Charles Dickens Essay

One lesson we witness in A Kestrel for a diddly also aims to teach the pupils about facts. all the same this lesson is taught by Farthing who is caring and a more fatherly instructor and this is communicated by his name. Mr Farthing has used his kind personality to gain some respect from the boys in the class. Although the lesson has the same satisfy as the lesson in Hard Times during the lesson it becomes frank that Farthings teaching is different.He manages to involve billy goat, who is ordinarily quite shy and lacking motivation, positively in the lesson. Farthing teaches in a more relaxed means and lets the lesson settle as well as welcoming input from the boys. He encourages billy goat to participate and makes him feel specific as he has something interesting to share. Farthing lets Billys thought tumble out and does not come him short. Billy tells all about his bird, which he has raised and trained, and Farthing seems genuinely interested Jesses, how do you spell t hat? He writes words on the board, allowing the whole class to learn about Billys unusual talent. Billy becomes the teacher for a while and as Farthing is not controlling bid Gradgrind he allows this to happen. 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 reflect the way in which Billy has nurtured Kes. The time and devotion that Billy has shown the bird is matched, although on a smaller level, by the way Farthing waits for Billy to talk and persist to question him gently as if he k immediatelys Billy has a lot to share.Another contrast between the two domesticates is the way in which Billy and his classmates behaviour changes depending on the teacher, whereas Gradgrinds pupils are always the same. The di fferent methods of teaching enclose at Billys school become obvious when the PE teacher Sugden is introduced. Sugden is a bully and again Hines has highlighted the teachers personality with his name, as Sugden is a thug. Billy dislikes PE and does not have a PE kit, as his family cannot afford to buy him one. He arrives after-hours to the lesson as he has been talking to Farthing. Instead of discreetly giving him a kit to wear Sugden mocks Billy in front of the other boys. The way in which Billy is treated provokes him to answer back and be cheeky. Sugdens verbal bullying brings out the negative aspects of Billys personality.Not only does Sugden verbally bully his pupils besides as a big man he does not hesitate to physically abuse them too. He hit Billy twice with the ball, holding it between both hands as though he was murdering him with a boulder. The whole lesson is a bullying game for Sugden. There is an absence of skills taught and so the lesson consists of a game of footba ll in which Sugden is the captain of one of the teams as well as beingness the referee. He bullies the opposing team as well as his own teammates if they make mistakes. His attitude is immature and shows no sportsmanship or fairness, two lessons which should always be reinforced in PE lessons. His negative attitude has a clear affect on the boys, who leave the lesson cold and uninspired.The command system presented by Charles Dickens is fundamental and unnecessarily harsh. However the title Hard Times makes it seem like Dickens is writing honestly about a time which lead to harsh methods of education. He highlights the naivety of the people as now teaching methods have improved and young people are encouraged to be themselves and achieve the crush that they can. Satire is used by Dickens to emphasize the mistakes of the system. Charles Dickens could of attended a school like the one in Hard Times and so I think he aims to make the problems obvious to people who otherwise might not notice the wrongs in society.Barry Hines also writes the truth about the education system in his era and I think he also aims to highlight the incorrectness of the organization. However Barry Hines writes more realistically as the book is more recent and therefore easier to relate to. both authors present systems, which now seem very wrong but at the time they were thought of as acceptable. Both books probably contain memories of the authors school days and particularly in A Kestrel for a page the scenes seem very believable. I could conclude that neither system would be justifiable now but in their time the schools seemed fair.