigne’s poem “For That He Looked not Upon Her” proves, the

adage “once Bitten, twice shy” grants the spurned the chance to move on. The use of animal

imagery, diction associated with deception and illusions, and a rhyme scheme emphasizing the

final couplet develop the speaker’s wariness of trusting a past lover once again.

(2) Throughout “For That He Looked not Upon Her” the poet uses various poetic devices to highlight

the speaker’s wariness of women who have made him a victim of deception and lost love.

(3) People who learn from their mistakes are often those who have learned the hard way and never

forget it. In “For That He Looked not Upon Her” the poet George Gascoigne develops a speaker’s

complex attitude toward a woman who has deeply affected him. Gascoigne implements such

devices as vivid imagery, stylistic diction, and various syntactical techniques to convey the

speaker’s mind.

(4) In George Gascoigne’s sonnet “For That He Looked not Upon Her,” the dejected and emotionally

wounded speaker expresses his rational need to avoid looking at his love because people

sometimes feel the inexplicable pull toward an object of desire despite possible detrimental

effects.

Read these sample body paragraphs (A, B, and C) and complete the tasks for

each.

SAMPLE A

In the following paragraph, highlight the textual evidence in one color and the analysis (commentary)

in another color.

The speaker begins by addressing a possible ambiguity before his lover may “think it strange” that he

does not look at her. Indeed, the reader may be at first mystified as to the speaker’s motivations

because, paradoxically, the lover “take[s] no delight” to look at his love, despite the fact that attractive

“gleams” “grow” upon her face. However, by methodically presenting the analogies of a mouse caught in

a trap and a scorched fly, the speaker explains why he acts the way that he does. While this standard

and rigid form is effective in proving the speaker’s point and supporting his argument, it at first seems a

little too rigid to convey the depth of his emotions.

SAMPLE B

The following paragraphs have potential but need more analysis—more connection to the speaker

and discussion of theme. Revise the paragraphs by adding sentences of evidence/detail and

commentary. Use the space provided for rewrites.

Gascoigne also uses imagery to compare his feeling of trustlessness. He describes how after a mouse has been tricked once by a trap, it “is seldom ‘ticèd with the trustless bait.” This show an example of trust being lost. The mouse no longer is tempted by the bait. Similarly, a fly who has “’scraped the flame will hardly come to play again.” The author gives us another example of the situation. The fly learns to stay away from the flame. Gascoigne’s attempt to paint a picture shows that once trust has been lost it is hard to regain.

The English poet also uses form to structure his poem in a persuasive manner. His use of the “scorched fly” and “mouse” are an attempt to appeal to the reader. This gives the reader an opening to connect to

the poem. The poem is strategically given a persuasive form.

SAMPLE C

The following paragraph is from a high-scoring essay. Highlight words, phrases or sentences that

exemplify the scoring guide descriptors of “persuasive analysis,” “consistent and effective control of

language,” “apt and specific textual references,” and “perceptive,” and note the descriptors in the

margin, as appropriate. Be prepared to share observations with classmates.

Through animal imagery, the poet implies that the experience of the mouse mirrors that of the speaker.

As a mouse who escapes a trap will not be fooled by “trustless bait,” the speaker will no longer let

himself be deceived by the trustless face of a woman. His wise caution, however, is not just out of

intelligence but of “fear of more mishap,” emphasizing his still fragile state as a recently scorned lover.

The alliteration of the final “doubt of deep deceit” stresses the speaker’s dread of having his heart

broken once more. Gascoigne solidifies the speaker’s trauma stating, “The scorchèd fly which once hath

‘scaped the flame / Will hardly come to play again with fire” (9-10). Using another parallel of animal

imagery, the poet highlights the speaker’s unwillingness to be caught by a new “flame,” a common

metaphor for a woman. There is no sense for the speaker to allow himself to be burned once more, so he

no longer looks for love because he fears the pain it will bring. Gascoigne’s use of both diction and

animal imagery highlight the speaker’s justifiable avoidance of future love out of fear of its emotional

aftermath.

REVISION ACTIVITY

Reread the Question 1 (Poetry Analysis) essay you wrote for the mock exam several weeks ago.

Identify the single body paragraph you believe to contain your strongest writing. Write that

paragraph in the space below. Then work in your small editing group to revise weak sentences

and add evidence and analysis that would help you improve your overall score on this

important part of the free response exam.