THE RAILWAY CHILDREN-MORAL VALUE

There are some beautiful moral values / lessons we can see and learn
from this novel. The moral values / lessons are BRAVE, KINDHEARTED,
STEALING IS WRONG, PERSEVERANCE (NEVER GIVING UP), SENSIBLE
(QUICK THINKING), SENSITIVE (NOT SELFISH), HONESTY and FRIENDLY. In
this post, I will share three of them.
Moral Value 1 - Brave
Example : In chapter 5, the children managed to save the train and stop
a very bad accident from happening.One day, Roberta, Peter and Phyllis
saw a landslide which blocked the railway line.The girls used their red
petticoats to make flags.The train was moving very fast.Bobbie braved
herself and ran on to the railway line and waved her flags.The train finally
stopped just twenty metres from Bobbie. The children's bravery saved the
people on the train from meeting with an awful accident and from getting
killed.
Moral Value 2 - Kindhearted
Example : In chapter 3, the children's mother was ill and had to stay in
bed. Dr Forrest came to check on their mother and told Bobbie her mother
needed milk and fruit and some other special things to eat in order to get
well. They couldn't afford to buy them, so the children decided to ask help
from the old gentleman. The old gentleman was a kind enough to provide
them with all the things they had asked and some they had not.
Moral Value 3 - Stealing Is Wrong
Example : In chapter 2, Peter and his two sisters stole some coal from
the station yard. They took the coal back to their house.One day, the
station master caught Peter red handed stealing coal in the station
yard.Peter and his two sisters admitted to helping Peter with his crime.
The station master warned them not to repeat it again and let them go.
The children realised that stealing was wrong. They repented and never
took any coal from the station yard again.
Moral Value 4 - Being Good To Others
Example : In chapter 6, the children wanted to surprise Perks
with a birthday.Perks had stopped celebrating his birthdays due to poverty
and family commitments.Perks was good to Roberta,Peter and Phyllis. As a
way to repay his goodness, they joined hands to give him a nice
birthday.So, they went around the village asking people to help them give
Perks a memorable birthday.Many donated nice things for his birthday.
Although at first Perks was not happy but the kindness and goodness of
his neighbours and the children touched his heart.In the end, he relented
and celebrated his birthday happily with them.

THE RAILWAY CHILDREN - Themes

There are roughly ten themes in this novel. They are as stated below :-

1.The Importance Of A Family - The family bond between the

characters in this novel is very strong. For example, in chapter 1,
mother was always at home spending time with the children. She played
with them and read stories to them. Mother also read stories which she
wrote to them after tea. Moreover, the children had a wonderful father
who was never angry, and was always ready to play a game with
them.The children loved their father and never forgot him though they
never talked much about him. Bobbie, Peter and Phyllis were always
together be it at the railway line, the railway station and even when they
collected gifts for Perks.

2.Hope and Optimism - The children's father was always optimistic that
things would be fine.For example, when Peter showed him his broken toy
steam engine, father looked at it and optimistically assured Peter that he
would mend it.Bobbie had high hopes that the old gentleman would be
able to help her to seek the truth about her father's innocence. The old
gentleman helped Bobbie in her quest because he had hopes that her
father was innocent.
3.Bravery - Bobbie, Peter and Phyllis are brave children. They risked their
lives to stop a train from accident. Peter and Phyllis waved their flags by
standing along the railway line while Bobbie ran on to the line waving her
falgs. The children aslo showed bravery when they entered the dark
tunnel to look for the boy in the red shirt.Mother stayed calm and
brave for the chlidren's sake while her husband was away in prison.

THE RAILWAY CHILDREN-CHARACTER

ROBERTA (BOBBIE)
Roberta is 12 years old. She has a brother named Peter and a younger
sister named Phyllis. She is fondly known as Bobbie in this novel. She is
the eldest of the three. One of her characters is, she is a very persistent
person. She doesn't easily throw in the towel when the odds seem to be
against her.
There are many incidences in the novel where we can see her persistence.
For example, in chapter 3 (page17 - paragraph 5 - lines 1-3), we can see
how determined she was in getting the things necessary for her mother's
recovery when her mother was ill. Her persistence paid off when the old
gentleman gave the things needed for her mother's recovery.
In chapter 6 (page 38 - read the whole page), Perks was not happy
with people giving him presents. He was worried that people would laugh
and make fun of him. Bobbie persistently reasoned with Perks about the
good intentions of the village people giving him the presents until he
relented and accepted the gifts. Finally, Perks celebrated his birthday with
a happy note.
In chapter 7 (pg 42 - the whole page), she did not give up in finding a way
to help secure her father's release from prison. She was persistent even
when her mother had given up. She secretly wrote a letter to her friend
the old gentleman asking for his help to clear her father's name. In the
end her father was released from prison.
*Brave - Chapter 5, Chapter 7, Chapter 8
*Kindhearted - Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 8
*Responsible - Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5
*Moral - we must not easily give up when things seem impossible. We
must keep trying by finding means and ways to make the impossible
possible like Roberta.

PETER
Peter is Roberta's brother. He is the second child in the family. Peter is a
very brave and smart young chap. He wants to be an engineer when he
grows up. He has a knack for railway engines. He was overjoyed when his
father gave him a steam engine for his birthday.

One distinct character of Peter is sharp-witted (intelligent). In Chapter 5

(p29 - p4 - lines 1-3) ,It was he who gave the idea of using something red
in colour to wave and stop the train from meeting a certain disaster.
He cut his sisters' red petticoats into six pieces and put them on to sticks.
Peter together with his sisters waved at the coming train until it stopped.
In Chapter 6 (pg 36 - p1 - lines 1-3), Peter was honest in giving the idea of
asking the village people to give gifts for Perk's birthday. He told his
mother about their true intention of giving Perks the presents. Many
people gave gifts for Perks birthday party.
In Chapter 2 (pg 12 - p 3 - lines 1-3), we can see the daring side of Peter.
He was daring enough to steal coal from the railway station at night.
Peter innocently thought it was alright to take some coal from the station.
In Chapter 8 (p46 - p1 - lines 1-4 / pg 47 - p2 - lines 1-4), we can see how
brave Peter was in searching for the boy in the red shirt in the dark tunnel.
He was shaking in fear but still he continued the search for the boy with
his sisters.
PHYLLIS
Phyllis is the youngest child in the family. She is the cutest of the three.
She is quite a bubbly character. She is very naive and insecure. She is also
very sensitive but easily forgiving.
In Chapter 5 (p29, 30 & 31), we can see the brave side of Phyllis. She
together with her elder sister and brother managed to stop the train from
meeting with a terrible accident.
In Chapter 1 (p7 - p1 - last line), Phyllis felt very insecure when they
moved in to their new house at the countryside.
While in Chapter 6 (pg 38 - p1&2), Phyllis became very sensitive when
Perks refused to accept the gifts the children had brought to him. She
was so hurt by Perks' words that she started to cry.
In Chapter 4,5,6 and 8 we can see how loving, caring and helpful Phyllis is.
MOTHER
Mother is a homely type. We can read this in Chapter 1 (page 1 paragraph 2 - lines 1-3). She spends most of her time at home, playing
with the children or reading stories to them. Usually she read the stories
she wrote to them. She is a very protective woman. She protected her

children from worrying or feeling sad about their father. She did this by
not telling them what actually had happened to their father. She also told
them that they need to play being poor for a while in order not to cause
more anxiety on them.
In chapter 2 (p12 - pg 1 - lines 2-3), we can see how resourceful she is.
Mother wrote stories and sold them to put some food on the table.
In chapter 4 (p21 - pg 3 - lines 1-3), we can see that Mother is a very
proud person. Although they were poor, she strongly discourages her
children from telling people that they are poor and asking strangers to
help them.
She is also a very caring and loving Mother. In Chapter 1 (p1 - p2 - lines 13), Mother was always ready to play with her children. She also read
stories to them.
Whereas in Chapter 9 (p53 - p1 - lines 2-4), she taught her children their
lessons as they have stopped going to school for some time now.
In Chapter 8 (p50 - p1 - lines 8-9), she took in the injured boy into her
house and nursed him to health.

FATHER
The children's father worked in a government office. He was a civil
servant. He was an honest and hardworking man. He was wrongly
accused of being a spy and was sentenced to prison.
In Chapter 1 (pg 1 - p 3 - lines 2-4), we can see how tolerant and
wonderful he is. He never gets angry at the children or at his wife. The
children love their father very much for he is always happy and ready to
play games with them.
In Chapter 1 (pg 3 - p1 - lines 1-3), when Peter showed him his broken
steam engine, father looked at it carefully and smilingly told Peter that
there is hope(optimistic) that his steam engine could be repaired. He is
also a grateful man.
In Chapter 9 (pg 57 - "Yes',said Father.'It's him I must thank.'). Father was
grateful for his release and wanted to thank the old gentleman for helping
him to clear his name and secure his release from prison.

PERKS
A Railway Porter
Friendly, Proud, Hardworking, Reasonable, Responsible
OLD GENTLEMAN
Friendly, Helpful, Kind, Resourceful