Analysis of Wild Cherry Poem by Nigel Jenkins

Welsh writing in English Welsh writing in English Choose a task Wild Cherry by Nigel Jenkins Choose a task based on the poem. Activity A Activity B Activity A Activity B Activity C Activity D Activity C Activity D Activity E Activity F Activity E Activity F Glossary Glossary

Activity A Welsh writing in English Welsh writing in English Wild Cherry by Nigel Jenkins Menu Menu Who is involved in this poem? Tiptoe on wall-top, head in clouds of white blossom, I reached for the fullest, the flounciest sprays, I travelled many miles to give you them. Look for the pronouns words like I, you, us. You placed them, smiling, in a jar on your table, and there was beauty between us, between us too there were words, white clouds of words One of the sprays I d kept myself, and I ll know on what morning you brush up the petals, you toss out the twigs with the ashes and empties, yesterday s news.

Activity B Welsh writing in English Welsh writing in English Wild Cherry by Nigel Jenkins Menu Menu What is the setting for the first stanza? Tiptoe on wall-top, head in clouds of white blossom, I reached for the fullest, the flounciest sprays, I travelled many miles to give you them. Where is he? Why is he on Tiptoe ? If you are on tiptoe on top of a wall, how safe are you? What does reached for imply? You placed them, smiling, in a jar on your table, and there was beauty between us, between us too there were words, white clouds of words Can you suggest any possible reasons for the strange line endings: in / clouds ; I / reached ; the / flounciest ? One of the sprays I d kept myself, and I ll know on what morning you brush up the petals, you toss out the twigs with the ashes and empties, yesterday s news.

Activity C Welsh writing in English Welsh writing in English Wild Cherry by Nigel Jenkins Menu Menu Why is he gathering wild cherry sprays? Tiptoe on wall-top, head in clouds of white blossom, I reached for the fullest, the flounciest sprays, I travelled many miles to give you them. What are his feelings to the you of the poem? What might head in / clouds suggest? What do the words fullest and flounciest suggest about the way he is choosing the sprays? You placed them, smiling, in a jar on your table, and there was beauty between us, between us too there were words, white clouds of words What does travelled / many miles imply? One of the sprays I d kept myself, and I ll know on what morning you brush up the petals, you toss out the twigs with the ashes and empties, yesterday s news.

Activity D Welsh writing in English Welsh writing in English Wild Cherry by Nigel Jenkins Menu Menu What does the second stanza suggest about the thoughts and feelings of the you / the woman? Consider some of the following: placed them / in a jar ; smiling ; beauty between us ; white clouds of words Tiptoe on wall-top, head in clouds of white blossom, I reached for the fullest, the flounciest sprays, I travelled many miles to give you them. What is the effect of the repetition of between us ? Does the second use have the same feeling? You placed them, smiling, in a jar on your table, and there was beauty between us, between us too there were words, white clouds of words Is the repetition of white and clouds from the first stanza significant? Is the repetition of words significant? Does the second use have the same feeling as the first? One of the sprays I d kept myself, and I ll know on what morning you brush up the petals, you toss out the twigs with the ashes and empties, yesterday s news. How far is it possible to tell what (she) is feeling?

Activity E Welsh writing in English Welsh writing in English Wild Cherry by Nigel Jenkins Menu Menu What does the third stanza suggest about the thoughts and feelings of the man/poet/persona? Tiptoe on wall-top, head in clouds of white blossom, I reached for the fullest, the flounciest sprays, I travelled many miles to give you them. Consider some of the following: One of the sprays I d kept myself ; I ll know on what morning / you / toss out the twigs; with the ashes / and empties, yesterday s news. You placed them, smiling, in a jar on your table, and there was beauty between us, between us too there were words, white clouds of words What is implied by choosing the verb toss out ? What are the associations of the noun ashes ? One of the sprays I d kept myself, and I ll know on what morning you brush up the petals, you toss out the twigs with the ashes and empties, yesterday s news. Why do you think the poet chooses to end the poem with yesterday s news ?

Activity F Welsh writing in English Welsh writing in English Wild Cherry by Nigel Jenkins Menu Menu Do you think this is the end of a relationship or just a one-sided relationship? Or something else? Tiptoe on wall-top, head in clouds of white blossom, I reached for the fullest, the flounciest sprays, I travelled many miles to give you them. How far can you tell? You placed them, smiling, in a jar on your table, and there was beauty between us, between us too there were words, white clouds of words One of the sprays I d kept myself, and I ll know on what morning you brush up the petals, you toss out the twigs with the ashes and empties, yesterday s news.

Glossary Welsh writing in English Welsh writing in English Wild Cherry by Nigel Jenkins Click on the highlighted words to show their meaning Menu Menu thought to be the most ornamental of our native broadleaf woodland trees Wild Cherry with one s head in the clouds = preoccupied with one s own thoughts Tiptoe on wall-top, head in clouds of white blossom, I reached for the fullest, the flounciest sprays, I travelled many miles to give you them. frilly You placed them, smiling, in a jar on your table, and there was beauty between us, between us too there were words, white clouds of words small branch of a tree or plant which has delicate leaves and flowers growing on it One of the sprays I d kept myself, and I ll know on what morning you brush up the petals, you toss out the twigs with the ashes and empties, yesterday s news. to throw away or discard casually or carelessly