"Hobson's Choice" by Harold Brighouse, a summary.

During the previous English lessons we have been reading the play of "Hobson's Choice" by Harold Brighouse furthermore have watched the original film. A theatre critic Nightingale said "the play chronicles a shift between the generation and the sexes" but I believe that he should have added another one "class". Brief summary of play This play is set in Victorian Salford in Manchester. A man called Henry Horatio Hobson who owns a shoe shop. He has 3 daughters who he wants married off (Alice, Vicky and Maggie) with the exception of the eldest Maggie who is 30 years old because he thinks she is too old to get married and she does all the house work and minds the shop while he goes to the Moonrakers and gets drunk. Maggie decides to propose to Willie to get wed Hobson does not like it at all so they walk out to open a rival shoe store with the help of a rich women called Mrs.Hepworth. Class The issue of class is illustrated well throughout the play. Firstly when Hobson makes a fool of himself when Mrs.Hepworth, a very important high class wealthy lady enters the shop to praise Wille for his work on her boats. It is irregular for a high class person to do this to a lower class worker. Tubby Wadlow a worker tells her that Willie has made the pair of shoes than Hobson rudely comes in to the conversation get the wrong impression about what she is saying and begins to talk that he

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Hobsons Choice - Select two or more moments from two different acts that show how the writer has developed the character of Willie Mossop or Maggie.

Select two or more moments from two different acts that show how the writer has developed the character of Willie Mossop or Maggie. How did you reflect this change in your performance? " Hobsons Choice" is a play about how the life of middle and lower classes used to be like during the 19th Century. The play is set in Salford, Manchester and is based around the lives of the Hobson family and William Mossop. William Mossop is the boothand for the owner of Hobsons boot shop, Henry Hobson. Early on in the play, Willie Mossop finds out, by the way of Maggie Hobson, he has an ability to make superb boots. Maggie, sees her future with Willie, and asks to 'Wed' him, telling him that they could set up their own business in another street. The two finally do this and run a very flourishing business, but at Hobsons expense, for his health and business falls and he is forced to seek help from Willie and Maggie. I have selected, as the title asks, two acts from the play. I have chosen act one and act four. I have chosen these two acts, because I felt that these two acts reflected, the most clearly, the ways in which Willie Mossop changed. In the first act, Willie Mossop is first seen, when he pops up from the cellar when Hobson shouts for him to meet Mrs Hepworth. We are told, that he comes out of the cellar, "reluctantly", as if he is afraid of meeting Mrs Hepworth, an upper class,

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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`Hobson's Choice` by Harold Brighouse. Why are the characters of Maggie and Will popular with a modern audience?

Ryan Balchin January 2003 `Hobson's Choice` by Harold Brighouse Why are the characters of Maggie and Will popular with a modern audience? `Hobson's Choice` written in 1914 but set further back in the 1880's, is a comedy, based around the battle of wills between Hobson, a hard-headed and domineering cobble and his daughter Maggie, who defies him by marrying his most talented worker, Will. She helps Will to develop his potential and together try to turn the tables on Hobson himself as it is not expected for Maggie and Will to do so. Maggie is an independent and strong woman, who wants to escape form her greedy father to make a new start in life. At the beginning of the play Hobson believes that Maggie is too old to marry and he wants to keep her in the business, as she is good at her job "Maggie's to useful too part with, And she's abit on the ripe side for Marrying is our Maggie" She decides to prove her father wrong. In the 1880's it is normal for a women to have an arranged marriage done by their fathers and would marry into a high class family so they can have a happy and wealthy life, and as Maggie's father does not want her to marry she goes and finds herself her own husband to spend the rest of her life with, Hobson's shoe maker Will Mossop, all in a business arrangement as they both are

  • Word count: 1242
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Drama Coursework- The two stimuli's for my coursework were a play, Hobson's Choice by Harold Brighouse and a song, For What its Worth by Stephen Stills.

Drama Coursework- Comparing Two Stimulis The two stimuli's for my coursework were a play, Hobson's Choice by Harold Brighouse and a song, For What its Worth by Stephen Stills. Some characters in both texts are similar, such as Maggie in Hobson's Choice is protesting against her father and the children in the song are protesting against the war. The theme duty is similar in both texts. The setting is different; Hobson's Choice is set in 1880s Salford when wages were low, but the setting in the song is the 1660s Vietnamese war. The theme of duty could be used in our performance as it was in both texts. The theme of family in Hobson's Choice could be used to influence us. The similarity of protesting could be used in my role as I could protest for the innocence of my friend. As the characters in the song protest against the government, we could protest against the law. Unlike the song, Hobson's Choice has the theme of the break of family; we could use this in our performance. The contexts of both texts are very different. Hobson's Choice was written in 1880s when Salford was poor, therefore we could have a poor family in our performance. The song was written in the time of the Vietnamese was when the 1660s Americans enjoyed freedom. We could use this, but have the freedom taken away. The work ethic of the character Mr Hobson was different from the work ethic of

  • Word count: 573
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Hobson's Choice Summary

'Hobson's Choice' Revision Notes Hobson's Choice The play was written in 1915 and was first produced in America in 1915. The play is set in Salford, now part of Greater Manchester, in 1880. ACT ONE Scene One The curtains open to reveal the interior of Hobson's Boot Shop in Salford. Hobson's two younger daughters, Alice and Victoria, are at the counter. The door opens from the living quarters and Maggie, Hobson's elder daughter, enters. The girls briefly comment on the fact that their father is late getting up. The reason for his lateness is soon made clear - a late night at a Freemason's meeting, when, no doubt, the drink flowed freely. Albert Prosser enters (26, son of a solicitor and a lawyer himself). It is obvious he has come to see Alice and they have been seeing each other behind Hobson's back. Albert turns to leave as soon as he hears that Hobson is still at home. Maggie's business sense surfaces and she 'persuades' Albert to buy a new pair of boots and leave his old ones for repair. Scene Two We meet Hobson and see the growing conflict between him and his daughters. He is about to go out for his morning drink at the Moonraker's Inn. His daughters tell him to be home in time for his dinner. He sits down and tells them he is tired of being bossed about. He refers to them as 'the rebellious females of this house'. He says he has noticed them getting

  • Word count: 6739
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Trace the development of William mossop's character in the play 'Hobson's choice'

Trace the development of William Mossop's character in the play 'Hobson's choice' William Mossop started off as a lodger lodging with Ada Figgins. He was shy and had no ambitions working at Hobson's shoe shop at the bottom of the chain. At the end of the play he was ambitious, married and the joint owner of Hobsons shop. The audience sympathises with Willie the first time he appears on stage because he 'only comes half way up the trap door'. This is because of his social standing and he feels that he is not worthy to speak to Hobson and the 'upper class people'. As the play progresses Willie acquires a greater sense of confidence. This is shown when Willie begins to speak more and is further educated and more self-assured. Willie also gets more confident after he gets married to Maggie. Willie gradually works his way up the ladder and begins to take over Hobson's shop. During the play, Hobson is unable to watch over the shoe shop and his daughters have all matured, moved out, and got married, including Maggie, who is married to Willie. Willie now has ambitions and these are to create something of his life. He later fulfils his aspirations and becomes the owner of Hobson's shoe shop. Furthermore, in the middle of the play Hobson accepts Willie and Maggie's marriage. He exclaimed accepts the fact that Maggie and Willie are married but then goes on to say, 'Maggie, you've had

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Demonstrate, in detail, how the writer uses language effectively to represent Maggies character and role in act one of Hobsons Choice.

Hobson's choice Demonstrate, in detail, how the writer uses language effectively to represent Maggie's character and role in act one of "Hobson's Choice." Hobson's choice The play is set in Salford in 1880. The year is a very important thing in the play because some characters are not fit for what time they are in because women were often thought of as lower class because they could not work to earn money. Maggie is an example of this. In 1880 women were not usually able to tell people what to do but Maggie often uses imperatives to order people about. Men would think it was foolish to listen to a woman; many men those days would even think that women were inferior to men so are unable to work or vote. In the play Maggie immediately takes control of situations with ease. The other main characters in the play are Hobson, Willie, Vicky and Alice. Alice, who is twenty one and Vicky, who is twenty three are Maggie's younger sisters. Maggie, who is thirty, is the eldest daughter of Hobson. At the start of act one Maggie is already showing her character. As soon as Maggie enters the shop she is working with an account book while her sisters are reading and knitting this show that Maggie is a hard worker and always wants to work to get the job done to move on and do something else, this shows she is determined to work quickly and efficiently. Maggie also shows she knows a lot

  • Word count: 3412
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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What have you found interesting about the ways Brighouse presents the character of Maggie in act one of ‘Hobson’s Choice?’

What have you found interesting about the ways Brighouse presents the character of Maggie in act one of 'Hobson's Choice?' Maggie is the eldest of Hobson's three daughters. Of the three she is the most intelligent and most valuable to Hobson. She has a very hardened appearance and almost mothers the other three, Hobson, Vicky and Alice. In the beginning of the book, she works in Hobson's shoe shop along with her two sisters. She is a great sales woman and because of this, she is very valuable to Hobson, Hobson himself says 'Maggie's to useful to part with.' Brighouse has written Maggie into the play to be very forcefully and dominant. She does not let a customer go out of the shop without making a purchase. This happened when Albert Prosser came into see Alice, his girlfriend. Maggie turned to him and exclaimed 'This is a shop, you know. We're not here to let people go out without buying.' These qualities make Maggie a very successful businessperson. It is these qualities that make Maggie so important to her father, Hobson. If Maggie were to leave then the business would cease and Hobson would be in a very big mess. I think Maggie struggles when it comes to love and marriage, which inevitably creates problems for her. I do not think she knows how to express her feelings properly without hurting others feelings. She does not think courting should be carried out

  • Word count: 572
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Personal Writing- Non Fiction based on A night out- Harold Pinter

English Gcse Personal Writing- Non Fiction A night out- HAROLD PINTER (1960) Mrs stokes is talking to herself during the evening about her feelings. She is feeling upset and jealous with Albert and is feeling sorry for herself for the way in which she treated Albert like. MOTHER: "What shall I do now Albert has left?" I feel really lonely and scared in the house myself. Where will my son have gone? Why couldn't he have stayed in for once? Is it because I am a selfish and mean mother? Albert does not listen to me. Why is this? (Thinks to herself) (Crying) I have been very overprotective and loving to him and should have been sensible and mature. How could I have said so many terrible things about my Father? (She feels worried inside her stomach) It was my duty as Albert's mother to talk to him in a good manner. However, why didn't I do this? Is because I was a silly and an unrepectful mother. Its so mean and horrible what I have done and treated like Albert like. Nevertheless, I regret treating Albert like a child. He is a young adult. How could I have done such a terrible thing to him? I am going to hate myself for doing this to him if he does not forgive me. Why was I so jealous of him? It was not any of mine business what he does and who he goes out with. (Stressfully and sighs her hands over her head) How could I have been mean about Albert's father and said upsetting

  • Word count: 1323
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Hobsons Choice - Focus on Will Mossop's character. Trace the changes and developments We see in his character.

HOBSONS CHOICE Focus on Will Mossop's character. Trace the changes and developments We see in his character. This is a character study on a character from the play Hobsons Choice by Harold Brighouse. The character I am going to study is Hobsons principal bookmaker, Willie Mossop. The story of Hobsons choice is about Hobsons single mindedness, which is shown in the way he attempts to live his life, run his household, and to rule his daughters. It is seen In the eldest daughter Maggie's dominance and the grooming of Will and not least in her finally, at the age of 30 standing up to her own father. The other two daughters Alice and Vickey also inherit this characteristic. What sets Maggie apart from the rest of her family is that she uses this quality not only for her benefit of others, not least though he is initially unconvinced, Willie Mossop. Thos play is also the story of the transformation of Willie. Willie was a working class man who worked in Henry Hobson's boot shop, he had little future until Maggie Hobson spotted talent and developed him into a successful man. When Willie is first seen in Act 1 page 9 he is described as a "Lanky fellow, about thirty, not naturally stupid but stunted mentally by a brutalised childhood. He is a raw material of a charming man but at present, it requires a very keen eye to detect his potentialities" One thing I notice about

  • Word count: 1381
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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