Welsh writing in English Choose a taskA n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

Choose a task based on the poem.

Activity A

Activity C

Activity E

Activity G Activity H

Activity F

Activity D

Activity B

Welsh writing in English

Read the poem a few times. Describe in your own words what we know has happened in the poem. Include only the facts you can work out from the poem.

Activity A

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She told me how she fell to sleep with the sound of his fists on the door.Dull thuds that echoed on the stairs,that became the beat of her heart on the sheet,the rustle of blood in her ear on the pillow, then sleep. Of how she slept a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple ripening, then falling a fall.Its loud thud echoing on in the nightin the beat of her heart on the sheet. And how she woke to the sound of fists on the doorand how she was surprised by the persistence of love. She told me how she answered the door, and how shesaw him over the policeman’s shoulder, lying on the lawn,and how she thought why is he lying on the lawn, so pale and quiet?Why is he lying asleep and covered in dew?

Try underlining only the lines which give information about what actually happened. Compare what you’ve underlined with a partner and discuss whether each line should be included in a strictly factual account or not. How much of the poem is left without underlining?

A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

Welsh writing in English

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Activity A

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A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

And then how she saw the broken drainpipe he had tried to climb,and how she knew he had fallen, ripe in the night,from the broken drainpipe, which still swung wild,a madman’s finger preaching in the wind. And then she told me how each night she unlocks the door,which sometimes gets blown, wild in the wind.How her feet echo, dull on the stairs, as she climbs to bedwhere she falls to sleep, the rustle of blood in her ear. And how each night she sleeps a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple, which falls, ripe in the night.And how she wakes with the beat of her heart on the sheet,surprised by the persistence of love.

Read the poem a few times. Describe in your own words what we know has happened in the poem. Include only the facts you can work out from the poem.

Try underlining only the lines which give information about what actually happened. Compare what you’ve underlined with a partner and discuss whether each line should be included in a strictly factual account or not. How much of the poem is left without underlining?

Welsh writing in English

Consider the title of the poem. In what ways is the poem Antonia’s story? Highlight the number of times the pronoun ‘she’ and the possessive pronoun ‘her’ is used.

Activity B

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She told me how she fell to sleep with the sound of his fists on the door.Dull thuds that echoed on the stairs,that became the beat of her heart on the sheet,the rustle of blood in her ear on the pillow, then sleep. Of how she slept a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple ripening, then falling a fall.Its loud thud echoing on in the nightin the beat of her heart on the sheet. And how she woke to the sound of fists on the doorand how she was surprised by the persistence of love. She told me how she answered the door, and how shesaw him over the policeman’s shoulder, lying on the lawn,and how she thought why is he lying on the lawn, so pale and quiet?Why is he lying asleep and covered in dew?

A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

In what ways does the poet ensure that we only get Antonia’s perspective on events? What other versions might there be?

Consider the words shaded in yellow. Click to show shading.

Welsh writing in English

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Activity B

Click here to return to the beginning of the poem

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A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

And then how she saw the broken drainpipe he had tried to climb,and how she knew he had fallen, ripe in the night,from the broken drainpipe, which still swung wild,a madman’s finger preaching in the wind. And then she told me how each night she unlocks the door,which sometimes gets blown, wild in the wind.How her feet echo, dull on the stairs, as she climbs to bedwhere she falls to sleep, the rustle of blood in her ear. And how each night she sleeps a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple, which falls, ripe in the night.And how she wakes with the beat of her heart on the sheet,surprised by the persistence of love.

Consider the title of the poem. In what ways is the poem Antonia’s story? Highlight the number of times the pronoun ‘she’ and the possessive pronoun ‘her’ is used.

In what ways does the poet ensure that we only get Antonia’s perspective on events? What other versions might there be?

Consider the words shaded in yellow. Click to show shading.

Welsh writing in English

Antonia tells her ‘story’ to an unidentified person, the voice of the poem. The words spoken are not hers but a reported version of them. Look for references to this in the poem.

Activity C

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She told me how she fell to sleep with the sound of his fists on the door.Dull thuds that echoed on the stairs,that became the beat of her heart on the sheet,the rustle of blood in her ear on the pillow, then sleep. Of how she slept a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple ripening, then falling a fall.Its loud thud echoing on in the nightin the beat of her heart on the sheet. And how she woke to the sound of fists on the doorand how she was surprised by the persistence of love. She told me how she answered the door, and how shesaw him over the policeman’s shoulder, lying on the lawn,and how she thought why is he lying on the lawn, so pale and quiet?Why is he lying asleep and covered in dew?

A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

What effect does this repetition have on your reaction to Antonia’s version of events? Who might be this ‘reporter’ and how reliable is his report? Try removing all references to the speaker of the poem to see whether a more direct, third person account would be different. You could also rewrite the poem in first person to consider how you may react differently to it.

Consider the words shaded in yellow. Click to show shading.

Welsh writing in English

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Activity C

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A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

And then how she saw the broken drainpipe he had tried to climb,and how she knew he had fallen, ripe in the night,from the broken drainpipe, which still swung wild,a madman’s finger preaching in the wind. And then she told me how each night she unlocks the door,which sometimes gets blown, wild in the wind.How her feet echo, dull on the stairs, as she climbs to bedwhere she falls to sleep, the rustle of blood in her ear. And how each night she sleeps a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple, which falls, ripe in the night.And how she wakes with the beat of her heart on the sheet,surprised by the persistence of love.

Antonia tells her ‘story’ to an unidentified person, the voice of the poem. The words spoken are not hers but a reported version of them. Look for references to this in the poem.

What effect does this repetition have on your reaction to Antonia’s version of events? Who might be this ‘reporter’ and how reliable is his report? Try removing all references to the speaker of the poem to see whether a more direct, third person account would be different. You could also rewrite the poem in first person to consider how you may react differently to it.

Consider the words shaded in yellow. Click to show shading.

Welsh writing in English

Look at the first stanza of the poem. What violent action is described here? What are Antonia’s reactions to it?

Activity D

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She told me how she fell to sleep with the sound of his fists on the door.Dull thuds that echoed on the stairs,that became the beat of her heart on the sheet,the rustle of blood in her ear on the pillow, then sleep.

Look for words and phrases to support what you say about both the violence described and Antonia’s odd reaction to it. What do you think of her reaction and what effect does it have on you?

A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

Welsh writing in English

She told me how she answered the door, and how shesaw him over the policeman’s shoulder, lying on the lawn,and how she thought why is he lying on the lawn, so pale and quiet?Why is he lying asleep and covered in dew?

How does Antonia react to the violent death of the man here? What impact does her description of him have on you?

Activity E

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Different readers may respond in different ways to Antonia’s reaction here. List different interpretations and consider what evidence there is for each. Use the rest of the poem to support your ideas if you need to.

A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

Welsh writing in English

The image of the falling apple is important in the poem and is used in stanzas 2, 5 and 7. Look carefully at these stanzas. Why do you think the poet chose this image and why does he use it repeatedly?

Activity F

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Look for differences as well as similarities in the way the image is used. What do they suggest about Antonia and her feelings at the time of the man’s death and afterwards?

A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

Stanza 2 Of how she slept a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple ripening, then falling a fall.Its loud thud echoing on in the nightin the beat of her heart on the sheet. Stanza 5And then how she saw the broken drainpipe he had tried to climb,and how she knew he had fallen, ripe in the night,from the broken drainpipe, which still swung wild,a madman’s finger preaching in the wind. Stanza 7And how each night she sleeps a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple, which falls, ripe in the night.And how she wakes with the beat of her heart on the sheet,surprised by the persistence of love.

What other image is used here? What does it add to your understanding of the characters involved in the poem?

Welsh writing in English

Look for other patterns of repetition and change in the poem, in both the language used and the way the stanzas/lines are organised.

Activity G

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She told me how she fell to sleep with the sound of his fists on the door.Dull thuds that echoed on the stairs,that became the beat of her heart on the sheet,the rustle of blood in her ear on the pillow, then sleep. Of how she slept a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple ripening, then falling a fall.Its loud thud echoing on in the nightin the beat of her heart on the sheet. And how she woke to the sound of fists on the doorand how she was surprised by the persistence of love. She told me how she answered the door, and how shesaw him over the policeman’s shoulder, lying on the lawn,and how she thought why is he lying on the lawn, so pale and quiet?Why is he lying asleep and covered in dew?

Why are repetition and patterns important in this poem? What effects are created overall by their use? How would you describe the tone or atmosphere of the poem?

A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

Welsh writing in English

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Activity G

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A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

And then how she saw the broken drainpipe he had tried to climb,and how she knew he had fallen, ripe in the night,from the broken drainpipe, which still swung wild,a madman’s finger preaching in the wind. And then she told me how each night she unlocks the door,which sometimes gets blown, wild in the wind.How her feet echo, dull on the stairs, as she climbs to bedwhere she falls to sleep, the rustle of blood in her ear. And how each night she sleeps a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple, which falls, ripe in the night.And how she wakes with the beat of her heart on the sheet,surprised by the persistence of love.

Look for other patterns of repetition and change in the poem, in both the language used and the way the stanzas/lines are organised.

Why are repetition and patterns important in this poem? What effects are created overall by their use? How would you describe the tone or atmosphere of the poem?

Welsh writing in English

Antonia reports – twice – that she is ‘surprised by the persistence of love.’ What do you think of this reaction to the events described? What kind of love do you think is portrayed in the poem?

Activity H

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She told me how she fell to sleep with the sound of his fists on the door.Dull thuds that echoed on the stairs,that became the beat of her heart on the sheet,the rustle of blood in her ear on the pillow, then sleep. Of how she slept a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple ripening, then falling a fall.Its loud thud echoing on in the nightin the beat of her heart on the sheet. And how she woke to the sound of fists on the doorand how she was surprised by the persistence of love. She told me how she answered the door, and how shesaw him over the policeman’s shoulder, lying on the lawn,and how she thought why is he lying on the lawn, so pale and quiet?Why is he lying asleep and covered in dew?

A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

Welsh writing in English

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Activity H

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A n t o n i a ’ s S t o r y– by Owen Sheers –

And then how she saw the broken drainpipe he had tried to climb,and how she knew he had fallen, ripe in the night,from the broken drainpipe, which still swung wild,a madman’s finger preaching in the wind. And then she told me how each night she unlocks the door,which sometimes gets blown, wild in the wind.How her feet echo, dull on the stairs, as she climbs to bedwhere she falls to sleep, the rustle of blood in her ear. And how each night she sleeps a dark sleep with only one dream,of an apple, which falls, ripe in the night.And how she wakes with the beat of her heart on the sheet,surprised by the persistence of love.

Antonia reports – twice – that she is ‘surprised by the persistence of love.’ What do you think of this reaction to the events described? What kind of love do you think is portrayed in the poem?