A Heartbreaking Work of a Staggering Genius: Analysis of 2-3 and 12-16

TASK 1:

In this extract from pages 2 to 3 we find out more about the mothers illness. The majority of the extract is made up of descriptions of the way the mother spits ‘green fluid’ into a ‘plastic receptacle’. Eggers has a very vivid memory of the ‘green fluid’ and goes onto describe the difficulties in disposing of the ‘green fluid’. The main people that are in this scene are Eggers mother as the extract is mainly a description of her illness, and Beth also makes an appearance at the end of the extract when she procures. In the extract we find out that the mothers illness encompasses the whole family not just the mother. This is shown through the way Egger and Beth have to find different ways for their mother to dispose of the ‘green fluid’. The ‘green fluid’ the mother is producing is constant, meaning the thought of her illness and her suffering is always around them- it is difficult to escape. Even though the illness surrounds the whole family, Eggers seems emotionally detached from his mothers illness. This is shown through the lack of opinion and feelings on the issue at hand. Eggers talks more about the illness practically, however through some of the words used the readers can make assumptions to his opinions even if they are not directly expressed. The repetition of the word ‘green fluid’ and ‘half-moon plastic receptacle’ emphasis the idea that their mother’s illness is a significant part of their lives, as it is always there. The noun ‘plastic receptacle’ has connotations with hospitals something that is not commonly associated with a happy home and family environment.

The key themes within this extract are the idea of responsibility on the family to look after and care for their ill mother as well as the theme of relationships between the Egger and his mother. Egger has to continuously clean the ‘green fluid’ otherwise it would be ‘festering’ on the towels and would be ‘impossible to clean’. The descriptive language ‘festering’ suggests something rotting and uncleanliness, the illness is slowly destroying the mother as well as the family. Eggers and Beth would be constantly ‘folding and turning’ the towels, the phrase ‘folding and turning’ is repeated twice emphasises the amount of time they would have to fold and turn the towels for their mother as she was too unwell to do so. The children have to constantly care for their mother- they have no breaks. The themes of relationships especially between Egger and his mother is shown within this extract. Due yo the mothers illness she has little to do but sit on the ‘couch most of the day and night’ whilst she spits up ‘green fluid’. This leaves Egger and his sister Beth with a large responsibility to care and look after his mother. The relationship between Egger and his mother is not what would be expected due to the illness, meaning Egger has more of dominant and protective role in the relationship due to him caring for his mother. Unlike what would normally be associated with a traditional parent and child relationship. 

TASK 2:

Themes of juxtaposition of vitality in youth and weakness in illness, physicality and blending of fantasy and reality:

In the extract from pages 12-16, Egger focuses mainly on his mothers illness and goes on to thoroughly describe her before and after her illness-allowing the reader to make a comparison between the different physicality's and personalities of Dave’s mother.  In the middle of the extract Egger describes his mothers physicality and personality before her illness. He describes his mother using words such as ‘power’ and ‘muscle’ and that she had an ‘inner hardness’.The descriptions of his mother have connotations with warrior and soliders- she is a fighter physically and mentally. The mothers physical strength is also emphasised when his mother would ‘cut the living shit out of her finger’ when cutting vegetables yet would just ‘grimace’ and ‘keep cutting’. The way his mother carries on even when she is evidently in pain suggests her sturdiness and capability to look after herself- before her illness she didn't need any care or assistance. The way Egger describes through the use of emotive language such as ‘power’ and strength’ almost in admiration and appreciation of the way she was before. However, before Eggers describes his mother pre illness, stating that when she came out of hospital she was feeling ‘defeated’ and ‘stripped’. The juxtaposition between the words ‘power’ and ‘stripped’ emphasis the huge impact the cancer has had on the mother physically and mentally. It also emphasises the way Eggers now thinks of his mum, as ‘defeated’ is defined as being beaten it suggests even Eggers has no hope for his mum- be believes his mothers illness is inevitable. Despite the fact that Eggers describes his mother as ‘defeated’ and ‘stripped’ he also describes her ‘area where her stomach was’ as a ‘pumpkin’ and that her stomach appeared ‘pregnant’. Both of these comparisons suggest something full and round which contrasts with the verb ‘stripped’ which suggests emptiness. There seems to be a blur of fantasy, as the noun ‘pumpkin’ is often associated with fairytales ,and reality, which suggests maybe Eggers has got hope for his mother and her illness or maybe its a way for him to cope with the inevitable.  

Comparison of 'How Do I Love Thee?' and an extract from 'Wuthering Heights'

In 'How Do I Love Thee?' and 'Wuthering Heights' the characters are infactuated with their lovers, however despite the shared themes of love they are presented slightly differently therefore giving the reader a slightly different impression of the love that is shared.

The main themes in both 'How Do I Love Thee?' and the extract from 'Wuthering Heights' are love and romance with both the Browning and Catherine believe that their feelings towards their lover are all encompassing. The fact that love is shown as such as large part of the poets life is shown in the line when she states that she loves her husband to 'level of everyday's' suggests that her everyday life revolves around the love for her husband-she is dependent on the love they share. Browning also goes on to compare her love to the ' sun and candlelight'. The juxtaposition of sizes of light sources suggest eventhough their love can be shared and wtinessed by others (sun) their love can also be intimate and personal (candlelight). Browning loves her husband in a large number of ways and isnt limited by size. Similarily, in the 'Wuthering Heights' extract Catherine also compares her love to light stating her love for Linton is 'a source of visible light'. The metaphor 'visible light' suggests her love gives her guidances and almost a purpose as without him she cannot see. This emphasises the idea that Catherines love for Linton is all encompassing as without him she is lost. The love expressed towards their partners in the text is also compared using religious imagery. In 'How Do I Love Thee?' Browning refers to her love towards her husband as the 'ideal grace' and will love him with all her 'lost saints'. The use of religious figures suggest her love is comparable to the religious characters that are thought very highly of by many relgious people. Similarily, in the 'Wuthering Heights' Catherine also compares her love to religious imagery and repeatedly uses the words 'mighty' and 'eternal' all of which have connotations to God and religion. Through the use of religious imagery and verbs, it increases the significance and value of the love between the Browning and Catherine and their lovers.

Despite the similarites between the themes of love and the way the love ecompasses the writer, love is presented in different ways. The 'How Do I Love Thee?' is a Petrachan sonnet consisting of a regular rhyming structure and 10 syllables per line and is often traditionally associated with love poety. The fact that the poem follows the sonnet rules suggests that like the structure her relationship between herself and her husband is perfect and undamaged. It also suggests certaintly and that their relationship is structured. The only time the sonnet 10 syllable rule is broken is in the 5th line where she states 'I love thee to the level of everyday's' which expresses how long her love will last -only love breaks the rule of love. On the contary in the 'Wuthering Heights' extract Catherine has a lack of structure and does not have a regular way she expresses her love to Linton. Towards the end of the extract Catherine repeatedly uses dashes when speaking such as when she says ' I should not seem a part of it.-My love for Linton'. The use of dashes express her eagerness to express her love towards Linton, her love is shown as untamable. Although Catherines love towards Linton is not structured and predictable like Brownings in the poem she ends the extract with a declarative sentence 'It is impracticable.' This declarative sentence suggests certainness, an emotion that has not been seen previously in the extract. On the contary in 'How Do I Love Thee?' the poem ends using 'if God choose'. The conditional 'if' suggests uncertaintly over when talking about the topic of death nothing is certain.

Overall, both the extracts show that the love towards their lovers are encompassing this is shown through the light similies and religious imagery. Eventhough the structures of both the peom and the novel extract vary it doesnt mean the love shown in the texts are any less or more; it is just demonstrated in a different way.

The History Boys: Summative Questions

History itself is a subject in the play. In the play Dakin calls Irwin’s method subjunctive history, the history of what might have been. Do you think there is value in Irwin’s approach to looking at historical events? Why or why not?
There is value in Irwin's approach to looking at historical events because if the boys have an overall knowledge of particular historical events they would be more likely to relate the context to the lesson and have a higher in depth knowledge. However on the other hand the fact the Irwin makes assumptions based on history doesn't give the boys an appropriate knowledge of the historical events as much of Irwin's subjunctive history is untrue- making it no longer proper history. 

In addition to world historical events we are also given a glimpse at the personal histories of the characters in the play. What do their personal histories reveal? How do their remembrances differ?
In the play we are given various glimpses into personal histories of characters in the play especially the teachers educational history. We learn in the play that Irwin states he attended Oxford university however in fact he studied at Bristol. The fact that Irwin was untrue about where he attended university suggests he wanted to impress the students at the school. At this point Bennett exposes Irwin's manipulative and deceiving tendencies. Furthermore, we learn that Mrs. Lintott attended Durham university,however we are given the impression that she does not think highly of the establishment as the best memory she has of Durham is that is what where she had her 'first pizza'. 

Much of the play is not about poetry but literature. Many of the poets quoted wrote during World War I. What resonances exist between the young men at war and the young men in the play?
There are many resonances between the young men at war and the young men in the play. The most prominent being that the soldiers in the war and the the boys in the school are all expected by the teachers to do what they are told. The boys and the soldiers are treated in the same manner despite all their individual differences, they are not seen as humans and only thought of as a way to achieve a goal for someone more superior to their selves.

The three teachers, Mrs. Lintott, Mr. Hector and Mr. Irwin, have strikingly different teaching methods and goals. Discuss the merits and disadvantages of their competing pedagogies. 
All three teachers have very different teaching methods, however combined create the ideal teacher as each method has their own merits. Throughout the play Mrs. Lintott is seen as the most traditional and simple teacher, giving her students 'plainly stated facts'. There is nothing fancy about her teaching style and gets straight to the point. However to her her professional manner it distances herself from the boys, as she is unwilling to show her personality as she believes this is not the role of the teacher. Although she may not be friendly with the boys, she is respected by the boys as well as the Headteacher as her appreciates her role in the boys gaining 'very good' results. On the other hand is Hector, the most eccentric of all the teachers in the play. Hector is a very passionate teacher and fully believes that knowledge should be learnt from the heart and used from the heart. Due to Hectors eccentric ways he does not fully prepare the boys for the upcoming exams as he does not believe in the reasoning behind his. Eventhough Hector may feel that exams are pointless, as has a duty as a teacher to provide knowledge for the exam and he does not do it. On the contary, is Irwin, who has a more modernised teaching style and has a more journalistic approach towards teaching as he encourages the boys to give opinions on the matter at hand. Irwin's teaching style focuses on the exams and results and he achieves this by manipulating the boys to lie and waver from the historical truth in order to stand out.

Irwin says he does not think there is time for Hector’s type of teaching any more. What does he mean? What is lost with the loss of Hector?
Irwin believes that there is no time for Hector's type of teaching style in the modern eduacational stystem anymore. Hectors teaching style revolves around knowledge and not exam technique which is something that is important in modern day eduacation. After Hectors lost, the boys are missing out on a large part of the loving part of their education, without Hector they only learn for the exam and not for life.

Hector is a problematic character in the play. He is a gifted teacher but some of his actions are inappropriate. Can one reconcile Hector’s behaviour with his teaching?

Hector is a teacher and the main role of the teacher is to educate students and keep them safe. Hectors inappropriate actions mean he is putting the boys and hiself in danger and therfore not being a teacher. Hectors actions on the boys are wrong as he is taking advantage of the boys admiration towards him and due to this fact nothing can ,even his teaching, can reconcile Hectors behaviour.

Mrs. Lintott is the lone woman in the play. What is her role both as an educator and historian? Is it significant that she is surrounded by men, both in the school and in her work? How do you interpret her outburst about the role of women in history?
Mrs. Lintott is the only woman teacher in the play,and the fact that she is surrounded by men emphasises her siginficance as the only female historian. The fact that Mrs. Lintott is the only woman in the play would symbolise the role small and insignificant woman have in history taught in schools- Mrs. Lintott is part of the history she is fustrated at. Mrs. Lintott's sudden outburst could symbolise the fustration that has been building up since the introduction of Irwin at the school and the boys respect for her has dropped.

The characters in the play occasionally step outside themselves to comment on the action of the play, either within the moment or sometimes from a perspective years later. How does this commentary help us understand the play?
This commentary helps us understand the people as it gives the viewer a summary of the current situation of the play and an inlook into the characters thought and feelings that they might express theirselves. One of the main characters that gives a commentary of the play is Scripps, at points in the play the charatcer asks questions which encourages the converstation of the characters in the play.
 

Historical References in The History Boys

Wilfred Owen

Wilfred Owen was an English pet and solider. During World War 1, his war poems were very popular, they mention the shocking horrors of the war such as the trenches and gas warfare. Owen's work stood out, as it contradicted the public perception of the war and other war poems of that era. Wilfred Owen's most known poem "Dulce et Decorum est" , describes the horror he experienced being a solider in the war and the feelings of condemnation he felt towards the war. In 1917, Owen was sent to a hospital in Edinburgh, after he war diagnosed with shell shock, this is where Owen wrote the drafts for "Dulce et Decorum est". Despite the fact that throughout the poem, Owen expresses his disapproval to the idea of war, Irwin continues to state that Owens "couldn't wait to get back to his company". Irwin's statement of Owen's is completely untrue, yet he continues to fabricate historical events, in his attempt to persuade the boys to embellish facts, as this is the only way to impress examiners. Irwin believes that adding in poetry in an essay is "good up to a point", but to improve lying is required as is shown by Irwin's statement that Owen's "couldn't wait" to get back to being a solider, despite the fact that in many of his poems Owen's shows his condemnation towards the war. As Irwin, try's to manipulate the boys into embellishing facts to do well in the Oxford examination, it suggests that the school system is supported by deception and dishonesty.

Rudyard Kipling

Kipling was born an English poet and novelist, who was born in Bombay, then moved to England by his parents when he was 5 years old to live with a foster family to receive a formal education. Kipling wrote tales and stories of British soldiers in India. His work's include the "The Jungle Book" and "The White Mans Burden", which highlights the ideas of  white colonisation and views that white people have the obligation to rule the more "underdeveloped" countries. This is the reasoning behind the way Akhthar objects saying sarcastically "thanks a lot"  to Irwin when he praises Kipling and his literary work. Akhthar would feel that Irwin commending Kipling, was very culturally inconsiderate and offensive. Akhthar's ability to respond to Irwin mentioning Kipling, express the huge extent of the boys literary knowledge from all over the world. It also suggests that Akhthar feels he is confident  enough to stand up to a position of authority- Irwin- and defend his culture and heritage.

General Haig

General Haig was a controversial Senior Officer during World War 1. Haig lead and managed many British missions and expeditions which lead to the death of many British soldiers. Due to the fact that many soldiers were killed unnecessarily killed in futile battles, his leadership gained criticism, and lead to him being labeled as "Butcher Haig" by the two million casualties who were under his command. Irwin states that General Haig "real enemy" was the "Unknown Soldier" and if he "had any sense he'd had him disinterred". Irwin does not factually know this, however he continues to say it and say it with confidence. As Irwin, creates untrue assumptions about General Haig, it suggests to the boys that by slightly embellishing facts, it makes the essay stand out from the rest, and not make the examiner fall "asleep".As Irwin believes that truth is no more necessary than "thirst at a wine-tasting".

Similarities between 'Composed Upon Westminster Bridge' and 'Saturday'

• Idea of euphoria
• Present tense 
• Synesthesia
• Juxtaposition
• Personification
• Natural imagery
• Exclamative and declarative sentences 
• Personification 

The History Boys: The French Scene

 How is the French scene typical to Hector and his relationship with the boys?

The subject at matter in the scene is sexual, which suggests that Hector is open with the topic with the boys. The openness of the topic with the boys shows that they comfortable and friendly relationship, as shown in the previous scenes of the play. However, at some points in the scene Hector is seen as slightly unprofessional. This is shown when Hector agrees to Dakin's proposal of setting the scene in a 'brothel'. Then, later on in the scene Hector is amused to when Posner asks Dakin to take off his trousers- which he does. Within Hectors classroom, he has no restrictions on the boys which suggest his role as the boys teachers isn't met. Whilst Dakin takes his trousers off at Posner's request, the boys mock and tease and Hector remains silent, and corrects Dakin in his French tenses 'I would like to stretch out on the bed in the conditional or the subjunctive'.  Throughout the scene Hectors behaviour with the boys seems inappropriate to the viewer and makes them feel slightly uncomfortable.

Definitions

Farce: a comic dramatic work using buffoonery and horseplay and typically including crude characterization and ludicrously improbable situations.

Fall guy: a scapegoat

• In the scene, farce could be used to describe the comedic performance the boys are acting out. Throughout out the scene many characters are seen as sexually inappropriate such as Posner and Dakin. Although some of the characters are acting in a sexually inappropriate way, it is hidden through the humorous way the boys are presenting the characters. Later on in the scene the Headmaster is labeled as the fall guy. This is shown when the Headmaster interrupts the boys performance, and is unable to fluently speak French unlike the boys and Hector. Through the Headmasters lack of understanding of the situation of the classroom, he is shown as unintelligent. The shift of attention then draws from Hector to the Headmaster, as he continues to interrupt the inappropriate lesson.

What does the play suggest about the boys and the teachers personalities?

• Headmaster; school-centric,unlikeable and unable to maintain respect, strict
• Hector; passionate, inappropriate, genuinely loving and caring of the boys
• Irwin; snide, slick, wants to prove himself 
• Posner; feelings of being an outsider, eager to impress, submissive
• Dakin; confident, intelligent, open minded, slightly cruel, humorous 

Throughout the scene there is the subtext, this is the thoughts and feelings of the character even though they may not speak these. Personally, I believe in the scene Hector is giving subtle sexual messages towards the boys. Hector may not be completely open, but he agrees to the ideas of the boys that are of a sexual nature. At no point in the scene does Hector halt the performance, he seems to enjoy it as he irregually contributes. The fact that he allows the boys to perform to him, with little guidance suggests he admires the boys. At the near end of the scene, the Headmaster catches the class performing an inappropriate scene. As Hector convinces the Headmaster that the scene they are performing is of a hospital in Belgium, the boys give assistance to the lie: making it seem more realistic. The fact that the boys give help to Hector, when he is in a problematic situation suggests the boys have an alliance with him;the boys will do anything for Hector. Even though in Hectors classroom there are no boundaries, Hector still manages to have a form of respect over them.

The History Boys: Act 1 Scene 1

In the first scene of Act 1, Irwin is in a wheelchair addressing numerous members of parliament about  passing a bill that will abolish trial by jury. If the bill does get passed, this will eradicate the presumption of innocence of the person convicted. Within the scene Irwin appears very passionate and informed about his case, however it does not appear he putting forward this bill to allow people to 'walk the streets unmolested' as he says. After Irwin states that the real liberty of the proposed bill is to allow people to 'walk the streets unmolested' he follows with 'etc..etc'. The use of the 'etc's' sound impersonal and almost robotic-protecting citizens isn't why Irwin is proposing this bill. Therefore the way he uses his words juxtapose each other, making the reason behind the proposition appear untrue and makes his character seem slimy. Irwin also appears untruthful when he uses the metaphor saying paradox works well and "mists up the windows". The use of the metaphor suggests the bill conceals the truth and therefore making the trial for the person prosecuted unfair. However, the metaphor also suggests he is aware that the bill is unethical, yet feels he should still propose it.

At the end of Irwin's monologue he finishes with the line "School. Thats all it is. In my case anyway. Back to school" as well has this line being making a good transition to the next scene, it also suggests that school is a huge aspect of his life and that is where he learnt his strong opinions and how to prepare a good speech. Irwin appears to have strong thoughts of school, because in this scene he talks very passionately about the bill and then about school-making the two thoughts comparable. On the other hand it could suggest that he feels that school structure  is mimicking the political system where people "mist up the windows".

My original perception of Irwin was that he was an intelligent young man who was enthusiastic about teaching and learning. However after reading the first scene, my opinion on Irwin has dramatically changed. I now perceive Irwin has self-centred, not very sympathetic, very cynical and comparable to a villain like character . Furthermore I believe Irwin is very manipulative, as he takes advantage of his respected position to bombard people (in this case the MP's) which his own very strong opinions which so far don't seem very immoral.

Analysing a Blog

The blog I have chosen to analyse is one by the writer Charlie Brooker.
 Charlie Brooker Blog

Whilst looking at Charlie Brookers style of writing it appears to be that he is writes with a lot of humour and wit. This is evident in the blog post titled " Goodbye,cruel 2014: we promise not to miss you once you've gone", unlike other writers, Charlie Brooker appears to be realistic of the year that has just passed and not very optimistic. This contrasts with the typical end of year  blog posts, as they are often very positive and reflective, however Charlie's is not. Within the title Brooker uses the word 'cruel' which has connotations with pain and suffering, the use of this lexis shocks the reader and makes them reconsider their thoughts on the year that has just gone.

Later on in the blogpost, Brooker deliberatly changes his grammar and uses simple sentences at the start of every new paragraph. This is shown when he writes 'But things were still grimmer internationally. '. The use of the simple sentence gets across his point sharply, which engages the reader a lot more, as we are left to read on to find out why things were 'still grimmer' elsewhere. 

In the blog post, the structure of the blog is very much the same. When Brooker goes onto another reason why 2014 was so 'cruel', he starts a new paragraph.  Then in every new paragraph he uses a simple sentence, with summarises what that paragraph is going to be about. For example when Brooker talks about the disappearance  of the Malaysian plane he writes 'Mystery of the year was the vanishing flight MH370'.

My Linguistic Fingerprint

Considering I was born and raised in Bristol, people would assume I would speak like an award winning farmer with hundreds of acres. However this is not the case, well maybe a little bit! My personal linguistic fingerprint is dependent on many factors such as family,  friends and the environment I live. With all of these factors combined this creates my unique linguistic fingerprint which is special to me. A linguistic fingerprint is the distinctive way people communicate.

My personal linguistic quirks include replacing the 'th' sound in the word Bath to the sound 'ff'. So when spoken out loud it sounds like 'Baff'. This feature of my dialect was introduced to me from my environment and my friends, so therefore this feature is giving me the stereotypical Bristolian dialect which is often associated with the area.  Having a parent that is from South Wales has also influenced my linguistic fingerprint, as my father still speaks with a typical Welsh accent. Some linguistic  traits from my father which I attained over the years include saying 'Where to?' and 'Now after'. Of course these phrases don't make grammatical sense, yet they still appear in my dialect and when I speak. This just shows that its not only the environment I'm in, that impacts my linguistic fingerprint but my family as well.

However, my personal linguistic fingerprint varies time to time dependent on I am doing or who I am  speaking to. Often I changed my dialect whilst talking on the phone, my accent is often changed to a more formal tone, where I pronounce words properly. Personally, I speak with a more formal tone on the phone because it allows the person on the other end to hear me properly but it also gives me a sense of sophistication. Despite this I am properly not fooling anyone. This is not the only time I tend to change or alter my dialect, I often speak more formal and pronounced when I meet new people or in a shop when they ask you a question. I feel it makes me look more polite. Nevertheless, there is only so long I can put on a false persona, before the 'ff' and 'likes' start to creep back in.

I guess this just shows how imprinted my linguistic fingerprint is in me, and even if I would like to alter it, it is quite impossible, ma babbeeeerrrrrr!