
Poem News Break: Meaning, Themes, Moral Values and Moral Lesson
Meaning
Stanza One
Now why so loving,darling,
The persona, who is the
parent(father/mother), is
asking his/her child the reason
for being in a loving mood
And why the sudden kiss?
The child does not usually kiss
his/her parent, so the sudden
kiss is a surprise
You’d help me with some little jobs?
The persona/parent asks if the
child wants to help him/her
For goodness sake, what’s this?
The persona/parent finds the
child’s behaviour quite strange
/ not normal
Stanza Two
Your face is clean for once, dear.
The child’s face is normally
dirty but not today
Your clothes without a crease.
His/her clothes are neat and
not crumpled/creased
You saved your luncheon money?
The persona/parent is
shocked that the child does
not spend all the money given
to him/her to buy lunch
Will wonders never
cease?
The persona/parent finds it
amazing and still cannot
believe what he/she sees
Stanza Three
No dropping of your
school books,
Usually, the child would just
drop his/her schoolbooks
when he/she gets home
No shrieking, childish
treble.
and would be making a lot of
noise
Today, you are a lamb,
love,
but today, he/she is very well
behaved – just like a lamb
Where yesterday a It was just yesterday when
rebel. the child was behaving badly
Stanza Four
But surely you’re some
stranger,
The persona/parent still
cannot believe that the child
is very good today – almost
like a stranger
No rage or hullabaloo. The child is not angry or
making a fuss
Come closer, let me
look, dear,
The persona/parent asks the
child to come nearer to
him/her
Can this be REALLY
you?
Still, the persona/parent
cannot believe the changes in
the child today (sudden &
drastic changes)
Stanza Five
Now were you struck
by lightning
The persona/parent asks
jokingly if the child was struck
by lightning (something very
tragic or dramatic)
Or were you stunned at
sport?
Or maybe the child was
shocked or surprised by bad
sports news
Ah…now I see the
reason.
Now, the persona/parent
realises the reason for the
child’s strange but good
behaviour today
You’ve brought your
school report!
The child has brought home
his/her school report, and from
his/her good behaviour, it
seems that he/she does not
want to be scolded by his/her
parent
Note : ‘darling’, ‘dear’ & ‘love’ are terms used by most parents
when talking to their children.
THEMES:
Honesty is the best policy
Courage
Respect your parents
Truth hurts but works
Hard work pays off
MORAL VALUES:
Honesty
Courage
Determination
Confidence
Respect
Truthfulness
MORAL LESSONS:
We must struggle for success
Always speak the truth
Respect our parents and those older than us
Always be on our best behaviour
Focus:
STANZA 1 : Surprise
STANZA 2 : Confusion
STANZA 3 : Comparison
STANZA 4 : Wonder
STANZA 5 : Realisation
Poem News Break: Muat Turun Nota
Nota Ringkas: Tingkatan 1