Of Mice and Men Study Help Main Thread

Can anybody help with key quotes for characters, there are barely any I can find?

Are they all the notes you need for A*?

I wouldn't say that, you obviously need the context and things such as an understanding of the novel, points that relate to the question, but it should help you along

I know the above quite well, except for 'points that relate to the question'.

If the question asks "How does Steinbeck make the scene so interesting?" and you write about it being shocking, it's not relating to the question, if that makes sense

What I meant is that you can't really prepare for that, as you don't know what the question will be until the exam.

Guys,
List me the most important things I need to do b4 exam tomorrow. I have 2 study guides for OMAM and AIC.
What questions are most likely to pop up?

Key scenes, characters and quotes
Have a few ideas for things you could write, look at some past paper questions to get an idea of the questions that come up

Yeah, in the exam just make sure your points relate

What about all the A* techniques (alternative interpretations and judgement on which one you prefer, effect on reader etc).

I do alternative interpretations, and always put in the effect on the reader, and sometimes do a judgement
I'd try and put as many as you could, without overloading it and making it seem like you're trying to show off or have just put everything you could put in there to the examiner

How many paragraphs are you going to write in the Of Mice and Men exam? (I'm planning on 4 developed points).

how much paragraphs for each point. And how many pages all togethor?

Here's my essay for Mr Birling:

How does Priestley present Arthur Birling in An Inspector Calls?

In Mr Birling, who represents the ruling capitalist class, Priestley portrays a character whose actions and ideology can be easily censured by the audience.

When Priestley introduces Mr Birling, he describes the head of the household as 'portentous' and 'rather provincial in speech'. Priestley exploits the different meanings of the word 'portentous', for the word could not only refer to Birling's pompous personality (which hints the actions of the character after the Inspector's departure), but also a threatening side, which has the ability to unleash misfortune. The malign and supernatural connotations of the word 'portent' highlights the Inspector's messianic role- Birling and his capitalist views are evils to humanity which must be vanquished. Both meanings of 'portentous' are stressed when Birling threatens Eric when the latter reminds him of the responsibility of the entire family in the death of Eva Smith. Instead of addressing the point, Mr Birling, being too self-centred to see the error of his ways, interrupts, 'threatening Eric' to remain silent in order or face expulsion from the house. The impression on the audience is that in Birling's (and other capitalist households), there was only a facade of unity to begin with between the members of the family, despite Birling's claim that a man has to look after his family.

However, by this point, Birling's attitude would come across as unsurprising to the audience, as Priestley had already demonstrated at the start of the play that Birling was wrong. Firstly, Birling is factually incorrect regarding his predictions. For example, Birling declares the forthcoming sailing of the Titanic, which he heralds as a testament to the progress brought by capitalism, as 'unsinkable, absolutely unsinkable'. Birling's repetition of the word 'unsinkable', the dramatic irony being that the Titanic sank on its maiden voyage, is not only a way for Priestley to remind the audience how deluded Birling is in believing in an ideology which has caused (and continues to cause) the deaths of multitudes of innocents, but also serves as a premonition to the announcement of the suicide of Eva Smith. To Priestley, the underlying reason for Birling's mistaken predictions lies in his worldview. When Birling is about to pass on his philosophy of life ("a man has to mind his own business and look after himself") to Eric and Gerald, the audience hears 'the sharp ring of a front door bell'. This is when Priestley introduces the Inspector as a dramatic device so that he can expose Birling's wrongdoings.

To the Inspector, who transcends social class and status, the fact the Birling sacked Eva Smith during his tenure of Lord Mayor at Brumley makes no difference regarding the gravity of his actions. Priestley would expect the audience to scoff at Birling’s repeated claims of being Lord Mayor for the word ‘Lord’, from the Biblical meaning, would imply a person who is benign as well as being all powerful. However, in doing so, the audience realises that Mr. Birling, who lacks any sense of morality, became an alderman (all Lord Mayors had to be aldermen) because he was elected by common people, whether directly or indirectly. Therefore, the message Priestley may have wanted to send to the audience was that ordinary people were complicit in the actions of the powerful, capitalist class by voting them in to positions in which they are meant to set an example to society.

Priestley writes that the Birlings' dining room in Act Three 'can show a small table with a telephone on it'. Since the play was set in 1912, when telephones, could be afforded only by the well-off, the telephone may just be there as a symbol of wealth and prosperity. Yet more importantly, a telephone is also a device used for communication and to connect one's household to others. The fact that the telephone is placed not long before the Inspector's didactic speech on connectivity and mutual responsibility, and remains after the Inspector's departure, could be Priestley's method of showing the audience that the Inspector's lesson still holds true during his absence. Indeed, just when Birling mocks the younger generation's foolishness for heeding the call of the Inspector, the telephone rings sharply. This reminds the audience of the ringing of the doorbell, which happened when Birling explicitly rejected the socialist idea of responsibility, and of the Inspector's message- that if we do not care for each other, we will be taught it 'in fire and blood and anguish'. This makes the audience wonder whether Birling, who has failed to change his ways, will meet this very fate after the 'real' police inspector arrives.

Amazing! how much a4 pages will that be do you think in paper?

I have a question, are the names Curley, Slim and Candy just nicknames which they refer to each other by? I can't imagine that they are real names but I might be wrong. If they are nicknames then I guess you can write about the significance of each.