74. Choose a film or television drama in which a central character is
in difficulty.
Briefly explain what the difficulty is, and then discuss how the
programme makers’ presentation of the character’s difficulties
enhances your understanding of a central concern of the text.
PLAN
Presentation of difficulties
‘the outing’ to the crematorium
Loss of her mother and the pen
(symbolism / personification /
editing / close-up shot)
Speculating about the neighbours
/ kiddy – the window (lighting /
symbolism), net curtains
(medium shots)
Inability to stop letter writing –
leads to police (soundtrack /
zooming in and close up to show
emotional state)
Sent to prison (mise-en-scene /
contrast / irony)
Understanding central concern
of loneliness / isolation
No close friends
Sees it as social event
Void filled by pen – link to the
outside world
One-way view of the world /
nobody sees in – lonely – only
interaction is speculation
Emotional impact of isolation
Happier in prison than she was
when she was ‘free’ at home.
Understanding
Analysis
Evaluation
‘A Lady of Letters’ is a TV Drama which was written by Alan Bennett
and directed by Giles Foster. The main character, Irene Ruddock, is a
lonely, middle-aged woman who is in difficulty. Because she has no
close friends or family, she is lonely and ends up meddling in the lives
of others. This then gets her into trouble with the police, because of
the carnage her spurious allegations and damaging assumptions
cause. Ultimately this results in her being sent to prison. The
programme makers’ presentation of these difficulties enhances the
viewer’s understanding of the central concern of the text – which is
the theme of isolation and its damaging impacts.
Irene’s difficulties are introduced in the opening sequence of the
programme. In this sequence we see her describing her ‘outing’ to
the crematorium. Her use of the word ‘outing’ suggests that she sees
it as a social event instead of a time to mourn – highlighting the fact
that she doesn’t have much contact with other people, and grasps
any opportunity for social interaction. She also states that she didn’t
know the deceased woman all that well, and makes some spurious
links between them, showing us that she lacks meaningful
connections to other people.
The use of mise-en-scene in the opening sequence develops the idea
of Irene being cut off and lonely. Her front room is show to be very
drab and dull looking because of the lack of colour and this reflects
her dull, uneventful life. We notice that the room only has furniture
for one – with one armchair, suggesting that she never has visitors or
reason to entertain others in her home.
Symbolism is used to show that the loss of Irene’s mother has had a
major impact on her. We see this through the use of her pen, which
has incredible significance to Irene – it is her last memento of her
mother (it was a gift from her before she died). The pen is
emphasised through the use of a close-up shot, and editing as it is
the opening shot after the screen ‘fades to black’ after the opening
scene. Irene personifies the pen by referring to it as ‘a real friend’.
This pen symbolises not only a link to her mother, but also her only
link to the outside world as she uses it to write letters of
communication. The significance of her pen helps the audience to
realise just how lonely Irene is – she has no-one in her life and has to
fill this void with her pen and letter-writing (we realise just how
prolific her letter-writing is from the list she gives us in the opening
sequence of all the correspondence she has entered into of late).
The window in Irene’s front room is another symbolic feature.
Lighting is used to draw our attention to it as it is the only source of
light in the room, and this creates contrast with the darkness of the
front room. The director also uses medium shots to show the
window as the main feature in the room, and Irene is often shown
sitting beside it, looking out. The window symbolises Irene’s only
connection with the outside world, but it also forms a barrier
between her and the rest of society – she is only an observer she
doesn’t interact. This continues to help the viewer appreciate Irene’s
social isolation as we realise that she desperately wants to be a part
of the world outside her window, but she can’t. She spends a lot of
time speculating about her neighbours and becomes concerned
about the welfare of the ‘kiddy’ living opposite. We later learn that
her concerns are seriously misplaced after she wrongly accuses the
neighbours of child neglect. This emphasises her loneliness and
isolation once more, as we realise that she doesn’t really know
people and she speculates about them, rather than finding out the
truth.
A key sequence in the programme is when we see Irene sitting in the
police station. This scene is very dramatic as we learn the real extent
of Irene’s meddling and discover that she has been given a final
warning by the police. Irene’s isolation is again emphasised here and
we start to see how upset she is by everything that has happened.
The camera slowly zooms in to a close-up, showing her emotional
expression and we also hear her voice breaking with emotion as she
tells us that the neighbours’ kiddy has died from leukaemia – not
neglect – as she wrongly assumed. In this scene we really start to
appreciate the emotional impact that Irene’s isolation has had on
her, and real sympathy is evoked for her situation. She really does
not seem to appreciate the impact of her interference on others until
it is too late – her lack of socialisation means that she is unable to
empathise or consider alternative points of view (an idea which is
also emphasised through the use of the monologue narrative –
where we always see things from Irene’s perspective).
The climactic final sequence of the programme shows us Irene in
prison, where she has been sent after failing to resist the urge to
write another letter (this time making allegations about a local police
officer). Contrast is used effectively in this scene to show us how
different Irene’s life has become. The lighting is much brighter,
Irene’s clothing is more colourful and the close-ups of her face show
her expression to be much more animated and happy. The mise-enscene contrasts completely with that used in her dull, lifeless front
room. This all shows how much better Irene’s life now is. Ironically
she has found true happiness and freedom to express herself in a
positive way in prison, where she has made new friends and taken
up hobbies. Before she was isolated and lonely, but now she feels a
part of something and can start to live her own life, without being
preoccupied by meddling in others’ affairs.
The final scene of the programme really emphasises this change in
Irene as the final close-up of her shows us her smiling and saying the
words, ‘I’m really happy.’
Throughout the programme Irene’s difficulties are presented to the
audience. We see that she has no friends or family to support her,
and that she lives an isolated and uneventful life. This all causes her
to start speculating and meddling in the lives of others, which in turn
lands her in trouble with the law.
However, it is when we see her in the prison that we fully appreciate
the damaging extent of her isolation in the outside world. She was
trapped in her old existence in her front room, but now she has
experienced the freedom that socialising and getting to know people
brings, and we see her find true happiness in the last place you
would expect. This helps the viewer to appreciate just how damaging
social isolation can be for those who experience it, and reminds us
how important it is to ensure that nobody in our society is
overlooked, or left to suffer alone as Irene Ruddock was.