Transcript Laidlaw - Setting

“Glasgow was home-made ginger
biscuits and Jennifer Lawson dead in
the park. It was the right hand
knocking you down and the left hand
picking you up, while the mouth
alternated apology and threat”
(14.72) Main quote about setting
“Laidlaw+
Scotnotes”
into Amazon
All lessons based
on this – extracts
for handouts/
PowerPoints etc
© ASLS
Laidlaw - Structure
• How it’s laid out and
why
To examine the structure of the novel ‘Laidlaw’
Studying background to the novel
Realise that there is a
structure, how it is laid out and
why the author uses this way of
detailing his plot.
Chapters 1-9 ‘Setting the scene’
Chapters 10-27 ‘Asking questions’
Chapters 28-40 ‘Finding Clues’
Chapters 41-49 ‘Resolution’
Chapters 1-9 ‘Setting the scene’
Introduces characters
Sets scene by detailing the situation (There’s been a murder)
Discovery of the corpse
Identification of the corpse (At the mortuary)
Bud Lawson's growing desire for revenge
Starts in second person narrative (you) (not sure whether it is ‘you’
the reader or ‘you’ in Tommy Bryson talking to himself. Ambiguous
(vague, unclear) Thereafter in third person narrative (he, she, they)
Laidlaw begins to feel that this is only the start of a series of events.
(In the lives around him, what he’s done must make ripples’ 17.86)
Chapters 10-27 ‘Asking Questions’
Deals with the consequences of the murder as more and more
people are affected by what happened.
Adds further main characters (Police – Harkness to help Laidlaw,
Rhodes the gang boss who wants to help Bud Lawson have his
revenge)
Harry Rayburn tries to force Mason to help by claiming
Tommy will grass on him to the Police.
Mason tries to find Tommy first.
Stanleys are questioned.
All about the background to the murder, the discovery and the
various needs of characters to find Tommy, stop him talking, avenge
themselves on him or capture him to face justice.
Chapters 28-40 ‘Finding Clues’
The ‘detective’ part of the novel as Laidlaw and the Police seek
answers for motives, location of the accused and execution of the
crime.
Clues start to appear:
Sarah admits she was not with Jennifer that night
Laidlaw/Harkness question a former boyfriend of Jennifer’s
In a race to get to Tommy before Lawson (fatherly, bigoted but
Christian (eye for an eye) avenger) or Mason (cover up his criminal
activities by stopping Tommy talking)
Chapters 41-49 ‘Resolution’
A breakthrough via Police Informant (Wee Eck)
The climax, denouement, the finalisation of all the various back
stories woven throughout the novel.
Rhodes finds out where Tommy is and tells Lawson
Laidlaw finds out where Tommy is and races to stop Lawson
Bud Lawson's desire for revenge is stopped by Laidlaw
appealing to the small part of Christian code/humanity he
still has within
Bryson is arrested. Minty tells Mason he didn’t kill Bryson. Harry
kills himself. Bryson is surprised to be treated humanly by Laidlaw
(You’ve a mouth haven’t you? 49.280)
Rippling consequences describes novel’s structure
As things happen and time
goes on, more and more
ripples are created that
disturb peoples’ lives and
cause them to take actions
which make more ripples
which whip up a storm by the
end.
As predicted by
Laidlaw, people
are drawn into
the murder and
its aftermath
As novel nears end ripples narrow and focus
on the murderer where the plot began.
Structure of plot reinforces theme about the
nature of crime. Obvious criminal is Bryson but
fanning out of plot makes reader think about
others such as Bud Lawson and John Rhodes.
Are they innocent or just as guilty?
Forces reader back to basics to consider basis
on which society judges others.
Criminals
Homosexuals
Bigoted Orangemen – pillars of their society yet is
their society wrong
Standards based on external appearances do not
stand up to scrutiny – what you see is often NOT
what is actually there in terms of characters,
Glasgow itself and ultimately, Laidlaw.