Area of Study: Belonging

Related Material Analysis

Such Such Were the Joys

George Orwell

Text Type: Autobiographical Essay (selected

extract from part 2)

Publication details: 1952

Works best with:

Peter Skrzynecki Immigrant Chronicle

Charles Dickens Great Expectations

Student Activities

1. Write a brief synopsis of this extract from Orwell’s Such Such Were the Joys, focusing on the relationship between the text and ‘belonging’:

2. Identify and explain TWO underlying assumptions that George Orwell makes about

achieving belonging within the school environment and the impact this has on the individual:

3. Orwell depicts St Cyprian’s as an exclusive and harsh schooling environment, recalling his time spent there as characterised by experiences of rejection and humiliation. Using quotations from the text to support your response, explain the impact of these experiences on his perception of self.

4. Identify at least SIX language devices used and briefly explain how they convey the composer’s message concerning belonging.

5. ‘Experiences of belonging and not belonging impact on our perception of self, ultimately influencing our feelings of self-worth’. Discuss this view with detailed reference to George Orwell’s autobiographical essay Such Such Were the Joys.