-
Weekly Poem: Scheherazade
I stumbled upon Richard Siken’s poem Scheherazade by chance and it has quickly become one of my favorite poems. Despite the straightforward language being used, it is a challenging poem as it isn’t immediately clear what is being conveyed. The poem has a certain surreal quality to it that is very similar to how we…
-
Idiom of the Week: Dark horse
Since last week we talked about elephants in rooms being ignored, we decided that this week’s idiom should also be animal-related. This time, the subject is the expression dark horse. This concept is used in different contexts, particularly in politics, although the term originated from horse racing. In that particular context, a dark horse was…
-
Weekly Poem: Because I could not stop for Death
Because I could not stop for Death—He kindly stopped for me—The Carriage held but just Ourselves—And Immortality. We slowly drove—He knew no haste,And I had put awayMy labor and my leisure too,For His Civility— We passed the School, where Children stroveAt recess—in the ring—We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain—We passed the Setting Sun— Or…
-
Idiom of the Week: Moving the goalposts
Have you ever been in a discussion with someone who constantly frustrates the point you are trying to make by unfairly changing the rules of the argument to fit their side of the discussion? That action is called moving the goalposts, and it is this week’s idiom. If you think about it, the unfairness of…
-
Idiom of the Week: a skeleton in the closet
For this week’s idiom, we have picked the common English expression to have a skeleton in the closet. When someone is said to have a skeleton in the closet, it means that they have a secret that could cause shame or controversy if it were to be exposed – the way the person is perceived…
-
Exercise: The Weary Blues
After having read and listened to The Weary Blues, have a look at this exercise. You may be intrigued by its use of rhyme and rhythm. If you are having trouble with some of the tasks, feel free to have a look at our post on Rhyme and Meter.
-
Idiom of the Week: Kill two birds with one stone
This week’s idiom is a very common expression not only in English, but also in a lot of different languages around the world: to kill two birds with one stone. While the precise phrasing of the idioms understandably differs between the languages – some prefer killing rabbits or flies – they all share the meaning…
-
Poetry: Rhyme and Meter
When you read a poem, the differences between written prose and poetic language often stand out immediately. The most apparent differences are two of the most basic qualities of poetry: rhyme and meter. We hope to give you an overview of both concepts which are helpful to know when reading a poem.
-
Idiom of the Week: Add fuel to the fire
If you hear someone is adding fuel to the fire it means that they are causing a conflict or tense situation to worsen, making it even more tense than it already was. This is a common and straightforward idiom and it is usually used when someone instigates further conflict through provocative statements – even if…
-
Weekly poem: The Tyger
by William Blake Tyger Tyger, burning bright, In the forests of the night; What immortal hand or eye, Could frame thy fearful symmetry?