Key Vocabulary
Define the following vocabulary:
• unconquerable • bludgeoning
• clutch
• wrath
• circumstance
• menace
• Winced
• scroll
• soul
• fate
Invictus
By William Earnest Henley
Out of the night that covers me
Black as the Pit from pole to pole
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade.
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul.
Preview
After listening to the reading of the poem, write a
sentence or two….
• What is the topic of this poem?
• What is theme? (author’s message)
Reading of Invictus Poem
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul.
There is a movie using the theme of the Invictus
poem. Invictus movie clip
As you watch the clip, predict and infer…
• What is the topic of the movie?
• What is the theme/message of the
movie?
Integrating Sources
• When integrating sources into the flow of
ideas in a paper, we want to…
1.
2.
3.
4.
Name…
Provide…
Interpret…
Evaluate…
Writing Prompt
Explain what is happening in this poem? What is
the author’s theme (message)? What IB Learner
Profile Terms fit this poem? Why? Provide
evidence from the poem (Introducing sources),
Invictus, to support your answers.
Put this at the end of your writing as your Bibliography reference.
Henley, William Earnest. "Invictus." 1875. www.poemhunter.com/poem/invictus/.
09/11/2013.