History boys characters Flashcards
Characteristics of Hector
-Refuses to conform to modern teaching methods
-Teaches for life skills, not exam results
-Likes art, literature and media
-Eccentric
-Gropes students
-Has power over the boys
Characteristics of Irwin
-Hired to get the boys into Oxbridge
-Sees history as a game that can be manipulated
-Becomes a spin doctor for politicians then a TV presenter
-Lied about having been to Oxford
-Is attached to Dakin
-Boys have power over him
Characteristics of Mrs Lintott
-Concentrates on facts
-Neutral with other teachers
-Feminist
-Only woman on stage
Character of the headmaster
-Presented as a fool
-Mocked by the boys and the teachers (French scene)
-Out of touch with students
-Sexually harasses his secretary, Fiona
-Gets blackmailed by Dakin about Fiona
Characteristics of Posner
-In love with Dakin
-Confides in Irwin about Dakin
-Jewish, small, homosexual.
-Doesn’t fit in with the boys and Hector (never picked to ride Hector’s bike)
-Gets a scholarship at Cambridge because of his answer on the holocaust, despite being Jewish
Characteristics of Dakin
-Leader of the boys
-Hector and Irwin’s favourite
-Loved by Posner
-Most advanced (one of the 2 boys having sex)
-Manipulative (blackmails headmaster about Fiona)
-Doesn’t care about people like Posner and Fiona
-Immoral (ends up as a tax lawyer)
Characteristics of Scripps
-Acts as a narrator (introduces many scenes and characters as well as being told secrets by Dakin and Posner which he tells the audience)
-Doesn’t take part in the action; just observed and reports which suits his career as a journalist
-Background part as a piano player while other boys sing
Characteristics of Rudge
-Least clever and regarded as a lost cause
-Gets into Oxford
-Most hardworking and obedient out of the boys
-Hardworking personality makes him a self made man in the building industry
-Looked down on by others but is proud of himself and his career
-Excels at sports
-Challenges the patronisation from the boys and the teachers.
-Sits on the floor in the class photograph, representing his place among the boys
Characteristics of Timms
-Class clown
-Teases Irwin
Characteristics of Lockwood, Akthar and Crowther
-Not strong personalities
-Provide quick witted banter in classes
What makes Irwin different?
-He teaches the boys to prove ideas that are contrary to popular belief.
-Didn’t have the social status or grades to get into a prestigious school for undergrad studies.
-Made to be an outsider as he is new to all the other characters who already know each other.
-He’s secretly gay and has a crush on Dakin.
-In the beginning, the boys make fun of him.
Why might Irwin be presented as a ‘villain’?
-He lied about doing his undergrad studies at Oxford to get the job.
-He teaches the boys to bend the truth in order to get better grades.
-His views on the holocaust were controversial as Hector thought it shouldn’t be written about in exams.
Why might Irwin be seen as a ‘hero’
-He taught the boys how to improve their grades which got them into Oxbridge.
-He was kind to the boys.
-Was only teaching them unethical ways of getting good grades to keep his job with the headmaster.
What makes Hector different?
-He loves literature, poems and movies.
-Often speaks in quotes.
-Is married to a woman but touches his male pupils.
-Hector teaches the boys life skills, not how to get good grades.
Why might Hector be presented as a ‘villain’?
- He touches his students
- His teaching methods are outdated
- He hits the boys with a book for using the word ‘nancy’ (homophobic word)
