Argue the case that "Journey's End" is still worthy of being staged today.
Argue the case that "Journey's End" is still worthy of being staged today. "Journey's End" by R.C Sherriff is a play which gives a realistic picture of life in a First World War trench. Performed in 1928 when the bitter memories of war were still fresh, it made a profound impact on those who saw it. It was uncompromising and showed the awful truth to those who had been given the diluted version. Until then, the harsh reality had been hidden and a brave front of victory and triumph put on, masking the truth about the suffering of the soldiers. They had also had a stretch of momentum, enjoying the victory of the War and a peaceful land, and by 1928 they were ready to know the truth. For those who see it today, however, it would not only teach them about war and how our country came to be through the strength and spirit of those who fought and gave their lives, but it also provides the audience with moments of high drama, light hearted humour and deep poignancy. These are often not found in the commonly staged plays of today such as "Grease" and "Joseph" whose only meanings are to teach the youngsters of today that they should dream about love and fame, things not relevant in such a difficult world. The youngsters of today too are becoming more and more desensitised by watching violent films and TV programmes and seeing emotive images of starving children and eventually they
Journeys end - Short review
Journeys end coursework - Connor Witherington 10t Introduction Journeys end was rejected by most managers of theatres because it was so soon after the war, they thought the public would reject It since it might remind them of lost family members, however after may rejections it was finally accepted, it was branded awesome. The play and characters reflect Sherrifs experience in the 'great war' where he was sent home due to injury. Journeys end was a first hand account of what the war was really like. The audience loved it because it was the first of its kind; other war plays had just been showing the good side of the war, not the dreadful trenches, disease and heartbreak. Section 2 The play is set when a group of British officers are waiting for a German attack, which will lead to their death. The captain Stanhope is nearly going insane but coping only with the help of whiskey, Stanhope is a tragic hero. Another officer Hibbert is close to breaking yet is carrying on due to the continuous bullying from the captain. There is an older wiser officer Osborne is like a father figure to the other officers especially Stanhope. Another officer Trotter continually provides humour he is also very lazy but loyal. A new officer enters the company Raleigh who was a school friend of Stanhope and feels heroism to him. There is a lot of Trench humour in the play (light humour about the
20th Century Drama - Journey's End
G.C.S.E Coursework 20th Century Drama - Journey's End In the final scene of the play, Journey's End, the writer, R.C. Serriff, uses various dramatic devices to create impact. The candles in the dugout are one example of this. They are used by Sherriff to symbolise the relationships between the inhabitants of the dugout. At the start of the scene the lights are extinguished and the dugout is completely black. This darkness is used to show the tense atmosphere after the argument between Raleigh and Stanhope the night before. In the final scene we see a side to Stanhope that was previously hidden. He is made out by Sherriff to be more vulnerable than he was previously seen to be. This is shown when the stage direction tells Stanhope to be "lying bundled with his blankets wrapped tightly around him." This is used to show how Stanhope is not the hard, whisky drinking British officer with the traditional stiff-upper lip, but still a young man and likely to die in the big attack that morning. In contrast to this there are two characters in the play that are nothing but cheery all the way through, despite the imminent big attack and the whole depressing status of living in the trenches. These are Private Mason and Trotter. They are both from a working class background, as is made apparent in their speech, and they both display the cheerful, cheeky "cockney sparrow" type of
Comment on the following extract, the opening of In a free state, a novel by V.S. Naipul (born 1932). In your response you should include a consideration of the writers use of language and his attitude towards the characters and the situation depicted.
Comment on the following extract, the opening of In a free state, a novel by V.S. Naipul (born 1932). In your response you should include a consideration of the writers use of language and his attitude towards the characters and the situation depicted. Though many of poets and authors are purged by a notion to do something about the world's dire conditions that they write about, they don't. They complain and rave about in their texts, bringing out the morbid atmosphere of the place, but they know that owe their inspiration to those very conditions; without them, the stimulation to narrate powerful texts such as the tramp at Piraeus could have never arisen. V.S. Naipaul illustrates his journey from Piraeus to Alexandria in a morose tone and gloomy language. Most texts written about a journey have elaborate details about its natural surroundings, but this extract indulges more into the 'dingy' steamer itself and its passengers. He takes an insight into understanding his fellow passengers, especially the tramp. Using these techniques, V.S. Naipaul has produced an influential and forlorn text. The text is written from the view of the first person, allowing the reader to feel more involved with the text - "as soon as I saw the dingy little Greek Steamer I felt I ought to have made other arrangements". We see the whole journey from his point of view, thus our views of the
Act one of Journey's End.
Characters Capt. Denis Stanhope Second Lieutenant Raleigh Lt. Osborne Second Lt. Hibbert Company Sergeant Major Private Mason The Colonel Introduction Synopsis: - Journey's End is about life in the trenches during World War One, and about the depressing one by one, soldiers go 'over the top' and meet with death routine. The endless spectacle of death has taken its affect on Captain Stanhope; psychologically scarred he becomes an alcoholic to ease the pain and guilt of sending more young men to die. The captain senses his second in command, Lt. Osborne, is beginning to doubt his competence, and Stanhope must maintain his troops respect for him until his replacement arrives. But tensions run high when a new officer, Second Lieutenant Raleigh, joins Captain Stanhope's company behind British lines in France in 1918. The two men knew each other at school, but after three years on the front, Stanhope is a changed man. On the eve of a big German attack, Lieutenant Osborne desperately tries to keep Stanhope from cracking, as he is seen talking to himself and his alcoholism has seen him deteriorate over three years, and it has now come to a point when Stanhope "can't bear being conscious all the time" and that "if I went up those steps into the front line, without being doped up with whiskey, I'd go mad with fright" In This essay I am going make points, give quotes and
A Comparison of Journey's End and Friends Divided
A Comparison of Journey's End and Friends Divided The option for this performance was option 3 and the task was to do an improvisation on the theme of journeys. Our play, "Friends Divided", is about a man, Josh, who gets a job instead of his friend, Dan, and becomes Dan's boss. He treats Dan with no respect, telling him what to do and gradually demands more and more from him. It shows the job slowly taking over his life and everything else around him crumbling as a consequence. James. P plays Josh's boss and he doesn't realise what is happening between Josh and Dan until everything reaches its peak. In the end Josh loses his friend, his wife, his children and also the job that caused it all. The play shows how it's easy to get carried away with something and not realise that the life around you is crumbling. At various stages in the performance there are two people, Genny and James, who act as Josh's conscience. James is on the 'good side of the shoulder' and Genny is on the 'bad side of the shoulder'. Both give him an option when making decisions and as the play progresses he chooses the bad option more than the good one. In the performance I play the character of Josh's wife, Jen. I will be comparing "Friends Divided" with "Journey's End". I have read the text and also seen a touring production of it. "Journey's End" is set in a bunker in World War One and is about a
July 2, 1942 - Diary enteries for a soldier fighting against the Japanese.
July 2, 1942 Dear diary, Another bloody day! I can't wait to get home and take a long bath. News has it that the Japanese are slowly moving their way down 'ere. Just recently they took that island Guadalcanal. Hope to god they get caught up along the way. Our division isn't ready for an attack right now. The rain keeps hammerin' down and its muddy everywhere. I hope that everyone else is doing better. Geez I 'aven't heard from Jack in ages. I wonder what he's doing nowadays. God I miss dem days. These Japanese just don't give up. They tried to capture Port Moresby but we fought em off. The Japs will be here soon and then they'll see. We'll overcome their great numbers and send them back to Japan. We'll show everyone what these "choco" soldiers can do. That's what their calling us back home because everyone thinks will melt under the pressure of a real battle but I'm ready to fight and I will die fighting for England. Oh gawd I don't like our current situation, nothing has gone right from the beginning, our uniforms were the wrong color, and our equipment was limited. It's so boring here, nothing to do but marching and lookout. Can't see anything at the moment, it's too dark. Half our platoon are under 30 years. No one here was eager to hear that they were being dragged off to New Guinea to fight against the Japs. It's been a while since the last letter Janine sent me and I'm
What is the effect of warfare on the characters and their relationships in "Journey's End?"
What is the effect of warfare on the characters and their relationships in "Journey's End?" The First World War, what can you expect? Dirty, horrible conditions, rat infested trenches, disinfected water, intense boredom and the repetition of machine guns viciously rattling in the distance. These are the predicaments that the soldiers had to cope with in the deadly war. Though there was a battle on between the Germans and the British, there was also an internal battle on within the characters as they fought to relieve their depression. The trench conditions inside and outside was very bad in the war. There was only a 'narrow strip of starlight sky' and a 'pale shaft of sunlight' outside the trenches. The 'intense darkness' tell us that the soldiers were living in a very poor state. The trench conditions affected the men in different ways. Stanhope is the most affected soldier from the rest of the characters. Although he has the best position that anybody could have, 'The Company Commander of an Infantry Company,' he has one problem, drinking. To cope with the war, he turns to alcohol to relieve his depression, for one incident occurred when he arrived back to the 'C' Company, he had an 'awful affair on Vimy Ridge,' and so he knew he would 'go mad if I didn't break the strain. - I couldn't bear being fully conscious all the time.' This shows us that he can not live
Examine closely the role of Raleigh
Examine closely the role of Raleigh Throughout the play, 'Journey's End', R.C. Sherriff provides a range of characters portraying different personalities and backgrounds. One of these characters is a boy called Raleigh. The dramatic intention of this character is to symbolise the youth and naivety of the many young officers who died during trench warfare. In addition he is used as a dramatic tool to reveal emotions and create tension. The clearest and more obvious role of Raleigh is to symbolise youth. Even before Raleigh arrives at the front line the officer, Hardy, is willing to welcome a young officer, '...a youngster straight from school. They're the kind that do best.' In this phrase, R.C. Sherriff is implying that new young officers are eager, with few responsibilities and do not know much at all about the war. Raleigh is a symbol for the many young men who were brainwashed in schools with propaganda in order to try to encourage them to join the army. As the play advances there are clear signs of these traits in Raleigh. For example when he arrives in the trenches, he is offered some whisky from Osborne, 'Will you have a drink?' but Raleigh replies, 'Er- well'. From this reply it is obvious that Raleigh has never drunken whisky due to his uncertainty and unclear response. To many of the older men in the trenches it was a part of everyday life, as if they were drinking
How does RC Sherriff introduce us to the horrors of war in Act 1 of the play?
How does RC Sherriff introduce us to the horrors of war in Act 1 of the play? In the play 'Journey's End', RC Sherriff introduces us to the horrors of war in Act 1. The play is seen through the eyes of the somewhat privileged section of the British Army in WWI - officers. Even so, the repulsions of war were horrific. One of the most important factor and dramatic device that show the horrors of war is the fact that the characters are clearly suffering emotionally and physically. This is shown in through other people speaking lots about Stanhope in Act 1- Hardy and Osborne have a discussion about him before he arrives. Osborne at one point says that it "reminds you of bear baiting- or cock fighting -to sit and watch a boy drink himself unconscious." This gives the impression that he does not wish to drink in the way that he does, but that it is required upon him by a higher force, specifically being the war. This comparison may even suggest that they think war is pointless, just like bear baiting and cock fighting. Raleigh and Osbourne both die and everything which was built within and between the characters is torn apart, Stanhope being the perfect example having a complete mental breakdown. I guess from all that the question could be, did Sherriff imply that the war was futile? In Act 1 the idea of comradeship and relationships is brought out. Osbourne is referred to as