'The Oakum Room' and 'Jane Eyre' both show women in oppressive Victorian institutions - Show how the two writers bring out the nature of those institutions and the way the women react to their situation.

The Oakum Room and Jane Eyre 'The Oakum Room' and 'Jane Eyre' both show women in oppressive Victorian institutions. Show how the two writers bring out the nature of those institutions and the way the women react to their situation. One of the texts was an extract from the novel Jane Eyre, which was written in the nineteenth century by Charlotte Bronte. On the other hand, The Oakum Room is a short story written in the 1970's by Theresa Tomlinson. The first text I read was The Oakum Room, which is a short story about the lives of homeless, used women. These women are monitored every day by very hard people with little sympathy towards the inmates. The women spend their lives in a workhouse mainly in The Oakum Room, picking oakum which is the mixture of tar and old rope, used to seal wooden boats. The women were ordered to spend all day picking all ropes to bits with their bare hands and were treated like dirt. This left them with scarred hands and it was as tough as the skin of a beast. The inmates could not leave because under the Vagrancy Laws, it was illegal to be homeless, as they wouldn't have any where to go. The story of The Oakum Room describes the working and living conditions of these women. An important part of The Oakum Room is the condition of work. We already know that the women were treated like slaves and worked, lived, ate in silence - just to show the

  • Word count: 3209
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Jane's Diary

Jane's Diary Dear Diary, The night before my wedding night I recall having a strange dream which "I interpreted as a warning of disaster. I feared my hopes were too bright to be realised" and now I know that what I had feared had now become true. Today was the worst day of my entire life. The one person I most truly loved in the whole world has left me with no other choice but to leave him and never return. "Mr Rochester was not to me what he had been; for he was not what I had thought him." "Real affection, it seemed, he could not have for me." "Oh, how blind had been my eyes! How weak my conduct!" When I awoke this morning "I knew not whether the day was fair or foal." Sophie came to dress me and when I looked into the mirror "I saw a robed and veiled figure, so unlike my usual self that it seemed almost the image of a stranger." Mr Rochester then took me into the dining room and said "he would give me but ten minutes to eat some breakfast." I felt as though everything was in a rush because then, "I was hurried along by a stride I could hardly follow; and to look at Mr Rochester's face was to feel that not a second of delay would be tolerated for any purpose." When we arrived at the church, I noticed "two figures of strangers straying amongst the low hillocks." I wondered who they were but in the end I assumed they were going to witness the ceremony. Mr Rochester and I

  • Word count: 1514
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Comment on Bronte's use of language in 'the first meeting' extract from Jane Eyre.

Comment on Bronte's use of language in 'the first meeting' extract from Jane Eyre The meeting of Jane and Rochester shows an abrupt change in language and atmosphere, Bronte shows this by describing the surroundings with unusual imagery and hard words such as 'rough' 'dark' and 'strong'. We get the sense of supernatural feelings through the language as the 'Gytrash' is mentioned. It is from the tales Bessie used to tell Jane, and was a large creature that haunted travellers on their way. This shows us how Jane is almost scaring herself by thinking that a creature is coming to haunt her in the dark. The meeting is given a gothic feeling as the 'Gytrash' is mentioned. It is as though Bronte compares the gytrash to Rochester and it is described as a 'lion-like creature with long hair and a huge head:' it is also compared to the dog, which again shows us that Jane has some sort of fear of meeting a stranger along the way. But once she talks to the stranger, she doesn't react to that fear in the correct way, instead she disobeys him in order to help him. Bronte uses imaginative and supernatural language to describe its 'pretercanine eyes' being deadly. The mysterious atmosphere is cracked with the noise and clatter of 'man and horse' slipping. A clear change in the calm language of the novel is shown when Rochester's character is shown through his very first words, 'What the

  • Word count: 1102
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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How does Bronte explore the position of women and the poor in Victorian England throughout her novel 'Jane Eyre

How does Bronte explore the position of women and the poor in Victorian England throughout her novel 'Jane Eyre?' Jane Eyre was Charlotte Bronte's first successful novel. Published in 1847, Bronte presents us with critique of Victorian assumptions regarding social class and gender. Way ahead of its time, Charlotte Bronte (or publicly none as Currer Bell), caused much commotion critically. In her novel Bronte explores many issues of Victorian society such as women's stature both generally and amongst poor in the 19th century. She also explores patriarchal male domination, and the segregation and unspoken restrictions between the different classes and stations. Society in Britain in the 19th century was very different to today's women had a very different role back then as education was limited, there were certain 'requirements' of being a 'lady' such as playing the piano, sewing, drawing and speaking French. Also at this time there was allot of poverty in great Britain and although Bronte doesn't delve into it she does keep a constant fear over Jane's mind of slipping in to it, which could easily have had been done with out her determination, "if she were to turn you off you would have to go to the poorhouse". Bronte opens 'Jane Eyre' with the setting of a "cold winter" and uses pathetic fallacy in the first opening paragraph to deposit a mood, "clouds so somber, and a rain

  • Word count: 2352
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Comparison of Jane Eyre + The Color Purple.

Comparison of Jane Eyre + The Color Purple Both novels are variations of the same theme: the spiritual and emotional growth of the heroine. Is this a fair assessment? Both novels convey important, political messages exploring the idea of feminism and womenÆs emancipation. Bronte uses Jane as a figure of female independence, while Walker demonstrates her views on civil rights and commitment to feminism through Celie. In this essay I will be examining the traumatic journeys that both Jane and Celie go through, to find their eventual happiness. I will also be considering the spiritual and emotional growth of both girls, throughout their journey in life. Written in 1847, Jane Eyre was an immediate best seller in the early Victorian period. At this period in time, women had a very inferior status to men, which allowed Bronte to stress her theme of female independence. Jane is the eponymous heroine of the novel, going through severe tests in each stage of her life, so that she can eventually deserve her eventual happiness. Jane starts her journey with her childhood at Gateshead. Here, we quickly discover that Jane is unhappy and it is evident by the way she hides behind the thick red curtains in the deserted room, that she is lonely and isolated. It is quickly apparent that Jane has a strong personality and though she is only ten years old, she refuses to be dominated by her

  • Word count: 2282
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Compare the early lives of Jane Eyre with Billy Casper.

Compare the early lives of Jane Eyre with Billy Casper Charlotte Bronte wrote the gothic novel Jane Eyre in 1847 and is probably the most famous of all 4 of her novels. The story is about a girl who was brutally abused as a child and who grows up to try and lead a normal life and find love which was not a common thing for a girl of her stature in that era. Jane Eyre is a very intelligent girl for 10 years of age and after her mum and dad die she is sent to live with her Aunt and Uncle Reed in Gateshead. However her Uncle dies and so becomes much neglected. She enjoys reading and for her age she reads very complicated books. She does not have any friends in her life at Gateshead and does not get on with any of her cousins who live there especially "Master" John Reed. Neither he nor his mother respects Jane at all. No one seems to understand Jane at Gateshead and she doesn't often get to speak her own opinion and Mrs Reed does a lot of her talking for her. Mrs Reed has an ideal picture of Jane in her mind and it is someone Jane does not want to be. "A Kestrel for a Knave" (KES) is written by Barry Hines in the mid 1960s and it is all about a young boy called Billy Casper. It is written in much more modern times than Jane Eyre. At the beginning of the novel Billy's situation seems totally different to Jane's but later on the novel we realise that their situations are not so

  • Word count: 2345
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Primary Nocturnal Enuresis

Enuresis The purpose of this assignment I am going to do Primary Nocturnal Enuresis, the reason why I am going to do this is because I do not know much about Nocturnal enuresis and I would like to find out more. Ethically I am going to maintain confidentiality and by doing this I have changed the names of the child and family that I have based this assignment upon. Forsythe and Butler (1989) Enuresis is the 'involuntary discharge of urine by day or night or both, in a child aged five years or older, in the absence of congenital or acquired defects of the nervous system or urinary tract'. Nocturnal enuresis is bed wetting it can be divided into to Primary and Secondary if a child has gone six months without wetting the bed and then starts wetting the bed it is termed as secondary nocturnal enuresis this is caused by more psychological problems. Primary is when the child has gone six months without wetting the bed. Habel (2001) has noted that nocturnal enuresis is most common in boys and so has Robinson L M (2004) During an enuresis clinic met a family in which two of the four children attend the clinic. Jason 12 and Jane 7 are the two, which attend the clinic they have a brother Jack 15 and a sister Jenny 9, their parents John and Josephine have divorced but have joint custody and the children spend time with both parents but spend most of their time at their mothers

  • Word count: 2469
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Charlotte Bronte's Style in Jane Eyre

Charlotte Bronte's Style in Jane Eyre Charlotte Bronte's style of writing is distinctively her own. In her novel Jane Eyre, she writes in a style that is extraordinarily powerful and expresses quite accurately the meaning she wishes to convey. Her style of writing is characterized by a command of language, by spontaneity, by a chaste simplicity and by a felicity in the choice of words and in combing them into phrases, clauses and sentences. She uses a great deal of dialogue and has an excellent ear for the "idioms of class and age." She disliked ornamentation and the use of too many words and her style is therefore straightforward. It is, above all things, exact. The picture Charlotte Bronte draws of people and scenes are, in fact, unforgettable. Bronte indeed excels at character drawing. The beautiful Rosamond Oliver and the stately Blanch Ingram are set vividly before the reader; the bestial mad woman is shown with terrifying realism. As she excels at character drawing she also excels at scene drawing. The moorland over which Jane wonders; Hey Lane, in which she first meets Mr. Rochester ("I was a mile from Thornfield, in a lane noted for wild roses in summer, for nuts and blackberries in autumn, ... but whose best winter delight lay in its utter solitude and leafless repose"); the candle-lit room at Moor House into which the homeless Jane gazes, are all described so that

  • Word count: 747
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Analyse the methods Charlotte Bronte uses to make the reader empathise with Jane Eyre in the opening chapters of the novel

Analyse the methods Charlotte Bronte uses to make the reader empathise with Jane Eyre in the opening chapters of the novel In my essay I am going to analyse the methods Charlotte Bronte uses to make the reader empathise with Jane Eyre in the opening chapters of the novel. 'Jane Eyre' was written by a female named Charlotte Bronte and was published in 1847, but used a male name, 'Currer Bell'. In the section of the book; 'Charlotte Bronte's life' it says, 'it was difficult for anyone to have a book published it was next-to-impossible for a woman.' The novel is about a typical poor girl of whose her parents have died, leaving her to live with her Aunt Reed, creating much empathy from the reader towards Jane Eyre. The story is based on charlotte Bronte's life as a child, as she was brought up by her Aunt, due to her mother dying whilst charlotte Bronte was very young and her two sisters also died, and she was in very poor health. In my essay I will also analyse language devices like emotive nouns, verbs and adjectives and how they sway the readers emotions. The novel opens with Jane Eyre persuading the reader to like her. In the opening paragraph of the story 'Jane Eyre', Charlotte Bronte already uses words which give a negative atmosphere, as she says 'wandering indeed of the leafless shrubbery' also the word 'wandering' could be associated with being lost. Charlotte Bronte

  • Word count: 2780
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Original Writing - Curiosity killed the cat.

Original Writing. This is all my fault. That's why I'm here. My Stupidity. If only I knew. I wouldn't have done it. How long have I been sitting here? I don't even know. On the damp, cold, mouldy floor. That's where I'm sitting. I'm much better than this. I should be out there, earning myself some money but I'm not. I'm in here, where the rats are and it's freezing. I tensely look around and I notice there are no radiators. I turn on the light, it goes out Great, now I'm left alone in the dark. All alone, I live here, all alone. I've been living here for the past three months. I wouldn't really call it living, staying here really. Not that I want to because believe me no-one wants to be here. The iron bars, the guards, the hand-cuffs. It all gets to you after a while. The grotty food they give you. It's gross. I don't deserve to be in here. It's not my fault. No-one wants to help. Why? My life is falling apart. Poor Jane. It wasn't me though. I didn't kill her. I couldn't kill anyone. I loved her so much. I still love her. Everyone knew that. Which is why I don't understand. Normal people don't go around killing their loved ones do they? Only they don't think I'm normal. Sometimes, I don't think I'm normal which is why I deserve to go. Go away. Forever. I came into the world, the pure, clean world. So innocent, untouched and righteous. I will leave it as a vile, corrupt,

  • Word count: 1767
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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