English Literature notes Secrets

Themes Trust, friendship, responsibility, betrayal, memory + curiosity + temptation Recurring images or motifs cut-glass vase of irises links boy to Aunt (back into past when he visited her) withering (links to frail body) Cameo ring reflects her age and frailness interest in the ring rep. in the repetition of he (triggers memory of her reading to him as a child maturity) dip pen precision, private preoccupations, slightly irritable Ritual-like process involving the kettle and sounds shows tension or meticulousness of the Aunt Boy asks about Brother Benignus Aunt ignores him. Shows the pigeon hole of her bureau desk is out of bounds Glad he had pleased her in return for the stamps showing a process of mutual exchange, potential harmony before the eventual turning point/ crisis in their relationship and the severing of their bond/tie The placing of the keys on the shelf is a symbol of temptation, secrecy and mystery Writer builds tension screeching of the desk increases suspense (+ indicates that the boy wants to be discrete) Writer deliberately does not comment on the letters as it would diminish the sentimental value of what they would contain + would weaken the dramatic tension Very emotional letters of suffering and hardship encourages us to judge the boy for his meddling and lack of principles (reader would think that he deserves her chastising or hatred When creak of the stair happens, words like frantically + crumpled are used tension caught with keys in his hand (clear what he is doing) short sharp climax or punishment = irreparable breakdown in their relationship Desperate desire or hope that the Aunt forgives him (she doesnt) feel sorry for the boy as he was only young now has a secret as much as the Aunt did (mum isnt aware of the significance of the letters she is burning) Settings almost all interior suggesting close proximity to the important letters The Aunt o Described as frail o Very private life often avoids probing questions o Religious (strong faith) makes boys disobedience like a sin The boy o Actions often about looking or searching intrusive (stamp collection allows access to desk/private life gradual build up) o Never named to hide his shame/guilt

How it happened Mode of transport + modern provides the action

Very short tale with a twist narrator commentating on his own memory phrase live it again is ironic, once the reader realises he is dead Repetition of the verb remember and personal pronoun I reinforces the first person narration (+ the sense it is a retrospective account) The big motor is centre stage and is described in great detail it is a new acquisition (a supercar of the time) Mood at beginning is upbeat, chauffeur warns him about the gears reader can almost sense something is going to go wrong clear from the start he is an upper class man with a sense of adventure Several portentous comments indicating regret convey the nature of retrospective has a moral/lesson Claystall hill described as worst hill in England foreshadow what is about to happen where the trouble began increase of tension and suspense language is that of driving cars (going at a steady rate) evoking the pace and masculinity of the story The Slope is a metaphor of imminent disaster Perkins is a voice of warning and tactful reserve Narrator is frightened in what is happening Ironic that he crashes into his own gates + ironic as he became aware of my own existence once more + is no longer alive Stanley (man at the crash site) has been dead for a while and is like a guardian angel easing him to the after life. Narrators realisation is gradual to like the readers more dramatic and poignant They did not seem to hear me makes it more moving and emotional witnessing his own death scene Language + style are linked by action, movement, speed, acceleration contributes to a mood of adventure, recklessness risk, regret and finally regret Long sentences are used in the middle section to convey the rapid succession of the events

On her knees First person account autobiography in style Key themes: class, social status, pride, identity, poverty + oppression Mother introduced immediately o Source of influence + control (repetition of she to aid the notion of control) o Several important terms of endearment or descriptions of his mother Narrator acknowledges mothers strengths dignity but resents how clients treat her Relationship since father died is bickering + her lecture Dialogue written in unconventional way at the start no speech marks (a kind of unspoken bond between them or mutual respect) Son disgusted at the mere idea she is a thief + accusations from her clients is made clear (through the use of inner voice) He corrects her grammar, again suggesting the slight class conflict between them

Style of their conversation is quite informal/colloquial more convincing/realistic Both have own principles mother only uses her gear proud, stubborn Descriptions of the interior of the house (cat photos) mother looks old Narrator becomes detective wants to know why she is treated like that after all the years of faultless service His physical disgust desire to gag all objects to be wiped (huge effort) Attitude towards the place is made clear like their own home. Narrator describes the snobbishness pretentiousness of the place (could be resentment of the narrator). Comments on the student papers on the desk he is a graduate + understands these foibles (traits/characteristics/pretensions) His cleaning like a forensic team trying to learn about the client + uncover secrets reader thinks he is overstepping the boundaries Finding of the earrings: o Mother says all she has is her good name (working class honour): contrast between the two women as the fairly worthless earrings have a sentimental value to her o The employer is therefore superficial, proud in a different way to the mother o Son at first patronises and thought was disproportionate but by the end respects making her god-like in his eyes (vein riddled legs are much more powerful and heroic now). o Follows mother into hot afternoon disciple like Title on her knees is ironic as she is not submissive and her own moral code and honour. Trivial possessions in the house + lifestyle of occupant are dwarfed in comparison

Meteor Language establishes alien technology from Onns journal humans point of view is everyday life Opens story with an almost ironic blend of the normal + extraordinary characters responding to cosmic significance and are almost disinterested (immediately suggesting normal occurrence in which they are familiar) In response to the crash outside that takes you back a bit can be interpreted as incongruous and therefore comical reaction write is satirising (mocking) the attitudes of the middle class (using expressions and having typical names of the class/social group) Science fiction set in middle England in recognisable contexts contrasting with the more outlandish with which these alternate, structuring the story in a dual perspective or two-stranded plot before the two elements meet on Earth story simultaneously ironic or comical + powerfully disturbing Reader meant to sympathise with alien voyagers efforts painstaking and journey immense (killed very quickly by the brutality of humanity has a moral/lesson Not having their dinner spoilt by the meteor (drinks etc) hints at the vanity and greed of human kind

Turning point in the discovery of the small crater attitude is relaxed (dogs sniffs ground like a rabbit hole) trivialises what we soon learn was a massive event Journal sections written in a more elevated grand or oratorical style reflects graveness of the situation names and statuses shows they have a strict hierarchical and political system The globes set on random courses to find civilisation. Possibility that there is no intelligent life elsewhere is ironically true judging by what has been represented by humans Hope of a blue shining world increases the pathos (extreme sympathy) and poignancy of their mission Third person to maintain a satirical, detached perspective The details described of the meteor are understated and fairly mundane(ragged pitted) Sizzling sound creates big tension and mystery new founded caution (well shielded) Sense of hope temporary optimism in speech The benevolence and generosity of the aliens is evident in talking about the Earthlings help them where we can The dual plot or perspectives are not happening in the same time minute hole in the cat builds to the mystery (experts becoming baffled) Mood and tone near the end changes immediately showing their hopes + dreams are becoming shattered not the paradise the aliens are looking for Aliens impression of the human world is creative shows us an alien perspective especially size Battle with the cat resembles that of survivors fighting a mythical beast The way the race is eradicated is brutal showing humans are emotionless. The closing line is ironic I wonder what on Earth they were? as they are not from Earth

The Lemon Orchard The way the writer uses nature and setting to represent important social or political concerns (injustice, hate, corruption) is key as well as mood Sense of menace + threat is built up as the gang carries out their actions underneath the cover of darkness Undercurrent of violence which becomes increasingly more explicit (heightened/strong) Less of a story with plot more of a scene/situation Men are unnamed, allowing for a universal, more sinister presentation Features of the settings create the mood moon is powerfully symbolic as it symbolises the secrecy and shame of what they are doing. Covering of the moon represents corruption/lack of justice bitter sweet smell of the lemons adds effect. Usually an orchard is associated with pastoral harmony and fruitfulness but it is a place of capture and death hence bitter Leader at back is closely linked with the darkness Short sentences used to build suspense + tension similes + metaphors also used

Clothing of the victim shows how quick the seizure of him was. Chattering of teeth was due to cold, not fear. The black man remains stoic reader sympathises with victim Victim refuses to answer to them showing nobility + spirit sympathy Muzzle used as an object representing threat + aggression Writer controls tension and the pace by slowly revealing threatening movements Aggressive leader is described as a hardened, hostile face through the use of geological and geographical metaphors The lantern bearer tells leader not to shoot, leader disagrees negative picture Rambling shadow and swinging of the lantern marks increase in tension gibbet Dog barking represents underdog, but mainly the lack of human interaction Personification of the night a small amphitheatre like a stage ready for drama Last line is alliteration unexpectedly beautiful image considering the brutality under the helpless eye of nature

There will come soft rains Presents a picture of a world destroyed by man and technology as a lack of control + excess Establishes irony of much of the story too in the adjective soft living room is ironic as nobody is alive uninhabited reinforced by mechanic noises Routines carried out ironic nothing matters, machines dont miss their users rain in the title is part of the repetitive cycle like the memory tapes (child rhymes) Style of writing is dispassionate, lacking humanity. Most sentences begin with the like a monotonous, but no less frightening list of cause and effects life carries on without us The clock sang is ironic even mice are robotic. Actions suggest industry + efficiency the houses stood alone in a city of rubble + ashes last house left showing us a postapocalyptic nature of the scene Family portrait acts as a trace of better times Sprinkler mentioned again in relation to falling light to show that hopes and future is being extinguished House is impenetrable sparrows come near cant get in conveys emptiness Religious language used gods humans but now extinguished not gods house shrine Animals left represent barely living Incinerator compared to the evil baal continuing the hyperbolic language Cooking of pancakes is American connotation comfort and domestic bliss. Dog possibly representing mankind has lack of compassion (food pointlessly cruel) dies frothing at the mouth from hunger. Symbolises the barbaric mindlessness of what is left of mankind tables folded like butterflies captivating choreography simile unexpected (apt) Childrens hour wiped out poignant + disturbing as there is nobody to enjoy it

Poem acts as the houses swan song each animal accompanied by a venerable adjective Fire is a force of nature not even the house can prevent Routines carry on right till the last minute lots of personification Surviving, disembodied voice carries on say the date of judgement day ironic as nobody there to hear it