A Taste of Honey

A Taste Of Honey Comparing Delaney's Presentation of Jo & Helen's Relationship in Act 1, scene 1 & Act 2, scene 2 'A Taste of Honey' is a kitchen sink drama, set in the late 1950s. It follows the volatile relationship of a mother and daughter, and the problems that they have to overcome. 'A Taste of Honey' presents the harsh reality of what life was like for the working classes. The play explores a variety of controversial issues, which especially in the 1950s, only happened behind closed doors, and would have raised serious questions in society. In 'A Taste of Honey' Helen is portrayed as a bad mother, she cares more about drink and men than her own child and there are several preferences to Helen's alcoholism throughout the play. In a strict and traditional society, it would have been almost unforgivable for a teenage girl to have a child and raise it on her own as Jo ends up doing and Helen did before her. Racism also plays a factor in the play as the father of Jo's unborn child was black and people felt very strongly about this sort of thing at this time, including Jo's mother. 'A Taste of Honey' shows an insight to the problems and strains that can be brought on by the above issues and those that the working class suffered. In the opening scene of 'A Taste of Honey' you are introduced to Jo and Helen's new flat. It is a run down, dingy, old place and is all that

  • Word count: 1593
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Taste of Honey - Explore the likely similarities and differences between the audience reactions of 1958 and 2003.

A Taste of Honey Explore the likely similarities and differences between the audience reactions of 1958 and 2003. What was particularly shocking for an audience in 1958? How might an audience in 2003 react to the play? What are the dramatic qualities? How were theatrical conventions challenged when this play was first performed? Joan Littlewood first accepted Shelagh Delaney's "A Taste of Honey" in 1958 for production by the Theatre Workshop Company. At this time, Britain was finally beginning to emerge from the shortages and restrictions on life caused by World War Two. The 1950's were a big time of change, and saw the birth of the "teenager", a culture that had previously not been recognised. People were beginning to refuse to accept things the way they were, and films such as, "A Rebel Without a Cause" staring James Dean, showed new rebellious characters, in a way that was innovative and scandalous. "A Taste of Honey" was part of this shocking new rebellion and appealed especially to this new strata in society. It belonged to a period in drama known as the "angry" theatre, started by John Osborne's "Look Back in Anger". Until this time, the majority of plays had been set in London, and were generally about the upper class in society. Delaney had decided to defy this convention, and set her play in Manchester. She said, 'North County people are shown as

  • Word count: 2042
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Year 10 pre 1914 drama coursework

Year 10 pre 1914 drama coursework How does the presentation of Jo in ?a taste oh honey ? by Sheilagh Delaney link to the "kitchen sink drama" genre, popularised in the 1950's and 1960's In a taste of honey Helen is the mother of Jo. Helen and Jo both live together and they have just moved into a small bed-sit. Helen often argues with Jo. Jo, Later on in the play, has a black boyfriend, who, in the play, is only known as boy In a taste of honey all the characters experience a little bit of pleasure in their life. Helen marrying Peter, Jo and the black boy. However they all have to pay for this pleasure. Jo gets pregnant and the black boy leaves. Helen leaves Jo for peter and when this doesn't work out Helen comes back to Jo. In the play Jo is subject to neglect. This is because her mother, Helen, leaves her alone at 15 to fend for herself. "I'll be seeing you. Hey! If he doesn't show up I'll be back" This is the start of the period when Helen leaves Jo. At this stage in the play the readers don't know if Jo will survive for long without Helen. Peter however se this and gives Jo a pound to have so she could buy food to eat. Jo's role in the play is to show what it would be like in those times to be a single expectant mother. She also has the purpose of showing us how parents have influences on their children: for example Jo was created after Helen and Jo's dad had a

  • Word count: 1202
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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In writing

In writing "A Taste of Honey", what impact did Shelagh Delaney hope to have upon her audience? What techniques did she use to achieve these aims? Shelagh Delaney wrote "A Taste of Honey" in 1958 when she was only 18. "A Taste of Honey" is a story about the relationship between a girl and her mother. The mother, Helen, who is a semi-whore, leaves her daughter, Jo, to get married to Peter. Jo has a relationship with a sailor and gets pregnant. The sailor then leaves for duty. Jo meets Geoff, they become friends and Geoff offers to help Jo bring up the baby. Helen returns after splitting up with Peter and wants Jo back. The audience that Shelagh Delaney was writing for consisted mainly of middle class and upper class people. Her audience were used to seeing productions about characters leading similar lives to their own. The stereotypical play was where the men worked and the women stayed at home, cleaning and cooking. "A Taste of Honey" did not have these qualities at all. Shelagh Delaney's aims were to shock her audience into seeing what the real world could be like. The audience of the time were relatively un-aware of the truth about working classes and their lives. This type of play was new to the theatrical stage, and could take time before the "working class" plays would be accepted and appreciated. The upper classes were mostly unaware that the lower classes were

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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'A Taste of Honey'How does Jo relate to all the other characters? A Taste of honey became a sensational theatrical success when first produced in London by Joan Littelwood's Theatre Workshop Company.

Shelagh Delaney 'A Taste of Honey' How does Jo relate to all the other characters? A Taste of honey became a sensational theatrical success when first produced in London by Joan Littelwood's Theatre Workshop Company. It was made into a high acclaimed film in 1961. The play is about the adolescent Jo and her relationships with those about her - her irresponsible, roving mother Helen and her mum's newly acquired drunken husband, the black sailor who leaves her pregnant and Geoffrey the homosexual art student who moves in to help with the baby. It is also about Jo's unshakeable optimism throughout her trials. This story of a mother and daughter relationship set in working class Manchester continues to fascinate new generations of readers and audience. 'A Taste of Honey' spans two acts containing two scenes. The whole play takes place around the same place, a shabby, uncomfortable flat in a lodging - house in a poor part of Manchester. At the time this play was written, people faced many difficulties coping with life, this is shown throughout the pay. Living conditions were very harsh, as people were often forced to live in bed sitters, sharing bathrooms and kitchens. As well as the five characters - Jo, Helen, Peter, The Boy and Geoff, there is a link between their relationships. Act 1, Scene 1 opens with Helen and Jo, moving into their new flat; Helen: "well! This is the

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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From dependence to independence. To what degree does Jo mature and become less dependant on others?

From dependence to independence. To what degree does Jo mature and become less dependant on others? "A Taste Of Honey" is a twentieth century play set in the 1950s. It is known as a "kitchen-sink" drama and was written by Shelagh Delaney at the age of 18 and was first performed in May 1958. A "kitchen-sink" drama originated in the literature in the 1950s and 1960s. Its aim is to create a true picture of the hard life and troubles of the working class life. In "A Taste Of Honey" the two main characters are always falling out with each other and the people around them. The conditions they live in are cramped and poor in bedsits or flats. An example of a "kitchen-sink" drama is in "Look Back In Anger" by John Osborne and "Saturday Night And Sunday Morning" by Alan Sillitoe. Plays and dramas in the fifties were performed for the middle and upper classes but then came the debut "kitchen-sink" drama; "Look Back In Anger", which was aimed at the working class. A "kitchen-sink" drama play uses everyday common language to reflect the lives of the working class people portrayed. "A Taste Of Honey" is set in Salford, Manchester. It is about the life and relationship between a young girl, Jo, and her mother, Helen. They move around a lot, and have just moved into a shabby one-bedroomed flat in Salford. Helen is a semi-whore who lives off money which has been given to her by her men

  • Word count: 2907
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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How does Shelagh Delaney present thechanging facets of Jo's character?

How does Shelagh Delaney present the changing facets of Jo's character? I am going to explain how Shelagh Delaney presents the changing facets of Jo's character. The play was written in the 1950s and was first performed in 1958. The play is about a girl and her mother move to a grubby flat and area with no men in their life, but all changes when Helen meets Peter and Jo meet Boy. Then Jo gets pregnant with the black boy, and then meets and shares a flat with Geof, a young homosexual. He takes and the role as caring and protecting Jo and they get on well. Geof brings Helen back to visit Jo, and Helen kicks Geof out. Jo's is the main character in the play; she is the daughter of Helen. She falls for a man called Jimmie who is in the navy, and then he makes her pregnant and goes way leaving her with this black baby. Then she meets Geof who takes on the role of caring for Jo, and then brings back her mother and he leaves. At the beginning of the play Jo is organized, capable and critical of her mother, we know because she says ' You're knocking it worst than ever'. This makes us think that Helen has a drinking problem in the past. Also in Act one scene one Jo shows she is organized by saying ' I'm going to unpack my bulbs. I wonder where I can out them'. Then she changes when she meets Peter and becomes more jealous, quarrelsome and annoying. When Helen leaves Jo becomes

  • Word count: 479
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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In "A Taste of Honey" Shelagh Delaney presents Jo as a young woman looking for security and love. Compare the relationships she has with Helen, her boyfriend and Geoff. To what extent does she find security and love with each?

"A TASTE OF HONEY" In "A Taste of Honey" Shelagh Delaney presents Jo as a young woman looking for security and love. Compare the relationships she has with Helen, her boyfriend and Geoff. To what extent does she find security and love with each? Shelagh Delaney the writer of the play "A Taste of Honey" was born on November 25th 1939 in Salford, England. It was in school when she saw her first play, an amateur performance of Shakespeare's "Othello". She was only twelve at the time, and the play made a great impression on her. When she was seventeen, she began writing "A Taste of Honey" as a novel but later realised that it would be better as a play so it was first performed in 1958, accepted by Joan Littlewood, a famous director of the Political Theatre who strongly believed that plays should be about ordinary people. "A Taste of Honey" is mainly about a young working class girl who refuses to conform to her dreary surroundings and way of life. When the play was introduced, it was rare to find any of the situations portrayed in any other plays as the circumstances of each of the characters in the play were polemic and unaccepted by a neglectful society. Keeping up the appearances was an important factor in life, and at the time public disgrace was a horrendous situation to be involved in., so it almost became a day to day struggle to keep others satisfied with a

  • Word count: 3460
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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What does the audience learn of the lives and relationships of Helen and Jo in the opening scene of "A taste of honey"

A Taste of honey What does the audience learn of the lives and relationships of Helen and Jo in the opening scene of "A taste of honey" Helen is the mother of Jo. Jo's dad does not live with them. They live in a basic flat in Manchester. The audience learns that Helen and Jo do not get on well with each other. Helen - "children owe their parents these little attentions." Jo - "I don't owe you a thing." These quotes show that Jo does not respect her mother and what her mother does for her. Jo shows she has no respect for her by calling her Helen instead of Mom. Jo is also self - centred and cheeky to her mom. Jo - "drink, drink, drink that's all your good for." This shows that Jo is cheeky to Helen and Jo Wants to be the only thing in her mothers life. Helen does not listen to Jo. Jo - "you can afford something better than this old ruin." Helen - "when you can start earning, you can stat moaning." Jo has no understanding of how much things cost and has high expectations. Helen and Jo are poor. Helen - "when I find somewhere for us to live I have to consider something far more important than your feelings..........the rent. It's all I can afford." This shows that Helen does not care what Jo thinks as long as they have somewhere to live. Helen and Jo are bickering with each other regularly. Jo - "where are they?" Helen - "I don't know." Jo - "you packed

  • Word count: 461
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Shelagh Delaney has created a realistic mother & daughter relationship in

Shelagh Delaney has created a realistic mother & daughter relationship in "A Taste of Honey". Do you agree? "A Taste of Honey" was written in the 1950's. This decade was an era of vast changes. Wages almost doubled, and with the "Welfare State" peoples' fear of paying large sums of money in the event of an emergency was removed. This left people with more money to enjoy themselves. This provided people with new opportunities, such as being able to go to the cinema, visit leisure areas such as museums, theatres, shop more frequently, and could begin to afford the luxuries previously only experienced by the richer class. Items such as cars, refrigerators, and televisions were beginning to spread into many peoples' homes. "A Taste of Honey" is often termed to be a "kitchen sink" drama. A "kitchen sink" drama confronts issues that were being experienced by many. "A Taste of Honey" brought along a new level of realism to the theatre, which was very controversial for its time. Theatre had never before experienced this, as previous forms brought along the ideas that every story has a happy ending. Helen is a part time prostitute and the mother of Jo. At the beginning of the play they have just moved into a flat in an industrial area of Manchester, which is very dilapidated, grimy and polluted area. The flat also reflects these surroundings, also being dirty, grimy and dingy.

  • Word count: 1170
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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