Miss Lucy, The Cottages and Ruth's Possible Flashcards
Prose Revision
‘She said we weren’t being __________ enough’ (page 29)
taught
Which character believes that the clones aren’t ‘being taught enough’ (page 29)
Miss Lucy
she looked like a crouching ___________ waiting to pounce’ (page 78)
animal
Who is described as ‘like a crouching ___________ waiting to pounce’ (page 78)
Miss Lucy - just before she speaks to the clones about how they have been ‘told and not told’ (page 79)
‘The problem, as I see it, is that you’ve been ________ and not ___________’ (page 78)
told
How does Ishiguro use pathetic fallacy during the part where Miss Lucy speaks to the clones?
He repeatedly refers to the ‘downpour’, as well as the ‘rainy sky’ and how ‘the rain kept going’ (page 78). This heavy rain perhaps symbolises the clones being suddenly exposed to a harsh and unignorable truth.
What technique is used here? ‘None of you will go to America, none of you will be film stars,. And none of you will be working in supermarkets’ (page 80)
anaphoric repetition
‘None of you will go to America, none of you will be film stars,. And none of you will be working in __________’ (page 80)
supermarkets
What event concludes part one of the novel?
Miss Lucy leaving Hailsham
Why does Ishiguro conclude part one of the novel with Miss Lucy leaving Hailsham?
It represents the literal and metaphorical end of a chapter.
‘Tommy’s eyes looked _________’ (page 109)
empty
At what point does Ishiguro describe that ‘Tommy’s eyes looked empty’?
When Miss Lucy leaves Hailsham at the end of part one. Miss Lucy is shown to have a close relationship with Tommy, as she reassures him, ‘if I didn’t want to be creative…that was perfectly alright’ (page 23)
Why does Ishiguro place the setting of The Cottages straight after Hailsham?
Ishiguro does this to juxtapose these two environments. Although Hailsham is perhaps not as idyllic as Kathy suggests, it is much more better than the bleak and inhospitable environment of The Cottages.
What is the caretaker at the cottages called?
Keffers
Who do the clones try to think of ‘as a sort of guardian’ although he is described as ‘having none of it’ (p115)
Keffers
‘the cottages were the remains of a __________ that had gone out of business’ (page 114)
farm
What is the significance of the cottages being described as ‘the remains of a farm’ (page 114)
It conveys how the clones are seen as other and inhuman. It also links to how the clones are ‘farmed’ for their organs.
‘the outlying ones, that were virtually _________ / ___________’ (page 114)
falling down
Which setting is being described here? ‘the outlying ones, that were virtually falling down ‘ (page 114)
The cottages
Why does Ishiguro describe that the cottages were ‘virtually falling down’ (page 114)
It conveys the lack of care given to the clones. The cottages, like Kingsfield, present that the cloning programme has been rushed without proper thought given to suitable facilities.
‘He didn’t like to ________ to us much’ (page 114)
talk
Who is being described here? ‘He didn’t like to talk to us much’ (page 114)
Keffers
What is the significance of Keffers’ dismissive attitude towards the clones?
Keffers is an embodiment of the way that wider society sees the clones.
Why does Ishiguro describe the cottages as being ‘chilly’ (page 115), ‘really cold’ (page 115) and ‘the rough ground frozen bone hard’? (page 116)
The repeated links to the cold convey how, at the cottages, the clones become exposed to the harshness of the real world for the first time, which juxtaposes Hailsham and part one.
‘We could see hills in the distance that reminded us of the ones in the distance at Hailsham, but they seemed to us oddly _________’ (page 116)
crooked
Why does Kathy describe how the ‘hills in the distance’ at the cottages ‘reminded us of the ones in the distance at Hailsham, but…oddly crooked’ (page 116)
It conveys how the cottages are similar to Hailsham, albeit a distorted and much less welcoming version.
'’There was a great big ___________ front at street level…a large open-plan office’ (page 156)
glass
What is the significance of the open-plan office being glass?
It represents a life of freedom and humanity that the clones can see, but never truly achieve.
‘the potted palms, the __________ machines and the swooping desk lamps’ (page 156)
shiny
Why does Ishiguro describe the open-plan office like this: ‘the potted palms, the shiny machines and the swooping desk lamps’ (page 156)?
The listing represents the modern and comfortable setting of the open-plan office, which contrasts the old and out of date environment of the cottages.
‘smart, cosy __________ - ____________ world’ (page 156)
self-contained
Which setting is described as a ‘smart, cosy self-contained world’ (page 156)
the glass open-plan office
What is the significance of the glass office, where the clones see Kathy’s possible, being ‘open plan’?
It represents a sense of freedom, and juxtaposes the restrictions that the clones face.
‘We’re modelled from __________. Junkies, prostitutes, winos, tramps.’ (page 164).
trash
What technique is used here: ‘We’re modelled from trash. Junkies, prostitutes, winos, tramps.’ (page 164)?
The listing conveys Kathy’s anger and pain, as she realises that she will never find her ‘possible’, and therefore never claim a human identity.
But now, in that gallery, the woman was too ____________, much _____________than we’d ever really wanted’ (page 161)
close/closer
‘This broke the __________ and we took to our heels’ (page 157)
spell
What event in 1997 may have influenced the novel?
The cloning of Dolly the sheep, the first mammal to be cloned.
Dolly The Sheep was cloned in 1997 by a scientist from Scotland - how is this idea explored in the novel?
Miss Emily describes how places like Hailsham were closed due to the dubious work of a scientist called James Morningdale, who ‘carried on his work in a remote part of Scotland [and] wanted to offer people the possibility of having children with enhanced characteristics’
How did the cloning of Dolly the sheep in 1997 lead to more widespread fears about biotechnology?
Some people became concerned about the prospect of ‘designer babies’ and human genetic modification.
How might Dolly the sheep have influenced the novel?
Dolly the sheep was the first mammal to be cloned (in 1997). This led to more widespread societal fears about the possibilities of human cloning and genetic modification.
