THE RAILWAY CHILDREN: ELEMENTS

A.    PHYSICAL SETTING

1.      London, the capital city of England.

In this country the three children live with their parents in a warm house in the city before their father is being taken away by two men mysteriously.

2.      The house in the country

They live in a white house near a railway line. The children always sit on the wooden fence and wave to the passengers in the trains that pass by.

3.      The railway station

It has platform. The children make friend with Perks who works as a porter at the railway station.

4.      The tunnel

Some boys from Maidbridge’s  school run through this long tunnel in the paper-chase. The children, then, help a boy in a red T-shirt named Jim who suffered a broken leg while participating in the activity.

B.     SOCIAL SETTING

The story tells about a middle-class family living in England in the 20^th century. The period is between 1900 and 1920 in England. They lead a happy life until their father is taken away mysteriously one night. They move to the country side and live in a white house near the railway line. They children wander around and meet kind and friendly workers at the railway station and make new friends with the villagers. The children save a train and are given a gold watch each.


 Their mother is not pleased at her children acts at first but realizes they are doing great living and making friends in the country side.

They received the medicine, delicious food and  twelve red roses from their new friend the old gentleman. 

They receive a present of gold watch each  from their friend the old gentleman 

The children collected presents  for Perks'  for his birthday

CHARACTERS

1.      The three children have some common character traits.

Loving,obedient,thoughtful,kind,helpful,hardworking,brave,clever,imaginative,loyal,polite, well-mannered, independent, adventurous and unsure of what is wrong and right.

i.                    Roberta @ Bobbie

She is the eldest child in the family and she is twelve years old. She is portrait  as responsible, brave, determined, devoted, loving, understanding and sensitive.

ii.                  Peter

He is the only boy in the family and the second child. He is 10 years old. His ambition is to become an engineer. Peter is a proud boy, brave, clever, resourceful and generous.

iii.                Phyliss

Being the youngest in the family she always tries to be good. She is a loving daughter and get upset easily.

2.      Mother

No name is mention in the story. She has to take care of the family after her husband was taken away. She loves reading books to her children and she writes stories to provide for her family. She is a loving and devoted mother. She is also a protective, brave, patience and strong lady. She is describe as comforting, positive, kind, proud and dignified too.

3.      The Old Gentleman

This gentleman rides on the 9.15 train every morning. He has white hair and looks kind. He knows the government people. He is Jim’s grandfather. He has the  character of a friendly, kind, polite, helpful and  generous old man.

MINOR CHARACTERS

1.      Father

He is a tall man and white-faced. He works with the government. He is a wonderful father that never gets angry and are always ready to play with his children. Sadly, he was accused of being a  spy and was arrested and jailed.

2.      Perks

Perks works as a porter at the railway station. He is a nice and friendly man. He is kind and polite but he dislikes being pitied by others. He is good at doing his job.

3.      The Station Master

He is a kind and friendly man too. He agrees to let Peter go after he arrested him for stealing the coal.

4.      Jim

He is the boy with the red t-shirt that broke his leg during the paper-chase. Jim is the old gentleman’s grandson. The children mother nurses him to health after the incident.

5.      The train driver and Jim, The fireman

They help Bobbie when she gets stuck on their train and help her mend Peter’s broken toy engine.

6.      The villagers and other people

Dr Forest : the village doctor, Mrs Viney: the  family helper, Mrs Perks: Perks’ wife and Ruth the family maid in London.

THEMES

1.      The importance of family love and loyalty

2.      Taking challenges with courage

3.      Facing challenges in life

4.      Growing up to be a well-mannered child

5.      The importance of friends

6.      The importance of community

MORAL VALUES

1.      Family love and loyalty

2.      Kindness and compassion

3.      Bravery

4.      Selfless acts

MESSAGES

1.      Family members must love and protect each other

2.      Community support is vital

3.      Facing challenges in life

POINT OF VIEW

The story is from the third person point of view

LANGUAGE AND STYLE

The writer uses simple and direct language to tell this story. Here are some of the examples:

1.      Direct speech

‘Wake up!’ she said. ‘We’re in the new house, don’t you remember?’ – page 8

2.      Simple description

There was a large kitchen with a stone floor, but there was no fire, and the room was cold.

3.      Simile

…it was like a terrible dream (page 40)

4.      Personification

‘ I wonder if the railway misses us’

5.      Contrast

The tunnel was dark after the  sunshine outside…(page 46)

6.      Symbolism

The railway is a symbol of hope : The railway brings their father back to them in the end (page 57)

7.      Red is a symbol of danger

The children make flags from red petticoats to warn the train of danger ( page 29)

8.      Repetition for emphasis

Well, I won’t know, I won’t know’ ( page 24)