Meaningless and thoughtless facts Essay Example

Meaningless and thoughtless facts Essay Example Meaningless and thoughtless facts Paper Meaningless and thoughtless facts Paper The girls confidence is undermined further when she is asked to describe a horse. After a moment of awkward silence focused on Sissy, the schools idea of a perfect pupil proceeds to churn out many facts about the horse resulting in a precise but uninspired definition. The perfect response, it seems, is a list of meaningless and thoughtless facts. Bitzer appears dull and uninteresting, if he were cut, he would bleed white.  Some boy, as he is referred to (perhaps Dickens is venting his irritation at this type of child by using such a general, characterless term) defines a horse: Quadruped. Graminivorous. Forty teeth, namely twenty-four grinders, four eyeteeth, and twelve incisive. Sheds coat in spring; in marshy countries, sheds hooves, too. Hooves hard, but requiring to be shod with iron. Age known by marks on mouth.  This explanation of a horse is completely factual, devoid of emotion, imagination or fancy.  Sissy is positioned at one end of the room, receiving a full beam of sunshine from the window, appearing radiant and even angelic, whilst Bitzer, who sits at the other end of the classroom, fails to catch the end. The girl was so dark-eyed and dark-haired that she seemed to receive a deeper more lustrous colour from the sunthe boy was so light-eyed and light-haired that the same self-rays appeared to draw out of him what little colour he ever possessed.  Dickens uses this idea to highlight the difference between Gradgrinds ideal pupil and Sissy who has not yet succumbed to the dehumanisation. This may have another meaning too; Gradgrind has not yet drained Sissy of her colour and emotions (she appears alive), yet Bitzer, a frequent victim of Gradgrinds lessons, has been sapped of these qualities. Dull facts have taken their place. Dickens presents Gradgrind as a hard man and this is reflected in his name, which is harsh and blunt. Dickens describes Gradgrinds mouth as wide, thin and hard set, and his voice as inflexible, dry and dictorial. He is described as square and stubborn too The emphasis was helped by the speakers square wall of a forehead, which had his eyebrows for its base. His head is described as a, warehouse-room for the hard facts stored inside. Mr. Gradgrind, like any teacher seems to have his favourite pupils. They are usually children that are intelligent and bright, which again, is not uncommon among teachers. Dickens describes Gradgrind as square, he says that he wore a square coat, had square legs, square shoulders, a square wall of a forehead and a square forefinger, which all help to add emphasis to Gradgrinds strange stature. The repeated use of the theme square gives the image of something completely equal, symmetrical, in a way perfectly calculated, just like Gradgrinds mind. A square is boring and dull though it suitably imitates Gradgrind. Dickens said of his eyes, To have found commodious cellarage in two dark caves, overshadowed This states that Gradgrinds eyes, (eyes often being thought of as a true character display), show no sign of life or liveliness, the fact that the eyes, representing life and imagination, are overshadowed by the wall, tells me that Gradgrind has lost all character and imagination. Barry Hines presents Gryce in a similar way but cunningly uses a modified version of onomatopoeia via his name that evokes images of slime, grease and evilness. Both authors use this naming technique to portray characters in each novel. Mr. MChoakumchild from Hard Times certainly stretches the limit of a realistic persons name but it does create images of children choking extremely effectively! Mr. Gradgrind is portrayed as a very rigid person, with a certain monotone about him. He hates all fiction and is absent of feeling and emotion, which makes him very uninteresting to pupils. This is reflected in pupils like Bitzer, who makes the horse sound boring, like a machine even. Thomas Gradgrind totally believes in the teaching of facts only as did most schools as teachings during this period were void of poetry, make-believe tales, or song. Children were brought up upon facts and figures because it was found that children in London believed that Jack the Giant-killer, Jack and the Bean-stalk, and Jack and Jill were real life people. The children in these areas were ignorant dreamers who aspired to be like the famous Jacks and slay giants, dragons and other mythical creatures and ride off with the princesses. This was why statisticians and people in power immediately called for a plan that would store the minds of children with nothing but facts and figures. When this system inevitably fails towards the end of the novel, Dickens could be trying to show the reader that to teach children successfully, emotion and feeling must somehow be incorporated into their education. A Kestrel for a Knave is based in and around a secondary modern school (similar to Hard Times) run by Mr. Grice. It accommodates the failures of the eleven plus exam; those ultimately destined for working class jobs. Pupils faced harsh, violent punishments that were suppressed by the authority. The boys, however, still rebel against the system, as it seems to the reader that eventually the punishments become a way of life. The boys are called by their surnames (an improvement upon numbers but still lacking emotion). It would seem that the system has failed Billy as he is in his last year at school and isnt yet competent at reading or writing. Though the lack of support from his mother may have heeded Billys progress significantly, Id presume that Billy has probably been left to study with little or no help from his mother or his brother; Jud. One lesson we witness in A Kestrel for a Knave also aims to teach the pupils about facts. However Mr. Farthing who is a caring and a more fatherly teacher (once again links in with the name) teaches this lesson. Mr. Farthing has gained some respect from the class of boys from his kind personality. Although the lesson has the same content as the lesson in Hard Times, it becomes obvious that Farthings teaching is different. He manages to involve Billy in the lesson, which is an achievement as Billy is normally shy, lacking motivation. Farthing teaches in a more relaxed fashion, allowing the lesson to flow whilst also welcoming input from the boys. He encourages Billy to participate and makes him feel positively unique as he has something interesting to share with the class. Billy speaks about Kes, who he has raised and trained, and Farthing seems genuinely interested Jesses, how do you spell that? He writes words on the board, involving the whole class while discussing one persons unusual talent. Billy becomes the teacher for a while as Farthing does not control as Gradgrind does. The lesson becomes full of individuality as Billy shares his unusual hobby and his confidence grows. This would never have happened in a lesson taught by Gradgrind, he would never encourage a pupil to take over his position and would think a pastime like Billys ridiculous. The way in which Farthing nurtures Billys thoughts reflects the way in which Billy has nurtured Kes and the time and devotion that Billy has shown the bird is matched, although on a smaller scale, by the way Farthing waits for Billy to reveal his thoughts and questions him gently. However, few teachers manage children as Farthing does therefore few children are encouraged and nurtured on a one to one basis, most are merely generalised: Billy and some fellow students stand in Mr. Gryces office, where a poor messenger gets caught up with the group and is forced to temporarily keep hold of their cigarettes. Mr. Gryce finds the cigarettes, accuses the small boy of being a regular cigarette factory and calls him deceitful. The boy, who appears never to have had a beating in his life, receives the cane, which proceeds to make him vomit violently. Gryce seems to think that he knows everything that there is to know about the education system. For that reason he doesnt listen to the boys frequent interruptions and attempts to save himself. The reader of the Bible in the previous scene read his extract during the school assembly with no expression and very little punctuation. The sense of irony stands out that this is completely the opposite of the twentieth century education method.