Sarah's Teaching Resources

In episode 1 of Broadchurch and Child Of the Jago one of the main themes carried out is the innocence of children. In Broadchurch, because Danny is an eleven-year-old he is viewed as completely innocent and seems to do no wrong in the views of his parents and investigators. Even though as an 11-year-old Danny is fully capable of carrying out suspicious acts, because he is a child he is assumed innocent. At no time during the episode, do his parents, teachers, peers, or investigators questions Danny’s actions or motives, emphasizing the innocence of children. 

In Child of the Jago, even though Dicky begins stealing and performing criminal acts at s young age, he is still considered innocent because he is a child. Instead of viewing him as a criminal, the reader often views him as an unfortunate circumstance of his surroundings. Because he is a child, he is not fully accountable for his actions, and instead, is viewed as a circumstance of his upbringing and environment. Although Dicky starts performing criminal acts at the age of 7, he is still viewed as innocent and unfortunate by the reader because of the innocence associated with children. Dicky often experiences the gap between innocence of experience.

Both Danny and Dicky are viewed as innocent even though they are both capable of performing suspicious acts that cause problems in their life. Because they are children, they are presumed to be ignorant to the negativity in their lives. 

Criticisms of the Stay-Home Mom

Meme #1 Explanation

In our culture, it is a common misconception that being a “stay at home mom” isn’t a real or significant job. The meme above depicts two moms having dialogue about their jobs. One mom is asking the other what her job is, and when the other mom responds with “I’m a stay home mom,” the first mom is confused. She then follows up by asking the other mom what her real job is, implying that being a full-time mom isn’t a real job. Many people are unaware of how demanding the task of being a mother is, and how it can consume your entire day, well above the normal 9am-5pm working hours. Full-time moms are often in charge of raising their children, driving them to school, taking care of the house, cooking, cleaning, helping their children with homework, and taking them to sports practice or music lessons. However, in our society, women are often expected to do both; be a devoted mother and have a successful career. Although, if too much time is put towards their career instead of being a mom, the mother could be at risk of being labeled a “bad mother.” Even though society is responsible for the labeling of moms, moms themselves often judge other moms the hardest. We live in a highly competitive society where even mothers compete to see who can be the best mom. In the meme above, the first mother judges the second because she doesn’t have a job in addition to being a mother, therefore this makes her seem lesser. Being a stay home mom or traditional housewife, to some people, could imply that that person may be either lazy, uneducated, incapable of holding a job, or a “gold digger.” In short, this meme exemplifies the common misconception society has about mothers and how they must balance both holding a job and being a dedicated mother. It also touches upon the misbelief that being a full time mother isn’t a legitimate or demanding job.      

 Meme #2 Explanation

In this next meme, Kermit the Frog plays both himself and his “evil” self. In this case, however, evil Kermit represents society and what they are telling mothers. Normal Kermit is observing that there is a mother who has no job but stays home to take care of her children, and evil Kermit is telling him to assume she is dumb. Since stay-home moms often don’t have conventional jobs, they can sometimes be perceived by society as unintelligent. People assume there is something wrong with them whether it is they can’t hold a job, are uneducated, or are simply lazy. They being a stay-home mom is somehow taking the easy way out to avoid having to get a “real” job. This meme points out how wrong these stereotypes and accusations can be and how society should be less critical of the choices mothers make.

 Meme #3 Explanation

Here, Kermit is standing by a window and looking out at the rain longingly and in deep thought. The dilemma Kermit is facing in this meme is that he is a stay home mom with a wealthy husband and everyone assumes he is a “gold digger.” This is often a reality for many mothers who are in this situation and have to deal with labeling. Society as well as fellow moms will sometimes assume that if you are a mother without a job and you have a wealthy husband, you are seen as selfish because you aren’t staying home to simply spend more time with your children, but to avoid work while still affording to live a comfortable life.

 Meme #4 Explanation

In this final meme, Kermit is casually sipping on some Lipton tea while reflecting on how stay-home moms face criticism for not paying attention to their careers. By not having a career outside of being a mother, society tells these types of moms that they are not setting a good example for their children by being both family and career oriented. They also can be looked down upon by other moms for not being very “feminist” or progressive by choosing to not have a career outside of the home. This meme calls out the double standard mothers face for either choosing to have a job or not have a job; both come with some form of criticism from society.

Explanation: There is a pretty sexist but prevalent notion within societies around us that a woman’s life follows a series of inevitable steps that ultimately lead to childhood. Humankind in separate microcosms of our world  has come to accept motherhood as an inevitable step and a central theme of femininity; that is to say that without motherhood, many people judge these women as not fully “feminine”. In other cultures, some believe that it is a fine thing to be childless and that it’s a completely “a-okay” thing to do. As a result, my newspaper reports and newsflashes discuss 5 different regions of this world, their cultures, and how they perceive childless women. The five regions discussed are India, China, the U.K., Sub-Saharan Africa, and America.

Newsflash:

It seems as though crooked teeth aren’t the only things wrong with the United Kingdom!

By Akshay Sadeeshkumar, 11/29/2016 

           It’s been over a year since Andrea Leadsom ran for the Prime Minister position in Great Britain, yet, that nation and its constituents can’t seem to get over her controversial words. In an interview with The Times, Andrea Leadsom indicated that her motherhood over her opponent (Theresa May) in the Prime Minister race meant that she’d be a better leader to Britain. She claimed that her maternity gave her a leadership edge over Theresa May and that she, may, was somewhat incapable of being a leader because of her lack of maternity.

           Now, apart from the fact that this statement is an incredibly incendiary and awfully mean comment, it does shed some light on how some people in the United Kingdom view motherhood. Of course, Andrea Leadsom does not speak on behalf of the entire UK, but it’s important to recognize that there are people that do indeed think and feel this way in the U.K. After all, she did earn enough support to enter the race.

           Childless women in the U.K. seem to face this retrograde perception that their lives are somewhat unfulfilled and lost because they aren’t mothers, even though childless mothers are slowly becoming a dominant minority. According to an article written by Elizabeth Day for The Telegraph, she believes that childlessness is viewed as a taboo here in the U.K. still. She says that there is this ignorant belief accepted by the English that there must be something wrong with a woman for not wanting children, and consequently, there is this perpetuating shame that clouds the psyches of these women. Whether it’s infertility or purely based on choice, childless British women can’t seem to escape this air of judgment that surrounds them day in and day out. This issue must resolve itself in this decade because as mentioned above, childless women are growing in numbers. 1 in 5 women, according to the article by Day, are childless by choice and this number is steadily growing. If the U.K. population doesn’t learn to be more accepting of this choice, then they’ll be voluntarily isolating a big portion of their population.

Newsflash: Great! I Don’t Want a Child! Hopefully My Family Will Understand…

By Akshay Sadeeshkumar, 11/29/2016

           With India’s population being over 1.2 billion (and counting), it’d seem as though there culture would follow suit to what China has in place: a society where desired childlessness is not ostracized and lambasted as being “selfish”. I mean, with less landmass and resources compared to China, it would seem that childlessness is the advisable plan of action for the women in India. However, this isn’t the case as women in India are HEAVILY ostracized and criticized for being childless.

           In the BBC article “Indian women who are choosing to be child-free”, Anjana Kumar, the interviewee, claimed that her choice of childlessness was a strained one that she couldn’t make easily. She called maternity “overrated” and stated that “[motherhood] is a big long-term responsibility that I could never prepare myself for”. Pressure from her friends, family, colleagues, etc., mounted over time and she never understood why. Her family would ask things like “what’s wrong with you” and her friends are quick to judge her as “barren”, something she finds to be very offensive. She says “Why should I have to define [my choice] in terms of a lack?” and is vehemently against the assumption that a childless woman is a disabled woman in that sense. It seems that the Indian community is quick to undermine a woman’s decision for childlessness and instead label her as “barren”.

           This sort of harsh, reprehensible behavior cannot continue for the sake of the mental health and lives of women in India. Childlessness isn’t necessarily a disability on the part of women and should not be treated as such. The aforementioned cruel judgments and unfair perspectives can ruin the psyche of a childless woman and force her to do things that she may not want. It’s clear, according to this article, that Indian women face a lot of pressure from their families and elders on how to conduct their lives. However, if Indian women lived their lives according to the expectations and desires of others, then they’re not living their lives for themselves.

Newsflash: Maybe China has it figured out!

By Akshay Sadeeshkumar, 11/29/2016

           There are many things that exist within the dichotomy presented between Western and Eastern Global societies.  From the way we eat to the way we shower, there are collective habits and nuances that separate our global cultures. However, it seems as though there’s one thing the Eastern global society has gotten right (China’s society more specifically), and that’s the way they perceive childless women. In Western Cultures (North America and Western Europe for the most part), there’s a negative perception and stigma aimed towards childless women because of their desired childlessness. We, the citizens of America, want women to have children and when they don’t, we see it as a loss in opportunity and a slightly bone-headed decision. However, in China, this is clearly not the case.

           In an article written by David Pierson in the LA Times, Pierson says that there has been a steady decline in childbearing in China that hasn’t met any sort of criticism from popular media and culture. Even though the childbearing rates declined 6.3% in the last decade, Chinese women have not met any backlash for it. Now, he goes on to argue that this may be due to many reasons. There are the one-child laws set in place in China that incentivizes not having children in the first place. And the cost of living in China has sky-rocketed in the past couple of year due to overpopulation, which would also de-incentivize having children. However, even with all of these factors and conditions in place, the Chinese community seems to be okay with women opting out of maternity.

           Overall, this cultural anomaly set in place in China seems to be working for both sides of the community: the childless mothers and everyone else. The childless women more often than not, according to the article, go on to pursue a higher-level education, so kudos to them! With regards to the childless women in China, it’s clear that childlessness, although not necessarily encouraged, is widely accepted by the Chinese community and this totalistic behavior is something that outsider societies should look at and follow suit.

Newsflash: It’s AfriCAN, not AfriCANT!

By Akshay Sadeeshkumar, 11/29/2016

           In the depths of the oases and expansive deserts in Côte d’Ivoire are men and women that live just about the same lives as anyone else. They work for their food, vote for their rights, and sleep during the night. However, it seems as though the one thing that’s stigmatized more than anything else in their Sub-Saharan African culture is childlessness, both on desire and physical ability.  There’s this widespread belief that the ultimate goal and accomplishment as a woman in Sub-Saharan African cultures is having a child. According to the article “Why the stigma attached to being childless in Africa is far greater than in the West” by Nina Steele, in Africa, a marriage without children is considered a failed marriage, as if there was lost potential because of this childlessness on the women’s part.

           In another article written by the World Health Organization “Mother or nothing”, WHO describes the stigmatization and perception of childless women in Sub-Saharan African cultures to be cruel and nothing short of extreme. According to the WHO, childless women are often looked at as a burden on the socioeconomic well being of a community. Relatives and close friends are often disappointed and ashamed at the woman’s choice and/or inability to have children, and often times, the woman experiences more guilt and shame.

           The aforementioned articles go on to explain that there are a variety of reasons as to why there is this merciless and, quite frankly, ruthless perception of childless women in Africa: religion, failed expectations, traditions, etc. However, it’s important to take note that: 1) African cultures are often deeply rooted within their own traditions and heritage and 2) carrying on a family’s legacy and/or community’s inherent values are important to a family. In an article for Emory University, “The Importance of Children in African Cultures”, it’s mentioned that in African cultures altogether, children are considered as ‘blessings’ that should carry the honor and traditions of the family. In this sense, it’s important to avoid ethnocentrism by acknowledging this thought process on the part of the Africans. However, it’s just as important to recognize that these African women have an innate and sole right to their own body and choices, and consequently should NOT be ostracized for their choice of childlessness in the communities they live in.

Newsflash: CHILDLESS WOMEN ARE NORMAL TOO!

By Akshay Sadeeshkumar, 11/29/2016

        Western Society has struggled in the past to accept women as independent people in terms of finances, survivability, and decisions. There was always a shock factor and a gasp whenever the waves of feminism would role by in the 20th century, demanding things like the right to vote (the 19th amendment), the Equal Rights Amendment, etc. However, even though the American governments and societies of the past have done a lot to rectify this predominant issue of sexism that had existed in several facets of our life, it seems as though in small and subliminal ways it still exists, especially when it comes to mothers (or rather, non-mothers).

        In the “Unnatural Women: Childless in America” report in Psychology Today by Melanie Notkin, it’s stated that even though there’s been a steep decline in the amount of American women having children from 1976 to 2013 (a decline of 15%), there’s still this common notion that women are supposed to have children. Notkin states that childlessness is “not quite understood or seen as a norm”, and this makes sense. Western culture, and for the most part our world, has become accustomed to the standard nuclear family of two parents and two (or more) children. So it’s not hard to see why people would view childless women as “out of the norm” or “unfeminine”. However, that’s a retrograde path of thinking that alienates women who 1) physically cannot have children or 2) do not want children.

        In the Psychology Today article, Notkin mentions a 2011 Women in America study that childless women in their forties were perceived by outsiders as “unhappy”, “abnormal”, and that they were looked upon as people who had wasted their potential as mothers, rather than people who’ve capitalized on their success. They, the childless women studied, felt that their bodies were made to exist solely for the purposes of being a child’s vessel, and this led to questions about their identity and damage to their self-esteem. This is wholly unacceptable as these sexist presumptions made on behalf of women are unfairly thrust upon them because of the precedent set before them. So rather than viewing these older, childless women as inept members of our society that have committed a mistake by not being pronatalistic, let’s celebrate their choice to carry on their lives in ways they deem fit. After all, childless women are still humans that deserve respect, care, and love, aren’t they?

Sources:

http://articles.latimes.com/2011/sep/02/business/la-fi-china-no-child-20110903

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-25396743

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/family/why-does-society-still-view-childless-women-like-me-with-suspici/

https://www.tumblr.com/blog/badmomsbasedonsisters

Arthur Morrison-A Child of the Jago

Category A—Critical (all responses should be roughly 350 words) a. Pick one passage that embodies the main concern (theme) of the novel. Write a close reading of the passage exploring how negotiates the main

Option A

In the novel, A Child of the Jago, Morrison describes in graphic detail the squalor that the inhabitants of the “jago” encounter. There was no work available and you had to steal to survive in order to feed your family. No matter the crimes in the “jago” there seemed to be a code and honor status in their community. They did not steel from their own kind. They stole from others on the outside. There was a certain hierarchy in the “jago”. There were different ranks to get to thievery from a child at the low-end, bands of thieves at the middle rank, and the high- end which was called the “high mob” gang members who earned the most respect.

The fight between the Ranns and Learys with broken, bones, heads, and ribs, and even death they did not betray each other, no matter their differences. They did not tell on their own kind for this was “code” in the “jago”. In the book, Delinquent Boys: The Culture of the Gang       Albert K. Cohen, Cohen states, “the delinquent subculture inverts the values of mainstream society- turns them upside down. The subculture praises what society condemns” (Cohen). Violence and fraudulent acts seem to be the only thing that is respected in the “jago” community and narking on each other seems to be the only real sin. For this is all they have, the outside world does not give them a fair chance to succeed. Because of their lower class status and poverty, they are seen as unfit and are sanctioned in low-income run down, slums. They are not afforded the same opportunities as the middle class and upper-class are. They are stripped of their chances that the working class get, and therefore create their own illegal careers where they can capture the attention and high status from the “high mob”. Thievery has different levels of hierarchy in the “jago”. From the low end which uses children like Dickey Perrot, a child who steals small things from merchants and the rich. Then there are groups who are just above the children, for example the married couple “jago’s” robbed, stole, “cosh-carrying” where women lure respectable men into their homes, and hit them over the head with a blunt object to rob, and steal from them. And then finally as Morrison says “Someday, if you’re clever-cleverer than anyone in the “jago” now-if your scoundrel enough, and brazen enough, and lucky enough-one of a thousand-maybe you’ll be like them” (60; ch 11).For in the “jago” if you made it as “Igh Mob, Ooks, Toffs” (60; Ch.11). In other words you made the big time in the “jago” if you reached the mob hierarchy, for there was no way out of the “jago”. These are the rules that you must abide by if you want to stay alive and survive the slums.

Category B: Prompt B

I chose these memes because they represent some of the major themes throughout Pride and Prejudice. The first meme represents one of the major themes in the novel, which is class, both the middle class and upper class are portrayed in the novel. Although the middle-class and upper-class interact, the Bennets are treated as inferior to the Darcys and Bingleys. The second meme represents the theme of wealth, a lot of wealth is depicted throughout the novel with the Darcys and the Bingleys. The third meme addresses the theme of reputation, a woman’s reputation is very important throughout the novel. An example would be when Elizabeth walked into town with muddy skirts, which ultimately affects her reputation. The last meme addresses the theme of marriage, which is an extremely prevalent theme of the novel and is seen through the lives of different couples, and the different problems they face. 

Category B: Prompt C

I chose to make a Twitter account about Dicky Perrott. For the Twitter handle, I went simple and just did Dicky’s name. For the avatar, I googled poor Victorian man and chose a guy that looked young but not too tough. For the Twitter bio, I reconfigured a quote from Old Beveridge. The full quote is, “Dickey Perrott, you Jago whelp, look at them - look hard. Some day if you are clever - cleverer than anyone in the Jago right now - if you're only scoundrel enough, and brazen enough, and lucky enough - one of a thousand - maybe you'll be like them: bursting with high living, drunk when you like, red and pimply.” I chose that quote to highlight how Dicky tries to escape from the Jago through honest work but ultimately fails due to the actions of others. Dicky tries to fit into the Jago which leads to his demise. Dicky reads like the thief with the heart of gold toward the beginning, but Morrison makes it clear that Dicky is not Oliver Twist and there is no hope in the Jago. I chose to follow several cake accounts due to Dicky’s enjoyment of just looking at cakes. I also followed an antique account that specializes in clocks to highlight Dicky’s remorse and resolution to find a replacement for the clock that he stole from Roper’s home. I followed an account that is a guide to different coffee shops in London to point to Dicky’s involvement with evil coffee shop owner, Weech. I followed a locksmith because I figured Dicky, being the thief that he is, might want to try and pick up a few tips from the internet on how to better be a thief or possibly look into getting an “honest” profession. Finally I followed the Archbishop of Canterbury to highlight the involvement of the church in the novel and the good work that they think they’re doing in the novel. I also wrote a few tweets which are mostly reformulated lyrics from Bohemian Rhapsody, a song which I found uniquely suited to this novel.

“Dicky was thirteen, and at that age the children of the Jago were past childish tears; but tears he could not smother, even til he might find a hiding-place:they burst out shamefully in the open street” (Page 79).

One of the main motifs of the novel is to portray and bring awareness to the lives of the impoverished in London in the 19 century. It also depicts the lives of those living in it, and their fate of living indecent lives as result of being born into the lower class. This specific passage represents the loss of innocence of the children of the Jago at an early age, and represents others living in the Jago as well. Although age thirteen is still considered child-age, Dicky is mentally much older than an average thirteen-year-old. Dicky loses his innocence at an early age when he begins stealing and starts engaging in criminal acts, which depicts the unfortunate fate many people of the Jago are exposed to, and force to turn to in order to survive. By depicting the life of Dicky, Morrison is able to illustrate the negative effects of living in the slums and the harmful elements they are exposed to. Throughout the novel, people of the Jago are exposed to harsh living conditions, along with various other conflicts. Dicky’s criminal activity represents his desire to do the right thing, but the need to survive taking over that desire. Dicky’s criminal activity ultimately leads to his death, which also represents the harsh reality and conflict the people of the Jago are faced with. 

“Now it is a fact that i have never called myself a ‘realist’, and I have never put forth any work as ‘realism’. I decline the labels of the schoolmen and the sophisters:being a simple writer of tales, who takes whatever means lie to his hand to present life as he sees it; who insists on no process; and who refuses to be bound by any formula or prescription prepared by the cataloguers and the pigeon-holers of literature. (Morrison 1).

In the first page of the novel, the author describes his thoughts and views in which he wrote the novel with. Throughout the novel, Morrison depicts the life of Dicky, who lives in the slums of London, and his progression into corruption and criminal life in order to get by. In this passage, the author describes his writing style and point of view when writing the novel. The author addresses the problems of social class in London mainly through the character Dicky, and the struggles he faces by living in poverty, and the struggle to get out of the lower class. As said in the passage, the author tells it like it is throughout the novel, and describes how the information is conveyed through his writing. This passage is important because it gives the reader in the intro insight into how the plot and characters are going to be presented throughout the novel. He describes himself as a “simple writer” and that is the style of writing that can be seen throughout the novel in his writing. 

Category A prompt A

“…For the first time in his life Dicky was in debt. It was a little disappointing to find the coffee and cake was no gift after all: though, indeed, it now seemed foolish to have supposed they were; for in Dicky Perrott’s world people did not give things away—that were the act of a fool. Thus, Dicky, with his hands in his broken pockets, and thought in his small face, whereon still stood the muddy streaks of yesterday’s tears stood, trudged out of Mr. Aaron Weech’s shop-door, and along Meakin Street.

               Now he was beginning the world seriously, and must face the fact. Truly the world had been serious enough for him hitherto, but that he knew not. Now he was of an age when most boys where thieving for themselves, and he owed money like a man” (Morrison 40-41).

               The main concern of A Child of the Jago, is the coming to age story of a young boy who has to learn to navigate the desolate life of one born and breed within extreme poverty and squalor. The passage above emphasizes the juxtaposition between the age and the experience of Dicky, and uses imagery and pathos to establish the central theme of the story.

               Morrison describes with melancholy detail the picture of a young boy, not yet over the age of 10, leaving a place he had hoped would be a safe haven—only to discover that it was source of more cruelty. Dicky’s posture and expression, with “his hands in his broken pockets, and thought in his small face” allow Morrison to depict the physical toll a life of mistreatment and repeated duplicity can have on a young boy. He holds the posture of a grown man with the weight of the world on his shoulders, although he has not yet reached puberty. “Hands in pockets” is the posture of a man, and leads one to assume that there is some hunching of shoulders and also a low hanging head—the picture of desolation—when a boy of Dicky’s age should be instead gallivanting and running about with the posture of one who does not yet know the weight of reality. The “thought in his small face” defies the natural expectation of children to be care free and happy.  All in all Dicky’s appearance in this scene, as described vividly be Morrison, defies the expectations of the appearance of a boy and instead attributes the child with the posture and worry of a man four times his age. This imagery allows the audience to experience the extreme strain of poverty and desolation upon those who grow up within it.

               Through imagery and diction, Morrison employs pathos to elicit an emotional response to the tragedy of Dicky’s situation. Words and phrases such as: “broken,” “muddy streaks of yesterday’s tears,” “trudged,” and “small” evoke a feeling of gloom or dejection. Morrison’s statements attributing to Dicky the responsibilities of a man cause the audience to pity the boy who was not allowed to have a childhood, let alone a happy one. His rapid, in fact, nearly instantaneous maturity into a man allows Morrison to underscore the nonexistent childhood of those coming to age in squalor. Through pathos, Morrison achieves a poignant story and character that haunts the reader and produces in them sorrow for the less fortunate and for the many “Children of the Jago” existing throughout the world--not only in the dark streets of the East End.

Categpory A: Response A

The main theme in A Child of the Jago is poverty. Toward the beginning of chapter 2, Morrison sets up the first robbery that Dicky completes of a gold watch. Morrison describes the atmosphere as “bright and promising” and describes the new wing of the East End Elevation Missionary. It stands in stark contrast to the rest of the surroundings. It is described as, “a face of fair, clean brick; the ornamentation, of approved earnestness, in terra-cotta squares at regular intervals.” This description points to the difference between the new wing and its surroundings as well as the fact that it is “earnest.” The mission is the beacon of good in the Jago. However, the most telling line in this passage is, “Even to be near cake was something.” This short line points to the depth of the poverty of the Jago. For most people, the thought of looking at a fancy cake was not anything special. When the shopkeeper drove Dicky off, he shut his eyes and fantasized about the cake. Morrison is describing a type of poverty that seems completely other to the regular working class. It is easier to imagine and sympathize with the hunger the impoverished might face but it is more difficult to try and imagine what it would be like to be so taken by the mere sight of a fancy cake. The image of poverty that Morrison is painting goes along with an idea presented in Jane Eyre. “Poverty looks grim to grown people; still more so to children: they have not much idea of industrious, working, respectable poverty; they think of the world only as connected with ragged clothes, scanty food, fireless grates, rude manners, and debasing vices: poverty for me was synonymous with degradation" (Bronte 230). However, Morrison seems to be pointing toward the opposite. Morrison is describing poverty in a harsh and unromantic way. There is no industrious poverty, just survival. It is easier to empathize with people considered to be upstanding, working individuals that may be just a little more unfortunate. Morrison is aiming to get the Victorian world to consider a new depth of poverty and the humanity contained within such an othered class.

Kimberlee Styple, Option Category A Option D

One of the central themes of A Child of the Jago is class.  The novel is set in the darkest and most depressed of the London slums, a small area named the Jago. There, the author, Arthur Morrison, explores the deplorable conditions and lives of the lowest class.  However, in the passage I have chosen to focus on, he also describes to the reader how the citizens of the upper classes interprets the lives of these people, stating that:

Most had been convinced, by what they had been told, by what they had read in charity appeals, and perhaps by what they had seen in police-court and inquest reports, that the whole East End was a wilderness of slums: slums packed with starving human organisms without minds and without morals, preying on each other alive. These subscribers visited the Institute by twos and threes, on occasions of particular festivity among the neat clerks, and were astonished at the wonderful effects of Pansophic Elevation on the degraded classes, their aspect and their habits (p. 20).

I’ve chosen to select a song for the beginning of A Child of the Jago. I selected One Jump Ahead from Aladdin. Aladdin’s part would be sung by Dickey with the angry shopkeepers being his parents. Dickey steals or “clicks” in order to get what him and his family cant afford. Lyrics from One Jump Ahead say things like “I only steal what I can’t afford” “that’s everything!”. Dickey, like Aladdin, steals for survival along with many other people of the Jago. His family cannot afford cake, so he goes one step ahead and takes it for himself. It is surprising that Dickey’s parents don’t believing in thievery. Most people of the Jago steal to get by including their son. They do not stoop down to the level of thieves.

Throughout She, Ayesha is seen as a figure of female authority, who holds great power. She is beautiful, and dominant, which gives her the ability to have certain influences on people, making her quite powerful. In the climax of the novel, Ayesha takes two men to see the pillar of fire, which ultimately leads to her death. In Bob Dylan’s song “Going, Going, Gone”, it depicts the theme of reflection, in which Ayesha reflects on her life in order to enter the pillar of fire. Although she doesn’t have the outcome she intended, she still hopes for a positive outcome of being immortal with Leo, and being the rulers of the world

I been walking the road I been living on the edge Now I've just got to go Before I get to the ledge So I am going I am just going I am gone.

Ayesha depicts so much energy, and power throughout the novel, then just like that she is gone when her life preserving power is lost and she goes to her true age. She ultimately comes to her fate, which is death, and is gone. 

“This chamber was twice the size of the sleeping caves, and I saw at once that it had originally served as a refectory, and also probably as an embalming room for the Priests of the Dead; for I may as well say at once that these hollowed-out caves were nothing more or less than vast catacombs, in which for tens of ages the mortal remains of the great extinct race whose monuments surrounded us had been first preserved, with an art and a completeness that has never been equaled, and then hidden away for all time.” (Haggard 135)

               The motif of death and the deceased is employed by Haggard throughout the novel to appeal to the obsession of the Victorian era citizen with death, as well as to create a dichotomy with the supernaturally immortal Ayesha. The Amahagger people live within the tombs of an extinct ancient civilization. It is an understatement to say that they were comfortable with the dead, as they use the catacombs as bedrooms, the embalming tables as dining tables, and the actual corpses as torches. They show no fear of the dead and incorporate the morbid subject into every part of their society.

               As we discussed in class, the people of the Victorian era had a strange fondness for the rituals surrounding death and decay. Victorian’s were especially concerned with the concept of degeneration. Haggard’s depiction of the Amahagger, as a people who surround themselves so with the dead without any seeming discomfort, would have appealed to Victorian interest and—as is consistent with Victorian ideas about nearly every people group that was not within Europe—linked them with the idea of degeneration. Within the novel Job seems to be the closest thing to a human embodiment of Victorian ideals. His prudism, strict attention to the customs of respectable English gentleman, and his knack for pointing out the savagery in the native people all depict him as Haggard’s tool for creating a juxtaposition between the Victorian citizen and the Amahagger. Job, within the novel, is also a source of comic relief as he blatantly spouts out his ethnocentric opinions about the experiences of the English men within their adventures with the Amahagger. His reactions to the deathly surroundings of the Amahagger people depict most closely how the Victorian person would feel. That Job consistently suffered from nerves and general discomfort within the presence of the Amahagger and their home, suggests to the reader that the Victorian too would have been very uncomfortable with the comfort of the Amahagger with the deceased.

               Haggard employs the motif of the dead to increase the impressiveness and otherworldliness of Ayesha. She is even more concerned with the dead than the Amahagger, she studies the language and culture of the people of Kor who were masters of preserving the dead, she slept every night next to the dead man whom she once loved, and she lives within a tomb. This is especially extraordinary considering that she is immortal. Haggard writes Ayesha as a woman who has escaped death and yet chooses to live alongside it every day of her life. The extremely unfortunate and strange death that Ayesha in the end of the novel experiences seems to depict Haggard’s idea that when one concerns themselves so with teasing and tickling the laws of nature, eventually they will fail. The motif of death as it relates to Ayesha seems to portray Haggard’s view that death is inescapable, unmerciful, and does not take into consideration one’s wisdom or power. He also seems to portray that involving oneself too much with death will lead you to degeneration and dismay as it did with the literal degeneration of Ayesha into a monkey-like creature upon stepping into the fire of Life.

Category A, Prompt B

-Amy Koester