step by wicked steps f5 notes.doc

7/21/2019 Step By Wicked Steps F5 Notes.doc

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Step By Wicked Steps Form 5 English Literature

Notes

Step by Wicked Step - Synopsis

This novel is really fve stories within a story that are induced by a story, like a

nesting puzzle. So, we have six stories in the book. There may be a lack o a principal

plot here but it is o no consequence as the novels main purpose is to serve as a orum

or six various stories o !ichard "layton #arwick, "laudia, "olin, !alph, $ixie and

!obbo.

%n Step by &icked Step, fve boys and girls fnd themselves in an old house on a

stormy night. %n a hidden tower room they discover an old diary that o !ichard "layton

#arwick, who let behind a 'ournal account o his wicked stepather. !ead and &eep

says the spidery writing on the cover o the book. (ter !ichard "layton #arwicks ather

passes away, he was sent to )ordanger School or our long years. #e wishes to burn

)ordanger to ashes as to him, theres no meaner place on earth than this boarding

school. &hen he returns to *ld #arwick #all, he could not get along with his wicked and

loveless stepather, !everend "oldstone. +eing robbed o all his precious tokens rom

home, !ichard makes the decision to leave and become a cabin boy on a great ship. #is

decision has caused anguish in his mother and sister, who have spent a ortune seeking

his return. #e did not return to see his mother or sister until he read a square print rom

!iddle -look which requested him to claim his ownership to *ld #arwick #all. +y then,!ichard knows that his stepather, mother and sister have passed on. *nly then, he

realises his decision to leave has changed the lives o his amily members.

#arwicks story prompts "laudia, "olin, !alph, $ixie and !obbo to tell their own

tales o stepathers, stepmothers, and stepsiblings, who are in turn eccentric, beloved,

unwelcome, and almost always misunderstood. ach vignette /descriptive passage

within a larger work0 is a wonderul study o human nature. (s the lightning 1ashes, the

children begin to relate their own tales o step parents, stories that are ull o warmth

and humour, yet with a air share o sadness. (t frst it seems the children could have

nothing in common. Sports2mad !obbo, quick2witted !alph, sensible "laudia, fery $ixie

and dreamy "olin seem as di3erent to each other as it is possible to be. 4et they soon

fnd they have one thing in common, and that they are all the products o broken homes

and they once have a turbulent relationship with a step2 or steps2.


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Richard's Story !he "aptain#

2 $ixie reads !ichards story

2 veryone is upset when !ichards ather has a ever

2 !everend "oldstone is always around

2 !ichard does not cry at all

2 (ter his athers death, his mother marries "oldstone

2 !ichard eels like a stranger in his own house

2 "oldstone sends him to )ordanger School or our years

2 &hen he comes back home, he cant get along with "oldstone

2 "harlotte tries to get him to compromise with "oldstone

2 !ichard leaves the house and became a cabin boy

2 5ater, he is promoted to "aptain

2 #e tries to go home but never goes inside

2 *ne day, he fnds out everyone is looking or him

2 #e has inherited *ld #arwick #all

2 #is mother has died o heart break

2 #is mother has never stopped searching or him that "oldstone is urious

2 5ater, "oldstone dies in ury

2 "harlotte marries to a wealthy man in order to keep looking or !ichard

"laudia's Story !he Father's $%air#

2 "laudias parents are unhappily married

2 #er ather is having an a3air with Stella.

2 #er ather moves out to 6rannys house so she visits him there

2 #owever, her ather spends a lot o time with Stella

2 "laudia complains to 6ranny so 6ranny has a big row with "laudias ather

2 "laudias ather moves out to Stellas house2 She reuses to give Stella a chance to get close to her

2 *ne night, her athers riends come over or supper

2 They ignore Stella

2 (t frst, "laudia reuses to 'oin them. Then, she sneak downstairs

2 She fnds out the guests are ignoring Stella

2 "laudia puts on the green py'amas and shows it o3 to the guests

2 She tells everyone that Stella has bought it or her

2 Thus, her athers riends accept Stella

2 This makes the beginning o new riendship between "laudia and Stella


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&iie's Story !he &ains#

2 $ixie has a step amily when her ather remarries

2 #e marries 5ucy who has < daughters

2 $ixie visits them twice a month

2 She hates her two stepsisters. #etty and Sophie

2 They annoy her in everything that they do

2 #etty shares a room with $ixie

2 *ne day, $ixie has a fght with Sophie during the holiday

2 $ixie eels that #etty is everyones doing

2 She tells a ghost story to righten her. Then, she tries semi silent treatment

2 #etty complains to her mother and 5ucy tries to resolve the con1ict

2 $ixies burst out, voice her unhappiness

2 #er ather hears all this but does not want to get involved

2 This makes 5ucy urious

2 (ter much shouting both cry and make up

2 They try to be a happy amily ater this incident

2 $ixie still fnds her stepsisters irritating but is able to tolerate them now

Robbo's Story $nnoying (umpa#

2 !obbos parents divorce when he is = years old

2 +eore this, they quarrel a lot

2 #is sister, "allie tries to make them stop

2 She is very hurt by their rows

2 5ater, )other marries !oy and have young son, 9umpa

2 "allie hates her stepather and calls him, The +eard

2 !oy becomes bossy ater 9umpa is born

2 "allie cannot accept this2 She is delighted when !oy has a row with )other

2 !obbo tries to meditate between !oy and "allie but ails

2 "allie tries to get her parents back together by arranging chance meetings but ails

2 *ne day, "allie pushes her bike in a narrow space between !oys car and the bushes.

She almost scratches

!oys car

2 !oy was urious and )um tells !oy to leave "allie alone

2 !oy stops sending "allie to school

2 9umpa only listens to his ather

2 *ne day, ater a big fght, he ollows !oy outside into the cold weather

2 &hen his mother asks him to come in, he reuses.

2 "allie also tries but 9umpa only listens to !oy


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2 "allie then moves to her athers house

2 9ad agrees and even helps look ater 9umpa while his ex2wie and !oy take a break

S$)&LE *+ES!,NS

./ "haracter you like the most0

The novel that % have read is Step by &icked Step by (nne -ine. The character that %

like the most is "olin.

% like him because "olin shows maturity beyond his age. (lthough "olin is perhaps

too young to understand the con1ict aced by the adults, he has deep hidden eelings

about the matter. #e shows maturity by not telling his mother about his eeling towards

his stepather, 7ack. #owever, "olin still loves his mother and accepts the situation. #e

never blames his mother like any other children o his age. %nstead, he deends his

mothers actions. Thus, his maturity has actually made me like his character very much.

(nother reason why % like "olin is because o his determination. #e is determined to

look or his stepather. -irst, he writes a letter to his stepather in his e3ort to locate his

whereabouts. Then, he saves every penny whenever he gets the chance. -or example,

he always preer cash or "hristmas present rom his mother and does three paper

rounds to earn money. "olin does all this because he is determined to leave home one

day when he is old enough to look or his beloved stepather. (s a child he does not

give up easily but makes a plan to achieve his dreams. % adore him or his strong will.

-inally, "olin proves to be a very sentimental person. #e remembers everything

about his stepather. #e remembers how his stepather rolls his own cigarette out o

tobacco tin. #e also remembers the many names that his stepather gives him 2 "ol,

"ollie, Sonny2+oy, +uster and +luebird. #e misses the times when his stepather walks

with him to school and pushes him up the swing in the park. %n act, he keeps an exact

account on how long his stepather has been gone which is fve years, eight months and

seven days. The sentimental values in "olin is the reason why he can stay loving

towards his stepather ater so many years. #e treasures all the good things 7ack does

or him and that has given him strength. Thereore, i also admire "olin or being a

sentimental person. The above reasons are why % like "olin the most.

1/ "haracter that you sympathi2e0

The novel that % have read is Step by &icked Step by (nne -ine. The character that i

sympathize in this novel is !ichard "layton #arwick. #e is a young boy who eels

trapped in very unhappy circumstances. #e loses his ather to sickness. #is mother

remarries a very cold and hard man and this causes much unhappiness to !ichard. #is

new stepather makes lie hard or him.

!everend "oldstone is a harsh man who is strict and hard towards !ichard. #e

believes that !ichard is too wild and needs to be taught manners. #e shows no love or

!ichard and sends him o3 to )ordanger School where !ichard is treated badly. This

adds to his misery. There he is bullied and beaten. (t home he was beaten by his


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stepather or every small mistake and the school experience makes him bitter about

lie. #e is miserable and decides to act.

!ichard realises that his mother will not take his side and his sister, "harlotte makes

hersel happy by being nice to her stepather. Thereore, !ichard runs away to a lie at

sea and does well there rising to the position o "aptain.

&hen he returns, he fnds that his mother has died o heartbreak. #is stepather too

had passed away and his dear "harlotte had died in childbirth. % eel sorry or !ichard

or all he wanted was his amily and love. #e loved his parents and sister and loses

them all. "hildren become victims when amilies breakup.

!ichard is a victim o breakdown in his amily. #e experiences much misery and loss

and these are reasons why % sympathize with him.

3/ "haracter you admire because o4 the positie 6ualities0


admire because o the positive qualities is !obbo.

!obbo is a kind person. #is immense kindness was evident in the way he sought to

protect 9umpa. ven though he wished his parents were back together, he worried

about how it would a3ect 9umpa. #e did not want his baby hal2brother to have to go

through the pain and su3ering that he and his sister had experienced during his parents

requent arguments and fnal separation.

!obbo is also very understanding and sensitive person. #e understood why !oy elt

unwelcome in the house and that the only reason he remained there was or 9umpa.

The burden and strain his mother went through while trying to reeree the fghts

between !oy and "allie was not lost on !obbo either. #e was willing to put himsel in his

mothers and !oys shoes and tried to understand their pain.

-inally, !obbos best quality is his maturity. 9ue to his maturity, he was able to

accept his parents separation and bot be 'ealous or resentul o 9umpa and !oy. %t also

helped him realize that drastic changes were needed to keep the amily together and to

come to a solution that would beneft all parties. #e showed a maturity beyond his

years when he conronted his mother and sister directly and dealt with the situationonce and or all.

These are some o the positive qualities that !obbo has displayed and which have

drawn my admiration.

7/ "ompare and contrast one o4 the character in the noel 8ith another

character/


have picked to compare with another character is "laudia and her ather. "laudia and

her ather are as di3erent as night and day.

*ne o the key di3erences between them is her bravery. "laudia has the courage to

thank Stella in ront o her athers riend so that her athers riends would be nicer to

Stella. #er ather, on the other hand, could not even summon up the courage to


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properly introduce her daughter to Stella, opting to make the introduction seems like an

accidental meeting.

This brings us to "laudias intelligence, another character which is very di3erent rom

her ather. "laudia is smart enough to realize that her ather has set up the accidental

meeting to introduce her to Stella. "laudia also shows remarkable perception, unlike her

ather. #e routinely asks her whether she and her mother are fne, without realising

even once how hurt and abandoned they elt at his leaving.

-inally and the most importantly, "laudia is kind and orgiving person. &hen she and

Stella has had a fght, she orgives her and makes up. (lthough she wants to be angry

at Stella, she orgives and help her out. #owever, her ather could not orgive or make

up with her mother as easily and he does not stop himsel rom making harsh remarks

about her either.

+ased on these characteristic, "laudia is a much better person than her ather. %t 'ust

goes to show that sometimes children can behave better than adults.

5/ "omparison9 Similarities and (i%erences

The novel that % have read is Step by &icked Step by (nne -ine. There are glaring

di3erences and some similarities between !ichard and !obbo. They both make a good

comparison o characters.

-or similarities, both are products o a broken home and both have to ad'ust living

with a stepather. Their stepathers are di>cult to live with and so con1icts arise within

the amily. +ut this is where the similarities end.

Their di3erences are more marked. !obbo reuses to let his stepather ruin his

happiness. #e even tries to mediate between "allie, his old sister and !oy, his

stepather. #e loves his hal2brother like his own. &hen situations prove to be di>cult,

he chips in to help his mother and stepather.

*n the other hand, !ichard handles things di3erently. #is arguments with his

stepather are so bad that it is impossible or them to love together. #e is too stubborn

to compromise or at least try to make things better. #e allows his stepather to make

his home like a tomb as he calls it. #e eels like a stranger in his own home. ?otsurprisingly, he chooses the cowardly way o leaving home. This is something !obbo

would never do. #e chooses to make the best o a challenging home situation.

These are some o the similarities and di3erences between !ichard and !obbo.

:/ ,mportant lesson

The novel that % have read is Step by &icked Step by (nne -ine. The important

lesson that i have learnt rom this novel is we have to be patient when acing

challenges. *ten, patience achieves better results than rashness and anger.

Two characters, 5ucy and Stella handle challenges with patience. %n doing so, they

achieve what they desire. 5ucys stepdaughter, $ixie, is di>cult to handle. She believes

that a stepamily can never be a happy amily. 5ucy goes all out to prove her wrong.

9uring a ma'or conrontation, she manages to reason things out with $ixie. She tries her


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best to explain to $ixie that a stepamily can be a happy one. (t the same time, she

listens to $ixie, letting her pour out all her rustrations. #er patience pays o3. She and

$ixie have a good cry together. They hug each other like a mother and daughter would.

This removes some o the underlying tension between them and marks the beginning o

a harmonious and happy riendship.

%t is the same with Stella. She exercise much patience in trying to win "laudia over.

%nitially, all her attempts are re'ected but does not discourage her. %n act, she puts in

more e3ort to make "laudia likes her. She succeeds in the end or "laudia stands up or

her when she sees how unairly her athers riends treat Stella during supper. They

simply ignore her, even ater all the trouble she has gone through to make sure that

everything is perect or them. "laudia comes downstairs and thanks Stella or the

green py'amas that she has bought or her. This prompts the guests to give Stella a

chance. This is the start o a new riendship and understanding between them.

Thereore, we have to be patient when acing challenges.

;/ ,mportant eent

The novel that % have read is Step by &icked Step by (nne -ine. There are some

event that are so important to a character in this novel.

*ne o the fve pupils who comes rom broken amilies is $ixie whose parents are

divorced. very weekend she goes to stay with her ather and his new amily. She

dislikes her stepsisters, #etty and Sophie and calls them the $ains. &hen #etty moves

into $ixies bedroom, ater quarrelling with Sophie, $ixie is unhappy. She thinks all kinds

o ways to get rid o #etty such as pretending the room is haunted and giving #etty the

semi2silent treatment.

&hen $ixies stepmother, 5ucy, hears about her behaviour, she has a talk with her.

This event is the turning point in $ixies relationship with her athers new amily. +oth

5ucy and $ixie speak truthully about how they eel about each other and the amily

situation. 5ucy learns how $ixie hates pretending there is a normal amily and how

di>cult it is to be caught between her divorced parents. $ixie realizes that 5ucy hatesbeing a step2parent and how hard it is caring or someone elses child. She also realizes

how badly she has behaved. This honest conversation creates an understanding

between them. %t ends with them crying and hugging each other. The signals the

change in $ixies relationship with her step2amily. (ter this event, $ixie is happier and

gets along much better with her stepsisters.

The honest talk between $ixie and 5ucy is an important event to $ixie as it improves

their relationship and they become more like a normal amily ater that. %t proves that

open communication can heal relationships.

ho8 the character

managed to resole the problems in that situation


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&atience is a irtue

%t is important to practice a lot o patience in di>cult times. ?o parents would want a

divorce i they can help it. #ence, everyone a3ected by a divorce must be patient and

tolerant. !ichard "layton #arwick does not show enough patience when he leaves his

amily because he cannot get along with his stepather. (s a result o his action, his

mother dies o heartbreak and his sister blames him or being selfsh and cruel. %n

$ixieAs story, she does not show much patience towards her step siblings. She reuses to

share her bedroom with #etty. She is also hard headed and argues intensely with her

step mother.

We must learn to adapt to ne8 situations

"hildren rom broken homes have no choice but to learn to adapt to new situations. This

may be unair to the children who seem to be the BvictimA o circumstances beyond their

control. #owever, in the fve stories told, we learn that adapting is better than resisting

although it takes a lot o patience and e3ort on the childrenAs part. "laudia shows she is

a rational and sensible child to accept her step mother. !alph, who has three step

mothers, gets along with all o them despite their di3erent personalities.

(on@t gie up hope

"olinAs story is the saddest o all. #e does not give up hope o one day fnding 7ack

whom he accepts as his own ather. #e saves all his money and plans to look or his dad

when the time is right. "olin is a very determined person despite his young age. #e

knows what he wants. !obbo also hopes his sister "allie will accept their step ather

!oy. #owever, "allie resents !oy and decides to live with her real ather in the end.

step by wicked steps f5 notes.doc

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