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Australian Ballad Poetic Devices

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Australian Ballad Poetic Devices

Read the original ballad below, then investigate how its sounds and images create meaning. Use evidence from the poem in your answers.

The Lifesaving Bell

At dawn the surf club faced the sea, beneath a paling sky; The flags flew fierce above the sand, the gulls wheeled high. A sudden shout split through the wind: “A swimmer’s drifting wide!” Young Ivy raced across the foam; brave Cooper reached the tide. The waves were walls of hammered glass, their green backs rearing high; The rescue board rode like a gull beneath the storm-dark sky. They pulled the swimmer safely in, while rain came drumming down; And cheers rolled round the clubhouse like a wave across the town. When evening laid its copper shawl across the quiet shore, The bell rang once; the brave crew knew what teamwork stood here for.

1.Which description best fits the poem’s central event?

A crew rescues a swimmer during rough weather.
A crew prepares for a beach picnic.
A swimmer discovers a shell at low tide.
A storm damages an empty clubhouse.

2.In “The waves were walls of hammered glass”, what poetic device is used, and what does it suggest about the sea?

3.Copy one example of alliteration from the poem. Name the repeated starting sound.

4.“The rescue board rode like a gull” compares two things using the word “like”. What is this device called?

Simile
Metaphor
Rhyme
Personification

5.Find an example of personification in the poem. Explain what human action or quality is given to something non-human.

6.Match each quoted phrase with its main poetic device.

“rain came drumming down”
“cheers rolled round the clubhouse like a wave”
“flags flew fierce”

Simile
Onomatopoeia
Alliteration

7.The poem has paired end rhymes in its first four lines. Write the two rhyming word pairs.

8.Why might a ballad writer use rhyme and a strong beat when telling a dramatic rescue story?

9.True or false: “the gulls wheeled high” is an example of onomatopoeia. Explain your choice.

10.Write a new ballad-style line about the surf lifesaving crew. Include one simile or metaphor and one example of alliteration. Underline or identify each device.