Snowdrop

Ted
Hughes
5 Minute Starter According to
Interflora (a
worldwide florist)
every flower has a
meaning.

Look at the picture

of the snowdrops
opposite: what do
you think
snowdrops
symbolise, and
why?
Just like studying a poem, there are
various opinions of what snowdrops
represent, here are some of the ideas:

Snowdrops can symbolise sympathy and

consolation, perhaps because the flower
head hangs down as if mirroring a person’s
sadness.

The white of the snowdrop symbolises

innocence and purity. Snowdrops are seen
at the end of winter and early spring and
can be seen as a sign of hope that spring
has come.

They also symbolise resilience because

often they blossom whilst it is still very cold,
sometimes whilst there is snow on the
ground.
to the poem being
the poem to
read. yourself

the poem to the

person sitting
next to you.

Can you work out what ‘the story’ of the poem is? What is going on?

are some questions you can try and answer if you

don’t know where to start summarising the poem:
What time of year is it?
What animals and wildlife are mentioned in this poem?
What are all the animals and wildlife doing?
How did you do?

● A mouse’s heart is slowing down as

winter takes a firm hold.
● Other wildlife is also described
(Weasels and Crows) move as if
they are made out of metal and look
disorientated and half-mad, moving
slowly.
● The snowdrop fights to survive too,
her petals look too heavy to hold up.
Poetry Lessons -

● Understand the ‘plot’ of the poem.

● Analyse and annotate the poem.
● Complete an essay style question about the poem.
● Fill in a poetry revision grid.
● Try and complete the creative task.
HOMEWORK:
COMPLETE A
STORYBOARD,
SHOWING THE
PLOT OF THE
POEM. USE
QUOTATIONS
AND IMAGES.
The opening line feels like we are
zooming in: Hughes is looking at the
world then zooms in on the life of a
The enjambment of these two
mouse. This evokes an intimate tone
lines echoes what is happening to
as if we are watching the mouse
the mouse - the cold has a hold
close-up trying to survive the winter.
of the mouse and the flow of the
lines mirrors the constant
pressure the mouse feels as he
‘The globe shrunk
fights to live through the winter Notice how all the words in tight’ also highlights
months. the first line are monosyllabic. what is now important in
The world is getting smaller - the world of the mouse -
‘Dulled’ and ‘wintering’ have a double contracting in the cold of his only thoughts are of
meaning here. The landscape the mouse winter. survival - nothing else.
is in is dark ‘dull’ and snowy ‘wintering’
because it is winter. But the mouse’s
heart is slowing, his pulse is getting
weaker ‘dulled’ as he seems to draw
close to death because it is so cold. And
we don’t really think about these things
when we are snug in our house - how
other creatures are surviving.
Notice Hughes does not write a weasel
a crow. He says ‘Weasel and Crow’ as
if they are their names. It is like they are
characters like ‘Toad’ and ‘Mole’ in
The weasel and crow
The simile ‘as if moulded in ‘Wind and the Willows’. It makes us
are said to move in an
brass’ suggests the animals feel more sympathetic towards the
‘outer darkness’
are so cold they are frozen weasel and crow - almost like
meaning they are not
like metal and they feel characters on a quest and we get this
safe somewhere like the
heavy. We might think about undertone of magic and myth.
mouse - they are
the ice queen in Narnia
moving around. On
freezing the forest and the
another level ‘an outer
animals who are against her
darkness’ might mean
rule.
they are walking into
death. Furthermore , it
seems they are walking
without purpose (in the
next line the snowdrop
has a purpose) the cold
has eaten in to their
brains - they can’t think
straight: like when
people get hypothermia.
The phrase ‘brutal as the stars of this
month’ suggests a link to astrology -
the stars are personified as uncaring
‘brutal’ as if nothing can change
events as they are written in the stars.
Look at the punctuation
Hughes had a keen interest in
in the line beginning
Alliteration ‘Her pale head heavy as astrology and Sylvia Plath (his wife)
‘With the other deaths’
metal.’ Repetition of the ‘h’ sound once described him as always having
Notice the full stop after
that echoes the effort it takes for the his pockets ‘full of poems, fresh trout
deaths which echoes
snowdrop to keep her head from and horoscopes.’
the end of life. Then,
dropping down. It sounds like heavy the 3 commas in the
breathing, like the last gasps of life. rest of the line. The
Alternatively, you could read this as commas slow us down
the snowdrop’s resilience - that the and mirror the effort the
flower will survive the cold winter snowdrop is making to
unlike the other creatures mentioned survive - like ragged
in the poem. breathing.
Now you have completed your
annotations, use some of them to
fill in your revision grid. Remember
to write in note form.

‘Deep’ is developing your point -

explaining the meaning of words in your
quote and showing why the poet has
selected those particular words - how do
they want the reader to feel?
‘Quote’ means
‘Shallow’ words from your
means a basic text you are ‘Profound’ is
point - like using to illustrate developing a point
naming a your point - short to the fullest extent.
language phrases or single You might make
device, or the words are best to interesting
rhyme show the
scheme. comments about
examiner you
links to context, to
really understand
what you have
other literature or
read. how we live today.
Respond to this exam style
question by writing an essay:
Use your revision grid to help
you.

How is resilience presented

in the poem Snowdrop by
Ted Hughes?
Remember to write about
language, context, structure,
voice and tone.

Remember to address the

question throughout the essay.
s
Twist your revision notes to suit In thi will
I
the question. essay w…
o
show h
You have 45 minutes to
complete this task.
Extension Work - Creative
Challenge.

Write a description of this forest.

Imagine you are an animal who lives
there. Write about your struggle to
survive the winter.