š Early as it was, every one had breakfasted, and my basin of bread and milk was put on the oven-top to await my coming down. Every one was gone about their work. The first to come into the house-place was Phillis with a basket of eggs. Faithful to my resolution, I asked – ‘What are those?’ She looked at me […]
Lesson #173: The Passive Voice in Gaskell’s ‘Cousin Phillis’ Read More Ā»
š ‘Ah, you’re fine and strong, arn’t you?’ said Silas, while Eppie shool her aching arms and laughed. ‘Come, come, let us go and sit down on the bank against the stile there, and have no more lifting. You might hurt yourself, child. You’d need have somebody to work for you – and my arm
š Here was one of the advantages of having lived alone so long! The little bustling, active, cheerful creature existed entirely within herself, talked to herself, made a confidante of herself, was as sarcastic as she could be, on people who offended her, by herself; pleased herself, and did no harm. If she indulged in
š I am sharing a poem today that I particularly like: ‘The Lake Isle of Innisfree’ by Irish poet William Butler Yeats (1865-1939). Yeats’ poem rings a chord in these days when we cannot readily travel but can only dream of places of tranquil beauty. In English, we often speak of such places as ‘oases’
Lesson #157: An Oasis to Dream About: Yeats’ ‘The Lake Isle of Innisfree’ Read More Ā»
One thing we might overlook when reading the first stanza of Emily Bronte’s poem, ‘Faith and Despondency,’ is how the poet used the imperative tense consistently. When we are first taught the imperative tense, we are usually given examples that emphasise a command or order: āStop that!ā or āListen to her!ā or āBuy now!ā As
Mini-Lesson Monday: (Part 1) šWelcome November!š As I sit at my desk, gazing out of the window at the wind and rain (yes, it is stormy here in Ireland as I write), I appreciate the warmth and cosiness indoors. Often, during weather like this, the adjective āwutheringā comes to mind ā the same adjective that
The last day of October, Halloween, or āAll Hallowās Eveā as it used to be called! I personally don’t like dark and spooky stories, so to end the month of October, I’m going to share with you something bright and cheerful: a picture of the sun shining on the birch trees at the bottom of
Lesson #131: All Hallow’s Eve Reflections On Autumn, With Scottish Poet James Thomson Read More Ā»
Over the last few days I have been listening to several podcasts and YouTube videos while doing housework.Ā Almost all of these are hosted by English speakers from the U.S.A., and I noticed how many expressions are used in conversational American English that arenāt typically employed in the U.K. or Ireland. Many English language learners
Lesson #124: Some Ways British English Expressions Can Differ From American Expressions Read More Ā»