Section B · Anthology PoetryVernon Scannell · Mid-20th century (1950)
Hide and Seek
Vernon Scannell · Edexcel IGCSE anthology poem · 30-mark comparison question · Poems provided in the exam.
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Watch first — Mrs Rumsey
Mrs Rumsey · Edexcel IGCSE AnthologyAnalysis of Hide and Seek
Key analysis
⚡ Section B — 30-mark comparison: AO2 (analyse language, form, structure) + AO3 (compare two poems throughout — not one then the other). Both poems are given in the exam. Quote precisely and explain the effect of specific word choices.
Themes
Childhood innocence and its end
Loss and disappointment
Abandonment and loneliness
The gap between expectation and reality
The transition from childhood to adult awareness
Form & Structure
2-part structure: the child's confident voice, then the desolate realisation
Second person "you" throughout — implicates the reader in the child's experience
Sensory imagery — smell of old rot, sting of nettle — creates physical immersion
The shift from certainty ("you've won", "cool, calm, collected") to desolation ("they've all gone home")
The ending is abrupt and cold — no comfort, no resolution
Key quotes to memorise
"You've won the game. They've all gone home." — the moment of devastating realisation
"You feel the hot, wet, clammy air; / The soil beneath your feet is cold and wet" — sensory imprisonment
"They've gone; it's getting dark; it's time to go" — the adult world's indifference to the child's triumph
"The darkening garden watches. Nothing stirs." — pathetic fallacy, the world's cold indifference
Exam questions — 2 questions · 17 marks
1 markSecond person effect
Why does Scannell use the second person "you" throughout the poem?
A He is addressing a specific child he knows personally
B Using "you" implicates the reader directly in the child's experience, making the disappointment feel personally felt rather than observed from a distance — we are drawn into the child's abandonment
C The second person makes the poem seem more objective and less emotional
D He uses "you" because he cannot remember the child's name
15 marksComparison paragraphSection B style
Write two comparative paragraphs exploring how Hide and Seek and Half-past Two both present childhood experiences that an adult speaker reflects on with complex emotion.
Hint: Compare throughout. Cover: how each poem presents the child's perspective + sensory language + emotional arc + key difference (cold abandonment vs gentle nostalgia).