The document discusses the poem "The Eagle" by Alfred Lord Tennyson. It analyzes the poem's form, structure, language, and themes. Key points include: the poem uses rhyming triplets and personification to depict the eagle's power and relationship with its natural surroundings, from its lofty perch to swooping attacks; alliteration and assonance convey the nobility and isolation of the eagle; themes center around natural might, pristine natural beauty, and the fragility of life.

1. F
The Eagle by Alfred Lord
Tennyson
Slide 3 contains link to audio recording of the poem

2. F
The Eagle by Alfred Lord
Tennyson
• Key terms:
• Rhyming triplets
• Personification
• Alliteration
• Assonance
• Iambic/trochaic metre
• Point of view
• Themes:
• Natural power
• Natural/animal beauty
• Unspoilt natural
beauty
• Frailty

3. F
The Eagle: Content/meaning
The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls;
He watches from his mountain walls,
And like a thunderbolt he falls.
He clasps the crag with crooked hands;
Close to the sun in lonely lands,
Ring’d with the azure world, he stands.
What is the
poem talking
about?
What is this
stanza saying?
What is the
eagle doing?
What is this
stanza saying?
What is the
eagle doing?
What does the
eagle do in this
line/what
happens to it?

4. F
The Eagle: Form and
Strucutre
He clasps the crag with crooked hands;
Close to the sun in lonely lands,
Ring’d with the azure world, he stands.
The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls;
He watches from his mountain walls,
And like a thunderbolt he falls.
Which point of view is
each stanza told
from. Imagine filming
the scene described
What is the effect of
the change of view
point?
Which syllables are
stressed (have a
‘heavy’ beat) in each
line?
Rhyming triplets;
showing the eagle and
the natural world are in
_________

5. F
The Eagle: Language
He clasps the crag with crooked hands;
Find the alliteration
and assonance.
What does it
suggest about the
eagle and its
surroundings?
This is an example of
__________. What does it
suggest about the eagle?
Holds on tight,
suggesting
ownership?
Crag means
rock

6. F
The Eagle: Language
He clasps the crag with crooked hands;
Close to the sun in lonely lands,
Ring’d with the azure world, he stands.
What could this
mean?
Near to heaven?
Making the eagle a
god-like figure?
Heraldic term for
blue -> Heraldry
links to nobility; is
the poet stressing
the nobility of the
eagle?
Still, comfortable
and calm in his
lonely world

7. F
The Eagle: Language
The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls;
He watches from his mountain walls,
And like a thunderbolt he falls.
Why would the sea
look ‘wrinkled’?
Think about point of
view.
What does crawls
suggest? Think
about height and
power.
Ownership
implies power
Walls of the cliff, makes it sound like
a building/home. The Eagle is a
home in its surroundings

8. F
The Eagle: Language
And like a thunderbolt he falls.
What device is used here?
like
What are the connotations
of this word? God-like power
Natural power (destructive
and beautiful)
Swooping down to hunt. The
predator. An example of
nature’s power.
Falling down dead. An
example of nature’s frailty
and the circle of life
2 possible
meanings

9. F
Summary
• Tell your partner what the poem is about.
“The key message of this poem could be
seen as…”

10. F
Summary
• Go for language, structure or form
points
• Explain them to your partner
“An interesting feature in this poem is…this
suggests…”

11. F
Summary
• What poems could
you compare this
with?
• GC: Difficult Birth,
Field mouse
• SH: Perch, Death of a
Naturalist, Storm on
the Island
• Pre1914: Inversnaid
• Key Themes
• Natural power
• Natural/animal beauty
• Unspoilt natural
beauty
• Frailty
• What could you add
to this list?