Work Book
Chapter 02
Amazing Arts
Great writers
William Shakespeare and Charles Dickens are two of literature's greatest writers, but
how much do you know about them?
1. Match the statements to the correct author, by drawing lines to link them to the
correct picture. There are seven for each one. You may need to do some research.
• Born in Stratford-Upon-Avon in 1564
• Born in Portsmouth in 1812
• A playwright and poet
• Wrote Great Expectations'
• Had a lifelong fear of being poor
• Died in 1616
• A novelist
• Part-owned The Globe Theatre
• Not much is known about his personal life
• Died in 1870
• Wrote 37 plays
• Lived in the Victorian era
• Married Anne Hathaway
• Many of his novels are about social inequality
2. How many plays by William Shakespeare and novels by Charles
Dickens can you name? Write them below.
Bias - being assertive
Bias is when a particular subject is preferred over an alternative. It is often used in
writing to express a specific point of view and influence the reader to agree.
Being assertive in this context is when you write with a confidence that leads the
reader to think what you say is true
I can't stand Romeo and Juliet' All that fighting over a pointless argument leaves me
with little sympathy for either side Moreover, sending must be the most frustrating
ever in a play I really cannot see the appeal of such a grim story.
In the extract above the bias is created by:
• the dismissive tone - 'can't stand' and 'all that fighting'
• the negative assertions - 'pointless argument'; 'little sympathy'; 'most frustrating
ever'; 'grim story'.
• By changing some key words, the bias can be positive. Rewrite the extract in favour
of the play.
'I love/thoroughly enjoy Romeo and Juliet. Even the fighting is exciting and makes me
sympathise with both sides/feel sorry for Romeo. The ending is so sad. I can perfectly
understand the appeal of such a wonderful story.
2. Here are some assertions that create bias. Place each in the most appropriate box:
dull and boring
completely absorbing
completely irrelevant
Positive bias
fascinating and complex
endlessly tiresome
a new low point
rarely encountered worse
thought-provoking
a magical experience
surprisingly engaging
Negative bias
weak and insipid
• Positive bias • Negative bias
fascinating and dull and boring; rarely
complex; a'must-see' encountered worse;
event; completely weak and insipid;
absorbing; thought- endlessly tiresome;
provoking; a magical completely irrelevant;
experience; a new low point.
surprisingly engaging.
Synonyms and antonyms
• A word that has similar meaning to another word is called a synonym.
• An antonym is a word that is the opposite of another word:
Original word Synonym Antonym
Question Query Answer
Answer Response question
strong Fortified Weak
enemy Foe Friend
begin Start End/finish/complete
difficult Tricky Easy
angry Irate Calm
Hate Loathe Love
Child Juvenile Adult
lose Mislay Find/encounter
Creating a caricature
A caricature is an exaggerated version of a character.
Take Miss Havisham as an example:
The clocks were stopped at the moment she heard she had been abandoned by her husband-to-be.
She remains in the same half-dressed state as when she heard the news.
* She has worn the same wedding dress for decades.
* The room she sits in hasn't changed or been cleaned since that day.
She never leaves her house.
She hates all men.
* Her skin is as yellow as the once-white dress.
1. List the words you would use to describe Miss Havisham in the box above.
2. Dickens creates memorable characters by exaggerating their appearance and actions.
Write your own caricature of one of these:
⚫ a grumpy old lady
⚫ an angry young man
⚫ a spoilt child.
You can use a separate sheet of paper to write down your ideas before beginning your description
below.
• Mrs. Mildred Crabapple, a grumpy old lady, has perfected the art of scowling at
anyone who dares to disturb her peace. Her face is etched with deep lines of
disapproval, and her eyebrows are permanently furrowed in irritation. She
walks hunched over, wielding her cane like a weapon against the world. She
lives in a creaky old house that matches her sour disposition. The curtains are
always drawn, casting a gloomy shadow over every room. The walls are
adorned with faded wallpaper from a bygone era, reflecting her reluctance to
embrace any modernity.
Amazing arts
Semi-colons
There are three reasons to use a semi-colon:
A as a kind of 'super' comma to mark an important break in a sentence
B to separate a series of connected issues
C to separate two contrasting or balanced clauses.
1. Decide which reason applies in each of these sentences by writing the capital letter in
the box.
a Pip is my favourite character in Great Expectations; Miss Havisham is the least enjoyable. 3
b Shakespeare set these plays in Italy: Romeo and Juliet, which is a tragedy; The Two
Gentlemen of Verona, a comedy; Much Ado About Nothing, a comedy; and The Tempest,
which is also classed as a comedy but is sometimes referred to as a romance. 2
c I was told by a friend I wouldn't like Hamlet; I won't listen to him again! 1
d These are my favourite quotations from Shakespeare's work: 'To be or not to be' from
Hamlet, 'All the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players' from As You Like
It, 'Now is the winter of our discontent' from Richard III; and 'What's in a name? That which
we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet' from Romeo and Juliet. 4
2. Now it is your turn to write three sentences, each showing a different
use of semi-colons.
• Pip is my favourite character in Great Expectations; Miss Havisham is the
least enjoyable.
• Shakespeare set these plays in Italy: Romeo and Juliet, which is a tragedy;
The Two Gentlemen of Verona, a comedy; Much Ado About Nothing, a
comedy; and The Tempest, which is also classed as a comedy but is
sometimes referred to as a romance.
• I was told by a friend I wouldn't like Hamlet; I won't listen to him again! -
Ad These are my favourite quotations from Shakespeare's work: 'To be or
not to be' from Hamlet, 'All the world's a stage and all the men and women
merely players' from As You Like It, 'Now is the winter of our discontent'
from Richard III; and 'What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any
other name would smell as sweet' from Romeo and Juliet.
Writing a playscript - adapting a story
• Playscripts are set out differently to works of prose:
• * Each character speaks in turn in a dialogue.
• * There is no narrative description.
• * There is no need to use speech marks.
• * Stage directions guide the actors' performance.
• Adapt the extract below into a playscript. Pip is standing
before Miss Haversham in her living room. The opening two
lines have been completed for you.
"Who is it?" said the lady at the table.
"Pip, ma'am."
"Pip?"
"Mr. Pumblechook's boy, ma'am. Come to play."
"Come nearer, let me look at you. Come close."
It was when I stood before her, avoiding her eyes, that I took note of the surrounding objects
in detail, and saw that her watch had stopped at twenty minutes to nine, and that a clock in the
room had stopped at twenty minutes to nine.
"Look at me," said Miss Havisham. "You are not afraid of a woman who has never seen the
sun since you were born?"
I regret to state that I was not afraid of telling the enormous lie comprehended in the answer
"No."
"Do you know what I touch here?" she said, laying her hands, one upon the other, on her left
side.
"Yes, ma'am." (It made me think of the young man.)
"What do I touch?"
Miss Havisham (sitting at the table) who is it?
Pip (standing nervously)
Pip, ma'am.
Miss Havisham is seated at the table.
Mr. Pumblechook's boy, ma'am. Come to play.
Miss Havisham: Come nearer, let me look at you. Come close.
Pip approaches Miss Havisham, avoiding her eyes. He takes note of the surrounding
objects.
Miss Havisham: Look at me. You are not afraid of a woman who has never seen the sun
since you were born?
Pip: [hesitantly] No.
Miss Havisham: Do you know what I touch here? [lays her hands on her left side]
Pip: Yes, ma'am. [thinking of the young man]
Miss Havisham: What do I touch?
Pip: Your heart.
Miss Havisham: Broken
Amazing arts quiz
1. 'Born in 1564, died in 1616 and the writer of 37 plays' Who is this
describing?
Ans: William Shakespeare
2. 'Never before have I read such an amazing novel. It will keep you
entertained for hours.'
Why is this writing biased?
Ans: 'An amazing novel' and 'entertained for hours show positive bias.
3. What is the main difference between a synonym and an antonym?
Ans:A synonym is a word similar in meaning; an antonym is an opposite.
4. Why is Miss Havisham a caricature?
Ans: Exaggerated features (and setting)
5. When might you use a semi-colon?
Ans: . As a 'super comma'; to separate items in a list; to present a balanced
argument in a sentence
6. What technique does Dickens use to create the atmosphere in the
following extract?
Fog creeping into the cabooses of collier-brigs; fog lying out on the yards
and hovering in the rigging of great ships; fog drooping on the gunwales
of barges and small boats. From Bleak House by Charles Dickens
Repetition; use of semi-colons to create one long complex sentence; detail
that focuses on exactly how fog behaves.
7. Which four verbs help to create the atmosphere in the above extract from
Bleak House?
Ans: Creeping, lying, hovering, drooping.
8. What are four key features of a playscript?
Ans: Accept any four of: format or layout; stage directions; dialogue; no
description; no paragraphs; names of characters in margins, and so on. Also
accept any valid alternatives.