Hello, my name is Miss Grant.

I'm so glad you've decided to learn with me today.

We're in our modern text unit and our modern text is "Leave Taking." We're looking at an intersectional analysis.

Today, we're gonna be looking at racism and classism in the play.

We're gonna explore these two difficult ideas, what Pinnock is saying about them, and how she might be making a social comment on aspects of 1980s Britain.

I can't wait to hear all of your fantastic ideas.

I'm gonna be your support and guide as we work through today's lesson together.

Let's get started.

So by the end of today's lesson, you're going to be able to explain the ways in which "Leave Taking" is a social commentary on aspects of 1980s Britain.

So it's always incredibly enjoyable to read a text and think of it in terms of its plot, its character, and thinking, well what's gonna happen? How did this character respond to this? Oh, I can't believe this is the way in which the play was resolved.

But we can also think about it in terms of it being a social commentary.

So we're being presented at 1980s Britain in "Leave Taking," and what is Pinnock actually saying about what it means to be a citizen in 1980s Britain? Are there aspects of that society that she's exploring, that she is critiquing? So we can think of it both in terms of plot, in terms of engaging with those characters, but also as a kind of powerful expression, a powerful exploration of 1980s Britain as a social commentary on 1980s Britain.

Now, there are some keywords which can help us unlock our learning today and achieve our objective.

And they are, intersectionality, social commentary, racism, classism, and ethnicity.

Now, intersectionality, this is a term describing how certain social categories, for example, ethnicity, class, gender, can combine to create unique combinations of disadvantage or advantage.

And we're really gonna unpack this quite complicated term in today's lesson, really tying it to the text so that we understand how this helps us understand "Leave Taking" even more deeply.

Social commentary, a text which explores and critiques particular problems in society.

And today we're going to explore the idea that "Leave Taking" is indeed a social commentary on 1980s Britain.

Racism, is the unjust treatment of people based on the colour of their skin.

Classism, the unjust treatment of people based on their social class, and ethnicity, a way of grouping people who share certain attributes, for example, ancestry or language.

Now, these are all quite complicated terms, and we're gonna refer to them throughout today's lesson, deepening our understanding of what they mean and how they help us to understand "Leave Taking" and Pinnock's intentions with "Leave Taking." Our lesson outline for today, we're gonna start off by understanding Enid's experience of Britain, why she has these specific experiences and how Pinnock crafted this character, and what she might be exploring through the character of Enid.

And then we're going to look at "Leave Taking" as a social commentary.

That's our objective today.

So we're gonna use Learning Cycle 1, the idea the character of Enid to understand the social comment that Pinnock is making on 1980s Britain.

So let's start off by looking at Enid's experiences of Britain.

So my first discussion question today is, why did Enid migrate to England? So cast your mind through all of "Leave Taking," all eight scenes, and think we've got a number of different reasons that Enid migrated to England.

What are they? Pause the video and discuss the question now.

Fantastic discussion.

Really nice to see your in-depth understanding of this character and her motivations for migrating to England.

So some ideas you might have had: Well, she wanted to escape rural poverty.

In Scene Four, we find out that she grew up in rural poverty in Jamaica.

She was inspired by her uncle's migration and success.

Again, in Scene Four, we find out that her uncle migrated to America.

Enid migrated to England, not America, but her uncle seems to be a source of inspiration for her moving from Jamaica.

To join her husband, we know that Enid's husband moved to England and sent her a ticket after saving for a year.

She had a strong sense of her British identity, and Pinnock talks a lot about the idea that many Jamaican citizens had a strong sense of their British identity, because of Britain's colonisation of Jamaica as this kind of indoctrination, the idea that Britain was the mother country, rather than Jamaica being their mother country.

So a really strong sense of their British, of her British identity.

And she wanted a better life for her future children.

So we know that Enid found growing up in rural poverty very difficult, and we know that she's ambitious for her children, she wants them to be secure and stable.

So, better life for her future children.

You might have had some additional ideas, but these are some of the main ideas I had people discussing in terms of Enid's motivations for migrating to England.

Now, Enid's hopes for her life in England are arguably contrasted by the life she experiences, experiences Pinnock connects to her being: A Black woman, a working class woman, a first-generation immigrant, and a single mother.

Now, intersectionalities is one of our key terms for today, a term coined by Kimberle Crenshaw is a term describing how certain social categories, for example, ethnicity, class, gender, can combine together to create unique combinations of disadvantage or advantage.

So let's tie this definition to our character, the character of Enid.

So one reason Pinnock crafted Enid in this way, in this particular way, is to explore how aspects that make up her character, and make up the character of Enid, how they intersect.

So how does being a Black woman intersect with being a working class woman, being a first-generation immigrant and a single mother to create a unique combination of, in Enid's case, disadvantage.

Now, Aisha and Lucas consider the idea of intersectionality, and it's a good idea to consider it, because it's a difficult one.

It's one of our key terms for today.

So it's a good idea to think about it and maybe to discuss it in order to really unpack what it means.

Now, Aisha says, "I understand the definition of intersectionality, but how does it apply to 'Leave Taking'?" A very, very good question.

And Lucas says, "Well, Enid's experience as a first-generation immigrant and a Black woman intersect in a different way to Del, who is a second-generation immigrant and a Black woman.

You need to consider what Pinnock is saying about a character's specific experience." So, Pinnock has crafted Enid in a particular way, and we're seeing the way in which all of that, what makes up the character of Enid, or some of the aspects that make up the character of Enid, how do they intersect into creating specific experiences of her? And what specific experiences do we see throughout the course of the play? Now, I'd like you to consider this moment from Scene Two in which Del recalls what happened at Enid's staff Christmas party: Del says, "You're all dressed up and you look beautiful.

We're all having fun.

Then one of the nurses drinks too much and pukes all over the floor, remember that? And in front of everyone, matron tells you to clean it up.

You put your overalls on over your dress; in front of everyone there, you get a mop and bucket and clean it up.

Yes, England loves you, all right." Now, I'd like you to discuss first, how is Enid treated by her colleagues? So, pause the video, just reread this section, recall this section from Scene Two.

How is Enid treated by her colleagues? Pause the video and consider the question, now.

Some really powerful discussions there, lots of people saying, "Well, she's treated incredibly badly by her colleagues.

There they all are at a party, they're all there as equals, and yet for some reason, they turn to Enid and make her clean up vomit, not even her own vomit, and kind of expect that.

No one leaps to her defence.

They expect this of Enid." And I think it's really telling that Del uses the the word, tell: "And in front of everyone, matron tells you to clean it up." So the idea that Enid is not being asked, but she's being told, she is being commanded to do it, so the treatment at the hands of her colleagues is incredibly poor.

Now, I'd like you to discuss how does Pinnock show that, in this moment, these aspects of the character of Enid intersect? So we're thinking about what makes up the character of Enid's, some of the ideas, some of the aspects of Enid's character that Pinnock is trying to explore? Well, how do all of these aspects of Enid's character intersect? And I'd like you to try and use these key words: Intersectionality or intersect, racism or racist, classism or classist.

Pause the video and tying these key terms to a moment in the text, discuss the question now.

Well done, for grappling with this new term, intersectionality, and really thinking like, how can I apply it to this text in the same way that Aisha and Lucas were having in that discussion before.

Some people are saying that different aspects of the character of Enid intersect in this moment to mean that she experiences a specific oppression where she is being asked to clean up vomit, because people consider her of a lower class than them.

So, the idea that Enid's status as a hospital cleaner is that there's some kind of hierarchy despite the fact that they are at a Christmas party all as equals, that there's some kind of hierarchy, and that Enid, as a hospital cleaner, should clean up after the nurse, and obey the order from the matron.

Other people saying that this is a moment of racial discrimination, it is a moment of racism that Pinnock is exploring, and tying that to the idea that Del, previously to this moment, has been talking about the racial discrimination that she herself faces at work.

So this is actually Del saying, "Not only do I face racial discrimination at work, but remember, Mom, you did as well." So it's a incredibly sad moment in Scene Two where Del and Enid are having an argument with each other, but actually Del's anger is really directed at British society and the racist and classist attitudes that she feels her mother is experiencing there.

Now, through Enid's experiences, Pinnock provides social commentary on issues in 1980s Britain.

So again, this is one of our key terms. The idea that Pinnock is using her play, not just to tell a story, but also to make a social comment on issues in 1980s Britain.

For example, in her introduction, Pinnock talks of attitudes her parents faced when they migrated to England post World War II.

She writes, "Despite their disappointment on entering a country whose environment was often hostile, 'No Blacks, no dogs, no Irish,' they didn't complain and rarely discussed hardships." And, "My mother became a single parent to four young children at a time when there was still stigma, shame, attached to divorce." So we can see that, that moment actually in Scene Two with Enid, where she is facing some oppression from her work colleagues where she's looked down on by some of her work colleagues, that potentially Pinnock is exploring the idea that this is rooted in racism, it's rooted in classism, and also the marginalisation that Enid faces, as a single parent, in 1980s Britain.

Now, a check for understanding, just so we really understand, what is the purpose of Del recalling that moment at Enid's work Christmas party in Scene Two? So why might Pinnock have included the detail about Enid's work Christmas party in Scene Two? Is it, A, to examine the oppression Enid faces, B, to provide social commentary on Enid's job, C, to develop an understanding of how Enid's experiences intersect, or D, to show intersectionality between Enid and Del? Pause the video and select your responses now.

Well done, if you selected A, to examine the oppression Enid faces, and C, to develop an understanding of how Enid's experiences intersect.

So we've got this term, intersectionality, but we can also see how we can use it as a verb.

We can talk about the idea of Enid's experiences intersecting.

Now, I'd like you to reread this section of Scene Four when Enid tells Viv about her upbringing in rural poverty.

And I would like you to annotate it, using the prompts to guide you.

You've just got two prompts, so the first is, why does Pinnock repeat the word, escape? And the second is, what does the simile emphasise about Enid's experiences in Britain? So we're thinking about Scene Four now, we've had a real focus on Scene Two, but let's have a look at Scene Four.

Just a short section.

And we're still focused on the character of Enid and Enid's experiences.

And I'd like you to use those two prompts, why does Pinnock repeat the word, escape? And what does the simile emphasise about Enid's experiences in Britain? In order to develop your understanding of this character and how her experiences intersect to create some specific oppression that Pinnock is using to explore, or create some social commentary on the issues in 1980s Britain.

So, pause the video, get your copy of "Leave Taking, get your pen, or whatever it is you wish to write on, in order to create these annotations, and complete the two tasks on the board now.

Pause the video now.

Welcome back, after some really careful annotation of this moment in Scene Four, using some of the discussion we had earlier in this learning cycle in order to inform your ideas, particularly for that second question, how does the simile, what does the simile, sorry, emphasise about Enid's experiences in Britain.

Here's some ideas that you might have had.

So why does Pinnock repeat the word, escape? Well, to emphasise that Enid thought of leaving Jamaica as an escape from rural poverty and discrimination.

She did face discrimination in Jamaica, because her family was so poor, but that the escape hasn't happened.

In England Enid faces racist and classist attitudes, and it was really nice to see people applying these key terms in order to deepen and enrich their analysis of this moment in Scene Four.

Now, what does the simile emphasise about Enid's experiences? Well, it could suggest that Enid feels helpless.

Her work ethic, drive, and determination don't seem to get her anywhere.

And this expression of Enid feeling like a cat chasing your own tail, it's a very sad moment where we see this incredibly hardworking character, Enid, who is really striving to establish a new life in Britain, we can see that she does not feel that it has paid off.

And the racist and classist attitudes intersect, creating a combination of disadvantage for Enid.

And I had lots of people using this word, intersect, using that verb really carefully in order to understand why Enid's experiences in Britain are so powerful and so painful.

We're gonna move on to Learning Cycle Two.

So we've had a really deep understanding of Enid's experiences in Britain, looking particularly at Scene Two and Scene Four in order to understand what she's experiencing, and how she feels towards it.

Now we're going to think of "Leave Taking" as a social commentary.

So we've had a little bit of interaction with this term, this idea that Pinnock is commenting on some issues in 1980s Britain.

And we're gonna develop that understanding of "Leave Taking" as a social commentary now.

So Pinnock includes two minor, offstage characters to develop her social commentary.

In Scene Two, Brod says, talks about one of his friends, Gullyman, and he says, "Gullyman come over here with 2 dollar in him pocket.

But Gullyman could work.

Within three years Gullyman buy car an' house.

One morning Gullyman wake up to find him lovely car covered in S and a message on him door read W out." And then in Scene Six we have this other minor character, he, my son.

So, "My son always used to tell me how he never feel even a little bit British.

He used to go on and on at me, in a cockney accent," so, this kind of London accent.

So we've got two minor offstage characters, and this really develops Pinnock's social commentary on 1980s Britain.

She didn't have to include references to these minor characters, they're quite fleeting in some ways, but they are incredibly important in terms of understanding her social commentary.

Now, I'd like you to discuss why might Pinnock have included these two minor offstage characters? How do they develop her social commentary on 1980s Britain? So we looked at this in Learning Cycle One, the idea that Enid's experiences help us understand Pinnock criticisms of 1980s Britain.

Well, how did these two moments, these two minor offstage characters, how did they develop her social commentary on 1980s Britain? Pause the video and discuss the question now.

Well done, for managing to look at these two minor offstage characters and tying that to this term, social commentary.

And two minor offstage characters, these are, of course, this is a dramatic method that Pinnock is using.

So, very rich, in terms of analysis, if you were writing an essay on "Leave Taking," you could look at these two minor offstage characters in order to develop or explore your ideas.

So Gullyman and Mai's son's treatment is defined by people's reaction to the colour of their skin rather than their status as British citizens.

Gullyman and Mai's son both are British citizens, and yet they are facing, well, Gullyman is facing very intense racial discrimination, and Mai's son is feeling uncertain about his identity as a British citizen, perhaps because of the racial discrimination that he faces in 1980s Britain.

Now this incident may also provide insight into the racial tensions in Britain following the increase in migration post World War II.

So Pinnock is making a social commentary on 1980s Britain, and we can also use context in order to understand the social comment that she's making.

So if we look at Brod's anecdote about his friend, Gullyman, and the racist incident, the racist attack that he had to endure, this may help us, this may be connected to the idea that in 1958 there were two weeks of riots when young white people attacked West Indian migrants in Notting Hill, which is in North London, which is where "Leave Taking" is set.

And in 1981, after rumours of police brutality against a Black man in London, riots broke out across some cities in Britain.

So these are two contextual ideas, historical moments in British history, which Pinnock will have been very keenly aware of.

And they may help us to understand "Leave Taking," in terms of the racial tensions, the racial tension that Brod is talking about through his explanation, or his description of the racist attack that Gullyman had to.

that Gullyman experienced.

Now, I'd like you to discuss, in what ways could "Leave Taking" be a social commentary on racial tensions and racism in 1980s Britain? So use the context that you have, your knowledge of the term of social commentary, and the moments that we've looked at in "Leave Taking" throughout this whole lesson, but maybe particularly, Gullyman's.

the story about Gullyman in Scene Two.

So pause the video and discuss this question now.

Well done, for giving this question the time that it deserves in order to understand.

Well, of course, "Leave Taking" is a play, we watch and enjoy the play, we think about the characters, we think about the plot, but we can also think about it as a social comment, as a critique of some of the problems in 1980s Britain.

And here, Pinnock seems to be drawing attention specifically to the racist attitudes that many people had to endure, the racist attacks indeed, that many people had to endure in 1980s Britain.

Now, two pupils discuss how "Leave Taking" could provide social commentary on 1980s Britain: Lucas argues, "Pinnock's 'Leave Taking' provides a social commentary on the difficulties faced by first and second-generation migrants in 1980s Britain.

And Laura argues, "Pinnock presentation of Enid provides a social commentary on the ways in which social class and ethnicity can intersect to create disadvantage." Now I'd like you to discuss, who do you agree with more and why? There's no right answer here.

Two students have thought about the play and come up with their own particular arguments, things that particularly resonated with them.

But I would like you to discuss, Lucas or Laura, which argument do you agree with more and why? Pause the video and discuss the question now.

Some really careful discussion there showing off your fantastic knowledge of this term, social commentary.

But it was also really nice to see that everyone understood that in order to prove that they agreed with a particular argument, they would need reference to the text.

So lots of people picking up "Leave Taking," and saying, "Well, we can see the social commentary here," or referring to earlier moments in the lesson when we looked at Scene Two or Scene Four in order to understand Enid, or Brod's experiences of 1980s Britain.

Some people saying, "I agree more with Lucas," and really exploring the fact that we've got a range of characters within "Leave Taking," both onstage and offstage.

And Pinnock seems to be using all of those characters in order to explore these slightly different experiences they have of 1980s Britain, and how they feel as a first-generation immigrant, or perhaps how they feel as a second-generation immigrant.

Some people saying, "No," because the character of Enid, Pinnock herself speaks of Enid as the heroine of the play in her introduction, that actually it's Enid's experiences that we should be looking at and really focusing on that moment in Scene Two, and actually moments from across the play in which Enid seems to be facing disadvantage, because aspects that make up her characterization seem to intersect, to create disadvantage.

Now, a check for understanding, 'cause I really want us to understand this term, social commentary, so that we can achieve our objective, understanding how "Leave Taking, as a social commentary on some aspects of 1980s Britain.

So in what ways might "Leave Taking" be considered a social commentary? Is it, A, Pinnock includes autobiographical detail, including from her parents' lives? B, Pinnock includes minor characters to develop her ideas? Or C, Pinnock provides her own perspective on the problems in society? Pause the video and select your response now.

Well done, if you selected C.

So a social commentary is a text that explores and critiques particular problems in society, and Pinnock has obviously written "Leave Taking" with particular problems in 1980s Britain in mind, that she wants to explore, that she wants to present, and that she wants to critique.

Now, we've looked at Lucas and Laura's arguments, and you've had a really nice discussion.

You've already done half the work for this task actually already, by having that discussion and getting references from "Leave Taking" in order to support a particular pupil's argument.

But for each pupil's argument, I would like you to select four references to the text, which would support their idea.

And these references should be rich in methods, and they should come from across the play.

So we've got both of their arguments there, and you're going to find four references for each argument.

And I already see people reaching for "Leave Taking" again, and already thinking, referring back to some of the ideas in their discussion, that they had earlier in this learning cycle.

So, I'd like you to pause the video, and select four references to the text which would support each student's idea.

Pause the video and I'll see you back here shortly.

Pause the video now.

Well done, for so carefully selecting some really interesting references from across the play, which would support either Lucas's argument, and then, of course, Laura's argument.

Both show off your intense knowledge of what it means to be a social commentary, and how this term applies to "Leave Taking." Now, let's just remind ourselves that the focus of Lucas's argument was that "Leave Taking" is a social commentary on the difficulties faced by first and second-generation migrants in 1980s Britain.

So I just want you to self-assess your quotations.

Do each of your references support Lucas's main idea, which is highlighted there on the board? Do they come from across the play? So we've looked really closely at Scene Two today, but all your references shouldn't just come from one scene.

They should come from across the play.

And can you identify a dramatic method in each? So you might be looking at stage directions, you might be looking at contrasts, you might be looking at characterization, but just making sure that your quotation has a dramatic method that you would be able to analyse if you were writing this paragraph up.

So, pause the video, and just check your references using the three questions on the board to guide you.

Pause the video now.

Well done, for just checking those references.

I saw a few people adding a reference from a different moment in the play, because all of their references were just from Scene Two, and you know that you want them from across the play.

And really nice to see people annotating, noting down that there are dramatic methods that they'd like to explore in their quotations.

If you did want to write this paragraph up, you would now, you've done all the hard work, you've got the powerful idea from Lucas, and you've got all your references.

So it would now be just a case of enjoying the exploration of those references.

Now, let's make sure that our references for Laura are just as strong as the ones that we have for Lucas.

So Laura is focusing on the presentation of Enid, and looking at social class and ethnicity, and how it can intersect to create disadvantage.

So we're gonna do the same thing, self-assess: Do each of your references support Laura's main idea? Do they come from across the play? And can you identify a dramatic method in each? So pause the video, final self-assessment task after today's lesson, making sure that all those references meet that standard using those questions to guide you.

So pause the video and complete the self-assessment now.

Well done, you now have two incredibly powerful ideas supported by a range of references.

Again, if you wanted to write up both of those paragraphs, you've done all the hard work, and it would now just be a case of enjoying the analysis, and really enjoying the fact that you know how "Leave Taking" is a social commentary, and what ideas Pinnock wants to explore and critique.

In summary, "Leave Taking" could be interpreted as a social commentary on 1980s Britain, particularly racist and classist attitudes.

It could be argued that the difficulties the characters face are based on the colour of their skin and their social class.

Pinnock includes two minor, offstage characters to develop her social commentary.

Pinnock's exploration of racism could reference racial tensions felt in Britain after increased migration following World War II.

It's been a real pleasure to look at some of these really complex ideas with you to look at Pinnock's introduction, to look at specific moments in the play, and to really consider well in what ways is "Leave Taking" a social commentary.

I look forward to seeing you next time.