Robert Louis Stevenson, Escape at Bedtime

National Poetry Day postcards, Scotland 2012
teachers’ notes

Robert Louis Stevenson, Escape at Bedtime

THE POET AND HIS WORK

Robert Louis Stevenson was born in Edinburgh on 13 November 1850, into a family of lighthouse engineers. Despite making an attempt at studying engineering, and then studying and qualifying as a lawyer, by the time he was in his early twenties it was apparent to Stevenson himself, and eventually to his parents, that to be a writer was his calling. The ill-health that had dogged him from his earliest childhood had provided him with the space and time in which his imagination could flourish; it also gave him the constant companionship of his nurse, Alison Cunningham, who fed him a diet of Bible stories and Covenanting history, as well as tuning his young ear to a rich variety of the Scots language.

Although his travels in search of a climate conducive to better health kept him away from Scotland, much of his fiction reflects his deep interest in his native land. The conflicting currents of the country’s history, and its perceived dualism of national character are reflected in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and in the relationship between the two very different heroes of Kidnapped. (Both books were published in 1886.)

Most famous for his novels, Stevenson was also a poet. He is probably best known for A Child’s Garden of Verses, but he also wrote much lyric poetry, and a range of lively verse in Scots.

He settled in Samoa in 1890, and died there in December 1894.

THE POEM

In A Child's Garden of Verses, ‘Escape at Bedtime’ is numbered 21 (of 41). A Child's Garden of Verses was published in 1885, when Stevenson was living in Bournemouth.

READING THE POEM – NOTES & QUESTIONS

Think about the title of the poem.

Who is escaping – and from what?
Where do they escape to?

There are two kinds of lights in the poem – those in the first two lines, and the ‘stars’.

Describe some of the differences between the two kinds of lights.

Which words tell you how many stars were there?
In the poem, what are the stars doing? Look for the verbs that will tell you.
Only one word in the poem is used twice for a rhyme – which word is it?
What happens at the end of the poem (the last two lines)?

DISCUSSION

Describe some places where you have seen the stars

at or near your home
somewhere far from your home

In groups, make a list of any

planets
comets or meteors
stars
constellations
galaxies

which you know the names of.

What is

a star?
a planet?
the difference between a star and a planet?

In the poem, when the child thinks of lots of people together, he imagines a “church or the Park”.

Where do you see lots of people together?
What is the atmosphere like there?
How do you feel as you arrive – when you are in the middle of things – when you leave?

Today (though not in Stevenson’s time) the word ’star’ also means someone who is famous for being good at something – we talk about ‘film stars’, or ‘star players’.

Why do you think the word ‘star’ is used in this way now?
What is the connection between fame and skill, and the lights we see shining in the sky?

RESEARCH

Three constellations are mentioned in the poem – “The Dog, and the Plough, and the Hunter”.

Find out what these constellations look like – and if you are out at night, see if you can spot them.
Find out the names of the stars that make them up.
These constellations are sometimes known by other names – what are they?

Read other poems from A Child's Garden of Verses. In groups, choose a poem, and recite or illustrate it.

Find out about Robert Louis Stevenson’s life and work.

Where he was born, and where did he grow up?
Where did he live as an adult?
Where did he travel?
Which are his best known books?
Which are his best known characters?
If you have read any other books or poems by Stevenson, which is your favourite?
Which is your favourite Stevenson character?

CREATIVE ACTIVITY

Write a poem about seeing the stars in the night sky.

Think about where and when you see them – indoors or our-of-doors, at home or away from home, in summer or winter, last thing at night or first thing in the morning.
In your first stanza, describe the lights around you – perhaps in your room, or lamposts, or cars going by – and then describe the stars you can see – perhaps lots, as in ‘Escape at Bedtime’, or perhaps just one or two.
In your second stanza, describe how seeing the stars makes you feel, and why you stop looking at them – perhaps you’re made to go to bed, or fall asleep, or the sun comes up.
You don’t have to use rhymes, but if you do, try to rhyme at least once on the word ‘star’ (or ‘stars’).

FURTHER READING & LINKS
Books by Robert Louis Stevenson
The Collected Poems of Robert Louis Stevenson, edited by Roger C. Lewis (Edinburgh University Press, 2003)

A Child’s Garden of Verses (Mainstream, 1995)
Many editions are available; this is a facsimile of the first edition.

Websites

SPL page on Robert Louis Stevenson

National Library of Scotland digital resource

“the most comprehensive web resource dedicated to Robert Louis Stevenson, designed for all: academics, school children and everybody interested in learning about RLS”

E-book version of A Child’s Garden of Verses
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Ken Cockburn

July 2012

National Poetry Day Scotland & loads more ideas for working with poetry