Heroes Revision ‘I really believe that most people hide who they really are and I think we all have hidden lives.’ Robert Cormier

Quick Quiz 1.Why does Francis wear a scarf and baseball hat? 2. Why was the Rec centre thought of as the Wreck Centre? 3. Why was Joey LeBlanc unlucky? 4. Which old movie star is Larry compared to? 5. What sport was Francis a champion at? 6. What was Nicole compared to by Francis? 7. Who recognises Francis at the St Jude’s club? 8. Which country does Francis fight in? 9. Why does Larry join up? 10. What is Larry’s weakness? (quotation)

Answers 1.To hide his injuries and to hide his identity in Frenchtown 2.Wreck – it wrecks lives – the bride was killed 3.Died at Iwo Jima 4.Fred Astaire 5.Table Tennis 6.A statue of St Therese 7.Arthur Rivier 8.France 9.Pearl Harbor 10.‘the sweet young things’

Themes Heroes has some very clear themes: Heroism War Growing up Love Guilt Forgiveness Loneliness Appearance and reality

Activity Taking one theme at a time, complete the following: The first time in the text when you, as a reader, become aware of the theme (it may even be indicated in the title) How the chosen theme is shown through characters and relationships – choose specific incidents where you think the theme is particularly obvious How your chosen theme is shown through evens that happen throughout the story How your chosen theme is important to the text as a whole Any occasions where your theme may be reflected in a way the text is written (its use of language, imagery, or the way it is structured)

In the exam, you will improve your answer if you: avoid the trap of just telling the story, or rewriting a response to a different question you’ve completed earlier keep a clear focus on the question throughout your response – you should be able to go through what you have written and underline a clear point that refers to the question at least once in every paragraph by using words from the question Cover the whole text

Writing about your judgements of characters Foundation tier questions are more likely to be ‘what do you think of… and the way s/he speaks and behaves at different points in the novel? Higher For which character do you have the most sympathy? For these questions, you will need to think about what the writer’s ideas about the character may have been, so look at the way the character speaks and behaves, relates to others, the language used to describe him or her, and the effect of this, and the way the character may highlight the themes of the text. A handy tip is to think about whether the character is contrasted with another character or characters, and the effect on this.

Activity 1.Decide on a character for whom you feel most sympathy. You may choose someone who has little control of his/her life, or someone who experiences a lot of problems, or someone who is misunderstood. 2.Jot some ideas about your chosen character Why you have chosen him or her The first time your chosen character appears or is mentioned in the text, and how that affects your feelings towards him or her Important moments in the story for your chosen character The relationships your chosen character has with other characters The last time your chosen character is seen or referred to and how this affects your feelings towards him or her Now write the first paragraph of your response to the question: For which character do you have most sympathy? Give reasons for your choice, and support your answer with detailed reference to the text.

Check your answer Does your paragraph make a strong clear point in the first sentence? Does it show an overview of the character’s role in the story? Have points been linked back to the question? Does the paragraph give a good idea of the direction the rest of the response is going to take?

Character questions 1.Working in pairs, choose either Larry, Francis or Nicole. 2.Make notes on the following points: key events that your chosen character is involved in how your chosen character affects the events of the story how your chosen character relates to other characters – affecting the way they behave for example how your chosen character highlights, or makes the reader aware of, the themes of the text. Write a plan for a response to the following question How is Larry/Francis/Nicole important to the novel as a whole?

In the exam, you will improve your answer if you: give a clear and focused introduction structure your response clearly, dealing with one idea at a time; it should be possible to underline the key idea in each paragraph. support each point with specific references to the text, linking back to the question each time write a strong conclusion, in which you sum up your main ideas