Discuss the Character of Sissy Jupe and How Her Character Is Based Along the Main Themes of Hard Times
Discuss the character of Sissy Jupe and how her character is based along the main themes of Hard Times
In Hard Times the character, Sissy, is first mentioned in Mr. Gradgrind’s classroom. She seems to be the one student who doesn’t get swayed by his ways, ways that only use fact. Knowing this, Dickens wrote the novel making her character play out one of the main themes and issues, the idea of a fact only life with no fancy. Sissy also plays out some of the morals within the storyline. When the reader is first introduced to Sissy, she is in the class room in her school and her teacher is Mr. Gradgrind. He says, ‘Girl number 20’ In Victorian Times teachers would not care about individual teaching but teach the class by ‘parrot teaching’. This is where the teacher states a fact and the children repeat. Some readers think this quote shows the reader that Mr. Gradgrind is not interested in the children individually, he is only interested in the fact that there are ‘vessels’ who need to be filled with facts. Although other readers believe that Mr. Gradgrind would prefer not to get emotionally attached to the children as it may make him biased to some students- although later in the book we find that Gradgrind’s children are mentioned, the reader discovers that his children never heard, ‘…the silly jingle, Twinkle, twinkle, little star; how I wonder what you are!’ Already the reader recognizes that Gradgrind teaches his school children the same way in which he teaches his own, this is a recipe for disaster.
Gradgrind teaches his own children in the same way so doesn’t get emotionally attached to any children not even his own. Although most people believe that Mr. Gradgrind prefers to teach fact and only fact in the quickest way possible, not learning their names, so that he gives the children the best start in life. This proves to be an important part of the storyline later on in the novel, as the reader discovers that his ‘fact only’ ways of teaching lead to
In Hard Times the character, Sissy, is first mentioned in Mr. Gradgrind’s classroom. She seems to be the one student who doesn’t get swayed by his ways, ways that only use fact. Knowing this, Dickens wrote the novel making her character play out one of the main themes and issues, the idea of a fact only life with no fancy. Sissy also plays out some of the morals within the storyline. When the reader is first introduced to Sissy, she is in the class room in her school and her teacher is Mr. Gradgrind. He says, ‘Girl number 20’ In Victorian Times teachers would not care about individual teaching but teach the class by ‘parrot teaching’. This is where the teacher states a fact and the children repeat. Some readers think this quote shows the reader that Mr. Gradgrind is not interested in the children individually, he is only interested in the fact that there are ‘vessels’ who need to be filled with facts. Although other readers believe that Mr. Gradgrind would prefer not to get emotionally attached to the children as it may make him biased to some students- although later in the book we find that Gradgrind’s children are mentioned, the reader discovers that his children never heard, ‘…the silly jingle, Twinkle, twinkle, little star; how I wonder what you are!’ Already the reader recognizes that Gradgrind teaches his school children the same way in which he teaches his own, this is a recipe for disaster.
Gradgrind teaches his own children in the same way so doesn’t get emotionally attached to any children not even his own. Although most people believe that Mr. Gradgrind prefers to teach fact and only fact in the quickest way possible, not learning their names, so that he gives the children the best start in life. This proves to be an important part of the storyline later on in the novel, as the reader discovers that his ‘fact only’ ways of teaching lead to