”The happiest days of your life” by Penelope Lively Essay

This is an analysis of the forgetful narrative The happiest age of your life. The brusque base is written by genus Penelope Lively, who was sent remote from her home to a embarkment school in the rainy England. The short story is with an omniscient narrator, and takes place in the gray England or more preciously in a argona called Sussex. The story stretches over a day while a boy named Charles and his p bents is exhalation to visit an embarkation school. The Sussex bea is a part of the hurrying branch, which indicates that the environment is rich. The boarding school (St. Edwardss Preparatory School) is real considerable and luxurious. That tail end also be seen in the fact that the school is a big mansion with a swimming pool. Its precise formal within the school, and the p bents meets the maid who is all done up which the mom approaches a make out (page 56, line 15).The school is very expensive, which tells that its non middle class area. In the end of the st ory the parents mentions that the school is a bit pricey, which indicates that they arent entirely upper class, but more upper middle class. Something that underlines, that they are upper middle class is that they uses a very formal language. in that respect is no slang, and they are very correct in what they say and with their grammar. In page 56 they are talking most cricket, which is very upper class. They uses direct speech, but most of sequence the short story are in is past tense. Charles is the main character in the short story, and from the text I would say that he is an only child, since the parents want to send him to a expensive boarding school. Charles parents are both very self-centured. They think they sell rough Charles, and his feelings but without noticing they dont see that Charles is not very happy or positive round the boarding school. Charles parents are very positive rough the boarding school.The parents earn a conversation, where Charles father says Wilcox says rather a few City people send their boys here. One or two of the merchant bankers, those motley of people. Its the sort of contact that would do no harm at all. Those lines dedicates that Charless father is a stage businessman. The City is probably London, and thinks a lot about his career and to make headway money. I think one of the main reasons the father sends his son away to that particular boarding school is to get contacts, because he k in a flash that the kids at that school has great families (page 56, line25-30). He actually mentions that he could conform to cricket with them, which I already mentioned, is very upper class. The mother is kind of the similar way. Also very self-centered, but she dont have the same reason as Charles father.She is concerned about her son, but not as much as she is concerned about her own part and others opinion about her and their family. When the mother first entered the school she thought about her friend Sally, who bough t an entirely new cream-linen-coat just for coming there, so now she has to be fine and live up to the standard. The mother corrects the headmasters wife, when she says You live in Finchley, is that right?. The mentions fast, that they dont live in Finchley, but in Hampstead instead. Hampstead is for the upper class and rich and important people, when more traffic pattern families lives in Finchley. She dont want the headmasters wife, to get an wrong impression about them. We dont know much about the headmaster and the headmasters wife, but we know that they are fine people. The kids at the school probably likes the headmasters wife, because when she entered a room they became quiet and when she leaves they hold the door for her.Charles might be about 6-8 years because he is about to start at a preparative school. Charles doesnt like the situation and he is very uncomfortable. This can be seen in the beginning of the short story, when Charles sits in the back of the car with an un opened box of chocolate and a folded suspicious book. That isnt a normal behavior for at child in that age, because usually they like sweets and comic books. Charles is very quiet, so he doesnt say much at the boarding school. In the end when he sits in the car he hears the echo of the boy who said they shall mash him next term. The boys seems to appear nice, so maybe it was a joke but Charles really takes it to him and becomes afraid. That really indicates that he is insecure, because he even dont want to tell his parents about that episode in the short story.The main conflict in the short story is that conflict between Charles and his insecure personality. He cant say his opinion about the boarding school to his parents. Maybe he can feel that his parents are more interested in business contacts and their own reputation instead of him being happy, and that creates a misunderstood parent-child consanguinity who can serious consequences later in Charles life. The short story is ca lled The happiest days of your life and that is something you usually saysabout the time on a boarding school, but maybe in this case it could mean that those days are over.The time in the story changes, and all before the headmasters wife is taking Charles away is in past tense, but after(prenominal) that it goes to present but in this case it could mean that those days are over. The happiest days were until the time at the boarding school and now it is over. The time until the headmasters wife takes Charles away is in the past tense and that is what was and is no more. The boarding school is now and in present. The beginning of the boarding is the ending of his happiest days of his lives. Penelope Lively maybe had it at the same day, when she was forced to a boarding school and her life is an inspiration to this short story.