Summary English Anthology Poetry Comparison Table | Edexcel IGCSE | A star (Grade 9)

Poem title Subject Form & Structure Themes Poems to compare
‘If’  Explore  Dramatic monologue;  Stoicism Half-Past Two
Rudyard Kipling qualities that  iambic pentameter  Parent/child Poem at Thirty-nine
Poem Title Form Themes Poems to compare
make a man. (closest to rhythm of  Advice
speech) which, along  Patience
with each stanza being  Perseverance in
one sentence, makes face of adversity Edexcel IGCSE English
poem seem ponderous Literature Poetry Anthology
and contemplative
‘Prayer Before Birth’  Explores the  Dramatic monologue  Death
Louis MacNeice realities of an  8 stanzas perhaps  Religion
evil world symbolising 9 months of  Conflict
(written pregnancy so unborn  Destruction
during WWII) child is nearing its  Childhood
through the delivery date
mouth of a  free verse
baby who is  appearance on page as
not yet born. stanzas become longer
final couplet with very
short 3 word final line.
‘Half-Past Two’  Explores the  11 tercets (3 line  Childhood and
U.A.Fanthorpe concept of stanzas) loss of it
time through  simple structure and  Memory
the eyes of a free verse which  Time
child. reflects child’s  Confinement v
innocence escape
 short stanzas mirror
child’s made up chunks
of the day
‘Piano’  Explores a  Lyric poem  Memory
D.H.Lawrence fully grown  3 quatrains of rhyming  Childhood
adult recalling couplets trochaic metre  Family
the past. so light and bouncy  Power of music
 musical rhythm
 songlike mirroring the
woman singing
‘Hide and Seek’  Explores a  Internal dialogue  Childhood
Vernon Scannell child learning  one long stanza  Growing up
the harsh  free verse  Life lessons
lessons of  volta in last 3 lines  Isolation
isolation,  Irresponsibility
betrayal and
injustice

through the