Write about how the authors have made you aware of different experiences and feelings associated with growing up.

GCSE: English Literature

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The story ‘Superman and Paula brown’s new snow suit’ is written by Sylvia Plath, the story is set in North America in the city of Boston during the Second World War. The story is about a Girl who was happy and lives in her own intense dream world. She is fascinated by flying and almost believes superman could teach her to fly. She plays superman games with her friend David. Her father has died and she idealises her Uncle Frank. Superman and Uncle Frank are bound together in her mind. Gradually, she becomes affected by the war. She is physically sick when she sees graphic pictures of the horrors of the prisoner of war camps. Superman can’t save her from nightmares. She is at first powerless when accused by Paula Brown, then become isolated and a target. Everyone turn against her. She has been victim for the mistake which she has not done. Paula got slid while playing which was her own fault but she pointed the narrator and blames her for what she has not done. She is truly innocent on this matter. After this her usual comforts of home and uncle frank do not work, although she pretends she’s fine. But In her ear and mind the sentence she got for nothing–‘’you did it, Yes you did it… You pushed her, you did, we saw you….’’ was always blowing. She is been bullied.’’…..Chanting in a chorus, ‘yes you did. Yes you did, we saw you’’. When her mother and uncle frank appear not to believe her story, she leaves the light room and chooses somewhere dark room to hide and think. It seems everything was over to her. This shows how everything has changed for her. She has lost her childhood world of innocence (light) and has entered the cruel, dark ‘real’ world. She is very attractive but not popular, because she is too stuck up. Paula was given an expensive snow-suit as a present and was very proud of it. She blames the narrator because if Paula parents find that her suit was ruin by her own foolishness, she will get scold so she blamed the narrator. We all know Narrator was only invited because they needed someone else to play the game, not because she wanted her. Paula was really unfriendly with the Narrator. She fancies Jimmy lane and always allowed herself to be caught by him. She deliberately chose to blame the narrator when she slid in the oil, perhaps because she saw the narrator the weakest person there. Unwittingly, Paula changes the narrators’ life for ever by destroying her illusions.
The movement from childhood to adulthood is a painful one. The story ‘Growing up’ is written by Joyce Cary is very simple in outline. A man comes home from work for the weekend. He plays with his daughters, who attack him. In the struggle their pet bitch bites him. The girl tends to his wound, and he goes out to his club for some male company. Beneath this simple narrative lots of other things are happening. Like several of the authors, Joyce Cary chooses a title that suggest one of the themes of the story-that of growing up. This appears to refer mostly to the two sisters, Kate and Jenny.
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