Speaker — English definition
Defined in 2 courses:
- The constructed voice within a poem. (English 6)
- The created voice speaking in a poem. (English 7: Reading, Evidence & Expression)
Where it is taught
- Poetry: Speaker, Image, Sound & Form — Poetry, Drama & Whole-Book Reading, English 6, Grade 6
- Poetry: Speaker, Tone & Shifts — Poetry, Drama & Comparison, English 7: Reading, Evidence & Expression, Grade 7
In use
A speaker is the voice constructed within a poem, not automatically the author.
Poetry: Speaker, Image, Sound & Form
A poem’s speaker is its created voice, not automatically its author.
Poetry: Speaker, Tone & Shifts
Questions using speaker
Problem 1
Answer and explanation
The created voice speaking in a poem. A poem may invent a voice with a particular situation, limited knowledge, or attitude. Identify what that voice actually says. Calling it the speaker avoids treating a fictional first person as evidence about the writer’s personal life. A biography would require a different source.
Use the model to discuss reasoning after an independent attempt. A different accurate supported response can be correct; written work needs human marking.
Problem 2
Answer and explanation
The opening associates a straight border with trust, suggesting confidence in a controlled arrangement. The crossing question and persistent mark complicate that confidence. Putting down the ruler at lines 9–10 suggests greater openness to what the arrangement excluded. The poem does not supply the course author’s personal biography.
Use the model to discuss reasoning after an independent attempt. A different accurate supported response can be correct; written work needs human marking.
Problem 3
Answer and explanation
This claim is misleading. A shift changes an attitude, focus, or expectation. Compare the opening trust in a straight border with the question that crosses it and the mark that remains. The change develops across those actions, not through an announced moral at the end. The opening associates a straight border with trust, suggesting confidence in a controlled arrangement. The crossing question and persistent mark complicate that confidence. Putting down the ruler at lines 9–10 suggests greater openness to what the arrangement excluded. The poem does not supply the course author’s personal biography.
Use the model to discuss reasoning after an independent attempt. A different accurate supported response can be correct; written work needs human marking.
Problem 4
Answer and explanation
No. Quiet language can accompany uncertainty or a changed assumption. Compare the trust in the border with the persistent mark and final listening.
Use the model to discuss reasoning after an independent attempt. A different accurate supported response can be correct; written work needs human marking.