Blood Brothers by Willy Russell: revision
Download
Report
Transcript Blood Brothers by Willy Russell: revision
Revision
Blood
Brothers
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Themes
Class divide
Family
Growing up
Superstition and Fate
Hopes and Dreams
Nature versus Nurture
Love and Marriage
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Characters
Mrs Johnstone
Mickey
Other children including Sammy
and Donna-Marie
Linda
Mrs Lyons
Mr Lyons
Edward Lyons
Narrator
Chorus to play minor roles such as
Miss Jones
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Motifs
Marilyn Monroe
Guns- toy and real
The idea of games
Dancing
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Techniques
Parallel scenes to bring out class differences
Use of key episodes to give a flavour of life,
since play covers a long period of time
Use of songs
Use of motifs
Narrator and chorus
Flashback – starts with final scene
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Language
The working class characters speak in Liverpool
dialect, which makes them sound natural, warm
and likeable.
The middle class characters speak in Standard
English, with Received Pronunciation – this is the
cause of humour when the boys first meet.
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Essay Questions
The role of the narrator
Comments on the action
Tells the story and involves the audience
Links episodes together
Warns of danger by appearing on stage at crucial times
Points out themes
Asks audience questions
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
What do the songs add to the Play?
Link scenes and draw parallels
Remind the audience of Key themes
Link the two halves of the play by using some of the
same words/ tunes, such as ‘Easy Terms’
Mood and atmosphere
Humour and pathos
Fill in parts of the plot
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
The tragic outcome is inevitable from the
very start. Discuss.
Theme of Superstition and Fate
Starting with final scene
Continual warnings from the narrator
The Marilyn Monroe motif
The gun motif
Nurture – Johnstone family are in trouble from the start e.g.
Sammy’s behaviour and Mrs Johnstone’s fears for Mickey
Class divide
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
To what extent do you feel sympathy
for Mrs Johnstone?
At the start, very little: ‘a stone in place of a heart’, but
gradually as story unfolds we feel much more:
Husband walks out leaving her with little money
Mrs Lyons pushes her into it
She does it ‘for the best’
She’s a loving mother to all her children
She stays cheerful and makes the best of things
But do we also feel she could have controlled her children
better, been harder on them?
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
What does this play have to say about
class?
The class divide is unfair
Russell shows that two people with identical DNA can
be so different in what they achieve because working
class people were denied the chances to develop
Russell poses the question: ‘could it be what we, the
English’ have come to know as class?’
Money can’t buy love but it can buy power.
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Now you try…
What has this play to say about mother/child relationships?
How is the theme of love presented? You may consider family love,
romantic love and married love.
How far do you think Russell presents the working class characters
in a more favourable light than the middle class characters?
Can you think of any other questions?
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
What is it?
Sometimes an EMPATHY question is set on either
of the Literature texts, Blood Brothers or To Kill a
Mockingbird.
This means that you have to put yourself in the
position of a character and write in their voice,
while showcasing your knowledge of the text in
your own words. (Walk in their shoes!)
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Usual forms of the question
Imagine you are _____________. At the end
of the story you think back over what has
happened. Write your thoughts and
feelings. Remember how __________ would
speak when you write your answer.
Imagine you are __________. Write down
your thoughts and feelings about: the
events that were important to you; your
relationship with _______; how you feel you
have changed.
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Tips
Write in the first person
Refer to events they took part in
Root your answer in the text
Include some authentic touches where possible
using the character’s way of speaking, such as Mrs
Lyons calls Eddie Edward.
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
To quote or not to quote?
It can be difficult to incorporate quotations,
although it is sometimes appropriate.
However, you should ‘echo’ the text or closely
refer to quotations.
You do not use quotation marks unless you are
using direct speech.
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Example: Eddie
Things are going a bit better now Linda and I
are friends again. That’s all we are, friends.
Not that I wouldn’t like it to be more, but
she loves Mickey, and I wouldn’t be disloyal
even though he doesn’t want to know me
anymore. I still think of him as a brother,
but I have had more success in life and he
envies me. I wish I could turn back the
clock to before I went to uni…
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk
Your practice task:
Imagine you are Linda Write down your thoughts
and feelings after the deaths of the twins.
Plan your response, including events, themes and
feelings.
Write the opening paragraph or more.
If you wish to, you may finish the essay at home.
Copyright © 2009 englishteaching.co.uk