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Understanding Little Man's Character in 'Roll of Thunder' by Mildred D. Taylor, Lecture notes of English Literature

An extract from mildred d. Taylor's novel 'roll of thunder, hear my cry.' the text focuses on the character of little man, the youngest brother of cassie, stacey, and christopher-john. The extract reveals little man's meticulousness, neatness, and intrigue towards school despite his siblings' reluctance. The document also includes instructions for answering questions related to language techniques and structural analysis. Students will be assessed on their ability to identify and understand these techniques in the text.

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2021/2022

Uploaded on 09/12/2022

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Exam Revision: Cultural Cry
Extract from ‘Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry’ by Mildred D. Taylor
'Little Man, would you come on! You keep it up and you're gonna make us late.'
My youngest brother paid no attention to me. Grasping more firmly his newspaper-wrapped notebook and his tin
can lunch of cornbread and oil sausages, he continued to concentrate on the dusty road. He lagged several feet
behind my other brothers, Stacey and Christopher-John, and me, attempting to keep the rusty Mississippi dust from
swelling with each step and drifting back upon his shiny black shoes and the cuffs of his corduroy pants by lifting
each foot high before setting it gently down again. Always meticulously neat, six-year old Little Man never allowed
dirt or tears or stains to mar anything he owned. Today was no exception.
'You keep it up and make us late for school, Mama's gonna wear you out.' I threatened, pulling with exasperation at
the high collar of the Sunday dress Mama had made me wear for the first day of school - as if that event were
something special. It seemed to me that showing up at school at all on a bright August-like October morning made
for running the cool forest trails and wading barefoot in the forest pond was concession enough; Sunday clothing
was asking too much. Christopher-John and Stacey were not too pleased about the clothing or school either. Only
Little Man, just beginning his school career, found the prospects of both intriguing.
'Y'all go ahead and get dirty if y'all wanna,' he replied without even looking up from his studied steps, 'Me, I'm gonna
stay clean.'
‘I betcha Mama's gonna "clean" you, you keep it up.' I grumbled.
‘Ah, Cassie, leave him be,' Stacey admonished, frowning and kicking testily at the road.
‘I ain't said nothing but..’
Stacey cut me a wicked look and I grew silent. His disposition had been irritatingly sour lately. If I hadn't known the
cause of it. I could have forgotten very easily that he was at twelve, bigger than I, and that I had promised Mama to
arrive at school looking clean and ladylike. 'Shoot,' I mumbled finally, unable to restrain myself from further
comment, 'it ain't my fault you gotta be in Mama's class this year.'
Stacey's frown deepened and he jammed his fists into his pockets, but said nothing.
Christopher-John, walking between Stacey and me, glanced uneasily at both of us but did not interfere. A short,
round boy of seven, he took little interest in troublesome things, preferring to remain on good terms with everyone,
Yet he was always sensitive to others and now, shifting the handle of his lunch can from his right hand to his right
wrist and his smudged notebook from his left hand to his left armpit. He stuffed his free hands into his pockets and
attempted to make his face as moody as Stacey's and as cranky as mine. But after a few moments he seemed to
forget that he was supposed to be grouchy and began whistling cheerfully. There was little that could make
Christopher-John unhappy for very long, not even the thought of school.
Your questions will be about:
1. how well you understand the extract and read the question carefully
2. how successfully you can spot language techniques
3. how successfully you can spot structural techniques
4. how well you can give your opinion on the text
Overleaf is what the questions will look like. There is guidance underneath each one; you must have a go at each
one, spending time getting it right. This is exactly how you should tackle the assessment.
pf2

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Download Understanding Little Man's Character in 'Roll of Thunder' by Mildred D. Taylor and more Lecture notes English Literature in PDF only on Docsity!

Exam Revision: Cultural Cry

Extract from ‘Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry’ by Mildred D. Taylor

'Little Man, would you come on! You keep it up and you're gonna make us late.'

My youngest brother paid no attention to me. Grasping more firmly his newspaper-wrapped notebook and his tin

can lunch of cornbread and oil sausages, he continued to concentrate on the dusty road. He lagged several feet

behind my other brothers, Stacey and Christopher-John, and me, attempting to keep the rusty Mississippi dust from

swelling with each step and drifting back upon his shiny black shoes and the cuffs of his corduroy pants by lifting

each foot high before setting it gently down again. Always meticulously neat, six-year old Little Man never allowed

dirt or tears or stains to mar anything he owned. Today was no exception.

'You keep it up and make us late for school, Mama's gonna wear you out.' I threatened, pulling with exasperation at

the high collar of the Sunday dress Mama had made me wear for the first day of school - as if that event were

something special. It seemed to me that showing up at school at all on a bright August-like October morning made

for running the cool forest trails and wading barefoot in the forest pond was concession enough; Sunday clothing

was asking too much. Christopher-John and Stacey were not too pleased about the clothing or school either. Only

Little Man, just beginning his school career, found the prospects of both intriguing.

'Y'all go ahead and get dirty if y'all wanna,' he replied without even looking up from his studied steps, 'Me, I'm gonna

stay clean.'

‘I betcha Mama's gonna "clean" you, you keep it up.' I grumbled.

‘Ah, Cassie, leave him be,' Stacey admonished, frowning and kicking testily at the road.

‘I ain't said nothing but..’

Stacey cut me a wicked look and I grew silent. His disposition had been irritatingly sour lately. If I hadn't known the

cause of it. I could have forgotten very easily that he was at twelve, bigger than I, and that I had promised Mama to

arrive at school looking clean and ladylike. 'Shoot,' I mumbled finally, unable to restrain myself from further

comment, 'it ain't my fault you gotta be in Mama's class this year.'

Stacey's frown deepened and he jammed his fists into his pockets, but said nothing.

Christopher-John, walking between Stacey and me, glanced uneasily at both of us but did not interfere. A short,

round boy of seven, he took little interest in troublesome things, preferring to remain on good terms with everyone,

Yet he was always sensitive to others and now, shifting the handle of his lunch can from his right hand to his right

wrist and his smudged notebook from his left hand to his left armpit. He stuffed his free hands into his pockets and

attempted to make his face as moody as Stacey's and as cranky as mine. But after a few moments he seemed to

forget that he was supposed to be grouchy and began whistling cheerfully. There was little that could make

Christopher-John unhappy for very long, not even the thought of school.

Your questions will be about:

_1. how well you understand the extract and read the question carefully

  1. how successfully you can spot language techniques
  2. how successfully you can spot structural techniques
  3. how well you can give your opinion on the text_

Overleaf is what the questions will look like. There is guidance underneath each one; you must have a go at each

one, spending time getting it right. This is exactly how you should tackle the assessment.

Question One How to answer it Stuck? Where to get help... List four things that you learn about Little Man from the second and third paragraphs. (My youngest brother...intruiging)

Remember which part of the text the question is asking you to look it. Simple find four quotations and list them.

Ensure that you read the extract carefully at least twice to ensure that you have the correct information.

Question Two How to answer it Stuck? Where to get help... Re-read the second, third and final paragraphs. How has the writer used language for effect?

  1. Look for the interesting words/phrases. Why are they interesting?
  2. Now look for descriptive/linguistic techniques. Which are powerful and effective and why?
  3. Answer using PEEE and try to find about 3 interesting examples of language.

Look in your exercise book at the language techniques we’ve learnt. This will help you to remember them.

OR

Go onto the website and into English. Click on the ‘Skills’ link and you will find a list of all of the language techniques to describe there. Remember, you MUST be logged in.

Question Three How to answer it Stuck? Where to get help... Now concentrate on the whole extract. How has the writer structured the extract to interest the reader?

  1. Look for the changes in setting, focus, mood and atmosphere across the paragraphs. How do they develop? What journey does the writer take you on?
  2. Can you find any structural techniques?
  3. Answer using PEEE and try to find about 3 interesting examples of language.

Look in your exercise book at the structure techniques grid from the beginning of the year when we looked at Gothic horror writing and watched the clips. This will help you to remember them.

OR

Go onto the website and into English. Click on the ‘Skills’ link and you will find a list of all of the structure techniques to describe there. Remember, you MUST be logged in.

Question Four How to answer it Stuck? Where to get help... Mildred D. Taylor once said “My father was a master storyteller. His memory detailed every event of ten or forty years or more before, just as if it had happened yesterday.” To what extent do you think that Taylor is similar to her father as a story teller?

  1. Highlight examples from the text of Taylor being a ‘master storyteller’.
  2. Take notes about how these show that she is a ‘master storyteller’.
  3. Are any of these particular techniques, eg use of dialogue, withholding information, similes...?
  4. PEEE, referring back to the question when you explain your ideas.

Look in your exercise book at the Q4 practise and examples from when we looked at Chapter 10 of ‘Things Fall Apart’. This is exactly the same type of question and the way we answered it in lessons is how you should answer this question.