[0:01]Hi everyone, welcome to Miss Adams Teaches English Language and Literature A-level. This video is going to be focusing on what I did in 2013 by Alan Bennett, which is taken from the Edexcel English Language and Literature Voices in speech and writing. I'm going to take you through the content of the piece and some interesting contextual factors that will help you with AO3 before we look at a few little chunks where I'll take you through how to describe Alan Bennett's voice and back that up with some literary and linguistic features. So let's get started.
[0:35]Okay.
[0:38]So, what I did in 2013 by Alan Bennett, um, the diary that we're going to be looking at covers four different extracts and it spans from the very beginning of January, so we assume that it's sort of the, the, the early beginning entry, um, over till sort of the end of March. And in those diaries, Alan Bennett reflects on a number of moments from quite kind of private, um, almost anecdotal, um, experiences to reflections and comments on what's going on in the world and current affairs. So we have, for example, the record of a trip to an Abbey where he breaks in, um, and trespasses. Uh, we've got his, um, ruminations on, uh, the TV program on Channel 4 that was all about finding, uh, Richard III's body in the car park. Um, and then we also have again personal reflections, um, on his, uh, the death of his friend of another very famous, uh, actor, Richard Griffiths. Um, and some kind of anecdotal information about that. Now, um, Alan Bennett was born in 1934 in Leeds in Yorkshire, which is relevant because he's quite interested in the kind of concept of, um, north versus South, uh, divides. Uh, he writes a lot about, um, the sort of traits of the English, um, whether that is positive or negative. Uh, he can be quite, uh, political in his work, and at the same time, he can be quite understated. Uh, he's not just a playwright, uh, he is an actor and an author as well. I mean, um, the work that he has done, he has won so many awards. He's such a sort of, you know, I hate this expression, but national treasure. Um, you might have heard plays like The History Boys, uh, the series of, um, monologues, um, Talking Heads, but he's also written for TV and film as well, The Madness of King George is him. But in amongst all of this writing, he also became famous for these diaries, because Alan Bennett publishes, um, a diary every year and they're all called What I Did In. Um, which is quite a sweet title because there's a sort of innocence, um, or a kind of almost like childish, childlike, not childish, childlike tone, um, in, in the simplicity of the titles, and it is what it is, what he did, what he did in 2013. Um, so in terms of this for the genre, audience and purpose, the gap, um, yes, it's a diary, and traditionally diaries, um, are for oneself. But obviously, because it's Alan Bennett, this is a diary intended for publication, so it has a public audience as well as the private audience. We're going to have the fans of Alan Bennett quite simply, yeah. And remember, just like with Maya Angelou, this is a series, um, and so you're going to have people that, um, have already read the previous diaries, that already understand about his kind of, um, tonality and style. Um, you're also going to get people that read literary non-fiction, um, and perhaps, you know, um, things like autobiographies and, and, and and other kind of published diaries. And for that reason, it is to entertain, it is, of course, to inform. However, we do still have a private audience. It is still a diary. It is still Alan Bennett, okay? So, yes, it is also for himself, um, and for that reason, it's to reflect. That's generally why we write diaries, it's to sort of figure things out. And you can see that there is a sense that he once wrote it for himself and then edited it because it is likely, bearing in mind how the diary, uh, spans over months in a very short, um, sort of selection of material, that there's obviously parts of the diary that he wrote that he then didn't go on to publish, uh, which is suggesting that it's for himself. So, in terms of the voice, obviously we're going to have this sort of quite reflective voice. Um, but it is Alan Bennett. He is an extraordinary writer, so it's going to be beautifully crafted, and it's going to be witty and it's going to be understated. It's going to be humorous, at times it might even be cynical, um, particularly as he, because that's the thing about Alan Bennett is that as much as he is a sort of understated writer and he's got this wonderful comedy, but there is this kind of satirical tone to his writing, there is a criticism, um, of the society around us, or at least a, a challenge, um, of the society around us. But let's get started. As always, each slide will just have a few little bits and pieces from, um, the text with a descriptive voice. Let's start with this kind of humorous voice, this informal voice. This is the opening, okay? So, 3rd of January, uh, Yorkshire. So, first things first, really, really easy, we have got, uh, we are conforming to, uh, genre conventions here with our temporal discourse marker. Uh, and again, we've got another temporal discourse marker here, the year kicks off with this lovely informal verb, a bit of an idiom. Um, this gives us the, uh, the indication that this is like the first diary entry, because it's starting with the year kicks off, with this lovely informal verb, bit of an idiom. Um, and then we've got this lovely little bit of language play, this juxtaposition with a small trespass. Uh, you could probably get away with saying oxymoron there, um, because obviously the nature of a trespass is something bigger and criminal, be saying, oh, it's just a little one, just a little trespass. So, a real kind of nice sign of his, the comedy in his voice here. When we drive over from Ramsgill via Ripon and Thirsk to Rievaulx. However, the Abbey is closed. Um, so notice how we've got this sort of presumed knowledge or shared knowledge between him and his readers. If it's just for himself, he doesn't need to tell himself where these places are, but his readers will probably recognize that these are places in Yorkshire, uh, which is where he is from, he was born in Leeds. Uh, however, the Abbey is closed, seemingly until the middle of February, which infuriates us both. And though at 78 and with an artificial hip, it's not something I feel I should be doing, we scale the five-bar gate and break in. So, we've got this lovely self-deprecating tone here where he makes reference to his age, so we've got obviously got the, the age there 78, but also the reference to the artificial hip and this reluctance. But what creates the humor is the juxtaposition between these this, um, language that is all about age with, um, all of these verbs that are connoting criminality. Um, so we've got the verb scale, we've got the verb break in, and then that combined with this noun here, trespass. You know, we, we do have a lovely little semantic field of, of criminality, uh, which does add to the humor. Um, that humor continues as this section is developed, but you get this kind of childlike rebellion as well, which is again, it's really kind of heartwarming to read this, uh, because it's like a small boy, oh, I'm doing something I shouldn't. Um, the place is of course empty, and though it's quite muddy underfoot, an illicit delight. Okay, what a lovely, uh, little phrase we have here with illicit delight. So this idea that it's sort of forbidden and it's the naughtiness that makes it, um, exciting, which is again where we get this sort of childhood rebellion. Um, we know that of course, so we've got the adverb of course here, so it's reminding us that they are trespassing, so they're not expecting people to be there. And now we've got this lovely descriptive language. It's warm and windless. So, lovely alliteration there, referencing the weather, the stones of the Abbey sodden and brown from the amount of moisture they've absorbed. So, we know that it has been raining. So, got the kind of sense of muddiness, but at the same time, it's sort of peaceful and tranquil, and that calmness is, um, you know, really created through the repeated, um, continuant lateral alliteration there, warm and windless. We've got some lovely inverted syntax here. Um, it's again, it's Alan Bennett flexing his muscles in terms of his his writing credentials here. So, spectacular here are the toilet arrangements, not the toilet arrangements are spectacular. He wants to draw attention to this adjective, spectacular, which is obviously quite hyperbolic, because what he's talking about allows, so again, there's that sense of, uh, humor here. Uh, the redorter set above a narrow, uh, chasm with a stream still running along the bottom. Little bit of an oxymoron here, again, creating this, this humorous tone, this quite sarcastic tone, the idea of like, you know, the lose just being a muddy, a muddy pathway. Again, I'm going to take you on to the next, um, section. Um, and the the tone does, uh, change quite specifically. So, we've got this shift in tone and topic, and that's fair enough because look, we've, we've scooted on an entire month, again, which, like I said, uh, likely to be, um, a sign that other parts of his diary just haven't been included. And the there's a shift in tone and topic because we're now alluding to current affairs, and we start getting this very subject-specific lexis, which reminds us of, it's not just his writing is writing prowess, he is an, uh, an intellectual as well. So, we've got this, uh, sort of historical, uh, subject-specific lexis here, uh, makes sense because we're talking about the discovery of the body of Richard III. Um, there's something quite reflective, um, in this moment, but at the same time, uh, you've got this slightly sarcastic, slightly mocking tone. We've certainly got the informality, you know, where he refers to the real stuff of history, so probably alluding to, uh, certain levels of sort of snobbery about how history is recorded and reported to the general public. That mocking tone has continued later on in the section, uh, where he makes reference to the Bacon is Shakespeare lot. I love the informality, and I love the way that he uses these, these quote marks, um, and we've got this very kind of vague collective noun lot. So, it, it demonstrates that he's quite sort of disapproving perhaps of these people, in case you weren't aware of what he's referring to here. Um, there's a wonderful conspiracy theory that is obviously nonsense, uh, that Shakespeare didn't actually write any of his plays, in fact, all of, uh, the plays that we know to be, uh, works of the bard were written by Sir Francis Bacon. And so, he's sort of poking fun, uh, at the Richard III enthusiasts and, uh, putting them alongside these, uh, other kind of conspiracy theorists. So, by making that comparison, it's quite clear that he's, he's, he's being quite mocking. And then, if that wasn't clear enough, you've got the wonderful informality and, uh, colloquialism here, uh, where he talks about the fans, um, not being without a bob or two, and with some of their barmier members on parade in the program. So, um, lovely attributive comparative adjective there, barmier members. Suggesting that there is a scale of madness in these Richard III, um, fans, um, and the fact that they're on parade, this little metaphor, hyperbolic metaphor, um, again, perhaps there is a little sort of cynical dig at the way that, uh, television promotes the kind of, you know, cookier people for for ratings, perhaps.
[14:09]Um, moving on to, um, the, uh, final section here. Um, where we have a, a range of different voices shining through because he manages to be quite cynical in this passage, whilst also, you know, quite, quite humorous. Uh, let's start with the way that this opens with this simple declarative present tense sentence. Richard Griffiths dies. There's something so stark and blunt in this moment, it is obviously a really powerful moment for him as well. It doesn't need fancy metaphors, it just is. Richard Griffiths dies.
[15:02]We've been away for a couple of days, so we're spared the unctuous telephone calls that always come from the tabloids on such occasions. We're sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings, or we hope we're not intruding on your grief. So, we've definitely got that kind of scathing view of reporters shining through here, largely due to this attributive adjective, unctuous, which suggests, uh, something quite, um, obsequious and over the top, maybe even quite like slimy. It's about the disingenuous nature of the tabloids. Um, and note this little adverb here, always come from the tabloids on such occasions. So, he's really telling us that it is disingenuous, it happens whenever anyone dies, he's, this is always what happens. And then he mimics the voice, the unctuous voice through dialogue. So that's a really nice comment to be making about voice here, is that you've got him juxtapose, so the straight forwardness of him juxtapose with this overly kind of sensitive but fake, um, dialogue and voice of the reporters from the tabloids, We're sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings, or we hope you're not intruding on your grief. And then, uh, we go back to the kind of personal anecdotal sort of style where he then actually reflects on Richard Griffith's himself, and he's thinking to himself, well, a tabloid would going to phone me because I'm the big name, but actually the person that they should have been speaking to, uh, would have been his dresser. And we've got this lovely humor created, slightly at Richard Griffiths' expense, but I think because it, it's it's a sign of their friendship, um, where he make uses this euphemism that the dresser would have been acquainted, most acquainted with the logistic difficulties caused by his bulk, because Richard Griffiths was a big man. I should have said if you if you're not sure who Richard Griffiths is. Very, very famous actor, um, but think Harry Potter's, um, uncle.
[17:49]Sorry.
[17:52]It's not like me to lose my Harry Potter references. Uh, Uncle Vernon is played by Richard Richard Griffiths, so he was, he was a rather large man. But this is a sign of the friendship between him and Alan Bennett that he can make a joke at his expense. He's not being sexist.
[18:17]I think. Okay, and then we get this really kind of nostalgic tone of voice, and where you get a kind of real sense of his admiration for his friend. Um, Richard had an unending repertoire of anecdotes and an enviable spontaneous wit besides. So, we've got hyperbole, uh, here in our attributive adjective unending. And I like the noun repertoire here, um, reminding us that Richard Griffiths was a performer, um, sort of slightly metaphorical to a degree. Um, and this enviable spontaneous wit besides. So, again, you'll get the sense of his admiration from him through this adjective here, enviable spontaneous. The fact that it's spontaneous again suggests to us that, you know, um, it it's it's a reminder of Richard Griffith's incredible intelligence as well. Um, so we've got more of this subject specific lexis here. Uh, I was working with him at the time when Henry VIII's flagship, the Mary Rose, was being laboriously raised from the depths of the Solent. This was being done by means of a cradle when suddenly a cable snapped and the wreck slipped back into the water. So, I just wanted to draw your attention to the way that the language has changed ever so slightly. We're really kind of using those features of literary non-fiction here. Um, you know, we've got quite emotive language, you know, this lovely, uh, adverb of manner laboriously raised, and then, you know, we've got this juxtaposition from the depths, and then, you know, we when we're using adverbs like suddenly, a cable snapped and the wreck slipped back into the water. It's all very beautifully crafted. So, that's a real sign of him, but then you get this contrast with, um, Richard Griffiths and, and what he said. So, note how we're moving into dialogue, making that a little bit more real for us. Ah, said Richard. A slight hiccup on the atypical journey from grave to cradle. So, uh, lovely little witticism here, uh, created through yes a metaphor, but a really sort of euphemistic metaphor. The idea of the the water, the wreck slipping back in is just a slight hiccup. Um, but he draws attention to this being an atypical journey because normally you talk like life goes from cradle to grave, doesn't it? Cradle being life, grave being death, but here it's from grave to cradle, because he's playing on the idea of the ship being, um, maneuvered with the cradle. So, what he's really doing here, by repeating these words, is he's reinforcing this judgment, yeah. He tells us he had this envious spontaneous wit, and then he gives an example of that. So, you really have this sense of his admiration here for his friend.
[21:56]That's all I'm going to go through, but do feel free just to, um, ask me any other bits about any lines. I know that there is a a a small, uh, sort of one sentence entry that I've not talked about, but if you want more details then, yeah, just drop me a line in the comments.
[22:15]I think as long as you get the idea that this diary sort of moves between private and public spheres with each entry, um, which is probably quite, um, similar to a lot of his actual writing, um, for publication in his plays as well, because he deals with, um, the kind of concepts of of English behaviors. It makes sense that he's sort of moves between seemingly mundane, um, to quite kind of powerful statements about the world that we live in. Anyway, that's enough from me. Thank you for watching. Uh, like I said, give me a shout if you've got any questions. Do subscribe if you haven't already and thank you if you have.
[23:18]Happy revising.
