I believe that them being in the Progress Class influences the way they behave and this is because they are not wise enough to be aware and conscious that they are doing something inappropriate or unsuitable. This was shown when Linda was arguing with Mr. Briggs, and Linda replies “What have I said? I haven’t said nott’n yet, have I?” This shows that when she was rude and discourteous to Mr. Briggs she didn’t realise that she was. When Mr. Briggs called her she didn’t even look up. Then she was chewing, contemptuously and disrespectfully and didn’t realise about that also. I think she had developed this attitude of contemptuousness and disrespectfulness to show Mr. Briggs that she doesn’t care and that if he treated her like this she will stay in this same attitude.
The children also show how much they hate their place because of its dirty, scruffy and shabby set, everybody wanted to stay in the beach for more time and even not leave from there, where also Carol was prepared to jump off the cliff-top but not go home. “I’ve told you. Leave me alone and I won’t jump. I wanna stay here where it’s nice. ”Carol earlier was request Mrs. Kay to no go home now “Miss., when do we have t’ go home?” “Yeh, but I don’t wanna go home. I wanna stay here.” Carol again: “Well d’ y’ think I’d be able t’ live in one of them nice places?”
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An additional incident I found in the play was Carol as she was speaking to Mrs. Kay and describing for her the place, setting and background she lives in. “We did have till last bommy night – the kids chopped ‘em all down an’ burnt them all.” The last episode I found on this issue was again Carol but this time with Mr. Briggs which I have already explained previously.
Their family background wasn’t shown much except for a few scenes in the play which could be analysed or evaluated by the way the children act and the way they think. Most of the children were speaking and behaving rude because of the environment, background and atmosphere they had grown up in and developed in, this was because their parents or guardians didn’t show any care or concern towards them. It wasn’t shown directly throughout the play, but could be established from a number of scenes. As for Reilly and Mr. Briggs scene it shows how Reilly’s father works in a place that he hated and also planted this thought in his son’s mind. “Me old man works down here he hates it.”
Another occasion was Andrews and Mr. Briggs. When Andrews was asked by Mr. Briggs if his parents knew that he smokes or not, he replied that they did and that his father belts him for not giving him one and not because of the fact he smokes.
I know from my understanding of the play that the children are needy and unfortunate, this was shown by the way some of the children’s parents work, the way they live, the way some of the teachers think of them and that they won’t succeed even if they try. Mrs Kay had a whole argument with Mr. Briggs about this aspect, Mrs. Kay thinks that Mr. Briggs shouldn’t try to teach them because nothing will come out of them and his job is designed and funded to fail. “There’s nothing for them to do, any of them; most of them were born for factory fodder” and by the way all of them are in the Progress Class or were in previously.
