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Old Folks Home

The document describes the author's experience visiting an old folks home as a teenager to play chess. While there, a group of rowdy school students arrived on a field trip, distracting and annoying the elderly residents. The author's chess opponent made mistakes and lost the game due to the noise. The man expressed hope that the students brought biscuits, which he enjoyed. This experience moved the author and made them feel sympathy for the residents' lonely lives.

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2H2021 GOH KAI JUN
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2K views

Old Folks Home

The document describes the author's experience visiting an old folks home as a teenager to play chess. While there, a group of rowdy school students arrived on a field trip, distracting and annoying the elderly residents. The author's chess opponent made mistakes and lost the game due to the noise. The man expressed hope that the students brought biscuits, which he enjoyed. This experience moved the author and made them feel sympathy for the residents' lonely lives.

Uploaded by

2H2021 GOH KAI JUN
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Old Folks Home

How do you feel towards the old folks in the old folks’ home
in the first two stanzas of the poem?

I feel ___________ towards the old folks.

●pity
●sympathy
What are the literary devices that made you feel this
way?

● diction
● alliteration
● visual imagery
● metaphoric language
● ambiguity
Use of Irony
In an ironic expression,
two conflicting thoughts
are assembled one next
to the other or in a
sentence to make a
deeper impact.
Figure of Speech

a word or phrase used in a


non-literal sense for
rhetorical or vivid effect.
The Story behind the poem…..
The original seed of this poem - I still
remember. At that time, I was about 13. I
was visiting an old folks home, to play
chess with the old folks. It was a volunteer
trip, organised by a local chess club (I was
a member then).
The Story behind the poem…..
……..
So there I was, having a nice quiet game of chess
with a frail old man in a wheelchair. Then suddenly a
big group of school students showed up. It was their
school field trip. There were so many of them. Some
of the big boys were playful and rowdy. A teacher
started yelling at them to stand in line, keep quiet
and behave themselves. Many of the students, I
could tell, didn't even know what they were
supposed to be doing there.
The Story behind the poem…..
Most of the old folks looked either
indifferent or annoyed about the visiting
school boys. As for my chess opponent,
he was in a winning position. But
suddenly he made two bad moves in a
row, and lost. I felt bad, defeating him in
that way. He complained bitterly that the
school boys were making too much
noise and he couldn't concentrate.
The Story behind the poem…..
I told him that we could play again. He
sighed and said, never mind. Then he
brightened up and said in Mandarin,
"One thing about those school boys,
they often bring Khong Guan biscuits
for us. I don't like the boys, but I like
their Khong Guan biscuits. I hope they
brought some Khong Guan biscuits
today."
The Story behind the poem…..

He went on and on about his Khong


Guan biscuits. He wouldn't stop.
Something in that moment really moved
me. I put the chess pieces back into
their box. I felt sorry for this wrinkled old
man. He had so little left in his life to
look forward. Even Khong Guan
biscuits were a big deal for him. I
wished I'd thought of bringing a big tin
of Khong Guan biscuits, just for him.
STUDENT
COPY
Old Folks Home
How do you feel towards the old folks in the old folks’ home
in the first two stanzas of the poem?

I feel ___________ towards the old folks.

●_________
●_________
What are the literary devices that made you feel this
way?

● diction
● alliteration
● visual imagery
● metaphoric language
● ambiguity
Use of Irony
In an ironic expression,
two conflicting thoughts
are assembled one next
to the other or in a
sentence to make a
deeper impact.
Figure of Speech

a word or phrase used in a


non-literal sense for
rhetorical or vivid effect.

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