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Year 10 - English

Why did Winsome Pinnock write 'Leave Taking' and how do audiences respond to it?

Leave Taking: a sense of belonging

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils start their exploration of Winsome Pinnock's play, 'Leave Taking'. They first learn about the play's context of 1980s Britain and the Windrush generation before then reading and exploring the full play. They finally explore themes and characters before working on essay writing.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to explain why Winsome Pinnock's 'Leave Taking' and how audiences respond to it.

Key Notes

  • 'Leave Taking' is considered a classic in the canon of Black British playwrights.
  • Having a Black British female cleaner as the heroine was groundbreaking.
  • Pinnock wanted to explore the unique Black British experience in her writing.
  • One reason that 'Leave Taking' is universal is that the character of Enid seems to resonate particularly with audiences.
  • The play remains relevant because of the Windrush scandal.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • canon: A collection of influential, significant texts, each considered representative of their time period.
  • revive: If you revive a play, you create a new production of it.
  • migrate: When you relocate from one country to another.
  • universal: If something in a text is universal, then audiences, regardless of time period or circumstance, can relate to it.
  • the Windrush scandal: When many citizens who had migrated to Britain between 1948 and 1973 were facing deportation under a discriminatory immigration system.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • Each production of a play is the same because the play's script is always the same.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain this English learning goal in two key points.

'Leave Taking' is considered a classic in the canon of Black British playwrights. Having a Black British female cleaner as the heroine was groundbreaking.

2. Define this language term and use it in a sentence. 'canon'

A collection of influential, significant texts, each considered representative of their time period.

3. Correct this common English misunderstanding.

Mistake: Each production of a play is the same because the play's script is always the same. Correction: The production of a play is always unique. The choice of director, producer, theatre, cast and the nature of its audiences all contribute.

More Lessons In This Unit

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