Composition B - Assess or Interpret

Task III B

Choose ONE of the following.

In Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter, Silas experiences different kinds of loss. Assess his ways of dealing with them.

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Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter: Hier gehts zu den Summaries

Interpret the cartoon and briefly comment on its message.

Karikatur eines Mannes mit britischer Flagge, der eine Frau mit EU-Flagge anschreit. Themen: Trennung und Schuldzuweisung.

content 10 VP
language 15 VP

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Note
Our solutions are listed in bullet points. In the examination, full marks can only be achieved by writing a continuous text. It must be noted that our conclusions contain only some of the possible aspects. Students can also find a different approach to argumentation.

Silas grows up in Chicago, where he lives primarily with other blacks and feels at home in his neighbourhood
the boy has a somewhat tense relationship with his stepfather, but all in all, he enjoys a good childhood. He goes to a better school and also lacks nothing materially
he and his mother have to move away from Chicago to Chabot due to the separation of the mother from Silas' stepfather
Silas' mother sells most of her possessions before the move to earn money. Here, too, Silas experiences the loss of old familiar objects, some of which have sentimental value for him
the extent of the financially strained situation becomes clear to Silas when he suspects that his mother has prostituted herself so that they can be taken away by a driver in a car
much of the furniture and goods they still own are stolen during the move

Main Body
Loss in material and domestic terms

due to these numerous unfamiliar intrusions into his hitherto safe and peaceful life, Silas experiences an overload of the situation
he runs away, possibly traumatised and confused by the unfamiliar occurrences

This is how Silas reacts

the friendship between Larry and Silas breaks up as a result of a scuffle between the two over a gun instigated by Carl Ott

The experience of losing a friend

Silas no longer pays attention to Larry after their argument but also does not see that the dispute between the two was initiated by Carl Ott and that reconciliation would, therefore, be possible
since Larry called him the N-word, Silas understandably refuses to take a step towards him, as his pride forbids him to do so
Silas had hit Larry quite severely after Larry had insulted him. Whether Silas regrets the hard hand in retrospect or is ashamed of having touched his friend in such a way is open to question

This is how Silas reacts

when Silas is questioned, he does not tell the officers that he was with Cindy the same night she disappeared
he does this even though he learns afterwards that she has died and therefore, loses his former childish innocence

Loss of honesty

because of his dishonesty, Silas wants to leave Chabot behind as quickly as possible and leaves the place. He runs away from his problems
Silas' silence prevents the police from catching the real culprit, and the latter is never brought to justice
Silas' behaviour and the fact that he breaks off contact with his former friend leads to Larry's family life being ultimately ruined
he shirks all responsibility and thus causes irreversible damage

This is how Silas reacts

Silas experiences the consequences of loss in a dramatic way. He also has to experience how irreversible some of the deeds he has done can be
the protagonist experiences loss at a very young age and accordingly adopts avoidant behaviour whenever there is any kind of loss
however, he also has to admit to himself that running away from complications and difficult situations alone is not a solution. It can be just as fatal as it is unpleasant to face the confrontation with the respective issue

Conclusion

the cartoon shows a man holding up the Union Jack, the British flag, and a woman holding the EU flag
both figures are standing on the shore of their respective countries and look at each other
the English Channel flows between the two figures, separating the two territories

Main Body
Image description

while the man with the British flag has a furious expression on his face and is angry with the lady opposite, the woman with the EU flag radiates enormous calm
the highly emotional expression on the man's face is comparable to the discordant reaction of a break-up, and in this sense, could point to the division of the British nation caused by the Brexit decision
the enormous difference in size between the two figures is unmistakable. The lady with the EU flag towers over the man by a considerable amount
the man on the left wears a suit and a hat representing the traditional and classical values of Britain
the lady on the right is dressed in a white dress and wears a crown of hair called a tiara and sandals. She could easily be mistaken for a greek goddess
the lady's wardrobe indicates her omnipotence, which she possesses representing the 27 countries of the EU to Great Britain with a single nation
while the man makes his displeasure known, the lady with the EU flag confronts him with silence
we learn from the speech bubbles emanating from the man that he wants to leave the referendum ("I'm quitting you") but also has to accept losses ("And it hurts"), e.g. Northern Ireland
he also blames the EU for Great Britain's exit ("And it's your fault!")

Interpretation

Conclusion

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