Objectives

• Analyse how Yeats uses the falcon–falconer image in lines 1–3 to establish a controlling metaphor for political and civilisational collapse.
• Explain how Yeats's gyre theory, as context, shapes the poem's argument that a new and terrifying historical cycle is beginning.
• Identify how the shift from octave to sestet (line 9, 'Surely some revelation is at hand') marks a structural turn and link it to the poem's meaning.
• Analyse how Yeats constructs the Rough Beast — its body, gaze, movement, and destination — to create a figure of dread that deliberately inverts Christian expectation.
• Write a fully evidenced analytical paragraph that embeds a quotation, analyses language or form, and connects the poem to its 1919 context.

The sequence

1. Lesson 1: Falcons, Gyres, and a World Unravelling: Close Reading 'The Second Coming'

   55 min · ch. 1

   Do now

   Read lines 1–3 ('Turning and turning in the widening gyre / The falcon cannot hear the falconer; / Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold'). The lines depict a falcon that is spinning in a widening circle, unable to hear its handler. I think the falcon might symbolize freedom or chaos, while the falconer could represent authority or guidance that is losing control.

   Teacher input

   Model a close reading of lines 1–8 (the first movement of the poem). Pay special attention to the word 'widening': the gyre doesn't just spin — it expands outward, indicating that the distance between falcon and falconer is not static but is continually increasing. Help students see how this single participial adjective captures Yeats's entire theory of history as an accelerating spiral. Next, look at 'the ceremony of innocence is drowned' (line 6): demonstrate how the passive voice removes any agent — no one is responsible for drowning it; it simply becomes overwhelmed — and how 'ceremony' suggests that what's lost goes beyond innocence to include the rituals and structures that bind society together. Compare the passive, helpless 'best' in line 6 with the active, dynamic 'worst' in lines 7–8 to illustrate Yeats's assessment of political crisis.

   Independent task

   Students will independently annotate lines 9–22 (from 'Surely some revelation is at hand' to the final line) and respond to three questions printed on their annotation sheets: (1) What does the phrase 'Spiritus Mundi' reveal about the source of this vision, and why is that significant? (2) Identify every physical detail Yeats describes about the Sphinx-like creature and discuss the emotion each detail evokes. (3) In the last two lines, Yeats poses a question instead of making a statement — what impact does leaving the ending as an unanswered question have? After completing their annotations, students will return their sheets with written answers to all three questions.

   Exit ticket

   In one sentence, explain what the 'rough beast' represents and why Yeats sends it toward Bethlehem rather than anywhere else — what does that destination add to the poem's meaning?

2. Lesson 2: Writing the Beast: Constructing an Exam-Style Analytical Paragraph on Dread and Prophecy

   55 min · ch. 1

   Do now

   Without consulting your notes, jot down: (a) a quotation from the poem that you find particularly unsettling, and (b) the one word from that quotation that stands out the most. You have four minutes. Be prepared to explain your choices.

   Teacher input

   Analytical Paragraph Construction

   To explore how Yeats uses the figure of the Rough Beast to convey post-war dread, consider the lines: "A shape with lion body and the head of a man, / A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun, / Is moving its slow thighs…" Here, Yeats describes the beast's gaze as "blank and pitiless as the sun," effectively embedding the quotation within the analysis. The simile highlights the sun’s duality: while it sustains life, it is also indifferent and blinding. This comparison strips the beast of any moral nuance, suggesting that it embodies a chilling, impersonal force. In the context of 1919, following the upheaval of the Russian Revolution and the devastation of World War I, such mass violence felt similarly detached and relentless. Thus, Yeats not only paints a vivid picture of the Rough Beast but also reflects the pervasive dread that characterized a world grappling with the aftermath of chaos and brutality.

   Summary of Changes

   • Rephrased to improve flow and clarity while retaining the original meaning.
   • Integrated the quotation seamlessly into the analysis.
   • Clarified the implications of the simile and its connection to historical context.

   Independent task

   Students are required to compose a complete analytical paragraph (around 150–200 words) addressing the question: 'How does Yeats convey the notion that history is heading toward catastrophe in "The Second Coming"?' In their response, they should: choose one quotation from lines 1–8 and another from lines 13–22; incorporate both quotations smoothly; analyze at least one specific word or technique from each; and include at least one reference to Yeats's historical context (1919, the gyre theory, or the inversion of Christian prophecy). Students will submit their paragraph either on paper or digitally to receive written feedback.

   Exit ticket

   Underline the single sentence in your paragraph where you move from analysing the language to connecting it to context — if you cannot find that sentence, write it now in the margin.

Activities

Assessment

• Do-Now (Lesson 1): checks whether students can move from literal to figurative reading of the falcon–falconer image without teacher scaffolding.
• Annotation sheet (Lesson 1 independent task): checks whether students can identify specific physical details of the Rough Beast and articulate the emotional effect of each.
• Exit ticket (Lesson 1): checks whether students understand the significance of Bethlehem as a destination — i.e., that it inverts rather than fulfils Christian prophecy.
• Do-Now (Lesson 2): checks retention of specific quotations from Lesson 1 and whether students can identify a single word as a site of meaning.
• Paragraph peer-assessment checklist (Activity 5): checks whether students can recognise the difference between evidence that is embedded and evidence that is dropped, and whether context is connected rather than bolted on.
• Exit ticket (Lesson 2): checks whether students have successfully made the language-to-context move in their own writing, which is the key skill being assessed.

Standards covered

Common Core 11 12

• RL.11-12.1 — Cite strong and thorough textual evidence to support analysis of what the text says explicitly as well as inferences drawn from the text.
• RL.11-12.4 — Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in the text, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyse the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone.
• RL.11-12.5 — Analyse how an author's choices concerning how to structure specific parts of a text contribute to its overall structure and meaning.
• RL.11-12.9 — Demonstrate knowledge of eighteenth-, nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century foundational works of American and world literature, including how two or more texts from the same period treat similar themes or topics.

AP Literature

• Literary Argumentation (LAN-1): Explain the function of specific words and phrases in a literary text, including connotation, figurative language, and syntax.
• Character (CHR-1): Explain the function of a character, including how character is developed through imagery and symbol.
• Structure (STR-1): Explain the function of structure in a text, including how the shift at line 9 contributes to the poem's argument.
• Figurative Language (FIG-1): Explain the function of a simile, metaphor, or symbol and its contribution to the text's meaning — specifically the falcon–falconer metaphor and the 'blank and pitiless as the sun' simile.
• Literary and Intellectual Context (LAN-1.E): Explain how a text reflects its historical and cultural context — here, post-WWI disillusionment and Yeats's gyre theory.

AQA

• AO1 — Articulate informed, personal and creative responses to literary texts, using associated concepts and terminology, and coherent, accurate written expression.
• AO2 — Analyse ways in which meanings are shaped in literary texts, including Yeats's use of the gyre metaphor, the passive voice in 'the ceremony of innocence is drowned,' and the simile 'blank and pitiless as the sun.'
• AO3 — Demonstrate understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which literary texts are written and received — specifically the post-WWI crisis of 1919 and Yeats's occult system in A Vision.
• AO4 — Explore connections across literary texts — applicable when comparing Yeats's vision of historical collapse with other modernist texts.

Edexcel

• AO1 — Articulate informed, personal and creative responses to literary texts, using associated concepts and terminology and coherent, accurate written expression.
• AO2 — Analyse ways in which meanings are shaped in literary texts — here, how Yeats's diction, imagery, and structural turn at line 9 construct a vision of catastrophe.
• AO3 — Demonstrate understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which literary texts are written and received, including the political upheaval of 1919 and Yeats's private mythology.
• AO5 — Communicate clearly, effectively and accurately in a written analytical paragraph that embeds evidence and sustains an argument.