Context (AQA GCSE English Literature)

There are only a maximum of six marks available in the modern text question for context. This may not seem like a lot, but six marks can be the difference between two entire grades at GCSE. Furthermore, if you understand how to effectively incorporate contextual understanding of your studied text into your essay, it can even boost your mark in AO1 too, and help you create a more sophisticated and conceptualised response.

Britain from 1945 onwards

Below is some general context related to modern Britain in which all of the writers wrote their texts. It should be stressed once again that it is not necessary, or even useful, to memorise all of this historical information, but that the notes below give a general sense of the behaviours and attitudes of the writer’s time. Remember, you should only revise those contextual factors that are relevant to the ideas and themes of the text you are studying.

The latter half of the 20th century saw many significant shifts in British culture and society. The end of the Second World War in 1945 marked a significant turning point, causing the prior society of class and Empire to disintegrate in order to address growing societal conflicts.

Class, Poverty and Inequality

• Significant changes in legislation relating to social welfare were enacted with the formation of the Welfare State
• A series of social welfare policies were introduced after the Second World War so that the vulnerable in society would be offered some protection:
  • The 1942 Beveridge Report advocated a system of social insurance for every citizen regardless of income, for example, the Family Allowances Act of 1945, the National Health Service Act of 1946
    • For example, in An Inspector Calls, Priestley sets his play at a period when the state would have offered little protection to people like Eva
• Social legislation led to widespread debates about equality and society began to advocate for further changes to the system to make it more fair for all
• Unemployment levels rose dramatically in the 1980s due to industries such as coal mines, factories, shipyards and steel mills closing down:
  • For example, in Blood Brothers, the city of Liverpool would have relied heavily on manufacturing industries and the impact of unemployment is revealed through the character of Mickey, who loses his job in a factory
• Rates of poverty and wealth in Britain changed significantly in the latter half of the 20th century and although there is less extreme poverty than previously, Britain still has high levels of inequality in terms of wealth:
  • For example, in Blood Brothers, Russell addresses ideas about social class and the effects of poverty and affluence on families through his depiction of the Johnstone and Lyons families

Immigration

• After the Second World War, Britain's economy was struggling and therefore the government promoted immigration from Commonwealth nations in order to bolster the economy
• The 1948 British Nationality Act declared all colony populations British citizens which resulted in increased immigration to Britain:
  • For example, in Leave Taking, Pinnock provides an account of a second-generation immigrant family and focuses on the different experiences between a Jamaican mother and her teenage daughters
• People arriving from Africa, the Caribbean and Asia sometimes faced racism and discrimination:
  • For example, in Anita and Me, Syal presents Meena’s encounters with racism in many different ways
• Immigrant communities introduced various music, fashion and cultural traditions to Britain, creating greater diversity:
• • For example, in Pigeon English, Kelman explores ideas about culture and assimilation and about the immigrant experience in the inner city

Racism

• Amidst pervasive social and economic issues, protests spread around England, in the 1980s, in places such as Brixton, Bristol, Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool as some sections of society believed their voices were being ignored:
  • For example, in Princess and the Hustler, Odimba specifically sets her play against the backdrop of the Bristol Bus Boycott in the 1960s, which arose when a Bristol company refused to employ Black or Asian workers
• Racial tensions meant that some of Britain's inner cities were sharply divided:
  • For example, in Anita and Me, Syal introduces ideas about racism and acceptance
• The Race Relations Act of 1976 brought about some change, as it made both direct and indirect discrimination illegal and provided legal redress for those discriminated against through employment tribunals and the courts

Gender

• The civic and social roles of women continued to be challenged and women were redefining their position in society:
  • For example, in Blood Brothers, Russell presents ideas about the importance of strong women to guide children and alludes to ideas about the unreliability of men
• Feminism in Britain developed in the 1960s and legislation, such as the 1969 Divorce Reform Act, allowed women greater freedoms in society:
  • For example, in An Inspector Calls, Priestley addresses ideas about patriarchy and misogyny and acceptable male behaviour towards women
• Women gained greater status in the workplace and the British government launched campaigns to encourage women to enter the labour market
• Individualism led to an increased rejection of stereotypical gender roles:
  • For example, in A Taste of Honey, Delaney presents an inversion of traditional gender roles through the characters of Jo and Geof, by subverting the idea that a woman is meant to take care of children

Audience

• If you are studying a play, then it would have an audience, and not a reader
• The audience would have comprised a wide range of social classes
• It is therefore useful to think of what their attitudes and behaviours would have been in general
  • What were the societal norms of the time?
  • How might these audiences have thought about topics like:
    • Social reform?
    • Racism?
    • Feminism?
    • Immigration?
    • Inequality?
  • These topics should relate to the text you have studied
  • Are the writers using the characters, or events in their texts, to reflect, or challenge these societal norms?

What not to do when exploring context

• Do not “bolt-on” irrelevant biographical or historical facts to your paragraphs
• Do not see context as history:
  • It is better understood as ideas and perspectives
• Do not explore contextual factors in your essay if they are not:
  • Relevant to the ideas and themes of the text in general
  • Relevant to the question you have been set
  • Relevant to the central thesis of your own argument 
• Do not only add context at the end of paragraphs, or in some set paragraph structure that includes context:
  • It is much better to incorporate contextual understanding into your argument, or into your analysis of the writer’s methods
• Do not include the formulation “A 20th-century audience would think… whereas a modern audience would think”:
  • This takes you away from you own ideas, and from answering the question directly
• Do not include analysis of adaptations of the text (for example a film version):
  • This will affect your focus on answering the question
• Do not include interpretations of the text based on literary theory (for example Marxist, feminist, Freudian and Nietzschean theories):
• • These do not contribute to your own interpretation of the text!

What to do when exploring context

• Ensure all your exploration of context is linked to:
  • The themes and ideas the writer is exploring in the text
  • The question you have been set
  • Your own argument
• Understanding that context is about understanding ideas and perspectives
  • Think: what were the particular attitudes and behaviours of the writer’s time that give a greater understanding of a theme or character?
  • Do these societal norms help explain a character’s actions, or development, over the course of the text?
  • Is there a reason why the writer is exploring a theme? Do they want to reflect or challenge their society’s attitudes on a particular issue?
• Some of these ideas are universal:
  • Your own understanding of the following ideas are valid and useful to explore:
    • Gender
    • Class
    • Racism
    • Feminism
    • Immigration
  • Exploration of universal ideas and perspectives is equally valid, and awarded marks for context in the same way