How is Mrs Lintott presented in The History boys?

The boys’ original history teacher, Mrs Lintott has got them excellent A level grades by concentrating on facts. She functions as a confidante for the other teachers. She is excluded from their power struggle so is seen as neutral, although she is clearly not without opinions.

Who is Hector in The History boys?

Hector is the central character in the play, a beloved teacher who believes that his students should learn literature by heart in order to help them weather life’s difficulties. His teaching style is irreverent and energetic.

Who was the teacher in The History boys?

The General Studies teacher, known to staff and boys alike by his nickname “Hector”, is much beloved, and works alongside their deputy head and regular History teacher, Mrs Lintott. The Headmaster, known by all as “Felix”, appoints a temporary teacher, Tom Irwin, to help the boys.

What is the story of The History boys?

Eight northern history students are pursuing an undergraduate place at Oxbridge in the 1980s. Their headmaster is determined to see them break records and enlists a new teacher to coach the boys into intellectual shape. Seduced though they are by his promises, the boys are concerned that there is more to the pursuit of learning than exams and grades.
The History Boys/Film synopsis

How does Bennett present Hector and Irwin as different kinds of teacher?

Hector’s teaching style is lively and compassionate, teaching the boys to love what they do. In contrast, Irwin, who is hired to prepare the boys for their exams, is totally centered on exam techniques.

Is The History Boys true?

Plot. The play opens in Cutlers’ Grammar School, Sheffield, a fictional boys’ grammar school in the north of England. The character of Hector was based on the schoolmaster and author Frank McEachran (1900–1975).

What does Hector teach in History Boys?

Hector teaches the boys large chunks of literature by heart, but doesn’t see that they should be used. He doesn’t like Irwin’s approach, which he sees as mere journalism.

How does Bennett present some of the different attitudes to school in the history boys?

Moreover, Bennett presents these two contrasting attitudes towards education by creating conflict between Hector and Irwin through the scarcity of lessons available for the boys’ preparation and Hector’s refusal to share lessons with Hector (“Absolument non”).

How does Bennett present Irwin?

Alan Bennett presents Irwin in ‘The History Boys’ as a contrast to Hector. The writer presents Irwin as a more detached teacher who is focused on preparing the boys for their Oxbridge exam; however, like Hector, Irwin is secretly gay and struggles with his feelings for Dakin.

Are all the history boys in Lady in the Van?

All the history boys made cameo appearances in 2015’s The Lady in the Van, also directed by The History Boys’ Nicholas Hytner, as a kind of in-joke; Samuel popped up briefly as Donald, an out-of-work actor, though the part could not be further from the truth.

What year is The History Boys set?

October 2, 2006
The History Boys/Initial release

How does Bennett present Hector and Irwin as different kinds of teachers?

Lintott. Hector’s teaching style is lively and compassionate, teaching the boys to love what they do. In contrast, Irwin, who is hired to prepare the boys for their exams, is totally centered on exam techniques.

Where does the History Boys take place LitCharts?

LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The History Boys, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work. The History Boys takes place at an all-boys school in England.

How does class affect history in History Boys?

Throughout history, socioeconomic status works in contradictory and sometimes random ways to affect the ways that events unfold. Class is mostly a hurdle for these boys on their journey, but at one crucial moment, Rudge’s working-class background helps him. The play thus shows class as one of the invisible factors affecting history.

What was the class of the grammar school boys?

Given their class background, the grammar school boys have a harder road to success. Rudge, in particular, comes from a working-class family. Throughout the play, people look down on him, condescend to him, and assume that he won’t succeed. His father was a janitor—but he was a janitor at Oxford, and this fact ultimately helps Rudge get admitted.

What was the theme of the History Boys?

Irwin reminds the boys that they’ll be competing against more privileged peers, like people who have traveled to Rome and can talk about that on the exam. Given their class background, the grammar school boys have a harder road to success. Rudge, in particular, comes from a working-class family.