How is the character 'Mrs Johnstone' portrayed in the play 'Blood Brothers'?
How is the character 'Mrs Johnstone' portrayed in the play 'Blood Brothers'? In this essay, I am going to explain how the character 'Mrs Johnstone' is portrayed in the play 'Blood Brothers'. At the start of the play the audience are told that she is only twenty-five years old and already has had seven children. This suggests that she is naturally a maternal character, embracing new life and showing her caring personality. William Russell (Russell) may also be hinting at religious rulings against contraception in her life, therefore implying that she is a Catholic. The character 'Mrs Johnstone' is also portrayed as an extremely poor woman. I know this because at the end of the play she says to Mickey (before shooting Edward) 'I couldn't afford to keep both of you'. This shows the readers that she is trapped by poverty and reinforces the idea that it is difficult for her to take care for her children and is ultimately the reason why she gave Edward away to the middle-class 'Mrs Lyons'. Russell suggests that she is 'old before her time'. This indicates that she had to sacrifice any youthful enjoyment and financial security to care for her children - she cannot gain financial security because she is unable to get a full-time job, due to her having to care for the children and the decline in the economy. 'Mrs Johnstone' is also uneducated and Russell implies this through a
Blood Brothers
"Blood Brothers" is a musical by Willy Russell. It is one of the longest-running works of musical theatre in history. The musical has a contemporary nature vs. nurture plot, revolving around fraternal twins who were separated at birth. The twins' different backgrounds take them to opposite ends of the social spectrum, one becoming an Oxbridge-graduated councilor and the other unemployed and imprisoned. Both fall in love with the same girl, with tragic consequences. The play writer, Willy Russell was born a scout in Liverpool. He grew up in a working class family. After leaving school with one O-level in English, he first became a ladies hairdresser and ran his own salon. Russell then undertook a variety of jobs, also writing songs which were performed in local folk clubs. He also contributed songs and sketches to local radio programmes. At 20 years old, he returned to college and became a teacher in the Toxteth area of Liverpool. Around this time he met his wife, Annie, and became interested in writing drama. As Willly Russell was brought up in the working class its not surprising that he left school with just one O - level. Also it's not surprising that he wrote a play write showing the digression of growing up in the working class. "Class" is central to the story as it is a theme that exists throughout the play. Willy Russell has shown the class affects people's lives by
Compare how Willy Russell portrays the two families in 'Blood Brothers' and account for the different reactions of the audience to the Johnstones and Lyons' throughout the play.
Compare how Willy Russell portrays the two families in 'Blood Brothers' and account for the different reactions of the audience to the Johnstones and Lyons' throughout the play. Blood Brothers by Willy Russell is set in Liverpool. The play was first written in the early 1980s and performed to a secondary school in 1982. The play is about two twin brothers who were separated at birth. Mickey stayed with his birth mother, Mrs Johnstone, and Mrs Lyons picked Edward. Seven years later they meet up and perform a blood brothers ritual. When they reach the age of 18 Mickey and Linda are expecting a baby and get married. Edward still likes Linda. Mickey does a job for Sammy and gets put away for seven years; Edward helps and gets Mickey a house and job. Mickey and Edward fall out and it ends with a bloody end. Willy Russell shows that families are very different by small details that you cant pick out but know that they are there. You can see the differences between the two families throughout the play. From the very beginning of the play we can see that the mothers are very different. You can really tell that Mrs Johnstone is a working class lady and she has aged a lot since her first child, people used to say she looked like Marilyn Monroe, 'they said the bride looked lovelier than Marilyn Monroe'. Mrs Johnstone has to work hard to feed all of her seven children, 'It's
HOW DOES WILLY RUSSEL BUILD UP DRAMATIC TENSION AT THE END OF THE PLAY 'BLOOD BROTHERS'
HOW DOES WILLY RUSSEL BUILD UP DRAMATIC TENSION AT THE END OF THE PLAY 'BLOOD BROTHERS'? The play Blood Brothers was set in Liverpool in 1950's. There was a huge difference between rich and poor on those days. Most people were facing poverty in those days. This play is all about a women called Mrs Johnstone and her children. She had twins. She couldn't afford to look after both of them so she gave one away to her employer Mrs Lyons. The play shows the lives of the boys when they grow up and the consequences of the mother's actions. In this essay we will be focusing and analysing 'how tension is created at the end of the play which ends in tragedy. The narrator gives us clues about what is going to happen, which increases tension for the audience. The tension is stretched to the limit when Mrs Lyons shows Edward and Linda to Mickey. This event spurs Mickey on to seek revenge against Edward because he feels betrayed by him and Linda. Mickey reacted by ''comb the town, breaking through groups of people, looking, searching........ going to do''. It shows that he is out of control and he is counting to kill Edward. This is evident when the writer uses the words like searching, looking, desperate.....''. He doesn't even know that what is he looking for or what to do further. The words that the writer uses to show Mickey's agitated mood, heightens tension to the