Walking Away- Day- Lewis 1 May 2023

Mini Starter

Explode these lines

into your book, use the

questions as a prompt

or devise your own.

Must:Understand and be able to thoughtfully explain the meaning and main themes of the poem.(AO1)

Should:Explore and consider multiple interpretations of the poem. (AO1/AO2)

Could:Analyse the language, form and structure of the poem. (AO2)

It is eighteen years ago, almost to the day-A sunny day with the leaves just turning,The touch-lines new ruled- since I watched you play

What is the event described in the poem? (Be specific)

How does the writer feel about

the event?

CHALLENGEHow do you expect this poem to differ to others

we have studied?

What type of relationship are you expecting to find in

this poem?

Be tentative- suggest multiple possibilities giving clear reasons.

Context

Cecil Day-Lewis is best remembered as Poet Laureate of Great Britain. ‘Walking Away’ is one of his best known poems, and is about his son Sean’s first days of school in the late 1930’s. In the poem, he is thinking back to when Sean started at Boarding school at the age of seven.

Why might a father be reflecting on his son’s first day of school eighteen

years later?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DZQYJQQPkA

Create a summary of each stanza of the

poem.Example:

The poet recalls the day he saw his son play his first game of football and how his son began to move

away from him. The tone is positive but slightly maudlin in the last line.

CHALLENGEHow does the tone develop

change in each stanza?

What is the poem about?

A father remembers watching his son play his first game of football, possibly on his first day at school. The father feels worried about his son as he watches him walk uncertainly away from him.

The memory of that day still deeply affects the father eighteen years later. However, he comes to an understanding that this is a natural process that all children and parents must go through-every child has to experience the difficult process of gaining independence, and every parent has to let go.

Reading Skills

AO’s Reading Skills Sentence Starters

AO1 Understanding:Understanding is a grasp of the basics of what the poem is about, which could be people, events, situations or places.

The writer is reflecting upon…The writer recollects…The event taking place is…The setting of the poem…

AO2 Interpreting themes, ideas, attitudes and feelings:when you interpret, you move from your understanding of the poem, to show what your understanding means to you or someone else.

The writer is feeling… this is because…The theme of… is explored….The description of the …. Implies….The effect of this creates a sense of…

AO2 Exploring implied meaning: this is where you understand more than is obviously stated and you ‘read between the lines’.

From his description of the boy leaving, I think the poet depicting… On the other hand, it could suggest…

Write an extended summary of one of the stanza’s from the poem using the reading skills outline above.

It is eighteen years ago, almost to the day –A sunny day with leaves just turning,The touch-lines new-ruled – since I watched you playYour first game of football, then, like a satelliteWrenched from its orbit, go drifting away

He remembers the exact day-it’s an important memory.

Transition from summer to autumn reflects the transition in the son’s life.

New boundaries are also being drawn between father and son, with the son’s newfound independence

Negative simile – a satellite isn’t meant to fall out of orbit, and to drift away makes the son sound helpless and in danger. The simile also emphasises how the father has stopped being at the centre of his son’s life.

Enjambment puts the unexpected word “Wrenched” at the start of the line, which emphasises it. This reflects how the father found the separation sudden and painful.

Behind a scatter of boys. I can seeYou walking away from me towards the schoolWith the pathos of a half-fledged thing set freeInto a wilderness, the gait of oneWho finds no path where the path should be.

(Away) Enjambment highlights the way the boy turns away from his father to follow the other boys.

Bird metaphor used to show the father’s concern that his son isn’t ready.

Suggests a hostile place-father worries his son won’t survive without his protection.

Repetition of “path” emphasises that the father is desperate for his son to find the right way in life and that he sees him as helpless

That hesitant figure, eddying awayLike a winged seed loosened from its parent stem,Has something I never quite grasp to conveyAbout nature’s give-and-take – the small, the scorchingOrdeals which fire one’s irresolute clay.

“eddying” is a natural image that compares the son to something moving in a current of air or water – this reflects his uncertainty and lack of control.

Natural simile contrasts with the satellite simile in stanza 1 – “loosened” is less painful and forced than “wrenched”. This shows how the father is coming to terms with what happened and understands that it’s natural.

Experiences of growing up are painful.Fire turns clay into a

pot – difficult experiences of growing up turn children into independent people

I have had worse partings, but none that soGnaws at my mind still. Perhaps it is roughlySaying what God alone could perfectly show –How selfhood begins with a walking away,And love is proved in the letting go.

“Gnaws” is animalistic and vicious- the father is still affected by seeing his son go through the tough process of growing up.

Religious imagery – in the Bible, God let go of Jesus, his only son, when Jesus came to Earth and was crucified. He did this to show humans that he loved them. That “God alone” could do it, shows how difficult it is.

The change to a more steady rhythm underlines how the father has come to a philosophical understanding- the son has to walk away from his father to find his own identity, and the father proves his love for his son by letting him go.

Dictionary

Pathos - something that creates feelings of pityHalf fledged - describes a young bird that doesn’t have all its adult feathers. A bird that isn’t fully fledged is unable to flyGait - the way someone walksEddying - air or water moving in a circular motionIrresolute - uncertain

Feelings and Attitudes

The father sees his son as vulnerable, but understands that he can’t protect him forever- he now has to show his love for his son by letting him gain some independence.

There’s a feeling of loss and sadness throughout the poem, but also the understanding that “walking away” is a natural part of growing up. It’s not a permanent parting, their relationship is just being redefined.

1. Why do you think the speaker addresses his son directly (e.g. “I watched you play”)?

2. How is natural imagery used to show that father’s feelings about his son walking away?

3. The father says the memory still “Gnaws” at his mind? Why do you think this is?

Key Themes

‘Climbing My Grandfather’ also features a close, significant family relationship. The poems ‘Mother, Any Distance’ to consider how children growing up affects their parents.

S.M.I.L.E

Symbolism

AlliterationAssonance

Simile Extended Metaphor

Personification

Ballad Sonnet

Free verseDramatic monologue

Juxtaposition

Oxymoron

Emotive LanguageRepetition

Rhyming Couplet

Enjambment

Voice Tone

ANALYSING YOUR POEM

Reflection: SMILE Paragraph• Point:

Topic sentence with an adjective.

• Evidence: Quotation- try to embed it in the sentence.

• Explain: Select a keyword- why does it stand out?What is the effect on the reader?

• Language Analysis- Analyse what the word suggests & how it links back to the adjective.