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A short class with Sarah and her students. The other ways are under More.
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Before you write a word, what should you do with an exam question on the poem?
Underline the command word and decide what kind of question it is.
If it is an extract, I find the stanza and line numbers first.
Good. What is the difference between explain and discuss?
Explain means say what something means and why. Discuss means weigh more than one side.
So a discuss question needs a conclusion, not just a list of points.
Exactly. The command word decides the shape of your answer.
Let us build a paragraph on the faceless voice using PEEL. What is the point?
The poem shows modern power as impersonal.
The evidence is line 16, a voice with no face, and line 17, where it uses statistics.
Good. Now explain.
Nobody can be held responsible for a voice with no face, and statistics replace feeling and argument.
The link is to the theme of dehumanisation, since both power and people lose their human character.
That is a complete paragraph: point, evidence, explanation and link.
What is the most common mistake in answers on this poem?
Retelling the story. We describe what is on the shield but never say what it means.
Or naming devices without effects, like saying there is synecdoche in line 14 and stopping there.
Both are true. What else should you check?
The order of the scenes. The camp comes before the boy, and the names appear only in stanza 9.
And not stating the Crucifixion as a fact. The poem only suggests it.
Good. Build a checklist and run through it before you hand in the paper.
extract-based, short-answer, device, theme, long-answer and comparison questions each need a different plan.
describe, explain, comment, discuss, trace, compare, justify and to what extent decide what your answer must do.
build every paragraph from Point, Evidence, Explanation and Link, and never skip the explanation.
refer to stanza and line numbers, and quote only a few words accurately when a question asks for it.
nine stanzas and 67 lines, Thetis stanzas (1, 4, 7 and 9), shield stanzas (2, 3, 5, 6 and 8), and the names appearing only in stanza 9.
always explain what a device does and link it to a theme such as lost harmony, dehumanisation or moral emptiness.
An extract-based question and approach: Read lines 16–22 (stanza 3) and say what kind of power the stanza shows. Paraphrase a faceless voice that uses statistics, a flat tone, no applause or debate, and columns marching away in dust. Name the irony of the word 'logic' and conclude that the power is impersonal and leads to disaster.
A short-answer question and model answer: Why do the onlookers matter in stanza 5? They show that cruelty depends on ordinary people who watch and do nothing (lines 34 and 35), which adds the theme of complicity.
A skeleton for a 'discuss' question on the title: introduction (the shield and Homer), paragraph one (the expectation the title raises), paragraph two (the irony of a shield that shows danger), paragraph three (Achilles's fate in stanza 9) and a conclusion that weighs the title's meaning.
A model opening sentence for an essay: In “The Shield of Achilles” Auden uses Homer's famous shield as a mirror in which the modern world sees itself, and what it sees is a loss of community, ritual and compassion.
Point it, prove it, explain it too / Link it back to the theme in view / Count the stanza, number the line / Name the device and the effect will shine.
Picture a student at a desk with a small checklist taped to the corner. Before each answer she underlines the command word, finds the line numbers and builds her paragraph in four steps, and when she finishes she runs her pencil down the checklist once more.
Read properly, write clearly: Read the question, Plan, Write, Check.
P.E.E.L. - Point, Evidence, Explanation, Link
Term
What does PEEL stand for?
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What does the command word discuss require?
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How should you refer to the poem in an answer?
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In what order do the shield's three main scenes appear?
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What is the most common mistake in answers on the poem?
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In which stanza are Thetis, Hephaestus and Achilles named?
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A passage from a text printed in a question for close reading; in this poem it is usually a stanza or a group of lines.
The verb in a question that tells you what kind of answer is needed, such as explain, discuss or compare.
A restatement of a passage in your own words that keeps the meaning but not the wording.
A reference or short quotation from the text, such as a line number, that supports a point.
A paragraph method with four steps: Point, Evidence, Explanation and Link.
A reasoned evaluation of a poem or passage that covers its theme, language, structure and effect.
The main argument of an essay, stated in the introduction and supported throughout.
The final step of a paragraph, which ties the point back to the question or to a theme of the poem.
This lesson prepares you to answer examination questions on W.H. Auden's “The Shield of Achilles”. It explains the main question types, the command words, the PEEL method, how to handle extract-based questions, the facts to have ready and the mistakes to avoid.
Questions on the poem usually fall into a few types: extract-based questions on a stanza or group of lines, short answers, questions on devices and language, questions on theme and message, long answers that ask you to discuss or appreciate, and comparisons with another text. The lesson shows how to read the command word, how to build each paragraph with Point, Evidence, Explanation and Link, how to cite the poem by stanza and line number, and how to plan a long answer. It gives a quick reference to the nine stanzas, lists common mistakes and ends with a checklist. The practice section then supplies questions of every type with model answers.
Questions on “The Shield of Achilles” usually fall into a few types. Knowing the type tells you how to plan your answer.
Types of question.
Command words. Describe: say what is there. Explain: say what it means and why. Comment on: give a reasoned response with evidence. Discuss: weigh more than one side and reach a conclusion. Trace: follow a development from beginning to end. Compare: give similarities and differences. Justify: give reasons for a view. To what extent: say how far you agree and why. The command word decides the shape of your answer.
The PEEL method. Build each paragraph from Point, Evidence, Explanation and Link. State the point in one sentence. Give evidence by stanza and line number, and if the question asks for it, a few words quoted accurately from your own text. Explain how the evidence supports the point. Then link back to the question or to the poem's central idea.
Answering extract-based questions. (1) Find the stanza and note its line numbers. (2) Paraphrase the lines in your own words. (3) Spot the device or key word. (4) Explain its effect. (5) Link it to a theme. For lines 31 to 37, for example: a barbed-wire camp (paraphrase); officials who are bored and silent onlookers (key details); flat reporting and a bracketed joke (technique, with the effect of routine cruelty); a link to dehumanisation and complicity (theme).
Planning long answers. Spend a few minutes planning. Write an introduction that names the poem, the myth and your answer to the question, then three or four paragraphs each on one idea with evidence, then a conclusion that returns to the question. Keep to the word limit set in the paper.
Facts to have ready. The poem has nine stanzas and 67 lines: eight-line Thetis stanzas (1, 4, 7 and 9) and seven-line shield stanzas (2, 3, 5, 6 and 8). A quick reference:
Common mistakes. Retelling the story instead of analysing it. Naming a device without explaining its effect. Quoting at length or inaccurately. Forgetting line numbers. Putting the scenes in the wrong order. Ignoring the Thetis stanzas. Stating the Crucifixion or a particular historical event as certain when the poem only suggests it. Writing an opinion with no evidence.
Final checklist. Have I answered the command word? Have I used line numbers? Have I explained effects? Have I linked to a theme? Is the order of my paragraphs logical? Have I kept to the word limit?