KS 3/4 SPANISH Activity 2 Literature

Literature & Poetry – Year 9 Activity 2
Background information:
The quality and abundance of literature and poetry written in Spanish, from Federico García
Lorca’s highly symbolic plays and poetry to Colombian writer Gabriel García Márquez’s
widely acclaimed novel Cien años de soledad and his hugely popular short stories, reveals
the rich culture and history of both Spain and Latin America. The exercises that follow are
based on poems and on short, adapted extracts from novels written by some of the most
accomplished and well-known writers in the Spanish language.
Exercise 1: Reading
Read the following extract from Gabriel García Márquez’s novella Crónica de una muerte
anunciada (‘Chronicle of a Death Foretold’). The extract is an adapted version of the first
paragraph of the story and introduces the narrative with an air of intrigue and mystery.
El día que lo mataron, Santiago Nasar se levantó a las 5.30 de la mañana para esperar el
barco del rey. La noche anterior soñó que cruzó un bosque en un avión de papel, y por un
instante fue feliz en el sueño, pero al despertar se sintió muy triste. «Siempre soñó con
árboles», me dijo Plácida Linero, su madre, acordando 27 años después de los detalles de
aquel lunes trágico. Su reputación de intérprete de sueños no le ayudó a interpretar el
sueño de su propio hijo la mañana en que él se murió.
Exercise 2: English translation and gap-fill activity
Read the English translation of the extract, below, and fill in the gaps with the correct
English translation of the missing words (highlighted in bold in the Spanish extract above).
On the day that they _killed_ him, Santiago Nasar __got up_ at 5.30 in the _morning__ to
wait for the king’s _boat__ . The night before he dreamt that he _crossed_ a forest in a
paper _aeroplane__ , and for one instant he was _happy__ in his dream, but _upon
waking/when he woke up_ he felt very _sad_ . “He always dreamt about trees”, Plácida
Linero, his mother, told me, remembering 27 years later the details of that _tragic
_Monday_ . Her reputation as an _interpreter__ of dreams did not help her to
__interpret__ her own son’s dream on the _morning__ on which he _died_ .
1
Villiers Park Educational Trust, Royston Road, Foxton, CB22 6SE www.villierspark.org.uk
Exercise 3: Comprehension exercise
Based on the extract you have read above, answer the following questions:
1. What are we told about the content of Santiago Nasar’s dream and what does it reveal
about his character?
We are told that Santiago Nasar dreamt that he crossed a forest in a paper aeroplane and
felt happy in his dream. The fact that he felt sad when he woke up suggests that he was
unhappy in his life and that dreams are a form of escape for him. Flying suggests freedom
and space, while the paper plane suggests a fantasy that is fragile and bound to shatter.
2. How many years ago did Santiago Nasar die?
Santiago Nasar died 27 years ago, according to the narrator.
3. How would you describe the style, tone and language of the extract?
The style is simple and straightforward, using vocabulary that is not ‘flowery’ or
particularly complex. In some ways the opening line is more journalistic than literary: the
information presented to us is delivered in a direct way that is quite blunt (‘On the day
that they killed him…’), and yet a lot of the facts are withheld from the reader - the
opening paragraph does not tell us who killed Santiago Nasar and why, only that he was
killed). The tone is therefore rather mysterious and deliberately confusing.
4. How many verbs in the preterite (past) tense appear in the Spanish extract?
There are 10 verbs conjugated in the preterite (past) tense in total, as follows:
1. mataron
2. se levantó
3. soñó
4. cruzó
5. fue
6. se sintió
7. soñó
8. dijo
9. ayudó
10.se murió
2
Villiers Park Educational Trust, Royston Road, Foxton, CB22 6SE www.villierspark.org.uk
5. Conjugate the verb levantarse in the preterite (past) tense:
Yo me levanté
Tú te levantaste
Él/ella se levantó
Vosotros os levantasteis
Nosotros nos levantamos
Ellos/ellas/ustedes se levantaron
6. What information can you find out about the author of this text, Gabriel García Márquez, his
life and his writing?
The Wikipedia link on García Márquez contains comprehensive details of his life and
writing. Students might be interested to learn that he has worked as a journalist and
screen writer in the past, that he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1982, and that he
caused scandal by becoming friends and political allies with Fidel Castro, President of
Cuba.
Exercise 4: Reading and completing a poem
Read the following poem about happiness and complete each sentence with the words
you feel are most appropriate. For example ‘El día más bello, tu cumpleaños’ (‘the most
beautiful day, your birthday’).
Consejos para ser feliz (‘Advice on how to be happy’), anonymous.
The original poem in its entirety:
El día más bello, hoy.
La cosa más fácil, equivocarse.
El obstáculo más grande, el miedo.
La distracción más bella, el trabajo.
Los mejores maestros, los niños.
La mayor felicidad, ser útil a los demás.
El peor defecto, el mal humor.
El regalo más bello, el perdón.
La ruta más rápida, el camino correcto.
El arma más eficaz, la sonrisa.
El mejor remedio, el optimismo.
Los seres más necesitados, los padres.
Lo más hermoso de todo, el amor.
3
Villiers Park Educational Trust, Royston Road, Foxton, CB22 6SE www.villierspark.org.uk
Exercise 5: Reading and reciting
Read the following first verse from a poem by the Spanish poet and playwright Federico
García Lorca called Romance Sonámbulo, meaning ‘The Sleepwalker Ballad’. Once you
have read the poem through two or three times, practise reading it aloud in order to get a
sense of the rhythms and sounds of the verse.
Verde que te quiero verde.
Verde viento. Verdes ramas.
El barco sobre la mar
y el caballo en la montaña.
Con la sombra en la cintura
ella sueña en su baranda,
verde carne, pelo verde,
con ojos de fría plata.
Verde que te quiero verde.
Bajo la luna gitana,
las cosas la están mirando
y ella no puede mirarlas.
Exercise 6: Now read the English translation below and then recite it aloud .
Green how I want you green.
Green wind. Green branches.
The ship on the sea
And the horse on the mountain.
With shadow round her waist
She dreams on her veranda,
Green flesh, hair of green
And eyes of cold silver.
Green how I want you green.
Under the gypsy moon
Things are staring at her,
Things she cannot see.
4
Villiers Park Educational Trust, Royston Road, Foxton, CB22 6SE www.villierspark.org.uk
Exercise 7: Comprehension questions
Federico García Lorca was famous for his use of symbols in his poetry, particularly colours,
animals and names that were meant to be highly symbolic of abstract ideas.
1. What do you think the colour green might symbolise in this poem and why?
The colour green in Lorca’s work is often said to symbolise death, decay and
stagnation. The students may well come up with alternative interpretations,
especially as the symbolism of the poem is difficult to determine from just one
short verse. In this verse green could in fact symbolise hope, new life, freshness
and innocence, although the phrase ‘green flesh’ has a definite connotation of
death and decay.
2. What could the other objects described in the poem represent, including the wind,
the sea, the horse, eyes of cold silver, the gypsy moon, etc.?
Wind = freedom, wild abandon, escape, danger
Sea = as above, as well as travel, drowning, depth and darkness
Horse = escape, wildness, masculinity
Eyes of cold silver = death, hatred
Gypsy moon = magic, mystery, the unknowable world beyond
Exercise 8: Composition
Now compose your own short poem in Spanish using the colour green as the central theme.
What does green symbolise to you; what shorts of images and objects come to your mind
when you imagine this colour?
Be creative! Your poem does not have to rhyme and can be simple and brief, but you should
try to draw the attention of the reader or listener with strong imagery and symbolism if
possible.
Exercise 9: Presentations
Once you have composed your own short poem, recite your verse to your class in Spanish.
Your class mates and teacher may want to ask you questions about the subject of your
poem, the kinds of images and symbols you have used and why you have used them.
5
Villiers Park Educational Trust, Royston Road, Foxton, CB22 6SE www.villierspark.org.uk
Online Resources:
On Gabriel García Márquez and Crónica de una muerte anunciada:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel_Garc%C3%ADa_M%C3%A1rquez
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chronicle_of_a_Death_Foretold
On Federico García Lorca:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federico_Garc%C3%ADa_Lorca
http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/163
On Spanish Literature:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_literature
On Latin American Literature:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_American_literature
6
Villiers Park Educational Trust, Royston Road, Foxton, CB22 6SE www.villierspark.org.uk
Student Version - Literature & Poetry
Background information:
The quality and abundance of literature and poetry written in Spanish, from Federico García
Lorca’s highly symbolic plays and poetry to Colombian writer Gabriel García Márquez’s
widely acclaimed novel Cien años de soledad and his hugely popular short stories, reveals
the rich culture and history of both Spain and Latin America. The exercises that follow are
based on poems and on short, adapted extracts from novels written by some of the most
accomplished and well-known writers in the Spanish language.
Exercise 1: Reading
Read the following extract from Gabriel García Márquez’s novella Crónica de una muerte
anunciada (‘Chronicle of a Death Foretold’), then fill in the gaps in the English translation.
El día que lo mataron, Santiago Nasar se levantó a las 5.30 de la mañana para esperar el
barco del rey. La noche anterior soñó que cruzó un bosque en un avión de papel, y por un
instante fue feliz en el sueño, pero al despertar se sintió muy triste. «Siempre soñó con
árboles», me dijo Plácida Linero, su madre, acordando 27 años después de los detalles de
aquel lunes trágico. Su reputación de intérprete de sueños no le ayudó a interpretar el
sueño de su propio hijo la mañana en que él se murió.
Exercise 2: English translation and gap-fill activity
Read the English translation of the extract, below, and fill in the gaps with the correct
English translation of the missing words (highlighted in bold above).
On the day that they _______ him, Santiago Nasar ___________ at 5.30 in the __________
to wait for the king’s _______ . The night before he dreamt that he __________ a forest in a
paper ___________ , and for one instant he was __________ in his dream, but _______
___________ he felt very ______ . “He always dreamt about trees”, Plácida Linero, his
mother, told me, remembering 27 years later the details of that _________ __________ .
Her reputation as an _______________ of dreams did not help her to ___________ her own
son’s dream on the __________ on which he __________ .
7
Villiers Park Educational Trust, Royston Road, Foxton, CB22 6SE www.villierspark.org.uk
Exercise 3: Comprehension exercise
Based on the extract you have read above, answer the following questions:
1. What are we told about the content of Santiago Nasar’s dream and what does it
reveal about his character?
2. How many years ago did Santiago Nasar die?
3. How would you describe the style, tone and language of the extract?
4. How many verbs in the preterite (past) tense appear in the Spanish extract?
5. Conjugate the verb levantarse in the preterite (past) tense:
Yo
_______________
Tú
_______________
Él/ella _______________
Vosotros _______________
Nosotros _______________
Ellos/ellas/ustedes _______________
6. What information can you find out about the author of this text, Gabriel García
Márquez, his life and his writing?
Exercise 4: Reading and completing a poem
Read the following poem about happiness and complete each sentence with the words
you feel are most appropriate. For example ‘El día más bello, tu cumpleaños’ (‘the most
beautiful day, your birthday’).
8
Villiers Park Educational Trust, Royston Road, Foxton, CB22 6SE www.villierspark.org.uk
Consejos para ser feliz (‘Advice on how to be happy’)
El día más bello, ____________.
La cosa más fácil, ____________.
El obstáculo más grande, ____________.
La distracción más bella, ____________.
Los mejores maestros, ____________.
La mayor felicidad, ____________.
El peor defecto, ____________.
El regalo más bello, ____________.
La ruta más rápida, ____________.
El arma más eficaz, ____________.
El mejor remedio, ____________.
Los seres más necesitados, ____________.
Lo más hermoso de todo, ____________.
Exercise 5: Reading and reciting
Read the following first verse from a poem by the Spanish poet and playwright Federico
García Lorca called Romance Sonámbulo, meaning ‘The Sleepwalker Ballad’. Once you
have read the poem through two or three times, practise reading it aloud in order to get a
sense of the rhythms and sounds of the verse.
Verde que te quiero verde.
Verde viento. Verdes ramas.
El barco sobre la mar
y el caballo en la montaña.
Con la sombra en la cintura
ella sueña en su baranda,
verde carne, pelo verde,
con ojos de fría plata.
Verde que te quiero verde.
Bajo la luna gitana,
las cosas la están mirando
y ella no puede mirarlas.
9
Villiers Park Educational Trust, Royston Road, Foxton, CB22 6SE www.villierspark.org.uk
Exercise 6: Now read the English translation below and then recite it aloud .
Green how I want you green.
Green wind. Green branches.
The ship on the sea
And the horse on the mountain.
With shadow round her waist
She dreams on her veranda,
Green flesh, hair of green
And eyes of cold silver.
Green how I want you green.
Under the gypsy moon
Things are staring at her,
Things she cannot see.
Exercise 7: Comprehension questions
Federico García Lorca was famous for his use of symbols in his poetry, particularly colours,
animals and names that were meant to be highly symbolic of abstract ideas.
1. What do you think the colour green might symbolise in this poem and why?
2. What could the other objects described in the poem represent, including the wind,
the sea, the horse, eyes of cold silver, the gypsy moon, etc.?
Exercise 8: Composition
Now compose your own short poem in Spanish using the colour green as the central theme.
What does green symbolise to you; what shorts of images and objects come to your mind
when you imagine this colour?
Be creative! Your poem does not have to rhyme and can be simple and brief, but you should
try to draw the attention of the reader or listener with strong imagery and symbolism if
possible.
Exercise 9: Presentations
Once you have composed your own short poem, recite your verse to your class in Spanish.
Your classmates and teacher may want to ask you questions about the subject of your poem,
the kinds of images and symbols you have used and why you have used them.
10
Villiers Park Educational Trust, Royston Road, Foxton, CB22 6SE www.villierspark.org.uk