Analysis

The text 1

“The passionate year”

ED-512 Alex Chudinovskih

This text was written by James Hilton, England writer. She studied in Cambridge. Her first novel was “Catherine Herself”, she wrote it during her studying. He the most famous books are “We are not alone”, “Nothing so strange”, “Random Harvest” and “Time and Time again”.

The main theme of the text is describing behavior of the teacher, describing the actions of the teacher in nonstandard situation.

The main idea is relationships between the student and the teacher where teacher should be polite everytime with the students.

The genre of the text is novel. We can divide this text into three parts:

1. first part describes the tense atmosphere in a class;

2. second explains a conflict between students and teacher and solution of it;

3. the third part describes the dialog between two teachers: Speed and Clanwell.

The plot structure concludes all parts: the exposition (the description atmosphere in the class), the story itself (students’ desire for making a fool of teacher), climax (teacher’s solution – penalty), closed denouement (last part of the story).

The form of narration in the text mainly is represented be indirect speech, the third person narration, but in the story itself and denouement we see a dialogue.

There is one main character – teacher Speed, and some minor characters, they are students Worsley and Naylor, teacher Clanwell.

Emotional atmosphere changes during the text. In the beginning and in the middle it is tense, in the end it is bright, ironical.

Author chose emotionally-coloured words (titter, to make a fool etc.).

In general there are simple sentences in the text, in compound sentences we can see polysyndeton.

Lexical devices are:

1. epithets (outrageously bold adventure, bright boy, ),

2. metaphor (the most dangerous weapon in a new Master's armoury, entirely without incident),

3. irony (to make a fool),

4. simile (Speed felt rather as if he were sitting on a powder-magazine).

Author used them to create certain atmosphere.

In the text there are many adjectives. Author used verbs in past tenses, indicative mood (in the dialogue between teacher and students – imperative).

This text is a dialectical unity of form and context.

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22 дек 2013 в 16:45|Это спам|Ответить

Саша Лукинова▼

Unit one

Text one

The passionate year by James Hilton

James Hilton (9 September- 20 December 1954) was an English novelist best remembered for several best-sellers, including Lost Horizon (1933), Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1934), and Random Harvest (1941), all of which were made into highly successful motion pictures. He lived in Hollywood for working there. James won an Oscar in 1942 for his work on the scenario for Mrs. Miniver. The text under consideration is a fragment from a story The passionate year(1924) by James Hilton. This is the text I am going to comment.

The story tells of the first teaching experience of young teacher Kenneth Speed. The action takes place in class. Speed is a young Master at Millstead, Boarding School for boys, was warned that the first night he takes prep he might be ragged as it was a sort of school tradition that they always tried to rag teachers that night. The main character is Kenneth Speed. The secondary characters are pupils:the boy who's name is Worsley, Naylor and Clanwell. The theme of the story open a subject of teaching pupil, relations between teacher and pupils. And describing teacher's behavior at the class. How it is important to make a good impression on somebody. In this case, on students. Also it is important to be able to control emotions and difficult situation. Events in the text may occur at any time and in any place. It does not matter where it is happen. This can happen even in nowadays. The author want to say that how it can be difficult for young teacher. Because the profession of teacher it is really hard than it looks at first. The plot is developed on the basis of the conflict between the teacher and pupils. The exposition of the text begins with describing of emotional state of the main character. When Kenneth Speed sees the boys straggling of their places. “And they came in quietly enough, but there was an atmosphere of subdued expectancy of which Speed was keenly conscious” - said the narrator. Speed feels that something is being prepared. At first, all was perfectly quiet and orderly, although it was obvious that little work was being done. Then, at about a quarter past seven a banging of the desk-lids began at the far end of the hall. After that, there comes the climax. Kenneth Speed confused names of students. “He stood up again and said: “Wawsley or Wurssley- however you call yourself-you have a hundred lines!” , “Very well, Naylor, you and Worsley can share the hundred lines between you.” Broaching for all text events describes by the author. Dialogues of characters are not so many. There are dialogues between young teacher and students, and between the main character Kenneth Speed and Clanwell. The main events begin after the behavior of student. The style of speech in the text is simple. All what author want to say he do it clearly, that is why we can understand everything what happened with teacher. Also there many long sentences in the text. For example: They came in quietly enough, but there was an atmosphere of subdued expectancy of which Speed was keenly conscious; the boy stared about them, grinned at each other, seemed as if they were waiting for something to happen.

As I said earlier the dialogues are not so many on the text. Also they are short than author's sentences: And what's your name? Asked Speed .

Naylor, sir.

Lexical devices are: epithets: outrageously bold adventure, bright boy, metaphor: the most dangerous weapon in a new Master's armoury, entirely without incident, irony: to make a fool, simile: Speed felt rather as if he were sitting on a powder-magazine. All of these author used for create certain atmosphere.

In conclusion, I want to say that this story it is kind of experience for me. I was in a similar situation. When I taught students of Yakutian Agricultural Academy from September to the end of November. I was such a young teacher who wanted to make a good impression on students and other teachers. That is why this situation with Kenneth Speed is familiar with me. A

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9 янв 2014 в 11:14|Это спам|Ответить

Саша Лукинова▼

And I tried to understand the idea of the author and feelings of characters of the story “The passionate year”. Idea is relationships between students and teachers, teacher should be patient and strong in any situation and everytime.

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9 янв 2014 в 11:17|Это спам|Ответить

Алексей Григорьев▼

Analysis is the extract from novel “The Passionate Year” by James Hilton. First of all let me start with some words about the author. So James Hilton was an outstanding and best -selling English writer of the 20th century. He made a great contribution to the world literature. And the facts that his novel “Good bye Mr Chips was dramatized and filmed, and more over his novel “Lost Horizon “ was awarded the Hawrthornden Prize prove his contribution. Besides these two novels James Hilton was famous for such his works as “We are not alone”, “Random Harvest”, “Nothing so strange”, “Time and Time again” etc.

So, the main characters of the text, whose dispositions and behaviours arebrightly disclosed with the help of mixed type of character drawing, are Kenneth Speed, a young Master at a Millstead Boarding School for boys, sweet-faced but impudent pupils Worsley and Naylor. The minor characters are other pupils in the class and Clanwell.

The author with the help of third person narration with the elements of description an dialogue told about the trials which a young teacher Speed had to suffer and overcome during the first night he took prep. Including only few hours of Speed’s workday the text touches upon the problem of such challenge for a teacher as gaining a firm standing from the very beginning. This text impressed me greatly.First of all I liked the plot of the text. It was very interesting for me as for a future teacher by training to watch (follow) Speed's behaviour in difficult situations. I also admired Hilton’s skill to convey atmosphere of what was going and to hold reader’s attention.

The author informed us that preparation for the whole school was held in Millstead Big Hall in which desks were ranged in long rows and where Master in charge sat at a desk on raised dais. And it was Speed’s turn to be a Master in charge. It is necessary to mention that it was his first experience. And Speed was warned that he might be ragged by the boys. So the завязка of the text is rather intriguing to my mind.

Then the plot development began. The author mentioned that as Speed was warned about the possibility of being ragged he was in strained condition. Though entering the hall at five to seven the pupils behaved quietly, there was something strange and tense in their manner of taking their places, looking at each other, smiling. In some minutes they were suspiciously quiet and orderly. And Speed was conscious of that tense atmosphere in the class. He couldn’t bear it more. He suspected that something was going to happen and he wanted it to happen as soon as possible. Here we come across such stylistic devices as epithets nervous, subdued expectancy, the simile as if he were sitting on a powder magazine, the periphrasis (metaphor) storm which demonstrate that the atmosphere in the hall was uncomfortable and tense and they reinforce Speed’s unbearable feeling of expectancy that something should burst out. This situation in the classroom is emphasized by such verbs as straggle, stare about, grin describing tensive children’s behavior. More over periods of time such as at five to seven, at five past seven, at a quarter past seven stress Speed’s inner state. We can guess that he was on thorns with his feeling of tense atmosphere of expectancy.

I suppose that such tension is a real trial, challenge for a teacher because it can unsettle him, can prevent to gain a firm standing. A teacher simply can lose his head and make fatal mistakes. So to my mind it is important to keep firmness and calm and not allow pupils to gain the upper hand over oneself. But what for Speed. Whether he will be able to cope with his nervous state?

Further on the author told that Speed’s suspicions came true. At a quarter past seven a banging of desk-lids began. A young teacher kept calm. He said that he didn’t want to be too hard on somebody, but he would punish any disorderliness. The reaction of the class was only tittering. And then a pleasant faced boy deliberately dropped a desk-lid with a bang. By consulting

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4 мар 2014 в 14:55|Это спам|Ответить

Алексей Григорьев▼

Sorry I'm late , as usual

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4 мар 2014 в 14:59|Это спам|Ответить

Елена Крылова▼

The Passionate Year

The text under consideration is a fragment from an English teacher and writer James Hilton’s novel titled “Passionate Year”. James Hilton is famous for his novels “Good-Bye, Mr. Chips”, “Lost Horizon”, “We’re Are Not Alone”, “Random Harvest” and others.

The plot of the story concerns with a problem of teachers and pupils. A young teacher works at Millstead Boarding School for boys. The tradition of the school claims the new teacher to be ragged. His class tries to rag him, but he handles the situation and gains respect. As the author worked as a teacher himself, I think he tells us a story which contains some details from his own experience.

The atmosphere at the beginning of the text (“atmosphere of the subdued expectancy”) is quite different from the one at the end of it (“Clanwell and Speed leaned back in their armchairs and roared with laughter”). The author uses a simile and a metaphor to highlight the awkwardness of the situation: “Speed felt like as if he was eager for the storm to break”.

The main character, Speed, is a dynamic character (“Speed was keenly conscious” – “Instinct in him, that uncanny feeling for atmosphere, embarked him on an outrageously bold adventure” – “Speed replied promptly”, “Roared with laughter”). The method of characterization here is indirect, as we build our opinion about him on his actions and how he treats the pupils. He does not shout at them, but still stays focused on his aims. We consider him as a protagonist as he is a main character of the story and has only good intensions. The pupils are considered as antagonists only at the beginning of the story. In the text they act as a symbol representing the Unknown, the ancient monster inhabiting in people’s head. They stand for a big collective mass mind against an individual. The roots of that fears still live among us. Speed found the solution in his inner strength and that is the main idea of the story.

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4 мар 2014 в 16:40|Это спам|Ответить

Саша Пономарёва▼

Analysis on the “Passionate year”

The author’s name is James Hilton. He’s famous English novelist. His other works include “Catherine Herself”, ”Good-bye, Mr. Chips”, “We are not alone”, etc.

The plot is about a teacher named Speed, who comes to the particular school for the first time. His pupils wanted to play a joke on him, but he put them back immediately.

To my mind the theme of the passage can hardly be noticed, because author doesn’t imply any enforcement of his ideas, yet it can be seen once you’ve read the text. I think author just wanted to show teaching experience to the readers. He wanted to show that none of the incidents inside the school borders can be considered as serious. For example if the character Speed would freak out and send to detention the whole class, it would be the worst decision he’d make, plus a lot of complications would follow the decision. But he acted very sensibly, without losing dignity and pupil’s respect. Generally speaking, text teaches us that, we should never overreact, and stay calm.

The actions in the text are taking place in England, at the school for boys. The time is first half of 20th century. We can tell that the author wasn’t much concerned about the setting, because it seemed like he was describing the actual incident, so he was more concerned about the presentation of it. So we can automatically guess that the character in the text is actually author’s contemporary.

In the text there is a combination of both external and internal conflicts. But the external conflict is principal. There are two chief episodes in the text; the first is the one after the dropping desk-lid when Speed told the boy to write hundred lines, and the second, when two boys came to the teacher after the class ended.

In the beginning of the text there were a lot of tension, and with Speed we felt the atmosphere of subdued expectancy. But at the end of the text we see totally different situation, there is no tension anymore, no expectancy. We see two friends are just discussing their day, in the relaxed tone. And with the help of the setting, the use of different from the other part of the text key words, the author gets the effect of the harmony.

Main character of the story is Speed. We can see that he is very intelligent and qualified teacher, though a bit anxious. We can tell that about him, only because author passes on his thought. If it weren’t for them, we’d be giving another description of his personality, because he acts very professionally and sensibly, that you can never guess what it is on his mind, which is a very good feature for teacher.

There are several minor characters in the text as well, the boys in the classroom and Speed’s friend Clanwell. The method of characterization of the characters is indirect, only by observance of the actions of the characters, we can create their portraits.

The story is narrated by 3rd person. There are several stylistic devises in the text:

Simile: “Speed felt rather as if he were sitting on a powder-magazine”;

Metaphor: “the most dangerous weapon in a new Master's armoury”; etc.

I think author wanted to tell the story of a teacher, and his work, that sometimes it can be very tough, and the teacher should never lose control of the situation or suffer a loss of prestige. To my mind the author’s intentions are clear, he wanted the readers to feel respect and sympathy for teachers.

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5 мар 2014 в 1:04|Это спам|Ответить

Ganya Starostin▼

The text under analysis is a fragment taken from the book “The Passionate Year” written by English writer James Hilton. James Hilton (1900—1954) was born in England and educated at Cambridge where he wrote his first novel, "Catherine Herself". His first big success came with the publication of "Good-bye, Mr. Chips". A resident of the United States since 1935, he died in Long Beach, California.Also he is famous with his books "We Are Not Alone" (1937), "Random Harvest" (1941), "Nothing So Strange" (1947), "Time and Time Again" (1953).

This story is about a young teacher Kenneth Speed (who is the main character) who came to work in Millstead Boarding school for boys.

This text we can divide into three logical parts: first part depicts the tense atmosphere in a class; second explains a conflict between students and teacher and solution of it; the third part describes the dialogue between Speed and chairman Clanwell.

The composition of the story is quite simple: the exposition (the description atmosphere in the class), the story itself (students want to make a fool of teacher), climax (teacher’s solution – penalty), closed denouement (last part of the story).

The author tells us about Speed’s first work day. In this school students had a custom to rag at a new teacher during the prep. Speed was very nervous when he came to class. The author expressed his nervous condition by the epithets: «nervous», «an atmosphere of subdued expectancy», «keenly conscious, “outrageously bold adventure”, metaphor “the most dangerous weapon in a new Master's armoury”, and simile: «as if he were sitting on a powder-magazine» to express the emotional state of the main character. But a teacher had a strong will and didn’t let pupils make jokes at him.

The form of narration in the text mainly is represented be indirect speech, the third person narration, but we also can see a dialogue.

The main problem risen by the author is to show how difficult it is for a young teacher to overcome all the challenging problems he faces at school.

The language of the extract is rather intensive and pretty complicated. The author uses the language which makes his ideas easy to understand.

The atmosphere of the extract is extremely tense. This effect is archived by using such words as "quiet, orderly", ect. They are employed to stress the feeling that quietness is only on the surface but nervousness is inside.

The author in general successfully conveys the characteristic feathers of the main character. He uses the stylistic devices that are aimed at describing the emotions, experienced by young teacher who deals with the young audience. James Hilton uses some metaphors (He was eager for the stop to break...). This metaphor is used to stress Speed's nervousness (... execution wake up Clamber). This metaphor is used to emphasize Clamber's attitude and might bring the effect of irony.

There are a lot of similes in the text (as if he were sitting on a powder-magazine). They are also used to reflect Speed's feelings.

A detached construction 'in hot indignation' stresses the boy's feelings. A hyperbole 'to go off into hysterics of laughter' reveals the atmosphere in the class. "You have a hundred lines' is a metonymy.

We can notice that J. Hilton uses a lot of special terms that refer to military, theater, law.

Military: powder-magazine, weapon, armoury, Recoil.

Theater: first night, star benefit performance, subdued expectancy;

Law: assembly, penalty, plead for.

It gives us an impression that a teacher's profession is like a battle and performance, court at the same time.

The author also uses some colloquial expressions such as “to be hard on”, “to pay the penalty of”, “to put off”, to emphasize Speed’s attempts to find the contact with the whole class.

I think that the problem described by the author is very actual even nowadays, because it can happen to any young teacher at any school. And the teac

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Analysis “Dangerous Corner”

The text I am going to analyze is called “Dangerous Corner” and written by John Boynton Priestly ()1894-1984). He is one of the outstanding English authors of XX century. “Dangerous Corner” (1932) – one of the series of Seven Time Plays – was his first effort in dramatic art. Priestley’s most famous novels are “The Good Companions”, “They Walk in the City”, “Far Away”, “Wonder Hero”.

The text I am analyzing is not complete; it consists of scenes taken from the play. First scene depicts us people – family and friends sitting in the living-room discussing a wireless play they have just heard. The play called “The Sleeping Dog”. And they came to conclusion that sleeping dog symbolizes truth, but some say that “dog” should stay sleeping and other say that truth needs to come out. Second scene describes us argue of main character Robert Caplan and his friend Olwen about Robert living in a fool’s paradise. Third scene depicts us Robert coming to realization that whole he has been living in a lie, building himself a fool’s hell to live in. And in the end we see nothing but we can hear a revolver shot, what means that Robert most likely committed suicide, just like his brother.

The story told in a third person narration, what gives reader a good opportunity to make his own conclusion about everything what is going on the stage. Instead of describing author let his characters to act and speak. We can divide this text into three parts – introduction, climax and resolution. Introduction – friends discussing what “sleeping dog” is. Climax – Robert’s realization that he has been lying himself this whole time. And resolution is a revolver shot in the very end of the play.

Characters of the play are Robert Caplan, his wife Freda and their friends Olwen and Stanton. Major character is Robert and the rest are minor ones. Robert’s character is dynamic, because we can see how he changes through the story, in the beginning he is kind of a simple and ordinary, but in the end he is a different person, now he knows how miserable live he has been living. Also we can say that he is a round character, he has this emotional depth that Stanton, Olwen and Freda do not have. Realization of what his life was puts him on a very difficult emotional condition; he abiding it very badly and kills himself in the end. Other characters are static, they don’t change and stay same thorough the storyline. In my mind they just help to open up Robert’s character, they determine him to perception.

In conclusion I would like to say that I did not like this story very much. It was hard for me to get what author wanted to say and not because of the language but the message wasn’t so clear. For me Robert is a very weak character instead of facing the reality as it is he preferred to run away by committing suicide. It doesn’t make sense. Well maybe if we read the full story I’d have a different point of view, but this is what I think about this extract.

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4 мар 2014 в 15:16|Это спам|Ответить

Алексей Григорьев▼

‘Dangerous Corner’ by John Boynton Priestley

Fragments from the play “Dangerous corner” written by an English writer John Boynton Priestley is under the analysis.

There are three fragments from this play. As it is a play there’s no any author’s words, as well as the direct characterizations or break in narrative sentences.

All of them are set in a cosy drawing-room, or in other rooms. This setting is realistic.

The fragments presented in the text-book in the play are the opening, the very climax and the denouement. The main hero of the play, the protagonist, Robert Caplan, has both the external and the internal conflict. His views on the life are too naïve for the people surrounding him. He lives in a world of illusions which he created for himself. But when people whom he considered to be his friends confess that they betrayed him, he is very much disappointed and commits suicide.

There are some metaphoric images in the play. For example, the wireless play “The Sleeping Dog” which the women were listening too in the beginning. It was about a man who shoot himself after learning all the truth. It is said in the basic play that a sleeping dog is a metaphor for truth which is not to be disturbed if it is too difficult to be percept. So the author gets the readers and the spectators prepared to the basic plot of the play

Telling the truth, by the words of Stanton, is just as ‘skidding round a corner at sixty’. It is also a metaphor, and it has something in common with the title of the play. The author insists that Robert Caplan is skidding round the dangerous corner in a high speed trying to find out what the truth is. And he doesn’t manage to pass it.

As the author hasn’t got much of his own words in the play, he characterizes the personages by their own words or through the words of other heroes. For example, Betty is very well characterized by epithets ‘childish manner’, her usage of a colloquialism ‘fibbing’, Miss M. grins at her. Betty is characterized as a light-minded woman whose hobby is to enchant men. Olwen’s shown as a wise woman (as Stanton tells about her). In her speech she often reasons of some things and tries to comfort Robert when he’s in frenzy. I think Olwen is the author’s mouthpiece and she brings out his own ideas telling that learning the truth is just half the truth and one can’t know what is going on inside everybody. She also speaks that the real truth is “something so deep that you can’t get at it”.

Stanton’s character is also interesting. He presents the sort of men who care for their own sake and is wondering why the others are not like that. Stanton uses colloquialisms such as ‘you’ve a good deal with that cracked brother of yours’, ‘face up to real things’, and metaphors (‘a fool’s paradise’, ‘a fool’s hell’). That is an expression of his attitude towards Caplan. He thinks he is a fool because being an idealist from Stanton’s view point is not suitable for this world. Maybe he even feels sympathy for Robert, who hasn’t been prepared to live in this cruel world. ‘A fool’s paradise’ is a world of illusions in which Robert has been living all those years, and ‘a fool’s hell’ is Robert’s eager for truth which will ruin him, and he knows that.

In Stanton’s speech the author uses an allusion from Shakespeare ‘to lie or not to lie’ which means that for him this subject is clear enough. He will lie or not lie if it matches his interests. This allusion also underlines the main problem pointed in the play. To lie is a bad thing, but one always should be aware of telling truth and should think out the situation. Is it suitable to tell the truth, can it do any harm to anyone – you should think it over before you tell it, that’s the author’s idea, and also the message of the play.

Freda is a deceitful wife but she also has her reasons. We don’t see what her reasons were from these fragments, but she has her justification from the view point of the modern morals. Her lie has been a white lie. She gets irritated of her husband’s desi

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4 мар 2014 в 15:28|Это спам|Ответить

Алексей Григорьев▼

Freda is a deceitful wife but she also has her reasons. We don’t see what her reasons were from these fragments, but she has her justification from the view point of the modern morals. Her lie has been a white lie. She gets irritated of her husband’s desire for truth and tells him everything facing him up to it without hiding anything. She uses such colloquialisms as ‘stupid’, ‘fool’ which express her irritation. Epithets ‘sentimental and noble’ (about Robert’s attitude to Betty) also show her being furious. She is jealous to Betty whom Robert used to idealize and these words mean that he hasn’t been so sentimental and noble about her. Her phrase “I wasn’t in love with somebody who really wasn’t there” means that Robert was. Now she has her revenge and is very cruel to him in destroying his illusions. She even gets grim at him. She increases the tension without realizing what it can lead to.

Robert is the victim of the society. Being naïve and trustful to his surroundings he is faced up to reality, all in one day. That appears too much for him to bear it. His speech gains tense as the action develops. It is seen with the help of using such stylistic devices: epithets: ‘rotten stuff’, ‘damned farmyard’, ‘damned silly little squabble’, ‘hysterical pervert’, ‘obscene lunatic’, ‘greedy little cat’ (and also colloquialism); similes: ‘like a child with a fire’, extended simile ‘as if we’d had some damned silly little squabble <…>’; metaphors: ‘building illusions’, ‘a gland stopped working’, ‘farmyard’, ‘a hand at a bridge’. As the tense is growing Robert’s speech becomes more abrupt, it is full of reductions, aposiopesis (‘and now’ – , etc.). The author’s commentaries also are the evidences to that.

Robert has lost his illusions as anyone of us does sooner or later. The fall of illusions is a switch-over to an adult life, but Robert didn’t survive, for the truth was too hard for him to accept it.

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4 Мар 2014 в 15:28|Это спам|Ответить

Туяра-Егор Андреевы▼

Analysis of the fragments of the play “Dangerous corner” by John Boynton Pristley.

John Boynton Priestley (1894 - 1984) is one of the outstanding English authors of today. His early books (1922-26) were of a critical nature. It was the success of his novel "The Good Companions" (1929) which brought him world fame. In early thirties Priestley began his work as a dramatist. "Dangerous Corner" (1932) — one of the series of Seven Time Plays — was his first effort in dramatic art. Priestley's other most famous novels are "They Walk in the City", "Angel Pave-ment", "Wonder Hero", "Far Away". "Let the People Sing". "Bright Day" and many others.

These fragments of the play show readers very dramatic moments of protagonist- Robert Caplan’s life. First scene is exposition. Sitting with the characters in cosy drawing room, readers feel depressive atmosphere. Robert, his wife- Freda and their guests listen the radio play “Sleeping dog”. This play is about man, shoot himself. Stanton explained the title of play- truth as a sleeping dog. Author makes readers ready to tragic end of the story. All first scene is an exposition. We meet Robert, Freda, Olwen, Stanton, Betyty, Miss M. Readers understand what is the main problem, raised in play. It is truth and its after-effects. Second scene is a complication. The problem becomes deeper. Stanton, Robert and Olwen talk about Robert’s brother- Martin Caplan, who committed suicide six months ago. Stanton and Olwen think that “once more that half truth is dangerous”. Stanton said Robert that he lives in a fool’s paradise. The last scene is complication and crisis. The crisis is the moment, when Robert finally lost all his illusions and faced up the truth. “Because I am a fool. Stanton was right. That's the only answer. I had to meddle, like a child with a fire. I began this evening with something to keep me going. I'd good memories of Martin. I'd a wife who didn't love me, but at least seemed too good for me. I'd two partners I liked and respected. There was a girl I could idealize. And now —“. The resolution is a revolver shot. It is a logical final for such emotional person like Robert Caplan. Moreover, author depicted Robert in a desperation and his state of emotions explained his death. His wife, partners, including dead brother cheated him; even a girl, whom he idealized! The message of the story is obvious, truth is trial, which can break you. If you are not ready to know truth, you should not know it.

Protagonist is Robert Caplan. He is exhausted and weak-spirit man. Instead of solving problem or blaming someone, he decided to kill himself. Probably, it was impulse, led him to death. Robert insisted on truth coming out, but life is cruel and his intentions turned out his curse. All other characters are minor, they just help to main character to make an evolution.As every minor character, they are flat. Author used two methods of characterization: through the dialogue and through the actions. Because of lack of backgroung, we can not judge someone. I believe author had another aim, he tried to show us truth as a corner-stone.

The plot of the play is chronologically ordered, but episodic.

Title of the play is easy to explain. Dangerous corner is a turning point, which is able to ruin lifes. Language is literal, but there are some colloquialism: “greedy little cat”, “want to set eyes on you again” etc

Pristley used following stylistic devices: epithets: damned farmyard, damned silly little squabble, hysterical pervert, obscene lunatic, similes: “like a child with a fire”, ”as if we’d had some damned silly little squabble; metaphors: “building illusion’’, “a hand at a bridge”. All these stylistic devices made dialogues more real to life.

I like this playwright because of raising eternal problem. As for me, I prefer to live in ignorance, to know nothing about painful truth.

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4 мар 2014 в 16:27|Это спам|Ответить

Елена Крылова▼

“Half-truth is more dangerous than falsehood”

Ardha-Satya Mithya Apeksa Bhayankara

Truth always must be revealed. Or not? This practically existential problem is presented in the play titled “Dangerous Corner” by the outstanding English novelist and playwright John Boynton Priestley. Priestley, well-known for his novels, wrote this play to prove that a novelist could write an effective play using the strict economy of the stage. In his biography of Priestley, Vincent Brome wrote of Dangerous Corner: "Directed by Tyrone Guthrie, it ran for just five performances, then the backers withdrew their support. Priestley took a cold hard look at the situation, made some swift calculations with his agent A.D. Peters, and plunged in daringly to rescue it. He was by now a relatively rich man and he drew on the accumulatuion of royalties to keep the play running at a loss. In the end his audacity paid off. The destructive notices in the daily press were followed by favourable reviews by Ivor Brown in the Observer and James Agate in the Sunday Times. It became one of the most popular plays Priestley ever wrote."

The plot of the story is concerned with the problem of truth. A group of friends are discussing a recently watched play called “The Sleeping Dog” where the main character finds out the truth and shoots himself. Sooner after that one of the friends, Robert Caplan, argues with others as unbearable truth about his brother’s suicide, his wife and partners is revealed. Desperate, he shoots himself with a revolver.

The story opens with a description of a cozy drawing-room, where the characters are holding a conversation about the play “The sleeping dog”. Everything seems just ordinary, informal style of their speech – short and incomplete sentences (“Very likely. But we meant something much more serious.”), phrasal verbs and phrases characteristic for informal style (“Serious or not, I’m all for it coming out”.), similes (“Telling the truth is about as healthy as skidding round a corner at sixty”).

We cannot say that the plot is unified as the given extracts from the play are missing the turning point of the story. The first paragraph is an exposition, as there we meet the main characters and get to know the theme of the story. The second paragraph is already a complication, which is progressing at the beginning of the third paragraph. The last two ones are built on the antithesis. For example, “fool’s paradise – fool’s hell”, where those metaphors symbolize the states of “not knowing” and “knowing” respectively. Another, more compound example: “I’d good memories of Martin. I’d a wife who didn’t love me, but at least seemed too good for me. I’d two partners I liked and respected. There was a girl I could idealize.” – “My brother was an obscure lunatic […], and my wife doted on him and pestered him. One of my partners is a liar and a cheat and a thief. The other – God knows what he is – some sort of hysterical young pervert – And a girl’s a greedy little cat on the tiles”. Here Robert compares two “worlds” (“we’re not living in the same worlds now”) of his, his past and present, the world of lies and the world where the truth is revealed.

The key concepts revealing the main idea of the text are the Truth and the Lie. The word “truth” is repeated nine times in the text. However, there are several variations of that notion, such as “the real truth, or God’s truth” and “a half truth”.

The Lie is represented by repetition of a noun “lies” (three times) with a range of contextual synonyms, such as “fibbing”, “self-deception” and “illusions”, also there are synonyms of the verb “to lie”, such as “deceive oneself”, “made up”, “build up another image for oneself. Moreover, there is an allusion to Shakespearian’s “to be or not to be” – “to lie or not to lie”. The author’s answer to that eternal metaphysical question is expressed by the lips of Olwen:

“Well – the real truth – that is, every single little thing, with nothing missing at all, wouldn’t be dangerous. I suppose that’s God’s truth. But wha

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