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How to help your child achieve a higher grade in English Language and English Literature

Encourage planned use of revision materials. Your child has been given a range of knowledge organisers which cover

all their literature texts and aspects of the English Language examination. These are not all the revision your child

needs to do but do contain a range of vital knowledge as well as examples of how to apply it.

Encourage planned use of Internet Resources. BBC Bitesize is an excellent resource and contains helpful advice and

practice activities. The link to the main menus are here:

English Language: https://www.bbc.com/bitesize/examspecs/zcbchv4

English Literature: https://www.bbc.com/bitesize/examspecs/zxqncwx

There is a sheet for you to take with a range of other useful links.

Encourage independent reading. This does not have to be fiction. Any reading is useful. Short stories are particularly

helpful for Language Paper 1. Non-fiction like newspaper, internet and magazine articles are particularly useful for

Language Paper 2. Talking regularly about what your child is reading and what they think of it also helps.

Read an article together every week. The article could come from a newspaper, magazine or website. When you

have read the article, try having a short discussion about the writer’s point of view and how they communicate this

to the reader. Your child will be familiar with this approach from their lessons so they could lead the discussion.

Read a poem a week. There are 15 poems from the Power and Conflict section of the anthology. Your child will have

studied most of them by now. Ask your child to tell you about the poem, how it is written and what it has got to do

with the general themes of power and conflict. Your child will soon have a revision guide with a page to be filled in

for each poem. You could do this together.

Watch a film. There are good film versions of Macbeth, The Sign of Four and An Inspector Calls available on Youtube.

There are also some filmed amateur productions of DNA and many dramatic readings of the poems from the

anthology with films/animations. Try watching them together and asking your child to comment.

Build vocabulary. Choose an unfamiliar word of the day, perhaps from a text you have been reading together.

Challenge your child to use it five times in different sentences.

Random reading. Pick a page at random from The Sign of Four or a speech from Macbeth, An Inspector Calls or DNA

or a section from a poem. Ask your child to identify it and put it in context, perhaps explaining why it is important to

the story/poem.

Synonyms. When reading, stop occasionally at a word and ask your child to think of different words the writer could

have chosen and how this might affect the meaning of the sentence. This will help your child become more

conscious of the words they choose when writing.

Buy a revision guide. These are available from school. Ask your child to bring home a letter from their English

teacher.

Use the English Department revision guides. These will be given out in January in Y11. There is one for each section

of the exam. They contain a range of activities designed to help your child maximise their potential in the exams.

Extra Challenge

Read a new poem. Find new poems from books or online at https://www.poemhunter.com/ or

https://www.poetryarchive.org/. Read a few times and try to work out the meaning of the poem. It might take a

while to find a poem at an appropriate level but the process of finding one is useful in itself. Ask your child to

compare the poem to ones they already know – this builds higher level thinking skills.

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Weblinks

BBC Bitesize Literature (includes Remains, Tissue, Kamikaze, Exposure, The Emigree – separate links to the other

poems below)

https://www.bbc.com/education/examspecs/zxqncwx

BBC Bitesize Language

https://www.bbc.com/education/examspecs/zcbchv4

DNA Plot Overview

https://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zyc8xsg

DNA Characters

https://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zs9jhv4

DNA Themes

https://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/ztb92p3

An Inspector Calls Inspector Goole

https://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zvsr87h

An Inspector Calls Mrs Birling

https://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zfh34wx

An Inspector Calls Theme of Class

https://www.bbc.co.uk/education/clips/zby4wmn

Poetry

Checking Out Me History

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetrycharactervoice/checkingoutrev1.shtml

Charge of the Light Brigade

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetrytennyson/

My Last Duchess

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetrycharactervoice/mylastduchessrev1.shtml

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetrycharactervoice/mylastduchessact.shtml

Ozymandias

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetrycharactervoice/ozymandiasrev1.shtml

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetrycharactervoice/ozymandiasact.shtml

London

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetryplace/londonrev1.shtml

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetryplace/londonact.shtml

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The Prelude

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetryplace/thepreluderev1.shtml

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetryplace/thepreludeact.shtml

Bayonet Charge

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetryconflict/bayonetcharge1.shtml

Storm on the Island

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetheaney/stormontheislandrev1.shtml

Poppies

http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetryconflict/poppies1.shtml

War Photographer

https://www.bbc.co.uk/education/guides/zsp82hv/revision/1

Films

The Sign of Four

Granada: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAKCyfpcOIs

1968 film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gHxPBrlBJS4

Macbeth

Version we watched in class: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGwtchkiPiE

2010 Odell Park: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tggW1_MqmWo

1948 Orson Welles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-QWhEupZQA

2013 National Theatre: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuCHmNlFfog

Animated Tales: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfnUq2_0FOY

Ian McKellen on ‘Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow…’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGbZCgHQ9m8

An Inspector Calls

1982 BBC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mvjsn9obas

2015 film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zz1GS5fufg4

DNA

Genesis Theatre: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RKh3T9A4uBE

There are various short films and amateur productions on YouTube

Poetry

Search on YouTube. There are short films featuring performance and analysis on all the Power and Conflict poems

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Grammar Knowledge Organiser

Word class Definition Example

Noun A naming word. Can name a person, place, object or idea. dog, Sheffield, Billy, happiness

Proper noun Names a person, place, organisation, title, day of the week or month of the year, time of the year (not seasons). Always has a capital letter.

Julie, Bradfield, Sainsbury’s, Home Secretary, Tuesday, August, Easter

Common noun Any noun that isn’t a proper noun and only has a capital letter at the beginning of a sentence

donkey, table, idea, speech, sadness

Concrete noun A noun which names a definite thing, usually a person, place or object Sheffield, chair, Emma, field

Abstract noun A noun which names a concept or idea imagination, speed, joy, gloominess

Verb Your old definition was a ‘doing’ word but this is not enough

Material verb A doing word run, walk, hit, follow, lift

Mental verb A verb describing the action of thought or speech say, think, consider, shout, decide

Relational verb A verb which describes a state of being be, seem, become

Adjective A word which adds extra information to (modifies) a noun a happy boy the big, lazy horse an unusual weekend

Adverb A word which adds extra information to (modifies) a verb. Adverbs tell us about when (time), how (manner) and where (place) an action was completed.

They ran quickly I’ll see you tomorrow The sheep ran upstairs

Preposition A small word which introduces a description, usually about time or place I live in Sheffield I’ll see you at four o’clock What are you doing after tea

Pronoun A word used instead of a noun He/She/It/They looked happy (third person) I/We love chocolate (first person) You are a kind person (second person)

Possessive pronoun A pronoun which shows belonging or possession Put your shoes on Those crisps are mine Our thoughts are with them

Definite article Goes with a noun to show reference to a specific thing The happy horse Father of the bride

Indefinite article Goes with a noun when not being specific A lovely day Jane had an idea

Connective or conjunction A word which links different clauses in a sentence It was raining but I went out anyway I couldn’t go out because I was grounded I’ll tell you when I’m ready to

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Sentence Type Description Example

Simple sentence One main verb. Often used to emphasise one important thing or introduce one important idea. Can introduce a sudden shift in action or setting. Several short, simple sentences in a row can speed up the pace of a text.

There was a loud knock at the door. Peter screamed. The castle loomed from the hilltop.

Compound sentence Two or more simple sentences joined by a connective (or connectives). You should avoid them in your own writing unless you have a good reason. Can be used to help make links or contrasts.

Billy went up to the dog and it bit him then he went to hospital. Beatrice was already unhappy and it was the art exam tomorrow.

Complex sentence A sentence with one main or independent clause and one or more dependent clauses. A main clause makes sense on its own; dependent clauses don’t. Complex sentences can be used to add interesting descriptive detail or to help explain complex ideas. The dependent clause could be at the beginning, in the middle or at the end of the sentence.

The castle, which stood on top of the hill, loomed over the valley below. The Eurasian Weasel, which has one of the thickest coats in the animal kingdom, can survive even the toughest of Siberian winters, aided as well by its intelligent storage of food.

Declarative sentence A sentence which states or declares something. The weather was cold and windy. James wore his new hat. Sheffield is a large city in the north of England.

Interrogative sentence A sentence which asks a question. Can be rhetorical. What do you think you’re doing? How can it be possible to support the death sentence in a civilised society?

Imperative sentence A sentence which gives an order or command. Can also refer to a type of verb.

Put the knives and forks out on the table. Get out of my house. Come downstairs now.

Exclamatory sentence A sentence which expresses strong feelings like anger, surprise or makes an imperative more powerful.

Get out of my house! How rude! Never!

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Writer’s method Definition Example

Metaphor A comparison which says one thing IS another thing. In what cold clockwork of the stars and nations was he the hand pointing that second?

Simile A comparison which says one thing is AS or LIKE another thing.

The flung spray spits like a tame cat turned savage

Personification When something that is not human is given human qualities. The merciless iced east winds that knive us

Emotive language Words chosen to create a strong emotional response from the reader

The exam was a horrifying ordeal.

Oxymoron Putting opposite words near or next to each other. Tame cat turned savage

Juxtaposition Putting contrasting ideas/descriptions near to each other to emphasise the contrast.

Probably armed, possibly not

Pathetic fallacy When a characters mood is reflected in the natural world. We only know war lasts, rain soaks, and clouds sag stormy

Onomatopoeia When words sound like the things they describe When it blows full blast

Alliteration The repeated use of the same sound Bullets smacking the belly out of the air

Sibilance Alliteration of ‘s’ Sudden successive flights of bullets streak the silence

Hyperbole Deliberate exaggeration Disobeying your parents is the worst crime it is possible to commit.

Rhetorical question A question where the answer is already assumed How many times have I told you not to do that? How can students be expected to do five hours of homework every night?

Rule (list) of three Grouping three words together for emphasis Holmes was swift, single-minded and logical Parents, students and teachers would benefit from this change.

Second person Talking directly to the reader to establish a relationship. So that you can listen to the thing you fear forgetting that it pummels your house too. You would be mad to refuse this offer.

Anaphora or syntactic parallelism

Repetition of sentences structures. In every cry of every man In every infant’s cry of fear, In every voice, in every ban, The mind-forged manacles I hear:

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Structure Definition

Exposition

The opening of a story. Often the writer will introduce characters and/or settings and perhaps create an atmosphere that fits the story. The writer might also introduce a dilemma or problem that needs resolution later in the story.

Climax

A big event that the story has been building up to. Stories might have more than one climax. Examples include Macbeth’s fight with Macduff and Juliet stabbing herself when she sees that Romeo is dead.

Resolution

The resolution comes at the end of the story after the major climax. It helps the audience or reader to understand the importance of what has happened. At the end of Macbeth, Malcolm is crowned king showing that the natural order has been restored and that Macbeth’s evil actions have been punished.

Foreshadowing

This is when the writer hints at something important that is going to happen later. In Of Mice and Men, Lennie killing the mouse and puppy foreshadows the much more serious killing of Curley’s wife.

Focus shifts

Focus shifts happen when the writer changes the focus of the story from one thing to another. The writer could move between different characters, settings or time periods.

Dramatic irony

This is when the reader or audience know something that a character or characters don’t know. This is usually used to build tension. In The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, the reader works out that Christopher’s mother is not dead before he does.

Narrative gaps

Narrative gaps are parts of the story or pieces of information that the writer deliberately leaves out (or withholds). They then proceed to fill in the gaps later in the story. In The Sign of Four, we find out that Mary Morstan has received an unusual letter but have to wait to find out who it is from and why it is important.

Semantic field

A semantic field is when several words with similar meanings or connotations are used metaphorically. For example, Seamus Heaney uses a semantic field of war – ‘dives’, strafes’, ‘salvo’, ‘bombarded’ - in Storm on the Island. To highlight the power and danger of the storm and also to perhaps suggest that nature is deliberately attacking

Pace

Pace refers to the speed of the story. Writers can change pace to alter the level of tension. For example, there is often a quiet or uneventful part of the story before the major climax. At the end of Act 4 in Macbeth there is a long scene of discussion between Malcolm and Macduff before the pace picks up quickly and we charge towards the climax in Act 5.

Motif

A motif is a symbol that appears several times in a story and has a metaphorical meaning. For example, in Macbeth there are several references to clothes which do not fit properly. This is Shakespeare showing that Macbeth is not the rightful king - the role does not fit him.

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DNA Knowledge Organiser

Character Key quote and analysis

Jan and Mark

Kelly has these characters act as the play’s Greek chorus: they often repeat each other and finish each other’s sentences while commenting on the action briefly in each street scene. Both characters play a large role in the initial attack on Adam and Kelly’s combination of sadistic and light-hearted language shows their warped sense of morality and inability to take full responsibility for their actions: MARK: We were having a laugh, weren’t we? […] he was laughing harder than anyone. However, this justification is mingled with words and phrases like ‘terrified’, ‘pegged a stone’, ‘crying’ ‘stubbed out cigarettes’.

Leah Kelly presents Leah’s relationship with Phil to be one-sided. Her speeches are more like monologues riddled with false starts where she answers her own questions, displaying her insecurity: ‘What are you thinking? […] No, don’t answer that. Sorry, that’s stupid, that’s such a stupid…’ Leah could be seen as the play’s moral compass, frequently reminding Phil that they are in ‘trouble now’ and trying to appeal to his better nature: ‘It’s Adam, Phil, Adam!’ However, she lacks the power to be able to assert herself fully, is often ignored by other characters (‘John Tate places a finger on her lips’) and is also shown to become more violent after the gang’s involvement in Adam’s ‘death’, shown through the way she ‘strangles herself’ in A1, S4 and the revelation that she has murdered her pet in A2, S2.

Phil Although Phil seldom speaks, when he does it is through calm and considered imperatives: ‘You go to Adam’s house, you wait until his mum’s out, you break in.’ Kelly largely uses stage directions to reveal his character. His constant eating (‘ice cream, Starburst, waffles’ etc.) as well as the way he ‘shrugs’ at the revelation Leah has killed her pet, suggest a complete disregard for her feelings. She is also the only character that Phil does not include in the plan to cover up Adam’s death. However, after Leah leaves, Kelly uses the stage direction ‘Phil is not eating’ implying his guilt. He also uses repetition of key lines of Leah’s: LEAH: We’re in trouble now, Phil. (A1, S4) PHIL: We’re in trouble now. (A2, S3) LEAH: Everyone’s happier. (A2, S2) PHIL: Everyone is happier. (A3, S3) Has Phil been listening to Leah all along? Is leaving her out of the plan yet more evidence of psychological bullying or is he trying to protect her from the toxic influence of the gang? All these questions can lead us to question how far Phil is presented as a moral character.

John Tate We learn that he has acted as the leader of the gang, gaining power through fear: ‘you can walk down any corridor in this school […] and everyone’s scared of you’ However, he is clearly losing his grip and cannot cope with the responsibility of leadership since Adam’s ‘death’. As with Leah, Kelly uses false starts to show John Tate’s loss of power: ‘let’s not, I mean, come on, let’s not overplay the, the, the’ Importantly, John Tate’s power is shown to be ineffective (‘I’m going to have to, you know, bite their face off or something’) and easily challenged (RICHARD: You shouldn’t threaten me, John.) John Tate only appears onstage in A1, S3 and from then on, Kelly uses Leah and Richard’s monologues to show us John Tate’s guilt: LEAH: John Tate’s lost it though, won’t come out of his room. (A2, S2) RICHARD: John Tate’s found God. (A4, S2)

Cathy From the beginning, Kelly uses the stage direction of Cathy ‘grinning’ to present her as one of the most amoral characters in the play. She describes Adam’s ‘death’ as ‘exciting’ and ‘better than ordinary life’. Cathy is always trusted by the leader, be it John Tate (JOHN TATE: Cathy says you’re clever so what do we do?; PHIL: Just do what Cathy says.) Violence is used by Cathy to gain power and by the play’s final act she has control of the gang and has ‘cut a first year’s finger off’.

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Richard Initially, Kelly presents Richard as a potential leader: Lou says she’s scared of him and he challenges John Tate. However, Kelly uses sarcasm to show that he is struggling to cope with the situation: ‘Why don’t you pop down the station and say, ‘excuse me, but the fat postman with the bad teeth doesn’t actually exist, so why don’t you let him go?’ and his final line, ‘Come back, Phil.’, shows that he needs a leader to follow. Significantly, by the end of the play, Richard’s monologue takes the same structure as Leah’s: he walks on his hands to get Phil’s attention, updates him on the gang and talks about a wider idea seemingly unrelated to the group (‘life on other planets’).

Brian From the beginning, Kelly uses the stage direction of Brian ‘crying’ to present him as one of the weakest characters in the play. Kelly also shows how the leaders of the group bully Brian. He is someone the police and audience could believe is a victim. Like Leah, he is also presented as a character with a sense of morality, with his first line being ‘I think we should tell someone.’ However, like Leah, he also lacks the power to assert himself and is frequently bullied by the group’s leaders: JOHN TATE: You crying little piece of filth. PHIL: You’ll land on Adam’s corpse and you’ll rot together. Cathy slaps him. He is forced by Phil into framing an innocent man and the guilt he feels as a result causes him to be on ‘stronger and stronger medication’ until he is ‘caught staring at a wall and drooling’.

Danny Danny’s main concern is how the attack will impact his future: ‘I can’t get mixed up in this. I’m gonna be a dentist.’ Kelly could be presenting Danny as a sensible character; none of the other characters show any regard for how their actions will affect their future. However, he could also be presenting Danny as a selfish character; Leah and Brian also realise that what happened to Adam was wrong, but Danny only seems to care about how it will affect him.

Lou Lou will follow whoever is in charge at the time. She speaks in short, simple sentences, repeatedly saying ‘We’re screwed’, making her appear immature and weak. She also appears to believe the lies the group have created: Lou: Because he saw him in the woods Leah: He didn’t Lou: He did he- We also see here that Lou is interrupted showing her lack of power. In Richard’s final monologue we learn she is now best friends with Cathy: ‘Dangerous game. I feel sorry for her.’

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Theme Analysis

Responsibility Although Jan and Mark describe in detail the violent attack carried out on Adam, they attempt to avoid blame and responsibility for this through their use of light-hearted language (see their character analysis). How far the other gang members are involved is left vague by Kelly: Leah simultaneously avoids and accepts responsibility, first saying ‘We haven’t done anything’ but then saying, ‘if we have then we did it together’. Phil makes the responsibility of covering up Adam’s fake and real death a shared one: ‘Keep your mouths shut. Tell no one or we all go to prison.’

Morality Linked to the theme of responsibility is the theme of morality. Kelly presents abiding by your moral principles as being incompatible with being in a gang: Brian is forced to go against his instinct to ‘tell someone’, framing an innocent man and going mad as a result. Leah eventually leaves the gang behind after the murder of Adam and is used by Kelly to contemplate what it is to be human through the bonobos speech: are we loving bonobos or are we evil chimps? Is the capacity for good and evil innate? Kelly could be implying that we have a choice as even Leah, the most ‘bonobo’ member of the group, kills a pet to get attention from Phil. This also leads us to contemplate Phil in more detail: when he says ‘What’s more important – one person or everyone?’ is Kelly presenting him as a cold psychopath acting out of self-interest or is Phil actually abiding by a warped moral code, trying to protect the group and make the best of a bad situation? See his character analysis for more exploration of this idea.

Guilt The two more moral characters in the play are the ones to outwardly express their guilt: BRIAN: I’m crying because I’m lying and I feel terrible inside; LEAH: What have we done? However, Kelly reveals the guilt of other characters, particularly through Leah and Richard’s monologues. Through these we learn that John Tate has ‘lost it’ and by the end of the play has ‘found God’, perhaps to atone for his part in Adam’s death? We also learn that Danny, despite having work experience at a dentist’s, ‘hates it’ as ‘when they open their mouths sometimes it feels like you’re going to fall in.’ Is Kelly creating parallels between Danny’s new job and the grille? Most significantly, Phil is ‘not eating’ in the final scene. Could Kelly be suggesting he feels guilt for the fact that Leah has left?

Gangs All of the criminal acts committed by the gang occur offstage, with their reactions to this being portrayed onstage. Kelly could be trying to show us that being part of a gang has negative consequences and perhaps that this is even more important than the action itself. Wanting to part of a gang is equally dangerous, as the initial attack on Adam happens because he was ‘trying to be a part of’ the group. Going outside of the gangs ranks also has negative consequences, shown through the stage direction ‘John Tate begins to walk toward Brian’ after Brian has suggested that they ‘tell someone’. Brian goes mad because of the pressure put on him by the gang and Leah leaves, disgusted with their actions. Could Kelly be suggesting that morality is incompatible with wanting to be part of a gang?

Bullying Unchecked bullying in the play leads to trauma for the victims as well as the gang itself. Even before we learn about what has happened to Adam, Kelly shows us Leah’s monologue to Phil in A1 S2 where she receives ‘No answer’ throughout. His disregard for her feelings is tantamount to psychological bullying. Jan and Mark are shown to have enjoyed what they did to Adam (‘You had to laugh’) and John Tate bullies the gang to keep them in order (‘you crying little piece of filth’). However, the trauma of Adam’s death means his threats are now ineffective (‘I’ll have to bite their face off. Or something.’) Phil’s threats, on the other hand, are shown to carry far more weight through Kelly’s use of declaratives: ‘You’ll land on Adam’s corpse and you’ll rot together.’ We know that Phil’s threats, unlike John Tate’s, are not empty ones which makes him a more effective and tyrannical leader.

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Power In the play, the more ruthless characters rise to the top. Kelly may present John Tate as the leader at the start but he is clearly not ruthless enough to cover up what has happened to Adam (‘I’m finding this all quite stressful’). Phil can replace him due to his ability to protect and preserve the group (‘What’s more important – one person or everyone?’) Cathy could be seen as acting even more out of self-interest. She does not care that an innocent man has been framed, only repeating that they ‘showed initiative’ and unquestioningly following the orders of Phil. Perhaps this is how she is able to lead the gang at the end of the play. Could Kelly be implying that ruthlessness and selfishness are vital qualities in leaders? Perhaps he is criticising our own leaders through characters like Phil and Cathy?

Violence In the play’s world, violence is carried out by everyone, even the weaker characters. Jan and Mark recount with relish how Adam ‘let us punch him’ and Leah kills a pet to get attention. The willingness to commit violent acts is also shown to directly correlate to power in the play. In Kelly’s bonobo speech, Leah talks about how chimps will ‘kill and sometimes torture each other to find a better position within the social structure’. This directly correlates with Cathy, the most chimp-like character, who ‘used violence’ to get Adam to come out of his hedge and eventually kills him before becoming the gang’s leader. The speech foreshadows violent acts carried out by Cathy as a chimp will ‘bite [another chimp’s] hand off’ and Cathy is rumoured to have ‘cut a first year’s finger off’.

Setting Characters Onstage Analysis

Street Jan Mark

The street scenes introduce the audience to what has been happening to the characters and then prepare us for the action that is to come in the wood scenes. Kelly has them speak in minor sentences where they repeat each other and ask questions, conveying their panic. We never get the full story here, perhaps due to being more of a public setting. This could indicate that Kelly’s characters do know right from wrong and behave according to their surroundings.

Field Phil Leah Richard

Leah and Phil’s scenes take place in a field. This could have a ‘romantic’ notion as the field is open and spacious and away from the distraction of the other characters. This creates a degree of dissonance, as we quickly learn that Phil and Leah’s relationship is one-sided and toxic. These scenes also have a notable structure created through Leah’s monologues. Her speeches seemingly discuss irrelevant topics that are completely unrelated to the situation the groups are in. Deeper analysis will reveal that each speech could be metaphorical and applied to the group completely (e.g., the bonobos speech). When Leah can’t gain Phil’s attention through thoughtful words, she tries something more physical or shocking (strangling herself, showing him ‘Jerry’). With no reaction from Phil, she then brings her monologue to a close by referring directly to the situation they are in (‘Adam’s parents were on TV…’) which may gain a reaction of some sort from Phil (‘Phil looks up’). Richard’s monologue in the final scene follows the same structure.

Wood All characters The wood is a suitable setting for the whole group scenes because of the connotations a wood has. They tend to be on the outskirts of a settlement and could be described as dark, mysterious and isolated. The discussions that the group have when they are in the woods are about things that should be kept hidden from normal society. The setting allows the events to take place without anyone finding out. Kelly also uses these scenes to explore ideas about power by showing the varying dynamics and power struggles within the gang.

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Macbeth Quotation Knowledge Organiser

Quotation Analysis

All witches: ‘fair is foul, and foul is fair’ (1.1) Foreshadows Macbeth’s first words in 1.3 – ‘so foul and fair a day I have not seen’ – perhaps showing their control over Macbeth and/or their ability to predict the future. Their words are paradoxical (confusing) – both opposites cannot be true – and this shows their ability to deceive as they do with their prophecies later. The quotation also suggests the natural order being upside down, one of many examples in the play.

Captain: ‘with his brandished steel which smoked with bloody execution’ (1.2)

Much more to say about this than ‘brave Macbeth’. Extremely powerful and violent image. M’s sword appears to be on fire. ‘Bloody’ can (and later does) describe M. The qualities M shows here are valuable during war and cause Macbeth to be rewarded. What about in peace time? Is M just the product of a hyper-masculine society? Does this make it easy for Lady Macbeth to manipulate him later by questioning his masculinity?

Duncan: ‘No more that Thane of Cawdor shall deceive our bosom interest’ (1.2)

This is massively ironic. M will be the next Thane of Cawdor and he deceives the king in an even more serious way. This perhaps suggests that, although Duncan is a good man, he is perhaps too naïve to be an effective king in a brutal, violent time.

Banquo: ‘My noble partner… seems rapt withal’ (1.3)

Banquo is aware that the witches’ prophecies have affected M. The adjective ‘rapt’ is interesting because it could suggest that M is so fascinated by what the witches have said that he is lost in a daydream. Alternatively, it could suggest that M has somehow been spellbound by the witches and is under their control. Anyhow, Banquo is now suspicious of Macbeth and continues to be until his death.

Macbeth: ‘The Thane of Cawdor lives. Why do you dress me in borrowed robes?’ (1.3)

M’s startled reaction is more about the witches’ prophecy coming true than the news he is to be Thane of Cawdor. ‘Borrowed robes’ is one of many references to clothing that does not fit correctly. This is S using imagery to suggest that M is out of his natural place. He should not be king and that has upset the natural order.

Banquo: ‘But ‘tis strange and oftentimes, to win us to our harm, the instruments of darkness tell us truths; win us with honest trifles to betray us in deepest consequence.’ (1.3)

S is showing that Banquo recognises the witches for what they are – ‘instruments of darkness’. He also recognises that they will trick people into committing sins to try to ‘win us’ for the devil. S is also doubling M and B in this scene. Both characters meet the witches and hear prophecies. M chooses the path of evil whereas B chooses the path of good. S could be saying that whatever circumstances we find ourselves in we still have free will and the ability to choose for ourselves.

Macbeth: ‘This supernatural soliciting cannot be ill, cannot be good.’ (1.3)

‘Soliciting’ means persuasion – M is referring to the prophecies. S is using another paradox to show Macbeth’s confusion. The prophecies could well be ‘ill’ and Banquo has just warned M about that; M could just be choosing to ignore that because he likes the idea of becoming King. The fact that he recognises that they ‘cannot be good’ shows that he is aware that he is embarking on a dangerous journey. The sibilance (alliteration of ‘s’) adds an evil tone to the start of the soliloquy.

M = Macbeth LM = Lady Macbeth B = Banquo S = Shakespeare

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Macbeth: ‘Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair and make my seated heart knock at my ribs against the use of nature.’ (1.3)

M could be thinking about killing the king. S is showing us that fear and evil have a physical effect on Macbeth. His hair is standing up and his heart is beating faster. He also recognises that what he is doing is unnatural and you could link this to GCOB.

Macbeth: ‘Stars hide your fires, let not light see my black and deep desires’ (1.4)

M has just found out that Malcolm will be the next king and seems to have decided to kill the king. S is linking M with darkness and evil and showing that he is deliberately shutting out light which represents God and goodness.

Lady Macbeth: ‘Yet do I fear thy nature, it is too full of the milk of human kindness to catch the nearest way.’ (1.5)

LM has heard about the prophecies and fears that her husband will not act. S is showing that LM knows her husband very well and knows she will have to manipulate him in order for him to become king. ‘Milk’ is an interesting image as it also refers to her nurturing role as a woman. Later she says ‘take my milk for gall’ which is showing that she wants to lose any stereotypical female qualities to enable her to perform evil deeds. This is the same idea as in ‘unsex me here’.

Lady Macbeth: ‘Stop up the access and passage to remorse’ (1.5)

LM is using an imperative to command evil spirits to stop her feeling any guilt for what she is about to do. S is using dramatic irony here as LM later feels such terrible guilt that she sleepwalks and commits suicide. This quote could also suggest that LM is not as strong as she seems and is prepared to do terrible things to help her husband.

Macbeth: ‘I have no spur to prick the sides of my intent, but only vaulting ambition which overleaps itself and falls on the other.’ (1.7)

M seems to have decided not to go ahead with the murder. S uses the metaphor of a rider on a horse. M’s only ‘spur’ is his ‘ambition’ which he knows is not a good enough reason as the horse will ‘fall on the other’ side of the jump. He knows the murder will lead to terrible consequences.

Lady Macbeth: ‘Art thou afeard to be the same in thine own act and valour as thou art in desire?’ (1.7)

LM is questioning M’s masculinity. She knows this will hurt him as this is a quality which is highly prized in their world. S phrases it as a rhetorical question to make it more persuasive. The reference to ‘valour’ can be linked to earlier in the play when M is referred to as ‘Valour’s minion’.

Banquo: ‘I dreamed last night of the three weird sisters; to you they have shown some truth.’ Macbeth: ‘I think not of them.’ (2.1)

Here Banquo is trying to find out what M thinks about their encounter with the witches. He is concerned about M’s reaction earlier when he was ‘rapt’. S is showing that Banquo does not find it easy to resist evil but still chooses the right path unlike M who lies in his response. S could be showing that evil isolates people and destroys friendships in the same way as it destroys M and LM’s marriage.

Macbeth: ‘Or art thou but a dagger of the mind… and on thy blade and dudgeon gouts of blood’ (2.1)

In this soliloquy, S is showing the terrible psychological effects of murder. They are happening even before M has committed it. The dagger could be a hallucination showing M’s mental turmoil. ‘Blood’ is a gothic image used constantly and can be compared with the real and imaginary blood on LM’s hands. An alternative interpretation is that the dagger has been conjured by the witches to tempt M.

M = Macbeth LM = Lady Macbeth B = Banquo S = Shakespeare

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Macbeth: ‘Methought I heard a voice cry, ‘Sleep no more: Macbeth does murder sleep’ (2.2)

Again, S is portraying M suffering from hallucinations. This time he is hearing voices. S could be using ‘sleep’ as a metaphor for inner peace and happiness as it restores us and is part of the natural life cycle. For M and LM, ‘sleep’ is replaced by ‘terrible dreams which shake us nightly’.

Lady Macbeth: ‘A little water clears us of this deed’ (2.2)

LM is saying that washing the blood from their hands will stop anyone from realising that they have committed the murder. This is massively ironic as she tries to wash imaginary blood from her hands when sleepwalking in 5.1 – ‘Out damned spot’.

Ross: ‘Duncan’s horses…turned wild in nature…as they would make war on mankind.’ Old Man: ‘’Tis said, they eat each other.’ (2.4)

S is using the unnatural behaviour of the horses to show how terrible the regicide of Duncan is. It is not just a crime against one man, it is a crime against God and nature itself. This is one of several strange natural things that happen on the day of the regicide.

Banquo: ‘Thou hast it now, King, Cawdor, Glamis, all, as the weird women promised, and I fear thou played’st most foully for it’ (3.1)

B knows what M has done. This speech links M closely with the witches. The adverb ‘now’ can be read as ‘for now’ suggesting B hopes his descendants will be kings. Although B knows what M has done, he will not bow down to him. This is another reason M sees him as a threat.

Macbeth: ‘Ride you this afternoon?’ (3.1) S is portraying M following his wife’s advice to ‘look like the innocent flower but be the serpent under it’. M appears to be making small talk with B but really he is trying to find out where he will be so he can have him murdered. This time M is sending murderers rather than doing the deed himself showing he has become more cowardly.

Macbeth: ‘Our fears in Banquo stick deep, and in his royalty of nature reigns that which would be feared.’ (3.1)

In this soliloquy, S is showing that M does not feel safe even though he is king. He could be suggesting that no happiness or peace can come from evil deeds – M will always be afraid of something. The violent verb ‘stick’ suggests stabbing emphasising the pain M feels. Also the use of ‘royalty’ and ‘reigns’ is ironic. These words do apply to B (and his children) but not to M himself.

Banquo: ‘Fly, good Fleance, fly, fly, fly!’ (3.3) S is portraying B as brave and noble because he is more concerned for his son’s safety. Many directors show B bravely fighting the murderers to allow Fleance to escape. S is doubling M and B again and highlighting B’s bravery and M’s cowardice.

Macbeth: ‘Thou canst not say I did it; never shake thy gory locks at me!’ (3.4)

S is showing M’s guilt and terror as B’s ghost appears to him at the banquet. It is another example of how S is showing us that sins will be punished in one way or another and that no good will come from evil actions. ‘Gory’ is yet another reference to blood. Although B is dead, he is still better off than M who will go to hell for his sins.

Macbeth: ‘I am in blood stepped in so far that should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go over’ (3.4)

S uses a shocking gothic image to show M’s state of mind. He feels as if he is wading through a river of blood. The decision he makes is crucial. He is determined to carry on wading. He won’t repent and ask for forgiveness, he is going to continue following his evil path. This is the unforgiveable sin of despair.

M = Macbeth LM = Lady Macbeth B = Banquo S = Shakespeare

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Second witch: ‘By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes’ (4.1)

S is showing the supernatural powers of the witches to sense things ordinary people cannot. Also shows what M is – ‘wicked’. Also, he is now ‘something’ rather than ‘someone’.

Lady Macduff ; ‘the poor wren, the most diminutive of birds, will fight, her young ones in the nest, against the owl’ (4.2)

S regularly uses bird imagery in the play. Lady Macduff is compared to a tiny ‘wren’ fighting against M who is represented by an ‘owl’. In Jacobean times owls represented death and darkness. She could also be criticising Macduff for leaving her and her children at the mercy of M’s murderers. Again, M sends someone else to commit the murders, a massive contrast to the ‘brave’ M at the beginning.

Lady Macbeth: ‘Here’s the smell of the blood still; all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand.’ (5.1)

S is showing LM’s punishment through her sleepwalking. She cannot remove the sight or smell of the blood, a symbol for her guilt (see earlier). ‘All the perfumes of Arabia’ shows that she recognises the massive extent of her sins. The adjective ‘little’ shows how vulnerable she now feels (and perhaps always was to some extent) but now it is too late.

Macbeth: ‘What’s the boy Malcolm? Was he not born of woman?’ (5.3)

The English army is approaching and M is desperate. The only thing that can give him consolation now is the witches’ prophecy. S is showing how they tricked him. It is Macduff not Malcolm who will kill M. In Act 5, M’s downfall comes quickly and inevitably; this is typical of tragedy.

Macbeth: ‘My life is fallen into the sere, the yellow leaf’ (5.3)

In this soliloquy, S is showing that M realises he has made a mistake (anagnorisis) but it is too late to do anything about it. This is another feature of tragedy. M compares his life to a leaf dying in autumn suggesting that, like the leaf, his life is coming to an end. The verb ‘fallen’ suggests a lack of control and the downwards motion could be a link to M’s soul going down to hell.

Macbeth: ‘Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more. It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.’ (5.5)

In this soliloquy, S is showing M at his lowest point. LM has just died but M appears to feel nothing – ‘she should have died hereafter’. He compares life to a bad play with bad actors and a shadow with no substance. Importantly, for him life is now completely empty and means ‘nothing’.

Macbeth: ‘I will not yield to kiss the ground before young Malcolm’s feet and to be baited by the rabble’s curse.’ (5.8)

S may be showing that, at the very end, M has regained some of the courage that he had at the beginning of the play. This could be seen to emphasise that M always had the potential for greatness, a typical feature of a tragic hero. It also emphasises the sense of waste and loss caused by M’s evil actions and this is an important part of S’s moral message – don’t waste your abilities like M did.

Malcolm: ‘this dead butcher and his fiend-like queen’ (5.9)

Malcolm is now king and the natural order is restored with M and LM dead. M and LM are again portrayed using violent, gothic imagery.

M = Macbeth LM = Lady Macbeth B = Banquo S = Shakespeare

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Power and Conflict Knowledge Organiser

Poem Action Main Themes Main Techniques Quotations

Ozymandias Speaker meets traveller who has been to Egypt and seen the ruins of a giant statue in the desert

Abuse of power

Power doesn’t last

Art and beauty can defeat the power of time

Humans are very small in the big picture

The desert is a metaphor for time

The statue is a metaphor for earthly power

We hear Ozymandias’ voice in the poem and this creates irony; he thinks everyone can hear him but no-one is listening anymore

‘two vast and trunkless legs of stone stand in the desert’

‘My name is Ozymandias, king of kings’

‘the lone and level sands stretch far away’

London Speaker walks around the streets of London and sees misery and suffering everywhere he looks

Big institutions like the church and the state take individual freedom away

People are made unhappy by the way they think about things

A few powerful people are happy but the majority are miserable

Repetition of ‘every’ shows extent of suffering

Each type of suffering is linked to a cause – ‘palace’, ‘church’, ‘marriage’

The ‘new born infant’s tear’ is at the end of the poem and shows that the suffering will continue if we allow it to

‘The mind-forged manacles I hear’

‘the chimney-sweeper’s cry every black’ning church appals’

‘the youthful harlot’s curse blasts the new-born infant’s tear’

The Prelude Wordsworth tells us about a childhood incident when he stole a boat and then felt guilty about it afterwards

Nature can be beautiful but also has a dark, powerful frightening side

Part of growing up is realising this

Your imagination is more powerful than your rational mind

Three part structure with mood changes – happy event > frightening event > reflection on meaning

Mountain is personified to symbolise guilt and the power of nature

Uses ordinary everyday language to reach a wide audience

‘small circles glittering idly in the moon’

‘a huge peak, black and huge’

‘no familiar shapes remained, no pleasant images of trees’

My Last Duchess The Duke of Ferrara tells a messenger how he abused and murdered his young wife

Powerful people often see it as their right to do whatever they want

It is sometimes hard to tell whether someone is evil just by looking at them

The aristocracy have used their power to constrain people for a long time

Dramatic monologue creates dramatic irony – the duke thinks his behaviour is normal; we think he is a monster

The curtain on the painting and the statue of Neptune are metaphors for control and constraint

The flowing rhythm of the poem is broken to show when the Duke loses his composure and suggests his jealousy

‘I call that piece a wonder, now:’

‘since none puts by the curtain I have drawn for you but I’

‘as if she ranked my gift of a nine-hundred years-old name with anybody’s gift’

The Charge of the Light Brigade

The story of a heroic but doomed cavalry charge in the Crimean War

Bravery is powerful and awe-inspiring

Commanders have a responsibility to think about the safety of the people they command

War can be inspiring but also causes terrible loss of life

The sound and rhythm of the poem is used to create a powerful sense of the experience of battle

Exclamations and questions are used in Stanza 6 to give the poem a moral

Use of repetition for a variety of effects

‘Half a league, half a league, half a league onward’

‘Cannon to right of them, cannon to left of them, cannon in front of them’

‘When can their glory fade?’

Exposure The speaker tells us about conditions in WW1 trenches and how the weather can also kill

The weather can be a deadly enemy in war

Conditions in WW1 trenches were inhumane

People who fought in WW1 were ‘exposed’ to terrible memories as well as terrible conditions

First-person plural suggests the speaker speaks for all soldiers

The weather is personified as an attacking army

Sound patterns like alliteration, assonance and onomatopoeia create a powerful sense of the experience of life in the trenches

‘Dawn massing in the east her melancholy army’

‘sudden successive flights of bullets streak the silence’

‘But nothing happens’

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Storm on the Island The speaker prepares for the arrival of a storm on an exposed island

Humans think they are not part of nature but they are

Powerful natural events remind us of how small we really are

We should respect the environment or it could hurt us

‘squat’ means low-down but also suggests humans are out of place on the bleak island

Nature is compared to a ‘tame cat turned savage’ to show its power and ability to shock us

The storm is compared to a military attack.

‘We are prepared: we build our houses squat’

‘the flung spray hits the windows, spits like a tame cat turned savage’

‘Space is a salvo. We are bombarded by the empty air’

Bayonet Charge Tells the story of a few seconds of a bayonet charge towards the enemy who are hiding in a wood

The experience of war is terrifying

People who have experienced war often go on to question why they volunteered

Powerful people cause conflicts but it is ordinary people who suffer in them

Time is compressed to make a moment last much longer

No war or country is mentioned > this is a universal experience of war

The ‘yellow hare’ can be seen as a metaphor for war’s capacity to cause harm to others and to nature

‘He lugged a rifle numb as a smashed arm’

‘In what cold clockwork of the stars was he the hand pointing that second?’

‘a yellow hare that rolled like a flame and crawled in a threshing circle’

Remains The speaker talks about his experiences in the Iraq war and how they have continued to affect him

The experience of war can be painful after the war has finished

The poem raises awareness of the suffering caused by PTSD

It is wrong to dehumanise your enemy

Informal conversational tone and language shows speaker trying to make his memories less awful

Use of repetition links to recurring memory

Final stanza is short to add impact to ending of poem

‘probably armed, possibly not’

‘dug in behind enemy lines’

‘his bloody life in my bloody hands’

Poppies The speaker is a mother who talks about her memories of her son who has possibly been killed in a war

War also affects those left behind

Mothers and other family members suffer separation, loss and anxiety

This suffering lasts a very long time

Speaker uses second person to address son directly showing close emotional bond

Everyday images of home are used to show that soldiers have ordinary lives as well

Images of needlework are used perhaps to show the mother’s desire to heal

‘Sellotape bandaged around my hand’

‘My stomach busy making tucks, pleats…’

‘the dove pulled freely against the sky, an ornamental stitch’

War Photographer The photographer develops photographs from the last war he visited and worries that his photographs make little difference to people’s views on foreign wars

People see terrible suffering in war and this affects them afterwards

People who do not experience war directly can easily become desensitised to it

People lack the empathy to fully understand the suffering of others

Photographer compared to a priest ‘intoning a mass’ to show the holiness of his job (vocation)

‘Solutions’ has a double meaning – chemicals for developing photos and answers to questions about war

Photographer viewing England through a plane window shows how different he is from others

‘as though this were a church and he a priest preparing to intone a mass’

‘solutions slop in trays beneath his hands’

‘a half-formed ghost’

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Tissue The speaker talks through a series of things which make up her identity

People’s identities are complicated and made up of many different layers

Everybody has a complex, individual identity no matter where they are from

We should recognise that different identities are fragile and should be valued

Everybody has a shared humanity and there are many similarities between different people

The ‘paper’ metaphors could show the many different aspects of a person’s identity

The thin tissues of ‘paper’ let ‘light shine through’ suggesting that we can understand people better if we find out more about them

The tissue of the paper turns into ‘skin’ at the end suggesting we are all human, complex and fragile

‘Paper that lets the light shine through, this is what could alter things.’

‘The sun shines through their borderlines’

‘thinned to be transparent, turned into your skin.’

The Emigree The speaker talks about the difference between living in the country she was forced to leave and where she lives now

People who emigrate from one country to another do not always want to

Sometimes people who are forced to emigrate suffer discrimination in their new country

Where you come from is always part of your identity

‘There once was…’ begins the poem in a fairy tale tone suggesting the memories of home are childish but fixed ‘sunlight-clear’ in the speaker’s mind

Contrast between language about peace/light and war/darkness

‘Doll’ image could represent lost identity

‘the bright, filled paperweight’

‘That child’s vocabulary I carried here like a hollow doll’

‘They accuse me of being dark in their free city’

Checking Out Me History

The speaker talks about how he had to educate himself about his own cultural history because he was taught someone else’s at school

Powerful countries force their cultures on the places they have conquered

You can’t understand your own identity fully until you know the history of people from the same cultural background as you

Different speaking voices for different moods – narrative, mocking, serious

Images of nature to show importance of heroes and the journey of slaves/slaves’ descendants to freedom

Images of sight and blindness to show transformation caused by learning of cultural heritage

‘Blind me to me own identity’

‘see-far woman of mountain dream’

‘a healing star among the wounded a yellow sunrise to the dying’

Kamikaze The speaker meets the family of a kamikaze pilot who turned back from his suicide mission in WW2

Is it better to die pointlessly or live the rest of your life in shame?

Militaristic societies create warped ideas about service and bravery

Thinking about the beauty of nature can turn people away from violence

Different speaking voices show different perspectives

Images of nature/childhood contrast with images of war

Poem ends with the moral dilemma back in the original speaker’s voice

‘a shaven head full of powerful incantations’

‘dark shoals of fishes flashing silver as their bellies swivelled towards the sun’

‘he must have wondered which had been the better way to die’

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Sign of Four’ knowledge organiser

Character Key quotes and analysis

Sherlock Holmes Doyle presents Holmes as a man whose mind ‘rebels at stagnation’ and indeed when the case comes to a dead end in chapter 9, he is described as being ‘dejected and somewhat morose’. His cold rationalism makes him a skilful detective as he is focused entirely on the case, as love ‘is opposed to that true cold reason that I place above all things’. This, along with his quoting of French and German makes Holmes appear intellectually distant and superior. He is not someone the average reader would be able to understand and is even described by Watson as ‘a calculating machine’ and ‘inhuman’. His intellectual superiority is also conveyed through sarcasm (‘He can find something’) showing his scorn for the general public, particularly the inferior police force. Holmes is not motivated by wealth and instead does detective work for ‘mental exaltation’. Doyle conveys this through the novel’s cyclical structure, as it begins and ends with Holmes taking cocaine, which Holmes only takes when he does not have a mystery to solve. As the novel is part of a detective series, this also signals to them that the mystery is solved, ready for a new one to begin.

Dr John Watson Watson is the romantic, emotional, human counterpoint to Holmes. He acts as the novel’s narrator and in the novel itself, he is also the writer of Holmes’ mysteries, something Holmes criticises Watson for, as he tinges them ‘with romanticism’. As a pair, Holmes and Watson are opposites but complement each other well because of this, introducing the theme of duality. Watson’s romantic and emotional nature allows the novel to be more readable and engaging through Doyle’s use of figurative and descriptive language (see his description of London in chapter 3, for example) and this could be the reason Doyle has Watson as his narrator – with Watson’s narration, we get a novel; with Holmes’ narration, we might get something more like a lab report that would be difficult to understand. Watson also asks Holmes questions throughout the novel, helping the reader better engage with the detective genre and follow the mystery. Doyle also uses Watson to advance the sub-plot which involves his relationship with Mary. Through this sub-plot, ideas around social class are brought up. Watson is attracted to Mary but considers himself an ‘army surgeon with a weak leg and a weaker bank account’ and therefore she is out of his league. The treasure would drive a ‘golden barrier’ between them but Watson still helps search for it, displaying his kindness and loyalty.

Mary Morstan Mary Morstan serves a number of purposes: she is the source of the mystery in the novel’s main plot, the love interest in the sub-plot and also reveals ideas about women in Victorian England. As in most of Doyle’s mysteries, women feature very little and Mary is more of a plot device than a fully-developed character: after the first five chapters, she appears sporadically and this is usually for Watson to recap the case so far or for Doyle to explore Watson’s feelings for her. In chapter 2, we get a lengthy description of her where we learn she is not rich ‘her costume…bore a suggestion of limited means’, innocent: ‘I have no friends whom I should appeal to’ and gentle: ‘her large blue eyes were spiritual and sympathetic’, reflecting ideas about how middle-class Victorian women might be expected to behave. However, she also travels with Watson and Holmes to ‘unfashionable’ parts of London and asserts herself: ‘I should wish the interview to be as short as possible’. Despite this, she is described by Watson as ‘weak and helpless’, reflecting some Victorian attitudes towards women at the time. Holmes said that she ‘had a decided genius’ for preserving ‘the Agra plan’. However, given that this amounts to preserving a piece of paper, modern readers might see this assessment of Mary as patronising and we might think that society limited what Victorian women were capable of. Additionally, Doyle uses the past tense here, suggesting this ‘decided genius’ no longer exists. Could this be because she is now married or because the mystery is solved? Either way, this could strengthen the idea that Mary only serves the purpose of advancing the plot.

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Athelney Jones Jones is the official police inspector, as opposed to Holmes’ role as an ‘unofficial consulting detective’. Doyle’s portrayal of Jones reflects attitudes towards the police force in Victorian England. Doyle uses verbs and adjectives like ‘wheezing’, ‘plethoric’, ‘red-faced’, ‘loud’ and ‘heavy’ in chapter 6 to introduce Jones as a blustering, incompetent police officer. This juxtaposes him with the composed, intelligent Holmes, which also adds a comedic element to the novel. Jones is also pompous, dismissing Holmes’ methods. He tells Holmes that they need ‘stern facts here – no room for theories’. However, this is ironic, as Jones jumps to conclusions and arrests Thaddeus with no hard evidence. When Thaddeus has a solid alibi, Jones is forced to ask Holmes for help in chapter 9 and Doyle’s use of adjectives contrast those in chapter 6. He is described as being ‘downcast’, ‘meek’ and ‘apologetic’. While this demonstrates a less pompous side of Jones, Doyle could also use this to further portray the police as incompetent: Jones is coming to Holmes because he cannot solve the mystery by himself. At the end of the novel, it is revealed that ‘Jones gets all the credit’ for solving the case, again juxtaposing him with Holmes, as he craves fame while Holmes solves mysteries for a love of ‘the work itself’.

Thaddeus Sholto Thaddeus is presented as an eccentric art collector and a ‘confirmed hypochondriac’. He is a snob, claiming he ‘seldom comes into contact with the rough crowd’ and is also tactless, telling Mary ‘had your father refrained from throwing a strain upon his heart he might still be alive now’. Despite this, he is shown to have a strong sense of justice, telling Mary she is a ‘wronged woman’ and sending her pearls each year to make up for the treasure she has been deprived of. Doyle contrasts him with his twin brother Bartholomew, who ‘was a little inclined to my father’s fault’ which is greed (we learn later that Major Sholto, their father, double-crossed the sign of four and took the treasure), developing the theme of duality. Thaddeus is also used by Doyle to develop the theme of Englishness vs foreignness: his home, despite being in a ‘third-rate suburban dwelling-house’ is full of ‘Eastern luxury’.

Jonathan Small Jonathan Small only appears towards the end of the book so his portrayal up until then is through descriptions from other characters. We learn that he has a wooden leg and stolen treasure, almost reminding the reader of a pirate and therefore creating the image of a stereotypical villain. Major Sholto died at the mere sight of him and adjectives such as ‘ugly’ and ‘outlandish’ are used by Mrs Smith to describe him. When we hear from Small in the final chapter, Doyle creates a much more complex character. While he is calculating (throwing the treasure in the Thames to create a ‘harder job’ for the police) and frightening when angry (‘his eyes blazed and the handcuffs clanked together’), he is also polite to Holmes and bears no grudge against them for catching him describing the situation as ‘all fair and above board’. We also learn through Small’s backstory that he lost his job in the army due to losing a leg and is motivated to take the Agra treasure when he thinks of how his family back home might finally be proud of this ‘ne’er do well’ if he came home rich, which may create a degree of sympathy for him. He is also guided by a strong sense of loyalty (refusing to take the treasure for himself because ‘it’s been the sign of four with us always’) and justice, believing the treasure should not go to ‘those who have not earned it’. His loyalty transcends racial barriers, saying of the rest of the Sign of Four, ‘black or blue…they are in with me’ which some modern readers may see as being progressive for the time the book was written. However, Doyle could also be presenting Small as driven by greed. He is able to help Dost Akbar kill the merchant Achmet, as ‘the thought of his treasure turned me hard and bitter’. Could Doyle be using Small to imply that greed turns otherwise good men into villains?

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Theme Analysis

Emotion vs. rationality

This theme is largely presented through Holmes and Watson who are the antithesis of each other. Holmes is cold and rational, while Watson is emotional and romantic. See their character analysis sections for a more detailed exploration of this. Doyle introduces this theme in the first chapter when Holmes looks at Watson’s watch, deducing from minute details that it belonged to Watson’s brother who had ‘short intervals of prosperity’ before ‘taking to drink, he died’. Watson is upset by this, thinking Holmes has ‘made inquiries into the history of my unhappy brother’. Holmes is apologetic, saying that by ‘viewing the matter as an abstract problem’ he forgets that this would be ‘personal and painful’ to Watson. Doyle uses the exposition, therefore, to summarise the key differences between these characters: Holmes is concerned with ‘abstract problems’, while Watson is concerned with emotional, personal matters.

Wealth and treasure

The novel’s main plot centres around the search for the missing Agra treasure, which was brought into England by Major Sholto after he stole it from the Sign of Four who, in turn, stole it from a rajah in India. In many ways, the treasure could be seen as symbolic of India itself. As an important British colony, India was often referred to as the ‘jewel in the crown’. In other words India, and the exploitation of its resources, generated huge amounts of wealth for Britain. In The Sign of the Four the rajah, who initially owned the treasure, tried to protect the treasure by halving it, and remained neutral in the conflict between the sepoys and the British, believing that whichever side won, he would keep half his wealth. This was not the case however, as he lost everything as a result of the conflict. This is a metaphor for what happened to India itself as it passed completely into British control after the uprising, which was termed a ‘Mutiny’ by the British. Ideas around wealth are also explored through the novel’s sub-plot. Doyle uses the metaphor ‘golden barrier’ to show that wealth stands in the way of Watson being with Mary. Those who do not want the treasure for themselves (Holmes, Mary, Thaddeus and Watson) are the novel’s ‘good’ characters, with Watson even describing Mary as his ‘treasure’. Those who seek the treasure for their own gain (Small, Major Sholto, Bartholomew and the Sign of Four) are all characterised unfavourably to some degree.

Love and friendship The central friendship in the novel is between Holmes and Watson. Holmes shares his theories with Watson and, as Watson is our narrator, it means these thoughts are shared with the reader, allowing us to follow the mystery. Although Holmes is intellectually superior and admired by Watson, their contrasting personalities make the friendship appear balanced. Watson falling for Mary drives the novel’s subplot and is presented as selfless with Watson being concerned about being seen as a ‘fortune-seeker’ and with both he and Mary valuing their love more than the treasure itself. This parallels Small’s loyalty to the sign of four, which is presented by Doyle as one of Small’s redeeming qualities. Doyle contrasts Small’s behaviour with Major Sholto’s who betrays even his close friend Captain Morstan to take the treasure.

Crime and punishment

Greed is presented as the main driving force behind most of the crimes committed in the novel. Sholto, Small and the other members of the Sign of Four all steal the treasure out of a desire for money. Small feels guilt for what they will do to the merchant Achmet but Doyle uses the simile ‘my heart set hard as a flint within me’, perhaps to demonstrate how greed can cause even good men to become villainous. Bartholomew, who wants to hoard the treasure for himself, is murdered while his more selfless brother survives. However, revenge is also presented as a motivation for Small’s crimes, saying that it ‘became an overpowering, absorbing passion’ after Sholto took the treasure. Doyle could be seen to imply that crimes can be committed due to circumstances, as we see through Small’s backstory. However, he could also be implying that this is inherent within some people through his portrayal of Tonga, who is described as a ‘little bloodthirsty imp’. Through this, Doyle could be reinforcing racial prejudices many Victorians held by implying that foreigners are inherently evil while the white Small is portrayed as a victim of circumstance. Ultimately, all the perpetrators are punished for their crimes, reinforcing Holmes’ skill as a detective and perhaps further undermining the police.

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Duality Duality is when something or someone seems to be made up of two opposing parts. The Sholto brothers represent this theme, with Thaddeus wishing to ensure Mary ‘have justice’, while Bartholomew retains the selfishness his father had. By making them identical twins, Doyle emphasises how they are literally two halves of a whole. Small is polite and honest about his wrongdoings but is also calculated and vengeful. We have already explored duality in relation to Holmes and Watson. However, Holmes alone could also reflect this theme. On the one hand, he upholds ideas around morality, putting criminals behind bars. However, his drug use and fits of depression could reveal a darker side to his character. The quote by Goethe that Doyle includes at the end of the novel, ‘Alas that nature made only one of you when there was enough material for a good man and a rogue’ could represent both Small and Holmes.

Englishness and foreignness

Although Britain’s Empire ruled over a large part of the world, including India, at the time the novel was written and set, Britain was losing its empire and the colonies were rebelling. Many were afraid that foreigners would get into England and many were afraid of social change. In the novel, things associated with India, the Andaman Islands and the treasure are viewed negatively, even the items in Pondicherry Lodge. On taking Mary home, Watson observes that ‘It was soothing to catch even a passing glimpse of a tranquil English home in the midst of the wild, dark business that surrounded us’, Doyle could be using adjectives like ‘soothing’ and ‘tranquil’ to suggest that English life was civilised and correct. We also see this through Doyle’s portrayal of Tonga. Although a minor character, Tonga can reveal a lot about attitudes to foreigners in Victorian England. He comes to England with Small and murders a man, causing chaos as a result, perhaps reflecting how many felt England might be impacted negatively by the presence of foreigners. He is also described as a ‘savage’ and as having a face ‘marked with bestiality and cruelty’, implying he is uncivilised – more animal than man. This is reinforced by his lack of voice and the fact that he is shot while Small is able to give an account of the stolen treasure, perhaps implying that foreigners were inherently evil while white criminals could be victims of circumstance.

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Context Information

The British Empire Britain had been exploring and colonising lands for centuries, but by the nineteenth century the British Empire was vast. It was a global superpower, controlling over a quarter of the Earth’s land area and a quarter of its population. The British ruling classes had a strong sense of leadership and felt they had a moral responsibility in the world. They believed other countries needed guidance and to be ruled in the way Britain was ruled. The British exported their system of government, the military, the railway system, the English language and their education system. However, many of those who were sent out to rule the colonies did not always have the best interests of the people at heart. The desire to build wealth for Britain meant that many native peoples and natural resources of the colonised countries were exploited for financial gain. This often stirred up ill feelings and the potential for rebellion such as the Indian Mutiny that Small tells us of in Chapter 12. Tonga could be seen as a metaphor for the way the British exploited the resources of the colonies. When Small sees that Tonga is ‘devoted’ to him, he sees his ‘chance of escape’, using Tonga’s boat and food and even putting him in a freak show as ‘the black cannibal’ in order to make money.

Drug use During Victorian times, many of the drugs that are now classed as highly dangerous and addictive were sold in chemist shops. Different drugs were brought to Britain from the British Empire. Their dangers and addictive nature were not yet known or widely researched. Using drugs recreationally was popular with many writers and artists of the nineteenth century. They believed using substances such as opium and cocaine enhanced their creative abilities. Sherlock Holmes seems to believe the drug helps him to be more perceptive and mentally alert. However, Doyle also presents the opposing view through Watson who strongly disapproves of Holmes’ drug taking, noting the ‘black reaction’ that comes upon him. This cements Watson’s status as the emotional, moral voice in the novel.

Gender and social class

There was a strong division of the classes during the time the novel is set. We can see this in the contrast between the working-class and middle-class characters. Doyle uses non-standard English for the minor, working-class characters (‘Lor’ bless you, sir’), implying that they are less educated than the middle-classes. Most of the novel’s female characters are minor characters or, in the case of Mary, more of a plot device, reflecting their more inferior status in Victorian society. Issues around social class are explored through the sub-plot, as Watson worries that as ‘an army surgeon with a weak leg and a weaker bank account’, the treasure will prevent him from being with Mary. Men’s role in Victorian society was as the breadwinner, so being able to financially provide for a family was important. When the treasure is missing, Watson declares that Mary is ‘within [his] reach again’, illustrating the constraints class could put on relationships.

The police The police force was a relatively new institution at the time the novel was written. Not long before the novel’s publication, they had been unable to arrest Jack the Ripper and this increased the general public’s mistrust of the police. Sherlock Holmes was such a popular fictional character that there are accounts of readers writing to him to get help solving their own mysteries! We see attitudes towards the police reflected in Athelney Jones, who is juxtaposed with Holmes and portrayed as blustering and incompetent.