NEWS BREAK

By: Max Fatchen

Now why so loving, darling,
And why the sudden kiss?
You’d help me with some little jobs?
For goodness sake, what’s this?
In the first stanza, the parent is wondering why
his child’s behaviour is suddenly
so loving.Thechild even gives a kiss to the
parent and the parent is bewildered that the
child offers help. The parent desperately wants
to know the reason for the sudden change.
Your face is clean for once, dear,
Your clothes without a crease.
You saved your luncheon money?
Will wonders never cease?
In the second stanza, the parent is surprised to see the
child’s face neat and tidy. The child’s clothes are also
neat as if it has been ironed and has no crumples. The
parent is also shocked to know that the child did not
spend his money for lunch that day as he usually does.
The parent is astonished with all the surprises that he
is getting and thinks when it would all end.
No dropping of your school books,
No shrieking, childish treble.
Today you are a lamb, love,
Where yesterday a rebel.
In the next stanza or stanza 3, the parent is surprised that
his child did not drop his school books as he returns
home. The child does not scream or show an outburst of
anger. The parent praises the child for his good behaviour
that day as the child acts like a gentle lamb when just the
previous day, the child was going against his parent.
But surely you’re some stranger,
No rage or hullabaloo.
Come closer, let me look, dear,
Can this be REALLY you?
In stanza 4, the parent feels as if the child is a stranger to him –
like a new person.
The child does not show any anger or any emotional
disturbance. Therefore, the parent asks the child to come
closer so that he can see his child better as he wonders if that
is really his child.
• Now were you struck by lightning
Or were you stunned at sport?
Ah … now I see the reason.
You’ve brought your school report!
– Max Fatchen
That brings us to the last stanza, stanza five, where he
also wonders whether his child had been struck by
lightning or injured during sports that has made him
temporarily unable to react. Finally, he understands
the real reason for the change as he noticed that the
child has brought his school progress report.
 MEANING
EVERY STANZA
-NEWS BREAK-
 Stanza One
Line Line Interpretation
no.

1 Now why so loving, darling, The persona, who is the

2 And why the sudden kiss?
parent(father/mother), is asking
his/her child the reason for being in a
loving mood
The child does not usually kiss his/her
parent, so the sudden kiss is a surprise

3 You’d help me with some little The persona/parent asks if the child
jobs?
wants to help him/her
4 For goodness sake, what’s The persona/parent finds the child’s
this?
behaviour quite strange / not normal
 Stanza Two
Line Line Interpretation
no.

1 Your face is clean for once,
dear.
2 Your clothes without a crease.
3 You saved your luncheon
money?
The child’s face is normally dirty but not
today
His/her clothes are neat and not
crumpled/creased
The persona/parent is shocked that the
child does not spend all the money given
to him/her to buy lunch

4 Will wonders never cease? The persona/parent finds it amazing and

still cannot believe what he/she sees
 Stanza Three
Line Line Interpretation
no.
1 No dropping of your school Usually, the child would just drop
books,
his/her schoolbooks when
he/she gets home
2 No shrieking, childish and would be making a lot of
treble.
noise
3 Today, you are a lamb, love, but today, he/she is very well
behaved – just like a lamb
4 Where yesterday a rebel. It was just yesterday when the
child was behaving badly
 Stanza Four
Line Line Interpretation
no.

1 But surely you’re some The persona/parent still cannot

stranger,
believe that the child is very good
today – almost like a stranger
2 No rage or hullabaloo. The child is not angry or making a fuss

3 Come closer, let me look, The persona/parent asks the child to

dear,
come nearer to him/her
4 Can this be REALLY you? Still, the persona/parent cannot
believe the changes in the child today
(sudden & drastic changes)
 Stanza Five
Line Line Interpretation
no.

1 Now were you struck by The persona/parent asks jokingly if the

lightning
2 Or were you stunned at sport? Or maybe the child was shocked or
3 Ah…now I see the reason.
4 You’ve brought your school
report!
child was struck by lightning
(something very tragic or dramatic)
surprised by bad sports news
Now, the persona/parent realises the
reason for the child’s strange but good
behaviour today
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
 WORDS YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW:
1. clothes without a crease
baju tidak berkedut 衣服没有奏摺

2. luncheon money: duit makan tengah hari

午餐的零用钱

3.Will wonders never cease? adakah keajaiban tidak akan berhenti?

奇迹会停止吗？

4. No shrieking, childish treble:

Tiada jeritan 没有小孩的吵闹和尖叫声

5. Today you are a lamb, love:

hari ini awak mendengar kata 今天你很乖

6. yesterday a rebel:
Semalam awak seorang pemberontak 昨天很叛逆

7. No rage or hullabaloo: tiada kemarahan dan huru-hara

没有生气，大乱

8. struck by lightning: dipanah petir 被雷劈到

9. stunned
Terkejut 吓到

10. school report Laporan keputusan peperiksaan 成绩册

Point Of View
The first person point of view is used

Setting
The setting is in a house.
 SUMMARY OF THE POEM

1. The poem has six stanzas.

2. Each stanza consists of 4 lines.
3. It has a specific rhyme abcb.
4. The rhyming words make the poem sound musical.
5. It is about a child whose behaviour changes ant the puzzled parent learnt about the
reason at the end of the poem.
 THEMES

1. Honesty
We should be honest with our parents and always tell them the
truth. If we lie to them we might make them feel sad when they
find out. Also, if we are honest to our parents , we can avoid
unnecessary arguments. It can also improve our relationships
with one another
2. Becoming a good person
If we want others to treat us kindly, we must first
behave accordingly. In the poem, the child changes
his behavior so that the parent would not be upset
with him when the latter sees his school report.
3. Contrast in child’s behavior and their way of thinking
The poem mainly talks about how children usually behave. They can be
messy, loud and rebellious. They can also be kind, gentle and
compassionate. Depending on situations, children know how to act to
avoid from getting into trouble. The changes in behavior can sometimes
confuse parents. However, every change has a reason behind it in which
the child would not/never tell. Therefore, parents should investigate
whether the reason of the change is positive or negative.
THEMES:
•Honesty is the best policy
•Courage
•Respect your parents
•Truth hurts but works
•Hard work pays off
Tone
• The persona is surprised and astonished with the child’s behaviour. The poem creates a reflective
mood as the persona compares the child’s past and present behaviour. Overall, it is light-hearted
and a little humorous.
Metaphors
• The poet uses metaphor to describe the behaviour of the child. ‘Today you’re a lamb’ which shows
innocence and obedience when the child is compared to a lamb; and ‘Where yesterday a
rebel’ which shows disobedience and defiance when the child is said to be a rebel (lines 11 and 12)
Structure, Style and Language
• The poem consists of 5 stanzas with four lines and the rhyme scheme is ‘a, b, c, b’. The style is
simple and direct. The language and choice of words used is easy to understand as we can relate it
to what a child does.
The Title
• News Break means reporting something that is unusual. The title is used to indicate that the boy is
doing something unusual by showing a change in his behaviour.
 MORAL VALUES

1. We should be honest with our parents, even though

it make us feel bad.
2. We should not be afraid to tell our parents about out
results.
3. We should be responsible for all the things we do.
4. We should not find excuses for our mistakes.
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
QUIZ
1. From the line ‘ your face is
clean for once’ , what can you
say about ‘you’

he/she always has dirty

face .
2. What do you think ‘you’ would normally do
with his/her luncheon money?

spend it on food/snacks/soft drinks.

3. Who is ‘dear’?

A child
4. What normally happens to the
school books when the child
comes home?

The child will drop the school

books everywhere.
 5. In your opinion, how
would the child’s clothes look
like after a normal school
day?

dirty / creased/ stained.

6. Who is the persona?

A parent.
7. Why does the persona ask if
the child is struck by lightning?

The persona is surprised by

how the child acts.
8. How do you think the persona feel when the
child comes back home?

shocked/surprised.
9. What might be the reason the child is acting nice
that day?

The child does not want the parent to get mad at

him/her because he has brought back the report
card.
10. Predict the child’s result.

Not good.
11. If you were the child, would you have done the same
thing? Why?

Yes, because I do not want to get punished.

No, because my parents would not be mad as long

as I try my best.
12. Suggest two ways to make sure we do well in
school.

a) Pay attention in class.

b) Get good sleep at night.
13. Describe the relationships between the child and
the parent.

They are close to each other as they spend a lot of

time together.