MR PIP: CLOSE READING OF CHAPTERS (THANKS TO CLASS OF 2010)
WHAT IS THE CHAPTER
ABOUT?
WHAT IDEAS ARE
PRESENT?
IMPORTANT QUOTES TO GO
WITH THE IDEAS
SPECIFIC TECHNIQUES FROM
QUOTES THAT SUPPORT IDEAS
IMPORTANT CHARACTER
INTERACTIONS
HOW DOES IT
MOVE THE
STORY/LINK TO
OTHER CHAPTERS?
Matilda describes Mr Watts and
Grace; she shows how the
Whites are seen through the
Islanders' eyes. They don't
understand the white people.
Matilda talks about her family
and then the war. It shows how
the villagers were living in fear.
1. Prejudice; making
assumptions about things
we don't necessarily
understand. Cultural
differences.
2. Mental illness and
people's responses to it.
3. War and its effects.
4. The motif of colour.
1. “Popeye was the only White for
miles around...little kids stared at him
until their iceblocks melted over their
black hands.”
2. “Our parents looked away...Mrs
Watts was as mad as a goose.”
3. “The redskins were going to choke
the island and the rebels into
submission.” “Soon the littlest kids
came down with malaria”
4. “Blue parasol” (Mrs Popeye)
“What was the difference between
these black umbrellas and the blue
parasol?” “We had grown up
believing white to be the colour of all
the important things.” “We are black
as the night. The soldiers looked like
people leached up out of the red
earth.”
1. Contrast: White, used as proper noun
and capitalised; black used as adjective,
not capitalised. Suggests superior status
of whites.
2. Simile: mad as a goose. This gives a
local comparison. Westerners would
say “mad as a hatter” but the Islanders
would not understand this reference.
They all kept chooks and geese and
geese behaved in crazy ways.
3. Symbolism: the colours are used as a
motif to represent difference.
Rhetorical question – it is am
impossible one to answer but makes the
reader think of the meaning behind it.
Black umbrellas seem to represent
Islanders – big, unsophisticated; the
parasol represents the West – delicate
and stylish.
Mr Watts and his wife. We get an
early insight into their relationship
and wonder why he pushes her
around in the trolley. The Islanders
think it's because he's a crazy White
man but as Westerners, we know
there must be some other reason
behind it.
Establishes Matilda as
the narrator. Gives some
background to the war
and Matilda's family
circumstances. Explains
why the Islanders don't
understand the Whites
which links to the
second chapter, where it
is revealed that this
ignorance is mainly
because of the Blockade
that is in effect around
the Island.
1. Beauty vs Ugliness (Mr.
Watts wants to help the
children escape from war
and bring enlightenment
and enjoyment to their
lives).
2. Cultural
differences/clash
3. The importance of
learning
4. The power of literature
5. Introduces the idea of
the parallel text and
intertextuality.
1. “I want this to be a place of light.
No matter what happens”. (Mr. Watts)
“As the rebels and redskins went on
butchering one another...we could
escape to another place.”
2. “Popeye should be teaching you
kids proper behaviour.” (Dolores)
3. “We had our minds and we had our
memories and according to Mr Watts,
that's all we needed.”
“We must clear this space and make it
ready for learning.” (Mr Watts).
4. “I had found a new friend...The
surprising thing is where I found
him...in a book.. No-one had told us
to look there for a friend.”
Mr Watts had given us kids another
piece of the world. I found I could go
back to it as often as I liked.”
1. Metaphor of “light” - in this sense it
means enlightenment and hope for the
future.
Metaphor - “escape to another place”,
meaning that they could use their
memories of the setting of Great
Expectations to take them away from
the realities of their war-affected lives.
2. None that I can think of ;-)
3. Parallel structure; complex sentence.
(“We had...”) Emphasises the
importance of what they had as well as
reminding us of how little this is.
4. Narrative point-of-view: effect is to
show the reader the life-changing
impact this had on Matilda.
Metaphor ('given us another piece of
the world”). Shows the power of
literature and how it can bring the
world to a reader who has never left
home.
Mr Watts and children: this is the
first time any of them have heard
his voice. His difference means that
they pay attention: “when he spoke,
we shut up.”
1. Cultural clash continues
2. Struggle for personal
identity/voice (Matilda,
1. “Rimy morning”; “pork pie” - GE. 1. Use of adjectives that Dolores
“Mr Watts laughed to show what a
doesn't understand; highlights the
good sport he was. I wished she could different world she and Mr Watts come
Pages 1-11
School starts after a long period
of no school because all the
teachers have left. This is the
kids' first real encounter with
“Popeye”, which introduces “Mr.
Dickens”. Matilda feels “as
though she had been spoken to
by this boy, Pip” and tries to
convey her fascination to her
mother but Dolores is suspicious
and wants Matilda to tell her
“everything about that book”. Mr
Watts realises his shortcomings
as a teachers and invites the
mums in to share their wisdom.
Pages 12-23
The mums and other family
members come in to talk to the
children about their own tales
Matilda is established as the
narrator: both and observer and a
participant. We get her child-eye
view of the way the children saw
Mr Watts and grace, as well as
snippets of adult conversation,
filling in a few of the blanks.
It introduces Mr Watts
and GE to Matilda which
ultimately affects the
lives of all the people in
the village.
Matilda, Mr Watts and Pip: she is an
observer in this section and is the
“reliable reporter” of everything
that has happened. At this stage her
relationship with Pip is a lot closer
than her relationship with Mr Watts.
Pip is her friend while Mr Watts is
still a stranger. Pip connects them.
Mums, Mr Watts and children.
Links the idea of cultural
Characters and their interactions are difference – the world of
becoming more complex and
the Islanders with their
and island stories. Mabel's mum
tells the story of the heart seed.
Great Expectations continues
with Matilda reporting back to
her mum. The language confuses
the children (e.g., “a rimy
morning”) as they have no
concept of it. Matilda's mum is
also confused by the language
and stops asking to hear about
the book because it makes her
feel stupid. Mrs Masoi tells the
class about killing food for
cooking. The redskins arrive in
the village and slaughter the
animals. Dolores comes to speak
to the class and talks about the
Bible and faith. Matilda is
embarrassed, especially when
she observes her mother's lack of
courtesy/respect towards Mr
Watts. Matilda feels herself
identifying with Pip so much that
she “enters the story” but also
realises that this will cause so
much conflict that she will
eventually have to choose
between Mr Watts and her mum.
Dolores, mums).
3. Intertextuality/the power
of literature.
4. War and its effects
5. Beauty vs Ugliness.
Pages 26-40.
Matilda relates the different
effects the redskins' visit had on
the people of the village.
Matilda's mum's response is to
intensify her efforts to pass he
family history on to Matilda. She
compares Mr Watts to the
“shining cuckoo”. More babies
die as a result of the lack of
medicine and Matilda gives a
little more background into the
copper mine. Jungle juice is
mentioned for the first time – a
locally brewed spirit with
hallucinogenic effects that can
make people behave violently.
1. Cultural
differences/stereotypes
2. Conflict and coping
3. War and its effects
4. Intertextuality connected
with beauty vs ugliness
5. The importance of
learning
6. Continuation of the
colour motif.
have found it in her heart to laugh
with him.”
2. “Gilbert...was wincing and
shuffling...” (embarrassed about his
mother).
“By the smile I knew she had entered
another world that I couldn't reach –
an adult world.” (Matilda, about her
mother).
“Faith is like oxygen” - Dolores,
trying to convince the children about
the importance of the Bible.
3. “For us, something cold was
something left in the shade or buffed
by the night air” - (discussing
meaning of “rimy morning”.
“The trouble with GE is that it's a
one-way conversation. There's no
talking back. Otherwise I would have
told Pip about my mum...”
“I knew he wouldn't hear me. I could
only follow him through some strange
country”
4. “They didn't know about guns and
redskins...the roosters only know how
to be roosters.”
“It was Black and his insides exposed
to the harsh sun that we thought
about.”
5. “We didn't care about the chooks
and roosters so much. The trees
dripped with fruit.”
from; makes Dolores feel stupid and
inadequate.
2. Verbs – help us relate to Gilbert's
predicament as many teens feel the
same as they are growing up.
Metaphor (“entered another world”) Matilda uses this again, this time to
discuss her lack of understanding of her
mother. Highlights her struggle for
identity.
Simile (“faith...”). Dolores believes so
deeply in the Bible that she is trying to
find the words to convey how
important it is. The children don't get it.
Thus, Dolores begins her struggle for
supremacy over Mr Watts.
3. Comparison of different degrees of
cold – cool vs cold. Highlights cultural
difference/lack of context for the kids
yet they are still captivated by the story.
Metaphor. Shows how deeply Matilda
has connected with the character of Pip
but for the first time, points out the
limitations of this relationship.
Metaphor again. Continues the
previous idea.
4. The effect of Black's death has an
impact on the village they they haven't
felt before – they liken Black to one of
them - “to stare at that black dog was to
see your sister or brother or mum and
dad in that same state. Foreshadowing
the later fates of Mr Watts (Matilda's
substitute dad) and Dolores.
5. Juxtaposition of the lush tropical
paradise (heaven) with the terrible acts
committed on it (hell).
fleshed out. Although the advice
from the parents seems quite
comical to us in some respects,
which the children also feel, the
inherent wisdom shines through and
is recognised by Mr Watts. It must
have stayed with Matilda also.
island wisdom is
contrasted sharply with
the world of Pip and
Dickens.
Tension develops and builds
between Matilda and her mother “she worried she would lose her
Matilda to Victorian England.
Matilda scratching Pip's
name in the sand has
fatal consequences later
when the Redskins see it
there and want to know
who Pip is.
1. and 2. “She could not see what us
kids had come to see: a kind man. She
only saw a white man. White men had
stolen her husband. White men were
to blame...”
“You cannot be any more stuck than
the only white person living among
black people.”
“He [Mr Watts] looked appalled ...we
all felt uncomfortable because Mr
Watts had been made to feel
uncomfortable.”
2. “I didn't know if I was looking at a
bad man or a man who loved me” Dolores, about her husband.
3. “The Redskins' visit affected us in
1. Anaphora/parallel structure.
Repetition of the phrase “white man”
reinforces Dolores' anger and builds the
tension.
Comparison of black and white –
emphasises difference despite Matilda's
relationship with Mr Watts.
Use of verb “appalled” - Mr Watts'
reaction is extreme as the ending of the
frigate bird story was unexpected.
Suggests he has forgotten how
Islanders combine poetry and realism.
2. Dolores explains her conflicted
feelings about Matilda's father to her;
Matilda isn't ready for this.
3. These quotes both illustrate in a
Matilda and her mother – their
conflict deepens as each is
unwilling to compromise on the
matter of Mr Watts. Dolores
description of Mr Watts as “the
offspring of the shining cuckoo” is
an extended metaphor that
highlights the difference in their
attitudes towards him because
Matilda sees him as a “kind man”.
First real dealings with
the Redskins – although
we don't meet them in
Mr Watts and Dolores: the first hint these chapter we see
of confrontation, although Mr Watts how brutal they are. We
seems oblivious at this point. He
also see that the rest of
respects Matilda's mother; she
the world has abandoned
doesn't respect him.
Bougainville.
Useful character description of
Dolores: symbolism (smile)
There is a great theme in this
chapter of Dolores' smile. “My
mum didn't smile enough. When
she did, it was nearly always in
victory” The use of the noun
“victory” here gives us an
unpleasant opinion of Dolores.
“She'd put her smile away...I knew
it to be a beautiful smile” the
metaphor of “putting the smile
away” makes us feel as though she
has chosen to become bitter and
joyless. However, Matilda's words
are quite poignant because it seems
as though she is wishing things had
been different.
Matilda and Pip – Matilda
experiences some internal conflict
over Pip and the changes he
undergoes in his teen and young
adult years.
Dolores hatred of Whites
is developed through the
comparison of Mr Watts
with the shining cuckoo.
Matilda realises,
insightfully, that it is
related to all the hurt she
has suffered through the
actions of white men.
Matilda's obsession with
Pip deepens.
The deaths of the babies
help to show the
deterioration of
Matilda continues to relate her
life to Pip's with similarities and
differences. Matilda asks her
mother about her father. The
adults continue to give their
lessons at the school: Daniel's
grandmother talks about the
colour blue; others talk about the
wind, broken dreams, remedies,
the Bible, the frigate bird, sex,
weaving and the place of women.
There is a lot of poetry in this
chapter (pp.50-57).
Pages 41-57
Matilda gets to know Mr Watts
more as a person. At the same
time, she is afraid that she is
“losing” Pip - “it worried me that
he was leaving me behind”,
referring to Pip's move to
London. She is almost jealous of
Herbert, who becomes Pip's
friend. Matilda realises there are
two Mr Watts: the one who
teaches her and the one they
knew as “Popeye” - frail, slightly
ridiculous. Mr Watts reveals that
Grace had changed her name to
Sheba although everyone on the
island calls her Grace. The
villagers hear about increasing
atrocities committed by the
Redskins. Dolores tests Matilda
on her family history and she
1. Intertextuality
2. The place of the
emigrant
3. Cultural and religious
difference
4. Conflict
5. The brutality of war.
different ways.”
“Just before Christmas, two more
babies died of malaria...All night we
listened to the mothers wailing.”
4. “I knew things could change
because they had for Pip.”
“In GE we learned how a life could
change without any warning...I
needed to see what he would change
into before I could be sure we would
remain friends.”
“I understood the importance of the
forge. The forge was home. For me it
meant bush tracks, mountains, the ripe
smell of blood, the fruits we ate...”
5. “Today, we have been lucky. We
have received a reminder that while
we might not know the whole world,
we can...make it new.” - Mr Watts
about “The colour blue” lesson.
“Some stories will help you find
happiness. Some stories teach you not
to make the same mistake twice.”
“We wanted our cousins and our
mothers and grandmothers to tell us
stuff.”
6. The colour blue (see p51) – an
extended metaphor for life.
straightforward manner how things
were – Matilda is unemotional;
reporting. She is a witness, so her
narrative point-of-view avoids emotion.
4. The idea of change (repetition of
word “change” in both these quotes)
suggests Matilda's fear of change – in
times of uncertainty, change is to be
feared. GE represents her safe world, as
opposed to the brutality of her reality.
Juxtaposition of beauty/ugliness in
Matilda's description of her home -the
lushness of the forest/fruit/sky vs the
brutality of the gutted dog, again
reported in unemotional tones.
5. Metaphor about what learning and
new knowledge can accomplish – it is
empowering.
Anaphora of “some stories” show that
there were lots of stories but that the
kids retained the gist of all of them and
understood the life lessons from them.
“We wanted...” - Matilda reinforcing
that they were both proud and
embarrassed about the efforts of their
families to help them all but the overall
sense was a hunger for learning.
6. The colour blue is a
symbol/metaphor for life on the Island
and by extension in the Pacific. When
the see ran “red” earlier it was because
of poison (copper from the mine). Red
signifies death; blue signifies life.
conditions in the village,
Mr Watts, mums/Islanders, children. despite the ability of the
Many lessons are learned in this
Islanders to survive on
sections and the stories of the
very little.
Islanders teach us a lot about not
only the individual characters (e.g.,
Daniel's toothless grandmother;
Mabel's resourceful and heroic dad
who deals with the men after
they've drunk jungle juice) but
about the Islanders of Bougainville
as a whole. Jones cleverly shows us,
rather than telling us, that these
people are clever, wise, at one with
the land, poetic and practical.
1. “It (GE) contained a world that was
whole and made sense, unlike ours.”
“Pip in the Pacific.” (Matilda's writing
of “Pip” in the sand.)
“Pip, Miss Havisham and Joe Gargery
were more a part of my life than my
dead relatives, even the people around
me.”
2. “Pip is an orphan. He is like an
emigrant... in the process of migrating
from one level of society to another.”
3. “'Mr Watts does not use the Bible,' I
said. She let that sit in the air, as if it
were a betrayal of our very safety.”
“I do not believe in the devil.” (Mr
Watts)
Dolores rant about white men, God
and the Devil on p. 67, beginning
“Some white fellas...”
“Pack the teachings of the Good Book
1. Metaphor of GE “containing” a
world. Effect: conveys just how
complete the world of GE was for the
kids and emphasises their need to
escape into it.
Alliteration (“Pip in the Pacific”).
Catchy.
Simile (comparing relatives to Pip et al)
– placing them side by side for
comparison and GE wins.
2. Simile (“like an emigrant”). He is
likening Pip to himself (an emigrant)
although Matilda doesn't realise it.
Further developed in “a change of
name is as good as a change of clothes”
- Pip changing his name to Handel but
alos Grace changing her name to
Sheba.
3. Lots of metaphor and personification
here – another example of the islanders'
Mr Watts and Matilda – this is the
first time they interact outside the
classroom situation, which develops
both of their characters and reveals
something about both. Matilda's
immense respect for Mr Watts as a
teacher is contrasted with her
reflections on him as a person
outside the classroom. Very similar
to how a lot of school students see
teachers – as one-dimensional. They
don't like to think they have a life
outside the classroom ;-)
Dolores and Matilda: Dolores
becomes increasingly desperate
about Matilda's obsession with GE
and the struggle begins for her
“soul”.
Mr Watts and Matilda
begin to develop a
deeper friendship that
goes past the classroom
but also creates more
conflict with Dolores,
leading her to take
desperate action
regarding the “hated”
book of Great
Expectations.
We hear more about the
struggle, including the
fact that the rebel
soldiers are called
“Rambos” and that the
villagers are desperate to
keep any connection
with the war away from
fails miserably although she
“knew the name of every
character she had met in Great
Expectations. Conflict between
Matilda and her mother
escalates and Dolores loses
patience. She comes to the
classroom and tries to lecture
about links (through hair braids),
showing how God and the Devil
are linked. Dolores conflict is
transferred from Matilda to Mr
Watts. A wounded Rambo arrives
and is taken away by Gilbert's
father.
Pages 58-71
into your person” (Dolores)
“Didn't she notice that when she got
onto God and the devil every kid's
face would drop?”
4. “I knew why. I knew exactly why I
had done this. But did I have the
courage to stand up for what I
believed?” (Internal conflict as well as
conflict with her mother).
“She gave me a look of pure hate...'He
isn't even a blood relative!' she
yelled.”
“That way you kids can save Mr
Watts because I am not going to be
the one.” (Dolores, regarding the
Bible).
5. “We could tell by the nervous and
strained faces of our parents that
things were changing...”
“We knew what happened to rebel
villages. They were burned down and
other things done to them that were
not spoken aloud...”
poetic way of speaking. It makes the
message lyrical and yet able to be
compared with everyday things they
understand.
4. Rhetorical question – although
answered a bit later. Effect: reflects
Matilda's inner and external conflicts.
“I am not going to save Mr Watts” Dolores foreshadowing her own
downfall, as it comes from her standing
up for Mr Watts.
5. Use of adjectives (“nervous”,
“Strained” creates tension despite the
matter-of-fact narrative style.
Foreshadowing (We knew what
happened to rebel villages...) - their
own village becomes recognised as a
rebel village because of the chain of
events that begin with Matilda writing
Pip's name in the sand.
Dolores, Mr Watts, Matilda (and the the village. The villagers
class as minor characters): although become more fearful –
the context of the lesson is about
tension is building.
island culture and religion, the way
Dolores addresses Matilda
specifically is a clear indication that
she is struggling with Mr Watts for
control of Matilda. This is ironic
because Mr Watts is oblivious to
Dolores' anguish.