Hello and welcome.

It's Mrs. Butterworth here, and I am ready to guide you through today's lesson, which is all focused on Act 2, Scenes 2 to 4 of "Small Island".

Now this is really thinking about this idea of the Mother Country and the actual reality of this.

So we'll be looking at this concept and how it has affected our characters, Gilbert and Hortense.

So, shall we get going? So by the end of the lesson, you'll be able to explain and discuss the events of Acts 2, Scenes 2 to 4 of "Small Island".

So let's just look at the keywords that we need today to help us understand the text and the lesson.

Let's read them through together first.

So these are facetious, mind's eye, genteel, depersonalise, and turmoil.

So, really lovely words today.

So let's look at this word facetious.

So, facetious is using humour to comment or remark on a serious issue.

It can almost sound a little bit like sarcasm.

So if someone is being facetious, they're using humour to deal with a serious issue.

And we'll see this in our reading of "Small Island" today when Queenie reacts in a facetious way.

What a lovely word.

And then we get this idea of the mind's eye.

So both Gilbert and Hortense, in these scenes, the stage directions say that they go into their mind's eye.

And this is basically describing what you see in your imagination.

So it's a term that can be used to describe what they are seeing in their minds, in their imagination.

And then we get this lovely word genteel.

Now, genteel is this idea about people being associated with a high social class, and it's this kind of exaggerated politeness and respectability.

So, genteel almost feels like, I can't help but do that action.

But yeah, genteel describes one of our characters, Miss Todd, who we meet today.

And depersonalise.

Now, depersonalise is about removing a person from the qualities that make them.

So it's about really taking away someone's identity.

And if you depersonalise someone, it's you stop seeing them as a person.

You can see that in the middle of the word, that de-personalize.

So it's this idea about taking away the things that make a person a person.

And then we have this word turmoil, and we see lots of turmoil in Act 2.

So it's this state of confusion or uncertainty.

So you may have heard of this idea of emotional turmoil, and it describes, it's an unpleasant feeling where, you know, anxiety, nervousness, fear, all of those emotions can be associated with this idea of turmoil.

So look out for these words as we progress through the lesson.

So the outline of our lesson, the reality of the Mother Country looks like this.

We're going to start by exploring and reading Act 2, Scenes 2 to 4, and then we're going to think about the emotional turmoil, there's that keyword there, turmoil, of Hortensee and Gilbert.

So, let's start with our exploration of Act 2, Scenes 2 to 4.

So let's just remind ourselves of the very beginning of Act 2.

What do we learn about Gilbert at the start of Act 2? So pause the video and discuss your answers to this question.

You may just wish to think to yourself about your answer.

Okay, pause the video now.

Some very excellent memories there.

I love that some of you have even started to use keywords and phrases from the text.

That is excellent, showing your excellent skills of recall.

Well done.

So let's just share some of those answers.

So we know that he rents a room at the top of Queenie's house.

His room is described as dilapidated and claustrophobic.

He works long, gruelling hours for the post office.

So, Gilbert's situation at the start of Act 2 is very different from his expectations in Act 1.

And not only does he fall asleep and not pick up Hortense, she is horrified by his situation.

So, Hortense's arrival in Act 2 is just a bit of a mess, really.

Not only did Gilbert forget to pick her up, but she's also confronted with the reality of her new life.

And then his optimism in Act 1 is now contrasted by the bleak and dismal atmosphere of Act 2.

And it really is a change of atmosphere in Act 2, isn't it? It is such a stark contrast.

Well done everyone.

So, true or false time.

Gilbert works gruelling hours for the post office.

True.

Some very quick responses there.

Well done.

Okay, so now pick A or B to justify your answer.

Absolutely, yeah.

B, this is very different to the dreams and expectations he had of becoming a lawyer.

It's very hard not to feel a real sympathy for Gilbert in his situation.

So before we delve into the reading of Scenes 2 to 4, let's just do a little bit of exploration of one of our characters.

So at the start of Scene 2, we are introduced to Queenie's neighbour, Miss Todd.

So let's just read the stage directions together and Miss Todd's first piece of dialogue, and let's just see if we can make some predictions.

But we'll read together first.

Her next door neighbour, Miss Todd, white, 60s, genteel, is standing with her hand raised as though about to knock again.

And she says, "Ah, you are here.

"One of them let me in." Okay, so in a moment, I'm going to ask you to discuss what do the stage directions and dialogue suggest about her characterization? I'm going to give you a few further questions to help develop your discussions.

So, look at that keyword.

So that keyword genteel.

Remember what that means, that kind of affected politeness.

You know, she's got a real sense of her own social class.

So what does this word suggest? Does it remind you of any other characters in the play? And we also get this emphasis of the word you are here.

What does this suggest about her relationship with Queenie? And then she says this thing at the end, one of them let me in.

Who is Miss Todd referring to? And what does her language suggest about her attitude? So now it's time for you to do some discussion.

So pause the video and discuss or think to yourself, what do the stage directions and dialogue suggest about her characterization? Use those questions to help you develop your discussions.

Pause the video now.

Thank you for your contributions, everyone.

That was really great.

And a lot of you are really starting to pick up on the fact that she's not a particularly pleasant character.

And it's interesting, isn't it, that in just that small section of stage directions and that first line of dialogue, we can learn so much about characters.

So that's really interesting.

So let's feed back some of these ideas about Miss Todd and who she is.

So this word genteel, so yeah, this suggests she's affectatious.

I love that word, affectatious.

So she's affected, she's over the top with her sensibility.

And, you know, this idea of genteel suggests that she's concerned with old fashioned ideas of respectability.

And if you think about this word respectability, it really sounds like the description of Bernard in Act 1, Scene 2.

We know that Bernard kind of represents this old fashioned, respectable gentleman, like this English gentleman.

And we see Queenie, sorry, we see Miss Todd really embodying that idea of the respectability and that idea of genteel.

And then she says, you know, "You are here." So, Queenie is hesitant to answer the door.

And Which suggests there is some tension between the two characters.

The way she kind of addresses Queenie suggests that it isn't a pleasant interaction or isn't going to be a pleasant interaction.

And then we get this last sentence, which is just so telling about the kind of character she is.

And what she's referring to, one of them let me in, is she is referring to Queenie's lodgers.

So, people, lodgers who are Caribbean.

And the use of them I find really quite shocking, but she does it for a reason.

'Cause it aims to depersonalise the lodgers, these people, and reveals Miss Todd's racist attitude.

You know, she separates from them over there.

So she creates this kind of hierarchy that she's better than them through using that phrase one of them let me in.

So, again, it really tells us about the sort of character that Miss Todd is.

So, quick question for you.

Miss Todd is Queenie's.

Pick A, B or C.

Neighbour, yeah.

I'm quite pleased that Queenie doesn't have a best friend or a sister like Miss Todd, and that in fact, Miss Todd is her neighbour.

So we're onto our first task, and this is over to you to do some reading.

So you'll need to make sure you've got your copy of "Small Island" ready to go, and you'll need to make sure you are at Act 2, Scenes 2 to 4 in order to do the reading.

And as you read these scenes, I would like you to answer the following questions to help with your understanding of the text.

So question one, how does Queenie treat Miss Todd in Scenes 3 and 4? Scenes 3 and 4 include racist and discriminatory language.

Why would Edmundson choose to include this? What does Gilbert see in his mind's eye? How does it make him feel? What is significant about the egg and chips? And what might it represent? Hortense calls Gilbert an oaf.

Where have we heard this before? And finally, what does Hortense see in her mind's eye? And how does it make her feel? Okay, so lots to be getting on with.

So pause the video so you've got plenty of time to do your reading and answer the questions.

We'll share our own answers in a moment.

Off you go.

Well done everyone, some really great reading.

Now, we are aware that Act 2 has a massive shift in atmosphere, but I think Scenes 2 to 4 are really emotionally charged because a lot happens revealing not only Gilbert and Hortense's situation, which just causes so much sympathy for them, but also these attitudes of society, these terrible racist attitudes, which is just quite shocking, particularly when you are seeing it in print.

So these scenes are really quite emotional, I feel, there's lots of emotions happening there.

So let's just go through our answers to our questions.

So this first one, how does Queenie treat Miss Todd? Well, Queenie responds to Miss Todd's discriminatory and prejudice remarks with sarcasm.

It uses the word facetious, which we looked at at the start.

And it shows that Queenie is trying to use humour to counteract the atrocious comments Miss Todd is making.

And it is also a dramatic technique on Edmundson's part.

So it shows the relationship between Queenie and Miss Todd and their differing attitudes.

And that use the way that Queenie is facetious shows that she's trying to counteract or just ignore the terrible things that Miss Todd is saying.

So on the back of that, Scenes 3 and 4 include some racist and discriminatory language.

So why would Edmundson choose to include such shocking language? Now, Edmundson uses this brutal language to show the racial slurs and abuse endured by Gilbert and other characters.

It is incredibly shocking.

But what this does is it forces the audience to confront the truth of Gilbert's experience.

So we see the reality.

It causes an emotional response from us, it makes us angry, it makes us sad.

Because it really is just an awful thing for people to experience.

And I think this is why Edmundson includes that really atrocious language.

So what does Gilbert see in his mind's eye? And how does it make him feel? So, remember mind's eye, were thinking about what he sees in his imagination.

And he sees Elwood, his cousin Elwood, saying, "Why you fall for their lies again?" And if you remember, this reminds us of previous interactions that they had in Act 1, where Elwood was kind of mocking Gilbert's decisions.

And this perhaps again hints at this feeling of shame and embarrassment.

We know that Gilbert and Act 1 joined the RAF, and his expectations weren't met.

Everything he was promised didn't happen.

And this is almost happening exactly the same again in Act 2 in his migration to the Mother Country.

You know, his expectations and high hopes presented in Act 1 have been replaced with a bleak and harsh reality.

Gilbert has been let down by the promises of the Mother Country, and it's almost like Elwood is Gilbert's internal dialogue.

So all of those things that Elwood said to mock Gilbert, Gilbert is now really deeply feeling inside.

He feels silly.

He feels ashamed that he has fallen for their promises again.

So what is significant about the egg and chips? And what might it represent? So we see this really quite shocking and sad interaction between Hortense and Gilbert, where Gilbert becomes quite frustrated and angry.

And this really emphasises the cultural differences between Hortense and the country she's now living in.

And it reveals the myth of a collective cultural identity.

You know, Hortense has never seen egg and chips because she's from the Caribbean.

But she's British, she's a British citizen.

So there's these expectations that just cannot be met, and there's this frustration when they are not met.

So it really shows the kind of failings of this ideology perpetuated by colonial powers.

Hortense calls Gilbert and oaf.

Where have we heard this before? Now, some of you may remember that Hortense uses this insult in Act 1, Scene 4, where Gilbert and Hortense first meet.

But in that first initial meeting, it's very frivolous, it's very lighthearted.

But what's happening now is all of that frivolity and lightheartedness has been replaced with frustration, anger, and disappointment.

So again, that language is used to remind us and show us that those stark differences between Act 1 and Act 2, the expectations of Act 1 and the realities of Act 2.

So what does Hortense see in her mind's eye? And how does it make her feel? So Hortense sees Miss Jewel, and they discuss this really famous British poem by a poet called Wordsworth.

It's called "Daffodils".

Now some of you may even recognise the language used.

It's quite an iconic poem.

And what this represents is Hortense's idealistic view of Britain and how this has been shattered, and it also refers to Hortense's colonial education.

Okay, so we have reached the second part of the lesson, and we're going to explore the emotional turmoil of Hortense and Gilbert.

In Scene 3, Gilbert sees Elwood in his mind's eye.

How do you think he feels at this moment? So I want you to consider this question.

And then I would like you to think about which pupil do you agree with the most? And can you use evidence to justify your answer? So in a moment you'll need to discuss these questions.

But first, let's look at our pupil's responses together.

So, Andeep says, "Elwood describes him coming back "with a 'tail between your legs', "which perhaps suggests Gilbert feels shame "and embarrassment.

"It's like he is Gilbert's internal voice "and true feelings." And then Alex says, "Arguably, Gilbert could feel regret.

"Elwood says he was a big talk man, "but now he realises that the reality "is far from his expectations." And finally, Sophia, "The stage directions describe Gilbert "struggling with his anger, "which is aligned with his feelings of betrayal.

"Elwood asks, 'why you fall for their lies again?', "referring to the broken promises of colonial ideology." Wow, some really lovely responses there from our pupils.

So what I would like you to do is discuss which pupil do you agree with the most? And can you use evidence to justify your answer? Pause the video so you've got time to reread these responses and come up with your answers to the questions.

Off you go.

Well done, everyone.

Some excellent discussions happening there.

Let's just do a quick question.

So, complete the following quote.

Elwood says, "Why you fall for their blank again?" Is that blank A, B, or C? Absolutely.

It's C, lies.

Yeah, and it's a really powerful word, isn't it? That they, you know, they've fallen for their lies.

It sounds really intentional and purposeful.

And then in Scene 4, Hortense sees Miss Jewel in her mind's eye.

What do you think this conversation represents? And again, I would like you to discuss which response do you agree with the most? And can you use evidence to justify your answers? So let's just read through our pupil's responses together.

"Miss Jewel says 'mudda-land', "which Hortense does not view as the correct pronunciation.

"Hortense sees both Jamaica and Britain as home, "but does not feel like she belongs in either." The second response.

"The daffodils present an idealistic view of Britain "and represent the ideology of the Mother Country." And then finally, "The reference to Wordsworth shows the power "of a colonial education system in echoing the ideology "and idealism of the Mother Country.

"Hortense must feel intensely disappointed at the reality." So pause the video and discuss your answers to the questions.

Off you go.

Again, some really fab discussions happening there.

There's a lot to talk about, isn't there? In such small amounts of text, Edmundson really packs it with meaning, which really makes it such an interesting text to study.

So, true or false time.

Hortense and Miss Jewel discuss Wordsworth poem about daisies, true or false? Well done, everyone that said false.

That answer is mostly correct, but the daisies make it false.

Now select A or B to justify your answer.

Absolutely, those daffodils.

And they represent the idealised image of Britain and the Mother Country.

And we see Miss Jewel doesn't know what daffodils are.

So it really shows those cultural differences between Britain and Jamaica.

So we are onto our second practise task.

Well done, let's keep going.

And this is a discussion task.

So I would like you to discuss how does Scenes 3 and 4 represent the emotional turmoil and experiences of Hortensee and Gilbert? And you're going to the use the discussion grid to develop your ideas and add evidence.

So, before you go off and attempt this on your own, let's just look at an example.

So, Edmundson uses the emotional turmoil experienced by Hortensee to explore the concept of home and belonging.

So there's a clear statement there answering the question.

So that how, how do Scenes 3 and 4? So I've given my statement, and then I'm going to use the grid, the discussion grid to further that.

So I've used the phrase in particular, and this is where I put my evidence in.

Hortense's experiences of racism in Scene 4 undermines her sense of belonging and reveals the ideology of the Mother Country as a myth.

Edmundson foregrounds the emotional experiences of the Caribbean diaspora.

So you can see in using that discussion grid, I then furthered the comments by giving a really specific piece of evidence from the text and also linking it to the wider themes and the writer's intention.

So, you can see I refer to Edmundson by name there.

Okay, so it's over to you.

So, discuss how does Scenes 3 and 4 present the emotional turmoil and experiences of Hortensee and Gilbert? Pause the video to give yourself plenty of time to discuss these or just think your answers to yourself.

Off you go.

Well done everyone.

There were some really interesting and perceptive discussions there, and some really sophisticated uses of language.

It's so important that you are able to articulate yourselves verbally as well as in written form.

So this is such good practise, and you just did so well at it.

But let's just think about some feedback.

So I want us to look, Sam has very kindly offered their discussion to have to have a look at.

So let's just have a look.

What did Sam do well? And what could be improved about Sam's discussion? So let's read the discussion.

"Edmundson uses the emotional turmoil "experienced by Gilbert to explore his feelings of betrayal.

"Many migrants felt this "when they realised that the promises of a better life "and the concept of the Mother Country were a lie." So let's just think to ourselves for the moment, what did Sam do well? And what could be improved about this discussion? Okay, so now let's look at the feedback and consider if what you thought was the same.

So, Sam has initiated the discussion well, absolutely, with a clear idea and linked to wider things.

It really is a great way to start a discussion.

But what would be even better is if Sam used the discussion grid to offer a specific example from the text.

So, Sam has taken that feedback and has another go at developing the discussion point.

Now let's see how it has improved.

So you can see here we've got the initial discussion point, and then here we've got this.

"It's almost as if Elwood is his internal voice "when he says 'Why you fall for their lies again?', "suggesting that he has been deceived.

"Many migrants felt this "when they realised that the promises of a better life "and the concept of a Mother Country were a lie." So you can see here that Sam has picked its almost as from the discussion grid, and this has ensured that there is now a use of a quote.

There's developed uses of evidence and linked to themes.

So it's just made that discussion even better.

So really well done, Sam, and something to think about in your own discussions in future.

Well done everyone.

We have reached the end of the lesson, and I really appreciate your thoughtful and perceptive answers today.

These are really some difficult scenes to read in terms of what they present and also that the feelings that they create amongst us as we read.

So, a really very well done.

So let's just remind ourselves of everything that we have looked at.

So, Miss Todd, much like Bernard, represents the racist and outdated attitudes present in society.

Edmundson includes brutal dialogue to show the racial slurs and abuse endured by Gilbert and Hortense.

Both Hortense and Gilbert see important characters from their lives, which allows the audience to see their internal thoughts.

Edmundson explores the concept of home and belonging.

Edmundson foregrounds the emotional experiences of the Caribbean diaspora.

Again, thank you so much for your hard work today.

I really love this text, and it has been so fun sharing it with you.

So, I really look forward to seeing you in another lesson to do it all over again.

Okay, bye bye.