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ADVERBS
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
For this lesson, prior knowledge of the definition of an adverb will be necessary. You should also be familiar with the different parts of speech. Let us remind ourselves what an adverb is. An adverb is a word used to modify verbs, adjectives or other adverbs.
The road leads to the top of the hill
- Identify adverbs of place and degree in sentences.
- Use adverbs of place and degree correctly and appropriately.
ADVERBS
In this lesson we will learn about adverbs of place and degree.
Bull fighting can be extremely dangerous.
Click the circle and read the sentences below paying attention to the adverbs used in each case:
The highlighted words in the sentences are adverbs of place.
They are used to indicate where something happens or where something goes
Adverbs of place answer the question ‘where’
Here are more examples of adverbs of place. Write them down;
Downstairs, elsewhere, nearby, down, eastwards, there, inland, behind, anywhere and indoors
Adverbs of degree, tell how much or to what extent something happened. They tell us about the intensity of an action, that is, a verb, an adjective or another adverb. For example:
I almost collapsed after taking part in the marathon.
Our principal was quite irritated by the scantily dressed student.
The rain was enough for people to begin ploughing.
This is a fast car.
Nwoye seldom visits his rural home for fear of witchcraft.
The highlighted words show the intensity of an action, adjective or adverb. These adverbs, answer the question ‘to what extent.’ Other examples of adverbs of degree are: very, extremely, rarely, hardly, often, too, really, scarcely, just and nearly.
Adverbs of degree modify a verb, an adjective or another adverb in a sentence, for example,
By the end of the lesson you should be able to demonstrate appropriate use of interpretive reading.
Reading
Reading is a skill employed widely in life. We read for different purposes. For example, we read for leisure, information and examinations. In this topic we shall explore interpretive and intensive reading.
Interpretive Reading
Interpretive reading is reading aloud with expression in a manner that brings out the intonation, rhythm, word meaning and mental pictures as intended by the author.
Reading interpretively
The purpose of interpretive reading is to develop skills in conveying meanings and emotions of a poem or prose selection.
Consider the following points when reading aloud:
- Use pauses appropriately.
- Articulate and pronounce words correctly.
- Vary your voice.
- Emphasize certain words.
Read the poem interpretively
The poor mother
Another mother wishes you were hers
But you are mine
She wants to nurse you on her gorgeous rug
She wishes you were hers
To lay you on her rug of camel-hair
But you are mine,to lay my poor ragged mat;
She wishes you were hers. but you are mine
Set high standards for the youth.
Nowadays, the media sets the agenda on issues like dress code, but regulating dressing especially in public universities, is a Herculean task.
The society has lost its traditional norms. Have you ever stopped and watched music videos? In most video clips women spill out of their skimpy pieces of clothing while the men sag their trousers to the ground. And society has no problem with that.
These so-called celebrities have been glorified by the media and the society. Legislation alone cannot uproot this vice.
It is the responsibility of parents, teachers, guardians, opinion leaders, legislators and the media to set appropriate standards.
(Paul Wafula , via email-the standard 28.10.08).
Click to watch the presentation the poem
But you are mine,to lay on my poor ragged mat;
She wishes you were hers, but you are mine!
For you to handle this lesson effectively you need to know:
The meaning of poetry ,
Different types of poems,
Definition of simple stylistic devices used in poetry.
By the end of the lesson you should be able to:
- Demonstrate appropriate comprehension skills.
- Analyse simple aspects of style.
In this lesson we shall discuss comprehension and style in poetry and prose
Click to watch the Poem; The Village Well
The Village Well, by Henry Barlow
Read the poem and answer the questions as instructed.
By this well,
Where fresh waters still quietly whisper
As when I
First accompanied mother and filled my baby gourd,
Where many an evening its clean water cleaned me
This silent well
Dreaded haunt of the long haired Musambwa,
who basked
In the mid-day sun reclining on the rock
Where I now sit
Welling up with many poignant memories;
This spot,
Which has rung with the purity of child laughter
Where eyes spoke secretly to responding eye
This spot
Where hearts pounded madly in many a breast;
Over-hung by leafy branches of sheltering trees
I first noticed her,
I saw her in the cool of a red, red evening
I saw her
As if I had not seen her a thousand times before.
By this well
My eyes asked for love, and my heart went mad.
I stuttered.
And murmured my first words of love
And cupped,
With my hands, the intoxication that were her breasts.
In this well,
In the clear waters of this whispering well
The silent moon
Witnessed with a smile our inviolate vows,
The Kisses
That left us weak and breathless.
It is dark.
It is dark by the well that still whispers.
It is darker,
It is utter darkness in the heart that bleeds
Where magic has evaporated but memories linger.
Of damp death
The rotting foliage reeks,
And the branches
Are grotesque talons of hungry vultures?
For she is dead,
The one I first loved by this well.
Click to watch the presentatation of the Poem; ‘ Torrents of torment ‘
TORRENTS OF TORMENT by Kyeva Kyalo
Read the poem below and answer the questions as instructed.
My welling eyes cannot dry at this moment due to this torment
I decry my Rose’s blossom and bloom
Reduced to ashes of misery and doom
Bringing this moment of sadness and gloom.
This is a cry over my rosy Rose;
My rosy Rose derosed
The rising beautiful flower nipped at the bud
My Rose had vision and ambition
To fly high and higher
Like a kite to soar high and be a surgeon
Did the cruel claws of this beast leave to extinguish the flame of her dreams?
Did it have to be this hungry heinous hyena?
It tracked her, the hungry panther
Followed her, the lonely hunter;
Thinking only of its hunger
He was no stranger
She saw no danger in this venture
By this lone ranger
Searching for a lust quencher
A smile that was the snare
Did not give her a scare.
The lollipop that was the trap
Saw her in a flash
Dragged into the bush.
Her scream was too faint
For her lungs were too small.
Her struggle was too futile
For her hands were too frail.
In a pool of crimson red that was her bed
He left her for the dead
So much brutalized
Recovery impossible
So much traumatized
Innocence and trust irreplaceable
So much stigmatized
The scars irreparable
Robbed of purity with shear impurity
Desecrated with impurity
And the death penalty
For the hyena harboured a deadly illness.
We hear he just got two years behind bars
To come out and continue with this carnality
Shed more torrents of torment .
Personification
This is when we give non-human objects/things human qualities.
Alliteration
It is the repetition of the initial consonant sounds in words which occur close to each other in a line.
Repetition
It is the recurrence of words, phrase and whole sentences.
Symbolism
It is the use of objects, signs, situations, shapes and action which represent a person, idea or a value.
Simile
It is a direct comparison between two things in which words such as ‘like’ or ‘as’ is used.
Metaphor
An indirect comparison between two things where one is substituted for the other.
Rhyme
This refers to words ending in similar sounds usually found at the end of lines in a poem.
Rhetoric Questions
These are questions in a poem that do not require answers.
Effective writing
