ENGLISCH-LK LERNZETTEL

Abiturlernzettel 2021

LK
GYMNASIUM (NIEDERSACHSEN)
Q1-Q4
 INHALTSVERZEICHNIS

1. DYSTOPIAN LITERATURE – NEVER LET ME GO (KAZUO ISHIGURO) ..................................... 2

1.2 DEFINITIONS: SCIENCE FICTION, UTOPIA, DYSTOPIA....................................................................... 2

1.3 ETHNICS OF SCIENCE ............................................................................................................................................. 2

1.4 NEVER LET ME GO- SUMMARY .......................................................................................................................... 4

1.4.1 SIDE CHARACTER MISS LUCY ......................................................................................................................... 7

2. SHORT STORY: AMI TAN - “TWO KINDS” & JULIUS LESTER - “THE CHILD” ....................... 8

2.1 AMI TAN- TWO KINDS ......................................................................................................................................... 8

2.2 SUMMARY SHORT STORY....................................................................................................................................... 8

2.3 JING- MEI AND THE AMERICAN DREAM............................................................................................................... 9

2.4 QUESTIONS OF ETHNIC IDENTITY AND GROWING UP ..................................................................................... 9

2.5 THE AMERICAN DREAM .................................................................................................................................. 10

2.6 JULIUS LESTER- THE CHILD (1993) ............................................................................................................ 11

2.6.1 SUMMARY SHORT STORY ................................................................................................................................. 11

2.7 TWO GIRLS- ONE DREAM? .................................................................................................................................. 13

3. CRASH- PAUL HAGGIS, 2004 .............................................................................................................................. 14

3.2 CHARACTER MAP................................................................................................................................................. 14

3.3 ETHNIC & CULTURAL DIVERSITY ........................................................................................................................ 15

4. SHAKESPEARE-RICHARD 3 .................................................................................................... 16

4.1 SHOULD SHAKESPEARE BE DISCUSSED IN SCHOOL?......................................................................................... 16

4.2 HOW DOES SHAKESPEARE INFLUENCE US TODAY? // DOES HE STILL MATTER TODAY? ............................. 16

4.3 SHORT SUMMARY // CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER ............................................................................................... 17

4.4 RICHARD 3- THE CHARACTERS .......................................................................................................................... 17

4.5 SHAKESPEARE’S USE OF IAMBIC PENTAMETER ................................................................................................... 18

4.6 HOW DID THE ELIZABETHAN AGE INFLUENCE SHAKESPEARE? ..................................................................... 19

4.7 RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN RICHARD AND HIS MOTHER ................................................................................... 19

4.8 THE ROLE OF WOMEN ......................................................................................................................................... 20

4.9 FATE VS. FREE WILL .............................................................................................................................................. 20

1. DYSTOPIAN LITERATURE – NEVER LET ME GO (KAZUO ISHIGURO)

1.2 DEFINITIONS: SCIENCE FICTION, UTOPIA, DYSTOPIA

SCIENCE FICTION
* Concentrates on scientific/ technological progress and its positive/ negative effects on society
* Shows overcoming known laws of nature à e.g., time travelling
* Shows paranormal activities à mind control, telepathy
* Non- human characters

UTOPIA
o Ideal Society:
à education for everyone
à equality
à high standard of living
à no injustice
à communal property
à little to no crime
o Usually set on an island
o Sometimes make fun of the current issues
o Some include an element of science fiction

DYSTOPIA
§ Show a (more) pessimistic view of the future
à inequality usually shown in a huge gap between rich & the poor
à show collapsed societies / no society
àno democracy/ usually dictatorship (or no government)
àno privacy but government surveillance
à usually portray technology in a negative way
à government control, no individuality
à written as warnings for readers
à caste system

1.3 ETHNICS OF SCIENCE

DEFINITION
* A set of moral obligations that define right and wrong in our practices and decisions
* Professionals like doctors/ scientists follow an ethnical guide because the reliability of their
work and scientific knowledge depends upon adhering to that ethnic
* Scientific ethnics require honesty and integrity

CLONING
¨ Producing genetically identical copies of a biological entity
¨ Copied material has the same genetic makeup as the original
 ¨ Natural cloning
à produce of genetically identical offspring through asexual reproduction (e.g., plants)
à twinning
¨ Artificial cloning
à reproductive cloning à goal: create a new individual
à therapeutic cloning à goal: treat diseases

THERAPEUTIC CLONING
benefits difficulties
* reproduction of endangered animals * higher mortality à die quicker
* treat/ cure diseases * suffer from deformity

HUMAN CLONING
advantages
* designing a “perfect” clone
* infertile couples can have children
* resource of organs and bone marrow
* cure diseases with the help of stem cells
* perfect organ donator
* can be used for scientific research, e.g. studying
diseases
* maybe at one point we can grow only organs
needed for a person
à scientific research on clones needed for that
cons
* safety is not guaranteed
* treated as objects or commodities
discrimination due being a clone
suffer from identity crisis
* loss of diversity due to longing of an ideal
being
* cloning in order to create superior being is
eugenics
* using clones for malformed genes is unethical
would be too expensive
àgrowing gap between rich & poor
* diseases defends are cloned too
à diseases might multiply
* risks in solving crime: clones share some
DNA but also some fingerprints
*people might become careless with their
health
* ethnical wrong, not “Gods will”
à religion doubts
* who decides who is cloned?
* risk of overpopulation grows
* who cares for all the babies?
* decreases in genetic variety
à higher risks of mutations
* no diversity
* higher risks of diseases

WHAT MAKES A HUMAN BEING?

- They die/ survival instincts (have to eat, breathe, drink)
- Have emotions/ feelings
- Are self- aware/ critical
- Look like a human, have human organs
- Have an identity (make up their own minds and decisions)
- Processes an individual character à humans have a soul
- They are able to imagine things à remember their past
- Are born naturally
 1.4 NEVER LET ME GO- SUMMARY

The story takes place in a dystopian version between the 70s and 80s in England. Kathy, a 31-year-
old carer is the main character and as well the first-person narrator. She tells the story by recalling
her memories since her loved ones already completed but her memories about them won´t fade
away.
That’s why she values her memories. The clones who were created in labs to donate their vital
organs to humans who live in the outside world, life in a boarding school in Hailsham and are called
“students” by their guardians.

MAIN CHARACTERS
Kathy

* Carer for Ruth and later on for Tommy

* Friends with Ruth & Tommy, later on in a relationship with Tommy
* Restrained, observant, self- conscious

Tommy

* An outcast because he lacks creativity

* Involved in a love triangle with Kathy and Ruth
* Completes after 4 donations
* Anxious, violent- tempered, reflective

Ruth

* Kathy´s childhood friend and Tommy´s ex- girlfriend

* Offers Kathy and Tommy the address of Madame, so they can ask for a deferral
* Completes after 2nd donation
* Hot-tempered, controlling, ruthless

KATHY H; 1 ST PERSON NARRATOR

 KATHY AS A CARER
- Can adapt easily to difficult situations/ donors
- Knows how to make others feel good
- Selfless; puts others first
- Able to keep an emotional distance
à can keep her emotions hidden/ to herself

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN KATHY, TOMMY AND RUTH

Holds feelings back/ distanced

Kathy
No
t g en
u in
e

straight forward
Tommy
„Trophy Boyfriend“
It´s complicated Ruth Dominant/ gets what she
wants
Wants to fit in

SETTING
Hailsham The Cottages Norfolk
* boarding school * live there with “veterans” for * due to a misunderstanding
* stay there till the age of 16 2 years the students refer to Norfolk
* guardians take care of their * between finishing school and as the “lost corner” where lost
students becoming a carer/ donor things appear again
* weekly medical examinations * take care of each other
to monitor the students´ * independent, discovering the
health “outside”

RULES IN HAILSHAM
* Students aren´t allowed to smoke cigarettes or to take drugs
à they have to be in a healthy condition
* Students aren´t allowed to leave the campus or ask about the “outside” world
à no information about their fate; isolated/ indoctrinated
* Students aren´t allowed to own private possessions
à Madame collects their outstanding artwork; students receive tokens (form of currency)

RITUALS OF HAILSHAM
Sales Exchanges Gallery
Frequency Every month Every three month: Twice a year
spring, summer, fall,
winter
Currency tokens Students are paid in * having your work of
tokens art chosen for the
gallery is an honor
* works of arts are
being chosen by
madame to prove that
Hailsham students
have souls
 * students believe that
madame collects their
work of arts for her
own personal
collection
Rules Sales are monitored by * Only works of arts * students shouldn´t
older students; every can be bought there approach Madame
item is recorded of * it should be quiet * gallery is a taboo
the student who issue
bought it à it´s not talked
about in front of
guardians but students
talk about it among
themselves
Atmosphere Excited, crowed, noisy Hushed, calm
Objects (except things Pre-owned things Works of arts
that aren´t allowed) from the outside: produced by the
Clothes, toys… students

FATE OF THE HAILSHAM STUDENTS

* Clones were only created for medical purpose; their lives are predetermined
à possibility to cure formerly incurable diseases
* Artwork proves that clones have souls
à therefore deserve a better treatment
* Guardians started a movement to show that the clones who grow up in a compassionate and
cultivated environment would have the same emotional and intellectual abilities as humas
à humans were terrified that clones might become superior in society
à stopped supporting the movement

THE NOVEL AS A DYSTOPIAN LITERATURE

§ The setting does not feel too different from our own society
§ Absence of modern technology such as computers
§ However, they are able to clone sb.
à clones lead a life clearly separated from the Rest of the British society
à society do not value the clones at all; they create and later kill a whole class of people

ETHNICS OF SCIENCE
§ Absence of respect and values towards the clones´ individuality
à ethnical questions about how the clones should be treated
§ Society legally kills an individual for organs to save a regular member of society
§ The clones at Hailsham are raised knowing that they are special
à question: Must the creator of clones, as well as the society they live for, provide the
clones with a life worth living?
à attempted at Hailsham (clones grow up being told that they have a heroinic purpose for society)
 VISIONS OF THE FUTURE
SOCITEY
o Society is divided into two groups:
à clone society:
* children are raised to regard themselves as special
* obedient members of society, created for the purpose of being killed on demand
à regular society:
* regards clones as soulless and not human

POWER
• Regular society holds the power and makes decisions
• Clones have to live with the consequences

1.4.1 SIDE CHARACTER MISS LUCY

SHOULD MISS LUCY TELL THE STUDENTS ABOUT THEIR FATE?

ARGUMENTS MISS LUCY
* Children are talking about their dreams
à “we know that they don´t come true (unfair/ dishonest situation)
* Students have the right to know, will go to the cottages soon
* [pretending] lying to these children is unethical
* Childhood will end sooner or later, why not tell them
* Not fair doing sth. Behind their back
* Feels like a betrayal
* Students need to be prepared for their lives
à understand the whole situation
* Information about their future to value their time at Hailsham

MAIN TOPICS OF NEVER LET ME GO

* The
acceptance
of fate

* The
cruelity of
societe /
* The danger
of scince
* the
*The unreliability
benefits of of friendship/
science * life long
freindship

The choises
Slavery one has in
life

life at a
boarding
school
 2. SHORT STORY: AMI TAN - “TWO KINDS” &
JULIUS LESTER - “THE CHILD”

2.1 AMI TAN- TWO KINDS

WORKING WITH WORDS: GROWING UP

Teenage age: The identity/ development Resting character

* search for your of a child: traits (adulthood):
identity * assert yourself * assert yourself
* come of age * deal with pressure, be * become
* feels discouraged under pressure independent
* feel embarrassed * face painful experiences * gain acceptance
* feel self- conscious * look for a role model * have a high self-
about sth. * cope with sth. esteem
* rebel against sth. * strive for sth.
* meet sb.´s
expectations

GROWING UP- TWO KINDS

* Jing- mei has a different view of life than her mother (as a 2nd- generation immigrant)
à leads to tension and misunderstanding between them
à eventually even resignation

2.2 SUMMARY SHORT STORY

à written by Ami Tan, published in 1989 (story from the collection “The Joy Luck Club)
à protagonist and narrator: Jing-Mei- Woo

FIRST PART
o Her mother believes in the American Dream
à came to America in 1949 after losing everything in China
o mother starts to encourage her to be a “prodigy”
à her first attempts fail but her mother does not give up looking for something
à first Jing- mei is excited about becoming a prodigy
1. her mother thought she could be a Chinese Shirley Temple (actress, dancer, singer); she
took her to a beauty training school
2. compared her to a three-years old boy, who know the capitals from all different states
3. her mother thought she could be like a little Chinese girl who plays piano
ð Jing- mei doesn´t become a prodigy and she was really sad about it

SECOND PART
• Mr. Chong, a middle- aged man who has gone deaf, gives Jung-mei piano lessons
à her progress is minimal (she is not enjoying them)
• Mr. Chong and her mother take her to a talent show in a church
à first Jung-mei was really confident, later she stumbles through the piece
 à Jung- mei hits a lot of wrong notes (little boy said it was awful)
à her mother was really disappointed (Jing- mei was ashamed of her parents’ reaction)

THIRD PART
o At home Jung- mei expects that her mother is shouting at her because she failed the talent
show
à but nothing happens
o Jing- mei´s mother reveals that her piano lessons will continue*
à Jung- mei refuses to go & they argue
o Fight:
à Jing- mei feels defeated and believes that she has done enough to prove that she´s not a
genius
à tells her mother that she will never be the kind of daughter she wants
à Jing- mei encounters that she wishes she were not her daughter and would rather be
dead like “them”
à mother stops forcing Jing- mei to play the piano
o When Jing- mei turns 30 her mother gives her the piano à act of forgiveness + her mother
retell that she could have been a prodigy
o her mother dies

2.3 JING- MEI AND THE AMERICAN DREAM

* her mother believes in the idea of the American Dream

à pushes her daughter to her limits in order to achieve success in her life
* the short story shows that the power of the American Dream is not as great as people
believe it to be
* Jing- mei and her mother have different expectations:
à Jing- mei´s mother forces her daughter to do things she doesn´t want to to (Jing- mei is
not free)
* Eventually the pressure of the American Dream crushes Jing- mei under its weight
* When she let go, she turns from a “Pleading Child” into a “Perfectly Contented”

2.4 QUESTIONS OF ETHNIC IDENTITY AND GROWING UP

§ Mother and daughters’ experiences are separated because of many different factors:
à age, experience, ambition & culture
§ Jing- mei is struggling with her own identity
§ She feels like she must reject her mother in order to find herself
§ She is rejecting her heritage and identity à a problem that immigrants & second immigrants
must face

CHARACTER ANALYSIS
Jing- mei Jing- mei´s mother
* high pressure to perform * lost everything in china (immigrated to
à constricted by her mother´s expectations and America)
her won anxiety à has to face difficulties
* has a strained relationship with her mother * ambitious, determined authoritarian
* evaluation of their relationship is a process of * in the end: disappointed, embarrassed,
growing up resigned
* first it seems that she and her mother have
the same character traits
à but expectations, values and believes have
moved in two different directions (Jing- mei
realizes that she wants to turn her daughter in sth.
she´s not)
1. wants to meet her mother’s expectations
2. turning point à in the process of searching
her own identity & growing up she starts to
rebel
3. shows her wishes + wants to escape
4. feels strong, self-determined, powerful
5. stands up against her mum, realizes that
she won’t be able to meet up her
expectations
Accept her weaknesses

2.5 THE AMERICAN DREAM

DEFINITION
¨ There is no universal definition of what the American Dream actually is, it varieties from
American
¨ The basic idea: anyone can achieve anything if they work hard and passionately, anybody can
go “from rags to riches”
à inspiration and motivation for Americans to improve themselves and get on in life
¨ Set of believes and ideals which (in theory) allows every American to prosper and advance
socially, as well as financially
à often unrealistic expectations are created

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
o America is built on immigration
o 1620: Pilgrim Fathers fled from Great Britain to escape persecution at home
o Many others were also sent there for criminal offense

BELIEFS AND VALUES

- Freedom: Americans regard their society as the freest and the best in the world, everyone
can participate, individual freedom, no oppression
- Equality: no class distinctions, equality in court
- Individualism: idealization of the self- reliant, self- sufficient, independent individual
- Mobility/ flexibility/ optimism: social mobility (upward and downward) on the “ladde of success”
- Hard work: heritage is not important if you work hard, key to prosperity
- Education and self-improvement: education is key to individuals realizing their full economic,
social and personal potential
- Progress: desire to progress personally by making use of opportunities
- Patriotism: patriotic symbols, e.g., national holidays like Thanksgiving, a lot of flags

INTERPRETATION
* personal dream: reach and preserve personal aims such as family, property, freedom,
happiness, health, but also materialistic wishes for self- fulfillment
* economic dream: prosperity and success, newness, desire to get conditionally better
* social dream: equality and opportunity, classless society, belief in melting pot (multicultural
society)
* political dream: democracy and justice, basic human rights

THE AMERICAN DREAM TODAY

o nowadays very critical and negative view of the American Dream
o critics see the American Dream as a clever political and economic marketing strategy
o many values are not reflected
o “hard work will pay off/ social standard is changeable”
à huge gap between rich and poor, different social classes, no welfare system
o The American Dream is projected mainly on material prosperity
à main idea has changed, mindset is consistent

CHALLENGES FOR IMMIGRANTS

• Language barrier
• Finding a new job
à b/c of language
à different education and job training
à racism, prejudice
à applying for a job
• Racism
• Different rights/ laws
• Different culture & traditions /religion)
• Form connections (make friends)

2.6 JULIUS LESTER- THE CHILD (1993)

à deals with the struggles of a young African American women called Karen
à become pregnant by accident and is now trying to cope (faces the questions of identity)

2.6.1 SUMMARY SHORT STORY

FIRST PART
à The feeling of being someone

• Karen is at a dirty subway station

à without any destination or function (no one noticed her)
• She stared at a dirty drunk man who is African American as well
• She remembers that her mother is really angry at her because she is pregnant
à they don´t have enough money / her mother is working two jobs
• They argue and slap each other

SECOND PART
à Karen comes alive
§ The train arrives
à Karen is afraid that someone hurts her unborn child
§ The first time she has some(thing) for herself/ a purpose à going to be a mother
§ The child´s dad gave her the feeling that she matters
à broke up with her when he found out she is pregnant
§ Karen doesn´t want her baby to be exposed to someone like the drunk man
à even it´s still in her womb
§ Karen noticed a white girl (the girl is somebody “just because”)
à she wishes she could hate her, but she was interested in the girls dreams

THIRD PART
§ Karen starts daydreaming and thinks about how life would be with light skin
§ Thinks of her school time and if she will end up school after giving birth
à in 17 years her baby would finish school for both of them
à her child will be diligent
§ Realizes that her mother had similar expectations for her future
§ Karen observes a few boys which laugh about the drunk man and she gets angry
à white girls noticed them but didn’t care
§ Karen decides to do better than her mom:
à end up school and leave New York as a successful woman

THE SETTING
o Third person narrator
o In the morning at the subway
o Traces of urine, wine, soda, cigarette butts…
à nothing really matters, its dark and unfriendly, bad feeling

ATMOSPHERE
• Unhappy, cold
• Bad smell= alcohol
• Only negativity
• No routine/ plan, without any purpose
à bad + hard future
• Tense & depressing, but also desperate and in some way aggressive

KAREN AND HER (ETHNIC) IDENTITY

o Karen is an example of black people struggling with their life’s
à From Karen’s perspective white people don´t have to struggle with life, future plans or
dreams
o Questions her identity and status in society
à realizes that she has a few chances to fulfil her dreams & hopes for future

GROWING UP
§ Karen feels that nobody cares about her
à believes that everybody can tell by looking at her that she is ordinary and has no goal
§ Unsure what to do (makes her insecure, feels like nobody is interested in her)
§ Thinks that her life is meaningless
§ She´s been taught that black people struggle a lot more with life than white people do

à she thinks that it is only possible to dream in a structured and stable social circumstance
 THE AMERICAN DREAM
o Karen is sure that her dreams won’t come true
o Seems to be torn between positive and negative thoughts about her future
o Only at the end she shows some optimism

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN KAREN AND HER MOTHER

• There are two different aspects that cause the conflict
à conflict derives from different hopes, dreams and expectations
à both face the same situation of projecting their dreams and hopes onto their children
Karen:
• Karen wants support & understanding from her mother because she is scared and
overwhelmed by the situation
à feels hurt that her mum is judging her
• Karen wants that her baby has a secure & happy future
à worries if she and her baby can escape her current life circumstances
Karen’s mother:
• Wants a better future for her daughter
à afraid that Karen has to face the vicious circle she has fallen into

à different aspects of identity, society, stereotypes and values are interconnected

à Questions: Who am I? Where am I in society?

2.7 TWO GIRLS- ONE DREAM?

Karen´s dreams:

o After having her child, she wants to finish high school and become a fashion designer
o Dreams of a better future to her child
o Wants to be taken seriously (wants to be heard)
àdreams to achieve that by becoming successful and showing people what she can do

Main goal: leave the current life behind, move on to a better life and become her own person

Jing- mei dreams:

• Don´t want to follow her mother´s dreams for her (becoming a prodigy)
ð Wants to develop her own personality, better own person

2.7.1 SIMILARITIES/ DIFFERENCES – RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN KAREN/ JING-

MEI´S MOTHERS
Similarities Differences
* both [really] strict * Jing- mei´s mother pushes her// leads her the
à disappointed when their children don´t fulfill way
their dreams à tells ger what to do
* they don´t talk about their feelings * Karen´s mother do leave her some space
(Karen does not have to be perfect etc.)
* both moms had a difficult/ though past * in general Karen has a better relationship with
her mother than Jing- mei
 3. CRASH- PAUL HAGGIS, 2004

3.1 SHORT SUMMARY

à Award- winning movie written & directed by Paul Haggis (released in 2004)
à several characters “crash” into each other
à Haggis shows a city (L.A.) where people live side by side and are controlled by prejudiced behavior, racism
and stereotypical thinking
à presents a mirror of today’s society, explores people´s frustration, fear, anger and hopelessness

3.1.1 KEY SCENES

* Move starts and ends with Lieutenant Graham Walter investigating a murder
à Walter has manipulated a case to safe his family

* Irian shop owner Farhad Golzari blames the Mexican Locksmith Daniel for the destruction of
his hop
à Farhad fires a gun at Daniel
* his little daughter (Lara) wants to protect him (because of her “invisible cloak”)
* Lara is not hurt because Farhard´s daughter had bought blanks

* Rick & Jean Cabot are attacked by two African American named Peter and Anthony
à they stole their car
à over the movie Jean feels increasingly frightened and becomes more insecure

* Anthony & Peter: Feeling frustrated at the way black have been treated by society
à confirm people’s prejudice by behaving the way people expect blacks to behave
à Anthony: at the end he discovers illegal (Asian) immigrants in a van he has stolen (decides
to free them)
à Peter get killed by Officer Hanson

* Cameron & Christine Thayer got pulled over by a racist cop (Officer John Ryan)
à Ryan sexually harasses Christine (Cameron is frozen)
à Christine accuses Cameron of not defending her
à Cameron struggles with his identity

3.2 CHARACTER MAP

 • African American: Graham Waters, Peter, Anthony, Cameron Thayer, Christine Thayer,
Shaniqua Johnson, Captain Dixon
• Caucasian: Rick Cabot, Jean Cabot, John Ryan, Tom Hansen
• Hispanic: Daniel, Ria, Maria (housemaid)
• Persian: Farhad Golzani, Dorri
• Asian: Choi Jin Gui (a Chinese people trafficker) and his wife, migrants in a van

3.3 ETHNIC & CULTURAL DIVERSITY

STEREOTYPES, PREJUDICE, DISCRIMINATION & RACISM

à most prevalent themes in the movie (all characters are somehow affected by these in their daily lives,
home at home or work)

STEREOTYPES

* Ideas or opinions about a certain group of people (based on race, nationality, gender, age,
ethnicity, sexual orientation) which ignore individual differences
* Refer to clichés

PREJUDICE
o Judgment or opinion that someone forms about a person without knowing them.
à is based on that person belonging to a certain group

RACISM
o Based on a set of beliefs someone has about a certain ethnicity
à support the belief that one ethnicity is inferior or superior to another

1. Example: Jean Cabot

• Traumatized after being attacked and having a gun pointed at her

à makes constantly remarks about her Hispanic housekeeper Maria & the Hispanic
locksmith Daniel
à forms a opinion based on other people´s skin color
à Jean leads a rather unhappy life and is in a dysfunctional relationship with her husband

2. Example: Farhard Golzari

o Constantly confronted with racism and prejudice

à can be understand only in the context of the attacks on the World Trade Center
à shop owner calls him “Osama”
o Projects all his anger and frustration onto Daniel

BELIEFS, VALUES AND NORMS IN SOCIETY

ABUSE OF POWER
Officer Ryan:
à abuses his power (sexually harasses Christine Thayer)
à 2nd scene: he sets aside any racial bias & fulfils his duties as a cop (protects Christine’s life,
regardless of her skin color)
 SELF-IDENTITY
Cameron:
* feels paralyzed and powerless
à his wife confronts him with not standing up for her
* he becomes aware of the racial stereotyping on the set
à struggles with his own identity
* after getting pulled over the 2nd time his anger boils over (the first time) and he stands up for
himself

WHITE SAVIOR NARRATIVE

à The white savior narrative describes a narrative where a white person (usually the protagonist) fights
either to save a non-white individual or group from an oppressive ruler or to morally redeem that individual.

4. SHAKESPEARE-RICHARD 3

4.1 SHOULD SHAKESPEARE BE DISCUSSED IN SCHOOL?

Pro Contra

*Shakespeare’s characters have flaws and *Shakespeare’s language is too hard to

imperfections and therefore the reader is understand
able to identify with them (and probably
learn something from their actions)
*Shakespeare shows the ‘human condition`: *his plays are difficult, especially for
he shows a variety of different emotions in students
difficult situations within the life of a
human being
*Shakespeare’s plays are still played in *some themes (e.g. the strong belief in
theatres and movies; his stories are supernatural beings in the Elizabethan
suspenseful and interesting word view) are irrelevant today
*the topics covered in Shakespeare’s plays *there are better alternatives of present
still play a role in present societies (e.g. writers to be discussed in school or played
ambition, inner conflict manipulation etc.) in theatres
*the plays give an inside in the Elizabethan * his plays are often quite dark à no hope
age as well
*studying and performing Shakespeare in
class can help improve literacy, confidence
and wider educational attainment

4.2 HOW DOES SHAKESPEARE INFLUENCE US TODAY? // DOES HE STILL MATTER

TODAY?

SHAKESPEARE’S INFLUENCE IS EVERYWHERE

• His works translated into over 100 languages and studied by half the world´s
schoolchildren à Shakespeare as an author who connects the people with each
other worldwide
• He lives in our language, culture and society- and through his enduring influence on
education
• He played a critical role in shaping modern English and helping to make it the world´s
language
à three thousand new words and phrases- some have passed into our language today with
no need to reference their original context + his works are adapted for every kind of media
(comics, musicals, paintings and films)
• His influence is felt far beyond our language
à his words, plots continue to inspire much of our culture
• His works show us what it is to be human and bring forth timeless themes of
humanity, life and death, youth vs. age, love and hate, fate and free will

4.3 SHORT SUMMARY // CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER

1. As a result of one of Richards intrigues, King Edward has his brother the Duke
Clarence imprisoned in the Tower.
2. Richard has his brother Clarence assassinated.
3. King Edward dies.
4. Richard becomes regent to the sons of his dead brother Prince Edward and Duke of
York.
5. Richard has the two princes imprisoned in the Tower and spreads the rumor that
they are the illegitimate sons of the dead king.
6. Richard becomes king.
7. In order to ensure his position as king, Richard gas two princes assassinated in the
Tower.
8. Richard has Lady Anne, his wife, killed and courts Young Elizabeth, the daughter of
the dead king.
9. Richmond raises an army to defeat Richard.
10. In the battle for the crown, Richard is killed, and Richmond becomes King Henry.

4.4 RICHARD 3- THE CHARACTERS

 WHO WAS WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE?
Name * William Shakespeare /1564- 23. April
1616)
His family * his mother (Mary): daughter of a local
farmer
* his father /John): glove- maker and wood
trader
* he was the third of eight children
à his two older sisters died early; he was
the oldest now
School life * from the age of seven he went to a
grammar school
* he learned to speak, read, write,
memorize and perform (e.g. a letter)
* left school at 15
Marriage and his family life * married Ann Hathaway at 18 (1852)
* had three children (Susanne, Hamnet &
Judith à twins)
* at first Ann and William lived with his
parents, after a couple years they moved
out
His life in London * he spent his time in London mainly
* there he was a well-known author
* he wrote about 4o plays
* worked there as an actor (runs a theater
company), a writer and a businessman

4.5 SHAKESPEARE’S USE OF IAMBIC PENTAMETER

* Stress * The relative emphasis that is given to

certain syllables in a word. It can create a
rhythm when words are put into a certain
order.
* Rhythm * The flow of words in a verse determined
by the relation of stressed and unstressed
syllables.
* Poetic metre * a recognizable repetition of a rhythm.
* Foot * A certain number of stressed and
unstressed syllables that form a unit.
* A line of verse * Contains a certain number of feet.
* iamb * Two-syllable foot consisting of an
unstressed and a stresses syllable.
* iambic pentameter * A line of verse consisting of 5 iambs.
* Prose * Lines/ sentences without a metrical
structure.
à Shakespeare uses the iambic parameter in the moments when character feel passionate,
introspective or momentous.
 4.6 HOW DID THE ELIZABETHAN AGE INFLUENCE SHAKESPEARE?

• He could not be openly political could not displease the Queen

à set plays in the past to be critical in a hidden way
• Through the intrigues, presented in his plays, he presented a changing social
structure
• Religion plays a role in his style/ plays because the world around him was really
religious [quotes from the bible]
• Influenced by the Elizabethan world view, he created very “humane” characters
• Incorporated symbols that only certain people could understand
• b/c he lived in a dangerous/ instable time his plays are quite dark
• prosperity of his time also leads to prosperous characters
• because of competition in other theatres, Shakespeare sought ways that would det.
him apart from his competition

4.7 RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN RICHARD AND HIS MOTHER

HOW DOES SHE CONFRONT HIM DURING HIS PROCESSION?

• She interrupts the procession by insulting him
• She said that she is the reason that he could become king
à kept him alive; is the only person who could have stopped him from being born
àhe could be “thankful”
• Stir his conscience, reminds him that he is not the rightful king
à other would have been better
• Duchess of York (his mother) regrets giving birth

PERIODS OF RICHARD´S LIFE

Birth * grievous burden
* his birth makes her life hell
Childhood/ infancy *bad- tempered+ disobedient
School days *wild, furious, frightful, desperate
Adolescence/ prime of manhood *daring, bold and venturous
Now/ current state *proud, subtle, sly and bloody
à milder but yet more harmful

o he has also been an “unique” character, not only because of his deformity
o he has always had issues
o with growing age his cruelty became less obvious
à his bitterness grows over the years
 4.8 THE ROLE OF WOMEN

o women are demoted to bystanders

à they are only there to observe & suffer
à appear to be submissive but prove to have the power of the female curse
o many of the curses uttered by the women prove effective & anticipate Richard’s death
o sexual objects / object of desire
o disposable and naive
à only purpose is to get a man to a certain level of importance or influence or to birth an
heir
o not intelligent
o only "power" are their words
à while men’s power is more physical -> men are seen as stronger
o witch-like
o they portray the emotions in the play

4.9 FATE VS. FREE WILL

o fate is reserved for those who don’t have power

à women (e.g., Lady Anne)
à man (Clarence; unable to at)
o fate is decided by those in power
o free will is left to Richard; his power provides him with the ability to follow his own choices
(even his death is his own choice; when and how)