Compare the characters of Mr. Grycefrom Barry Hines''Kestrel for a knave' and Mr. Squeers from Charles Dickens' 'Nicholas Nickelby'.

Sean Martin Compare the characters of Mr. Gryce from Barry Hines' 'Kestrel for a knave' and Mr. Squeers from Charles Dickens' 'Nicholas Nickelby' During the course of this essay I will be comparing the teaching methods, school conditions and general demeanor of Mr. Gryce, a secondary school headmaster in the 1960's, and Mr. Squeers who controls a boarding school for disabled and unfortunate children in the 1830's. Both schools are set in Yorkshire. Mr. Gryce is an experienced teacher with 35 years in his profession, although he is seen as a well experienced teacher he is also at or past the suggested retirement age, and some would consider him unfit for the demanding job. In all schools throughout the world the main point in attending is to receive an education, but Mr. Gryces' is different. The reason for going to his school is to learn four things, 'Discipline, decency, morals and manners.' On the other hand, Mr. Squeers had no teaching experience before he started running his boarding school. The only reasons he started teaching were for the money and secondly the power that he could be sure of gaining even if he and his wife had to steal for it. '...As Mrs. Squeers took the boots from the new arrivals only to be given to her son.' The only reason they were getting away with this conniving scheme is that there were no educational laws at that time stopping from

  • Word count: 2115
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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A KESTREL FOR A KNAVE

A KESTREL FOR A KNAVE I am going to explore the theme of bullying in the novel Kes. The novel is set in the north of England (Yorkshire). The social context of the novel is that the society offered them very little. Most of the children only got jobs in coal mines so the community was full of coal miners. The economic context of the novel is that they are quite poor. People left school at the age of fifteen before the raising of the school leaving age. Students like Billy felt that school and society offered them very little. The writer explores many different themes in this novel; some of these are to with people feeling imprisoned, family conflicts, freedom, nature and education. However the theme of bullying is of particular importance because Billy is subjected to a wide variety of different forms of bullying which almost crush his spirit and his sense of humour. The novel opens with Jud; Jud is Billy's older brother, so we have been told in the novel. Jud is the kind of person that likes to get his own way at home. As soon as Jud comes in to the scene we are shown the way in which he bullies Billy. This begins by the alarm going off for Jud. Jud is in a bad mood. Jud physically bullies Billy this is shown in the novel when 'He swung his fist under the blankets and thumped Billy in the kidneys', This is a very bad place to hit someone especially someone as small as

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Not having any friends or anyone who cares for him Billy began to spend more time with his Kestrel "Kes", eventually confiding in Kes, using her to escape the harsh realities of the real world Billy came to love the Kestrel and

The darkened cloud over Billy's head as he walks through the ally-as dark as the night's sky-that leads him deeper and deeper in to the nothingness of his life just seems to be becoming darker by every minute of every hour of every day. Until he takes a wrong turn at one of the stops and comes across a Kestrel lying in agony upon the floor of the woods, having tumbled from its nest in the high branches of the trees. Billy's life was given meaning once again as he took pleasure in the highly professional task of training a Kestrel. Along with the Kestrels presence Billy's dreams stayed alive and possible. All it took for Billy's dreams to be shattered and his life turn grey once again was one Jud: "I'd have bloody killed him if I'd have got hold of him this afternoon" "Well what's he crying about then?" "Because he's killed my Hawk instead that's why" With these words Billy's dreams were shattered his life would never be the same. Every child looks up to their parents, loves them, respects them and aspires to be like their siblings. Every child except one....... Billy Casper. Billy Casper has been given nothing but hatred from his brother Jud who wakes up every morning ready to give Billy another beating, it happened so often now that it had become almost like a daily ritual. Wake up, have Jud sit on you get dressed, have Jud torture you some more and go off to school and

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Kes. This story was set in 1968 in Barnsley. The key characters In this story are Billy, Jud, Mrs. Casper and Mr. Sudgen

This story was set in 1968 in Barnsley. The key characters In this story are Billy, Jud, Mrs. Casper and Mr. Sudgen In a Kestrel For A Knave Billy doesn't exactly live in the land of luxury. He wakes to a grim bedroom and an unpleasant brother on the other side of the single bed, Billy and Jud share: "There were no curtains up. The window was a hard-edged block the colour of the night sky..." Already we see that his bedroom is so basic, that there are no curtains. In Billy's house there is no heating and so to get a bit of heat he has a fire, no central heating. The home is where a person should feel at ease and relaxed, but Billy can't enjoy this luxury because when he is at home his brother miss-treats him and his mother ignores him. As Billy's home isn't pleasant he spends a lot of his time out side. Billy needs to have two worlds because the real world in which he lives in treat him bad. He gets a kestrel and trains and has a lot of time with it and in the end Billy doesn't put a bet on for Jud and Jud looks for him but doesn't find him, instead he kills Billy's kestrel. Mrs. Casper is Billy's mum and the only parent that Billy lives with. He doesn't really get on with his mum, she never goes out and gets food she just tells Billy to go to the shop and get some sweets. ''Here, there's two bob for you. Go and buy yourself some pop an' some crisps or summat'' so there's

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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In a Kestrel for a Knave by Barry Hines, Hines effectively conveys the bleak and depressing theme of deprivation. The central character Billy suffers physical, emotional and educational deprivation.

A Kestrel for a Knave Critical Essay In a Kestrel for a Knave by Barry Hines, Hines effectively conveys the bleak and depressing theme of deprivation. The central character Billy suffers physical, emotional and educational deprivation. Billy himself finds ways to combat this deprivation with the relationship he builds with a bird and the small amount of praise he receives from one of his teachers, Mr Farthing. However Hines' most damning indictment on the deprivation suffered by boys like Billy comes through the depressing and pessimistic ending. The novel is centred around the deprivation of the main character Billy Casper. Billy has few prospects but is still determined not to end up like his brother Jud. He is very interested in nature and the wild hawk he finds and trains gives him a direction and throughout the novel Hines gives us the impression that things will get better for Billy, but all the hope we have for Billy is buried in the end when the hawk is killed. Billy suffers many forms of deprivation. The worst of them and the most concerning is emotional. His mother and brother take no interest in him or pay any attention to the things that are important to him. For example when he tries to tell his mum about Kestrels and training them she quickly changes the subject. She says: " I say, what time is it?" This shows that she has no interest in him and also that

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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How does Hines presents Mrs Casper in the novel.

How does Hines presents Mrs Casper in the novel. 'A kestrel for a knave' was written in the 1960s when single mothers especially in the working class society such as Mrs Casper, were looked down upon. Billy, her son went to a secondary modern school where education was seen as unimportant and so he did not get much motivation from school or family to do well. The novel is structured over a period of one day. This is so we get to see everything in detail and so can identify and engage with Billy, Mrs Casper and the rest of the characters. Hines chose to write the novel in third person because if it was written by Billy, the readers wouldn't be able to read it, firstly because he has a strong Yorkshire accent and secondly because he is illiterate. However the narrator follows Billy's every step so it's like we still see everything through Billy's eyes. Barry Hines partly wrote this novel to show that single mothers, like Mrs Casper struggle and so should be helped not looked down upon. Hines presents Mrs Casper in the passage, as a mother that doesn't know how to deal with a problem. 'O shut up no then!' you've cried long enough about it' we can see that Mrs Casper doesn't know how to deal with the situation. Instead of comforting Billy, she shouts at him and doesn't show him any sympathy. Mrs Casper doesn't understand Billy. She doesn't know that the hawk is the only thing

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Compare the ways in which Mrs. Casper, Mr. Sugden and Mr. Farthing Treat Billy.

Compare the ways in which Mrs. Casper, Mr. Sugden and Mr. Farthing Treat Billy! I am going to compare how these three characters, Mrs. Casper, Mr.Sugden and Mr. Farthing treat Billy, a 14 year old boy, living up north in a rough school and he has quite a hard time. Mrs. Casper, who is Billy's mother, has no time for Billy "Oh stop pestering me! I'm late enough as it is!" She finds her social life and nights out more important than listening to what Billy has to say. Mrs. Casper isn't a very caring mother as she asks her son "you haven't got a fag on you, have you love?" not expecting a very high standard from her son, not minding about his smoking habit and not caring about his health and a safe lifestyle. Billy also suffers from verbal abuse and also physical from his mother "We'll see whether you're going or not, you cheeky young bugger." Mrs. Casper doesn't care about speaking to her son in a rude way, but when Billy swears to her she finds it very offensive and tells him to apologize so she is allowed to speak to him like that but Billy is not. He faces abuse from his mother as she tries to grab Billy, as he is isn't doing what he is told, as well as that she threatens him "I'll bloody murder you when I get hold of you!" being verbally harsh once again and not knowing how to control Billy and speak to him in a way in which he will listen. Mrs. Casper doesn't show

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  • Level: GCSE
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Kes affected Billy's life in many ways, for good and for bad

The Affects of Kes 'Kes' or 'A Kestrel for a Knave' contains a story about a normal teenaged boy named Billy Casper. Billy's life is turned around after he obtains a young hawk and trains it. This essay covers all the main effects that the hawk had on Billy, such as how he took it upon himself to train the hawk responsibly, how training the hawk gained him self-respect in many aspects, how Billy becomes separated, isolated from the world, and how the hawk caused him problems. Kes affected Billy's life in many ways, for good and for bad. Some of the best things Kes did for Billy, were helping Billy to achieve success, through means of; training Kes, giving successful talks in school, earning respect with his classmates and Mr Farthing and finally gaining self-respect. Comments from Mr Farthing like these show that he admires and respects Billy and his kestrel. For instance; when Billy stands up in class and gives his speech on training Kes, Mr Farthing refers to Billy as an expert; '"Yes, yes. I suspected as much when he made it look so simple." "It's not Sir." "But that's the mark of an expert isn't it. Someone who makes a difficult skill look easy?"' This shows that he considers Billy as an expert, but says it to Billy subtly. Also Mr Farthing believes that Billy is learned in the skill of training kestrels as he follows his instructions, showing that although he is a

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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The films 'Kes' and 'Billy Elliott' are superficially similar.

English Media Coursework The films 'Kes' and 'Billy Elliott' are superficially similar. One of the most striking similarities is that they are both set in mining towns when the coal industry was still running. However, what mining represents and means is very different in the two films. In 'Kes', it is something that Billy Casper is desperately trying to get away from, whereas in 'Billy Elliott', Jacky and Tony are fighting against the closure of the mines - it is unlikely that Billy will ever work there. In 'Kes', the likely fate of Billy Casper is that he will work in the mine. However, he is adamant that his will not happen. One of the reasons that he is so against working in the mine is that he has seen the effect that it has had on his brother, Jud. Jud is a stereotypical young man - he's strong, vain, chases after women and often drinks. He also picks on Billy in a very severe way. Jud despises the fact that Billy is still in school and he is almost happy every time he tells Billy that one day soon, he will be joining him, getting up early in the morning and working long hard hours in the mine. Billy is much smaller than Jud, and Jud uses his strength and size against Billy to take out his frustration. For example, when he comes home and finds Billy reading a book, a pastime he would never do, he steals the book out of Billy's hands and says "What's thou got

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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How does Billy's tall story in "A Kestrel For A Knave" and "The Poor Relation's Story" By Charles Dickens influence your opinion of the characters?

How does Billy's tall story in "A Kestrel For A Knave" and "The Poor Relation's Story" By Charles Dickens influence your opinion of the characters? Billy Casper, the main character in "A Kestrel For a Knave" has a very poor lifestyle. He is a short, skinny destitute teenager about to leave high school. He lives in one of the roughest and crime-ridden estates in town. "They said, you'll have to keep your eyes open now, you know, 'cos they're all alike off that estate. They'll take you breath if you're not careful" - Mr Porter The residents on Billy's estate are terribly poor and so they have to turn to a life of felony and Billy is no exception. Although Billy has a worthy excuse, this can be said for most people who choose to lead a criminal lifestyle. Billy has an extremely distinct lack of respect for his house and his estate, so much so that he pelts his own house: - 'Then he picked one up, weighed it in his palm, and threw it high in the direction of the house' (Referring to eggs) He is poorly fed and very malnourished and is persistently looking for warmth right the way through the book. He lives with his mother and his half-brother, Jud. His father left home after finding his mother on the sofa with another man. The reason he is so emaciated is because his mother does not feed him the right things: - "Here, there's two bob for you. Go and buy yourself some

  • Word count: 2017
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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