Cone Gatherers Flashcards
“Hated those cones, which…
…kept them prisoner in the wood just as the snare held the rabbit” - Neil
“An icy…
…sweat of hatred” - Duror
“His stronghold…
…and sanctuary” - How Duror sees the wood
“Fortify his…
…sanity and hope”
Duror had “been repelled by…
…anything living that had an imperfection or deformity or lack”
“Duror was alone…
…in his obsession”
“Durors voice was as stripped…
…of emotion as a winter tree”
Calum “became like an animal…
…in danger with no way to escape”
Calum was “like a dog…
…in the presence of someone who has been cruel to it”
“Suddenly it was as if the burden…
…of misery was lifted from him” - Duror after he thinks Peggy is dead
“Calum flung himself…
…upon the deer, clasped it round the neck, and tried to comfort it”
“We’re human beings…
…just like them” - Neil’s view on the class divide - strong dislike
“For many years his life had been stunted…
…misshapen, obscene and hideous and this misbegotten creature was its personification” - Duror. Calum is the ‘misbegotten creature’
“A destruction…
…an agony, a crucifixion” - How Duror wants to get rid of Calum
“Human beings are more…
…important than dogs”
“Walking away among the pine trees…
…with so infinite a desolation in his every step” - Duror after killing Calum and before committing suicide
“Though he smiled…
…he was dead” - Calum
“She could not pray…
…but she could weep; and as she wept pity and purified hope and joy welled up in her heart” - Lady Runcie-Campbell
“Feebleminded…
…hunchback” - Durors description of Calum
“But now the wood was…
…invaded and defiled” - Duror thinks this about the wood when Calum and Neil are in it
“Every minute had been a…
…purgatory of humiliation”
Describe the opening scene
"much sunshine" "Homely" "Branches as comfortable as chairs" "Blue sky" "A destroyer had steamed seawards"
“In the mood for…
…murder, rape or suicide” - Durors mental state going downhill
“He was as dependent on his brother as…
…if he was blind” - Calum dependent on Neil
“She’s a good woman really…
…but she’s got a code to live by” - Tulloch
“Overspreading tree of revulsion”
Overspreading - overwhelm him and affect others
Revulsion - powerful word of disgust
“He had waited…
…over an hour to see them pass” - Duror
“You told me yourself…
…never to be quiet if I saw injustice being done” - Roderick
What did Duror do to the deer?
“Cut its throat savagely”
“He was like a tree still straight, still showing green leaves, but underground death was creeping along the roots”
Duror after getting stuck in tree
Describe Durors appearance after the deer drive
“Appearance of a drunk man”
“Unshaven”
Says he has had a bad night - because of Peggy
Themes
War
Nature
Religion
Class
What does Duror represent?
Evil
What does Calum represent?
Good, innocence
What does Lady Runcie-Campbell represent?
The struggle between maintaining social class or trying to live in Christian fashion, treating all with compassion as her judge father taught her
What quotation is used to describe Calum’s position when he is dead?
“Dangled in macabre gestures of supplication”
“For a long time he dreaded this loss of control…
…and now it was happening” - Duror
