Year 8 Cover work 18th July 2016
L.O: Understanding society and class in the text
Look at the passages below from Act 1.
Read through the passage below with the annotations the underlined phrases
in terms of upper class.
Example:
Freddy is holding an umbrella. This
is an upper class accessory and we
can assume that he belongs to the
upper class of English society.
1. Freddy rushes in out of the rain from the Southampton Street side,
and comes between them closing a dripping umbrella. He is a young
man of twenty, in evening dress, very wet around the ankles.
Only someone from the upper
class would have alternative
clothing for evening events like
the theatre.
A poor girl from the lower classes
would have to make do with sitting
on the ground out of the way
2. She sits down on the plinth of the column, sorting her flowers, on the
lady's right. She is not at all an attractive person. She is perhaps
eighteen, perhaps twenty, hardly older. She wears a little sailor hat of
black straw that has long been exposed to the dust and soot of
London and has seldom if ever been brushed.
Rosanne Bernstein
Only someone from the lower
classes would not have access to
proper washing facilities and does
not take care of her appearance
Now read through the passages below and highlight any
particular points that suggest the class of the character to
you. (One has been done for you in each paragraph).
1 Her hair needs washing rather badly: its mousy colour can hardly be natural.
She wears a shoddy black coat that reaches nearly to her knees and is
shaped to her waist. She has a brown skirt with a coarse apron. Her boots
are much the worse for wear. She is no doubt as clean as she can afford to
be; but compared to the ladies she is very dirty. Her features are no worse
than theirs; but their condition leaves something to be desired; and she
needs the services of a dentist.
1. An elderly gentleman of the amiable military type rushes into shelter, and
closes a dripping umbrella. He is in the same plight as Freddy, very wet
about the ankles. He is in evening dress, with a light overcoat. He takes
the place left vacant by the daughter's retirement.
Rosanne Bernstein
Pick two examples that you have highlighted, one from each paragraph, using
both examples, answer the following question using PEE:
 How does Shaw show the difference between the upper class
characters and the lower class characters?
Example: (Check first sheet)
The descriptions in this Act show us that Freddy is from the upper class.
His action of ‘closing a dripping umbrella’ and wearing ‘evening dress’
clearly show his position in society as a young man enjoying an evening
out in the accepted dress for the occasion.
In Victorian times, men belonging to the upper class would have
accessories like umbrellas as well as a separate set of clothing for
attending social events like the theatre. It was also an upper class
pastime to go to the theatre.
Writing task:
Write a monologue for Eliza, the flower girl, describing her experiences
that evening in the rain, whilst selling her flowers.
Success Criteria:
 Standard English or Eliza’s form or speech
 I side of writing
 Include an incident that happened in the play so far
Rosanne Bernstein