A Magazine - May 2021

A.

R. Oliver - Year 8

May 2021

L. Huang - Year 13 2

Contents From The Editor

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When You Are Locked Away: S. Dolan

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The Hobbit - An Extra Chapter: F. Tatton-Brown

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The Hobbit - An Extra Chapter: N. Wood

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Good Will at Christmas Time: C. Hay

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Christmas Short Story: P. Pullen

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How The Stiltons Spent Christmas: F. Tatton-Brown

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The December Ceasefire: T. Dheerasekara

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Extract - The Messages From The Dead: O. Forrest

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Henry VII Essay: F. Tahir

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Year 8 Battle of the Cowshed: Two stories

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Donnie and Jonathan: C. Nunn

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Plate Tectonics Theory: M. Tatton-Brown

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The thoughts and feelings of a Haiti earthquake survivor: Two stories Journey to the Centre of the Earth: M. Audsley .

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30/31 33

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Contents The Theory Of Plate Techtonics: W. Wiseman

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I'm Here: A. Murphy

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An Inspector Calls - Analysis: A. Tahir

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Snowglobe: F. Wilding

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The Old Woman: K. Willcocks

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The Dome: L. Vavasour

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Language Change: G. Jamieson

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Occupational Language: D. Windibank Economic Weakness and Decolonisation: A. Hutchinson Choose to Challenge the Dragon: E. Freedman & E. Hawkes

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A.

From The Editor Hannah Luckett - English Teacher

Recently in our English lessons, we took a moment to read extracts from Anne Frank’s Diary for Holocaust Memorial Day. It was a sobering lesson, however, as we delved deeper into her Diary, we came across a quotation, ‘I can shake off everything as I write; my sorrows disappear, my courage is reborn.’ It is a beautiful comment on the power of creativity, that despite everything breaking apart around you, can still take time to make something beautiful and meaningful and good.

Our students at Ashford School, have had an incredibly challenging year and yet have risen to every difficulty, every disappointment and every struggle admirably. I think this can be seen in every page of this magazine, that our students have put aside their worries for the world and created from it, something beautiful.

They have crafted worlds, been inspired by their class texts, painted and designed beautiful things and mused on the state of important topics. This is not to say that what is in this magazine are the only pieces of outstanding work our students have produced, but more of a snippet of the students' endeavours to ‘shake off’ the things they cannot control and instead take a moment to dream, to think and to reflect on the things they can.

We are incredibly proud of every student and every piece of work that has been lovingly created and selected for this magazine, and I hope that every student who is featured will look back on this little collection in years to come - a souvenir from a year that they are unlikely to ever forget.

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A.

Software by A. Mark - Year 11

M. Brown - Year 13

A. Harman - Year 11 6

When you are locked away

By S. Dolan - 9P

When you are locked away, It’s easy to become lost in the forest of apprehension, To be side-tracked on the winding roads of high expectation, To be under constant regulation like a prisoner, Where your only comfort is sleep, And maybe a phone call, Maybe, There is a possibility somebody will leave a message, You look out your window and you see empty gardens on sunny days, And mouths covered in fabric when entering the unknown, Watching hands covered in latex mittens, Sway gently in the tainted wind, And we forget why we find ourselves here again, Might I remind you, Our emotions clouded our logic, The large groups, The communal areas in which we failed to distance ourselves, But it’s not over, Sanitized soldiers rush from bunker to bunker, While the cold nightingale watches waiting for the next, And we are sitting here, staring at the news and watching the numbers grow, And grow, And grow, Like summer sprouting its beautiful green leaves, Then autumn comes, Slowly turning them orange, We ignored this autumn, We believed it was okay, The guilt and shame that would sweep over you, If one of the leaves on your branch turned orange, Only will our anxieties be truly diminished, With the built-up hope for a vaccine, Only then will our sighs of relief be released, And we will not have to be locked in our safe territory, Even if we are now, We will not have to throw away the key.

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The Hobbit : An Extra Chapter

By F. Tatton-Brown - 7MY

As Bilbo stumbled around in the pitch black whilst barely being able to see, five eyes carefully watched as he plumped himself down in the corner exhausted. This five-legged creature (a golgonflesh) was not one you would you choose to meet; with its bulging eyes, thick, furry legs, disfigured mouth placed at a rakish angle, millimetres under its slimy, lumpy nose, and, despite it not having any internal organs, it made a slow sinister breathing noise as it crept closer and closer towards Bilbo.

“Well, well, well. What is this perrrrrfect munchy snackling. A hobbitsses, I believe,” said the golgonflesh.

“I, I, I’m. Well yes, I am a hobbit,” Bilbo replied whilst scrambling to his feet, “Bilbo Baggins to be precise.” By now poor Bilbo had got himself in quite a fluster as he had instantly recognised the golgonflesh to be Turbiging The Great, a known reckless, evil warrior from the golgonflesh’s army. And, knowing the only way to survive was to run away from him, he decided to do just so.

Bilbo knew he wasn’t a great runner, especially when having to dodge the many crumbling stalactites and stalagmites, but, fortunately for him, golgonfleshs weren’t either. So, after many minutes of running and scrambling, Bilbo came to halt next to a small pool of water and slumped to the floor as many salty tears trickled down his tired, weary face as he longed to get back to his lovely hobbit hole full of ale, tobacco, warm cosy beds and, lest we forget, his lovely newspapers.

After goodness knows how long, Bilbo decided to actually do something rather than just mourn over his position and wondering over and over again why he decided to continue, and even start, to go on this adventure.

Now, most people would come to the conclusion that you should try and find your way out of the deadly maze of tunnels filled with evil beasts at every corner, but, instead of doing the wise thing, Bilbo decided to have a sleep, wash himself in the pool of water beside him and think of what Gandalf would do, for he was sure Gandalf’s decision would be the wisest.

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So, Bilbo started to get unchanged for his bath, but, just when he was taking off his trousers, he felt a cold lump of metal in his pocket. But it was no ordinary lump of metal. It was a ring, and, as Bilbo shook it out of his pocket, he realised what it was: the ring of Helsh. The ring of Helsh was possibly the most valuable ring ever made, even more expensive than a diamondencrusted one. The reason why it was so expensive was because it was made by one of the most famous elvish blacksmiths ever to be alive, and, if worn in the correct hands, it could make some chosen people turn invisible. Bilbo was one of those chosen people.

To Bilbo, this was like striking gold. It had gone missing many years ago and it’s a known fact that Smaug had killed the blacksmith and taken it back to his secret stash of gold in the heart of the mountains. So, Bilbo wondered, how had it ended up here. Unless, this was the mountain that Smaug’s treasure was kept in…

Secret Garden by J. Murphy - Year 10 9

The Hobbit : An Extra Chapter

By N. Wood - 7FK

As Bilbo tumbled down the damp horrible shaft and hit his head on a particularly blunt rock protruding from the side of the slippery slimy slide, an unnaturally spider-like creature scuttled along down a hand-carved staircase not too far from where Bilbo was. It watched through the cracks with glee as the chubby little hobbit skidded far away into depths of the mountains. Then it creeped hastily down the spindly staircase to wait for Bilbo to hit the bottom of the shaft so it could eat him, nice and slowly.

You see the shaft that Bilbo slid down was in fact actually the shaft the goblins used to send down prisoners as offerings to what they call the Great Old One. If they have a prisoner like the dwarves, that they particularly don’t like, they send them slipping and sliding down into the depths of the mountain past Gollum’s cave and into a much deeper, darker and damper cavern where things that have no name live. Now these Goblins are more ambitious than regular goblins; they burrowed farther into the mountain than the others and, unfortunately for them, into the Great Old One’s cave. This was many years ago when the first goblin burrowed down and got eaten over the course of several days. The Old One ate a leg one day, an arm another day and sometimes a finger when it wasn’t hungry.

As Bilbo hit the bottom of the shaft into a damp dreary cave he awoke with a start as the force of the impact shocked him awake. He saw a creature, spiderlike in features, but it had a pot belly from having too many goblins to eat and eyes rotting like food left on a table for too long. Its skin was moist and grimyslimy in some places and too baggy for its small bones. It rubbed its hands together with mirth as it crept towards him slowly but surely, in hopes of digesting his rotund little cheeks. Bilbo jumped up quick as a flash and whipped out his dagger in one slightly graceful movement and cried: “Begone foul creature or I will...” he stuttered here, “Ch-chop you!”

The entity chuckled a deep dry chuckle without humour and- with speed you wouldn’t expect from such an old thing- leapt upon Bilbo, with blackened teeth bared. In the heat of the moment, Bilbo rolled to one side and cut the shaggy thing across the arm and it howled like the wind on a grey night. Bilbo attempted to climb back up the slippery slimy shaft but only got as far as four metres. He then slid down, right into the Old One’s gaping jaws.

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On the seemingly endless descent into the jaws of oblivion, he saw another particularly blunt rock protruding from the side of the shaft (much like the one he hit his head on earlier) and he grabbed it right before the jaws clamped shut with a deafening snap. It howled with rage as it was looking forward to a tasty little hobbit and it started to walk to where Bilbo was hanging. Bilbo squealed in fright as somehow it began to ascend the slippery slimy shaft to meet Bilbo, who then decided to throw his neat little knife down its gaping jaws. As you would expect that didn’t go down too well with the Old One as it began to implode quite grotesquely, so I would rather not describe how its guts hit the walls with a wet slap, and a goblin’s head came flying out like some sort of deformed bat without wings.

Bilbo sighed with relief as he climbed on the side of the slippery slimy staircase and after a few hours he saw little gap he could wiggle through. So he did and that is how he ended up in dear old Gollum’s cave.

The Last Jedi by J. Fong - Year 12 11

Good Will at Christmas Time

By C. Hay - 7MY

Trudging steadily through the knee-deep snow, footprints slowly appeared behind the mysterious creature. Before much longer, it came to a weatherbeaten door, the only one for many, many miles around. In its shivering hands it held a small map, obviously handwritten and relatively ambiguous, he had had some proper luck to have navigated his way to this wreck of a place. It decided that it looked cosy enough and lifted his shaking hand to give a gentle knock on the door.

Inside, a large debate was brewing. In amongst the over-the-top Christmas decorations, sat a group of people. It seemed to the creature (who was peering over the nearest windowsill, map folded away in his tattered pocket), that they were on friendly terms, so he knocked again. This time, a shadow slowly approached the door. “What brings you to disturb our pleasant winter’s evening?” he growled, not looking on his finest form; so, the traveller rephrased its answer. “What brings me here? Oh, I say, a rather important message that I expect you will be interested in, would it bother you hugely if I came in for a while?”

The large man was taken aback, unsure of how to answer other than a polite “Of course.” In he went and the creature followed. He signalled to his acquaintances that they were to remain quiet and to listen carefully. And so, he began.

Friends, I am somewhat surprised that you haven’t managed to see through my disguise, but my name, as I’m sure you will have heard of, is Edgar, and I have come to relay to you a very critical message which may help you with your discussion”. A polite murmur ran through the gathering and Edgar caught snippets of rude remarks made about him. “Now, now I do not mean to harm you, I am here to be a messenger. I was sent from the church. You will have gathered that they do not find themselves in a particularly happy place this year. The Pope was obliterated, back in March from that nasty surprise attack and it is all a bit of a shambles. They are recruiting people such as you, to protect the celebrations of a worldwide community. And so, I propose that you travel back to England, accompanied by myself and come to help bring us all together in the festive season.

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So, my friends, what do we think?”

Once again, a hushed whisper ran through the crowd, and the leader presented Edgar with their thoughts. He was dressed rather queerly, with a white beard and a red hat adorning his chubby features. Everyone (Edgar in particular) waited in eager anticipation.

“For once and don’t expect us to be called upon often, but we have come to an agreement that we will help you. But only as long as we travel by sleigh.” And so, the merry party set of travelling on only the finest transport, off to save Christmas for one and all.

H. Mayes - Year 11 13

Chrislmas Short Story

By P. Pullen - 7FK

'Twas the 1st of December and outside the snow was falling gently on the dry leaves. Annie and Peter slipped on their warm clothes and almost fell down the stairs in a hurry. Peter grabbed a carrot, a hat, pebbles and a scarf then they stepped outside. Feet crunching on the lumpy snow, Annie and Peter started to build a snowman. To their utmost surprise, kneeling in the snow were two unanimated little elves, a boy and a beautiful young girl (the girl being Annie’s and the boy being Peter’s). Sitting in the snow, the little girl was dressed all in red except her long, flowing chestnut hair on which a red bobble hat was balancing.

Her little blue eyes sparkled in the rising sun and her tubby cheeks were red with cold. Lying in the fluffy candyfloss, the little boy was dressed similarly to Annie’s elf. His majestic blond head of hair glinted as his soft brown eyes danced in front of Peter.

Peter bent down to gather up a snowball and threw it at both elves. “ Hey!” yelled Lily to a sputtering, shivering Sam, who was still shaking the cold snow off his scarlet, woollen jumper. Peter and Annie could not hear the elves’ cries of dismay – which was just as well really. Lily and Sam had been sent here as naughty, cheeky spies, you could say, for Father Christmas, as Annie and Peter didn’t have very good behaviour records from previous years, suggesting the reason why there was a large amount of coal heaped up into a huge pile at the end of their garden.

They finished building the snowman but Lily and Sam did not hang around to see the finished result. They clicked their fingers in unison. Lily and Sam disappeared, leaving glitter falling all around the places where they once sat making the snow sparkle. Annie and Peter looked around but did not see the little elves for the rest of the month. Little did they know that Lily and Sam had their own clever ways of spying on the young children. For what was left of the month Lily and Sam were watching them with a very close eye, checking Annie and Peter’s behaviour and occasionally reporting to Santa.

It was the night before Christmas and in the living room of 43 Santus Road, two little elves were packing the stockings fit to burst with sweeties, toys and books.

This was the first time in 4 years that Annie and Peter had had presents in the stockings and the stockings weren’t taking it too well! “Aww, my sides are aching and scratchy and throbbing!” “ Just be quiet, would you?” stage-whispered Lily to Annie’s wingy stocking. Lily and Sam stood back to admire their handiwork. They clicked their fingers and vanished, leaving a trail of glitter polluting the festive air as well as a pleasant surprise for the children in the morning.

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H. Groomshorter - Year 12

A. Goodman - Year 11

J. Looije - Year 11 15

How The Stiltons Spent Christmas

By F. Tatton-Brown - 7MY

Once upon a time, there was a family of mice called the Stiltons (named after their favourite snack of course). But, they were not your average family of mice, they were secret agents hired every year by mouse mafia H.Q. They had one job; sneak about quick as lightning and carefully scurry back to the entrance of Mouseville with hordes of Christmas goods ranging from toddlers’ presents all the way to leftover turkey and stuffing. However, nothing could compare to cheese! Cheese was every mouse's dream with its gooey inside and solid crust like a warm camembert or rock hard cheddar and stinky brie. It was always the best find and resulted in an extra-large payment for the Stiltons.

So, like every other year, the Stiltons woke with a start as they realised it was Christmas Day and they needed to get to work stealing the goods. There was much pressure as the whole of Mouseville relied on them to bring them back the gifts just as a tightrope walker relies on his rope not to snap. Mouseville was an amazing city and the Stiltons loved it; it was full of laughs, warmth, joy and love. The houses always had a billowing fire with young children playing in the perfect gardens and parents sipping coffee in the local café.

As the humans woke up and slowly came to their senses, the Stiltons were already in position; Ted, the youngest, was getting ready to pinch the turkey straight from the oven, Nora, the daughter, was on present duty which meant she needed to nab the most expensive-looking goodies and Bert and Mabel, the mum and dad, were in charge of carefully opening the fridge and stealthily taking out all the cheese they could find.

Firstly, Ted leant across the counter and stretched his tiny little paws out to open the oven. Instantly, steam came pilling out and, after it cleared, Ted could see a hot, juicy turkey right in front of his very eyes! It was perfect. So, without hesitation, he dragged it over to the secret entrance of Mouseville which was located behind a large set of mirrors.

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Then, it was Bert and Mabel’s turn to do their job. They creaked open the fridge, scrambled around the dried meat and there it was: cheese! Creamy camembert, rich red Leicester and blissful brie were scattered everywhere.

Oh, how they loved it! But, that was not the end of their adventures. It was now Nora’s turn and the second she walked into the living room her eyes stretched as wide as a dinner plate for, under the Christmas tree, was an enormous present waiting for her and her family to open.

“Quick, guys,” Nora squealed, “ There’s a massive present which I think we should all open together. It looks amazing!”

“Ok love, we’re coming!” Bert called down the majestic staircase. And they definitely did come. But, to their utter horror, as they opened up the present, two amber eyes stared out at them and an evil ‘Meowwwwwww’ came from inside the box.

That was the end of the Stiltons.

Z. Ren - Year 11 17

The December Ceasefire

By T. Dheerasekara - 7MY

It was the Western Front in 1914 of WW1. A devastated wasteland riddled with incoherent gunfire. Shells scattered around contaminated puddles and burnt logs. The ominous pitch-black sky burst over the horizon like a witch’s elixir.

Magpie plumage was the only white in sight.

Trenches stretched over the landscape as they carved into the earth. Young soldiers were crouching inside, keeping hold of their faith and courage. Soon, Christmas Day would come.

Soldiers contemplated being home with their family for Christmas Eve. Their eyes sunk hypnotised into their last gifts from their family. Men gave each other looks of hope. Hope was the only thing going to get them out.

The soldiers on both sides ate their stale hardtack, a flavourless army biscuit that crunched like bone. And no water, only rum. Their rum rations were smooth sickly-sweet shot-sized sips of rum with bittersweet hints of burnt wood. It was served in blasted rusty copper cups with an irregular matte finish which made the rum taste metallic and even more unpleasant. Now for the main course. Macaroni was slurped down their stomachs whilst being served cold. The vegetable stew’s broth was in comparison to the murky sky, with potatoes being nauseating black lumps. And then there was bully beef. A rusty can held a soft and squishy amount of minced beef encased in thick gelatine.

Delicious.

Unfortunately, soldiers from both sides tried to strike, not knowing what would happen next. The bayonets were clanging galore as the rifles loaded.

The attack had commenced. The soldiers stampeded and charged like rhinos.

Some soldiers sucker-punched each other with brass knuckle-busters, whilst others set fire to the landscape with flamethrowers nestling on them like backpacks. Dirt sank into the atmosphere which by now was effortless to pierce through. But suddenly, the pins were wrenched off the hand grenades.

Now there was no going back.

The remaining soldiers launched the explosives into the air using crossbows like cannons. Then when a grenade would hit the ground, the earth would rise up like a phoenix and a fiery charge would erupt as the battleground descended into chaos.

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The already stained ground turned pure crimson as pools of blood gushed out of battle wounds. Both sides retreated. The dead branches blazed and disintegrated into ash, as huge craters shaped the battlefront’s new tattoo; then came Christmas Day. Out of the blue, little clusters of poppies began to grow in the battleground, scattering the no man’s land. One group of young British soldiers, who were needless to say drunk halfwits, had a bright idea. One truce just for Christmas Day. They stepped out as their friends cried out in horror. But past the murky fog, the Central Powers held fire. It was a Christmas miracle.

They ran out to each other but instead of charging to murder one another, they hugged each other as tears fell from their faces. They greeted each other, exchanged gifts and socialised. They even played a game of football as both sides rejoiced. It wasn’t just a Christmas miracle, it was the December Ceasefire of 1914.

H. Groomshorter - Year 12 19

The Messages From The Dead

By O. Forrest - 8SP The Solstice household is a place full of characters and mischief.

A middle-sized house with brick walls, a beautiful rose garden where all the fine specimens of nature were housed, glass panels that shone like a star on a clear night and a tall, skinny chimney that reached up and clutched the sky with its circular pots.

The appearance was perfect but a couple of the individuals that called it ‘home’ were not the friendliest of types. Jack Solstice, a boy of 17 was a trickster, a prankster who hurt people, purely for the result of pain and agony.

James Solstice, a bald man of 46 was of the exact same sort. He and Jack would gang against a lovely person named Skye Solstice, a girl of 13 who is a kind spirit with beautiful blonde hair and play noxious tricks on her. Jade Solstice, a mum of 41, is a gentle soul with a very helpful attitude who has round glasses and lovely blonde hair like Skye.

The Solstice household is stuffed with chaos which results in a variety of different consequences.

A. Hyde Harrison - Year 12 20

The Dark Place Revisited by G. Wilde - Year 7

Outside the silent Falmer Station by H. Jaing - Year 11 21

Henry VII Essay

By F. Tahir - 8MY

In 1485, Henry Tudor defeated Richard III in the Battle of Bosworth. This was the last of the Wars of the Roses, and Henry was crowned king. This essay will consider whether crushing his rivals for power was the most important way that he secured control of England. The other tactics he used which could be argued to be significant techniques to gain control are clever deals, controlling the nobles in other ways and increasing his wealth.

A significant way that Henry secured control was by crushing his rivals. He did this by having Perkin Warbeck publicly executed. By doing this, he showed everyone that those who rebelled against him had no chance of overthrowing him. Usually, rich people and people with authority would have the choice to be executed privately to avoid embarrassment and to keep dignity. By denying Warbeck the right to be executed in this way, he was making sure that people were aware that any attempts to overthrow him were futile. Therefore, people would be too scared to disobey him or to riot against him because he was presenting himself as all-powerful as if he would not hesitate to crush them, as he did with all his rivals.

Another notable way that ensured that Henry maintained control was with clever deals. By marrying the Yorkist princess (Elizabeth), he strengthened his claim to the throne and united the two bloodlines. This would also mean that their child would have the blood of the two families flowing in their veins. As well as this, he only took money from the rich. This was a good move because it would mean that the poor people would like him, and they would be willing to fight for Henry if necessary. There were lots of poor people, which would mean lots of soldiers. Because of all this, clever deals were an important way that Henry claimed control.

It could be argued that controlling nobles was also a significant technique. For example, he gave Lambert a job in the kitchens. Although at first it seems as though he was being gracious and merciful, it was actually a power move. It shows that if he ever does something untrustworthy or suspicious, he could be killed. By forcing him to do a job where he was constantly watched, Henry was reminding Lambert that he controlled everything, and there was nothing Lambert could do about it.

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Another way that Henry kept the nobles under control was by making it illegal to have private armies. This was important because it reduces the chances of the nobles being able to declare war against him. He took away lots of the nobles’ rights and privileges and made them have less control over England.

He was therefore taking control away from the nobles and taking it for himself.

By increasing his wealth, Henry found yet another way to secure control.

When he fined nobles when they disobeyed him, he was increasing his wealth while also managing to control the nobles. An example of a fine was the way that the nobles had to pay a certain sum of money if they failed to complete written promises, based around what functions they would perform in the areas they controlled. The lesser nobles paid a sum of £400, while the senior nobles paid £10,000, demonstrating how Henry was making money in sly ways. If they did not keep to their part of the deal, they lost the money. If they kept to their promise, then Henry was finding more and more ways to control the nobles. As you can see, this was a win-win situation for Henry. The reason he was a miser and wanted to increase his wealth was because he wanted to be able to fight for his succession, if necessary. Because of this evidence, we can infer that Henry was securing control when fining nobles.

In conclusion, I believe that clever deals were the most important way that Henry secured control of England. By uniting the two families, he made England peaceful once more. It was important to have people willing to fight on his behalf, and so not taking money from the peasants was a good idea. I believe that clever deals were the most important factor because there are clear links between this statement and the others. For example, by not taxing the poor, he took money from the rich, and he increased his wealth. This would also control the nobles, and that money would be used to control and crush his rivals. By marrying Elizabeth of York, he decreased his rivals because the House of York was now technically related to him. In addition to this, it would increase his wealth.

So overall, I believe that clever deals were the most significant reason that Henry managed to secure control of England.

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The Battle Of The Cowshed An account of the great battle in ‘Animal Farm’ from the perspective of Mr Jones.

By H. Scott - 8FK I am enraged with anger. I want revenge on my hideous animals that stole my land from me. I feel like I have been banished from my own land and I must take it back from those beasts. They are nothing compared to me, they are just useless creatures that will just be slaughter soon, ending their meaningless lives.

Recently, I have been spending most of my time at the pub in Willingdon, where I have been devising a plan to take my farm back from those idiotic thugs. They should know their place – me on top and them far below me. But no, they decided to rebel and try to rule the farm themselves. I am certain that it is complete chaos there though, without an intelligent human to organise everything.

One evening, I recruited some of the workers from the nearby farms, Foxwood and Pinchfield, and also some of my men; and I told them my plan for revenge. I gave them all some long sturdy sticks and armed myself with my trusty shotgun that I use to kill any animals that annoy me. We then all boarded my old car and set off to the farm, climbed the five-bar gate and prepared to strike. I wasn’t worried at all. I was confident the animals would be a mess: some would probably be dead, perhaps unwell, and other just lost.

I never expected them to have seen us coming….

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The Battle Of The Cowshed An account of the great battle in ‘Animal Farm’ from the perspective of Mr Jones.

By S. Fullman - 8SP As I pelted up the path, my feet kicked up the dust, creating a beige trail in the air behind me. The same way the dust was disturbed as I walked up the path, so were my feelings of rage being drawn out from within. I would not leave MY farm because of some stupid animals who do not know the consequences that this has had on me. Years I spent. Years. This farm was my life, and I would not give it up this easily.

With my shotgun in my hand and men behind me, I would take back my house and farm with ease. As soon as I overpowered the animals, I would castrate them and sell them. They would be gone. And I would remain forever. Erasing every sign that they ever existed would be the best thing I would ever do.

Farming would become less of enjoyable, easy fun; it would, for the animals, be pure torture. But for me, enjoyment and satisfaction.

Suddenly, a flock of pigeons flew overhead, then swooping down and attacking us. My men poked and prodded with pitchforks at the beasts, but it did no good. Shouting filled the air, and, as I looked down, all I could see were geese pecking at our calves. We soon managed to drive them off and we had won the battle. A cheer went up, but just as we were walking closer, a wave of speed and fury hit us. Sheep and donkeys buffed us from every side causing some men to go down, but we were stronger. All of them retreated.

“Hoorah!” shouted every man. We had beaten them into submission!

But it was not over.

Turning around, I saw three cows and three horses cutting off the rear. An ambush! The shouts of triumph died quickly as we were attacked from both sides. A rogue pig ran straight for me. So, I raised my gun and…. bang! Pellets scratched the pig’s back but hit the sheep behind it. It dropped dead. I fell back into horse dung. Shotgun out of hand, and having fallen into horse poo, it was time to retreat. I ran.

“Retreat!”

Looking back, I saw a stable boy lying on the ground. He wasn’t moving.

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Donnie and Jonathan

By C. Nunn - 9K

68th floor of the Highlander Inc. Tower. Sunlight cut through the metallic shutters only to refract through the fresh glass of mineral water in Donnie Miller’s left dominant hand. Donnie walked with large and precise strides. He had a rhythm to his steps, as if he had a jukebox in his mind. His brown leather shoes were polished, yet slightly scuffed. His ankle was covered by his black socks that had a brown line across the rim. His were trousers tapered and freshly ironed. A brown leather belt had a gleaming silver buckle, complimented by the afternoon sun. He had a long slim tie that grazed this buckle, his tie accentuated his slim figure. Donnie’s ink blue suit was buttoned once. His white collar lined his neck tightly, a perfect fit. Donnie’s hair was a golden blonde and was slicked back with a slight wave. His eyes were dark brown. And his teeth had a white shine.

Donnie was a new employee, but he had more potential than all the people above him. Wondering why he didn’t get a higher position? He broke the number one rule of power. Never outshine the master. Donnie was 3 minutes 14 seconds into his interview, and he was already correcting the two interviewers about their grammar and pronunciation. They could have kicked him out, right then, right there. But Dean Norris liked his attitude and knew that he would be the most valuable asset to Highlander Inc. However, the other interviewer, Jonathan King, CEO of the company, didn’t like him one bit.

As mentioned before, Donnie Miller ‘outshone the master’.

Donnie kept on thinking about that moment with an enigmatic smile, like the Mona Lisa. He neared the end of the large grand corridor. The tune in his head came to a sudden stop as he glanced at the gradual opening of the golden elevator doors. He saw Jonathan King himself, step out of that metal box.

Jonathan’s glare had intent to kill. But Donnie could see straight through him, as if he had X-ray vision. He knew that Jonathan was only CEO because of his father; he also knew that Jonathan was not as smart as he seemed. Donnie did his research. He always did.

Jonathan’s suit was expensive and grey and unbuttoned. He was shorter than most of the men at Highlander Inc., so he wore shoes with a thicker sole to compensate for this. Money was his strong point, and, well, that was all he cared about.

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Jonathan walked out of the elevator in a straight line, despite Donnie standing in his way. Donnie didn’t move, he stood there, observing. Jonathan walked up to Donnie and slowly looked up. “Are you lost?”

“Does It look like I’m lost?”

“You shouldn’t be on this floor… Donnie…”

“I can go wherever I want.”

“Are you testing me?”

Donnie said nothing. The air felt hotter as Jonathan’s anger levels increased.

He took off his jacket and threw it at the floor. His hands were in a tight fist.

Donnie looked down at the small fists and smirked.

D. Sutcliffe - Year 8 27

The Theory Of Plate Techtonics

By M. Tatton-Brown - 9Y

Geologist Alfred Wegener’s 1912 theory of plate tectonics, (the theory that earth’s outer crust is divided into several smaller plates that glide over the mantle), was at the time of publication seen as hugely controversial, but now is widely accepted as the cause of earthquakes, volcanoes, and mountains; as well as the forming of how our continents and globe look today. But what actual evidence is there to reinforce his theory? And why was it not believed in the first place?

Firstly, there is the concept of the jigsaw pieces. When one looks at a map of the world, it is common to think that the east coast of South America seems to fit into the west coastline of Africa. And if you look even more closely, a rotated Australia and India also match up with Africa and Antarctica. This was what Wegener labelled as Pangea, the first Supercontinent that over 200 million years has slowly broken apart. Gradually, Pangea split roughly along the equator to create two main landmasses: Laurasia (Eurasia and North America) and Gondwanaland (North America, Africa, India and Antarctica). This theory was not new to Wegener and had been suggested by both Sir Francis Bacon and detailed in 1855 in maps by geographer Antonio Snider-Pellegrini.

This piece of evidence is probably the most visual, and although some areas do not match up entirely due to erosion and rising sea levels, it is obvious that earth’s land masses were once connected in Pangea.

Other evidence for this theory can be found in fossils and glacial deposits.

Fossil remains of the freshwater reptile Mesosaurus can be found across both the South of Africa and South America. As a freshwater reptile, the Mesosaurus would not have been able to swim long distances, let alone swim in the sea. Therefore, the only possible explanation for these fossil remains, is that the Mesosaurus lived at a time where they could cross from Africa to America, hence proving that Pangea must have existed. Other fossil evidence can be found in the example of Lystosaurus. The Lystosaurus was a land reptile whose remains have been discovered across Africa, India and Antarctica. Surely these countries were once connected. Or else how would a land reptile travel the 7,362 km between Africa and Antarctica?

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Similarly, there is the evidence of glacial deposits. This was one of the fields that Alfred Wegener himself explored. He found a peculiarity in the PermoCarboniferous sheet that covered Antarctica, Africa, South America and Australia 300 million years ago. If the ice sheet had formed when the continents were in their current position, then the deposit would have had to stretch above the equator, which geologists confirm was a warm and tropical climate. There is also no proof of this glacial deposit across the Northern Hemisphere. Instead, countries in the Northern Hemisphere such as the UK, Norway and Sweden, have limestone. Limestone is a sedimentary rock usually made along the equator in temperate marine waters. This shows that not only the Southern Hemisphere could not have been located along the equator, but that, alternatively, the Northern Hemisphere was once much closer to it.

There are also the more recent methods by which people have justified Wegener’s theory, such as the use of radioactivity to date rocks. Using this new technology, we can clearly tell that a new crust is being created along the Atlantic Ridge, where a constructive plate margin lies. Equally, the oldest crust in the Atlantic Ocean is found along the coasts of America, Europe and Africa – the areas furthest away from the ridge. This analysis of rocks and geology is a modern way by which Wegener’s theory is proved through convection currents in the mantle forming a new crust and destroying the old to move the tectonic plates around the globe.

To conclude, Alfred Wegener’s theory of plate tectonics is clearly proved by both documents dating back to 1855, and new evidence using the latest science and technology to study continental drift.

P. Gan - Year 12 29

The Thoughts and Feelings of a Haiti Earthquake Survivor

By M. Tatton-Brown - 9Y ……Survivors, that’s what we are. Yet we are still waiting for the support we need to rebuild our homes. Rebuild our lives. I am nearly 40, with three children, I have spent all my working years providing the clothes that I make for this country; my brother sends back some of his wages from America every month. My family and I have done everything for Haiti, but three years since the earthquake, we are still squashed into these tents, with no inkling as to when we might be able to get houses with proper support structures. At the moment I think people have forgotten about us. Or worse, they remember, but they have moved on. We are no longer worthy of their help. They are wrong. We need your help more than ever, and we are worthy of it. My sons and daughters work hard at school every day and my eldest two work alongside me in the evenings. I have been told to move, to leave for places more rural – the suburbs – but I don’t want to go. I don’t want to leave. Portau-Prince is my home: it has been for years and it always will be. And that’s the hardest thing.

M. Ellul - Year 8 30

The Thoughts and Feelings of a Haiti Earthquake Survivor

By E. Freedman - 9P I finally awake, bitter that my situation is undeniably real. I have spent all night tossing and turning, devastated. We have lost so much. I lie there for a while, unable to move, to comprehend what happened. Every time I close my eyes, I see it: the toppling down of the houses, as if they are children’s toys being thrown about during a tantrum, swept to the side and collapsing in on themselves. But they aren’t children’s toys. They are actual, real homes, with actual, real people in them. Many of them died with their houses. And even those who survived still face many hardships. For a period, there was no water, and we all slept on the streets amongst the chalky rubble, wary of the aftershocks. We didn’t move. We just sat there.

I heave myself upwards off the flimsy camping mat and look around my little plastic prison. Our few remaining possessions were strewn across the floor. I could count them on one hand. As I make my way out of the tent, I see hundreds of others going through the exact same train of thought. The camp was vast. And monotonous. Thousands of little white tiny pyramids assembled on the outskirts of the city- or what remained of it. We had the essentialsfood, water and shelter- but not much else. I thought about how the government had handled the response effort... and sighed. Unanimous panic was a recipe for disaster, but so was the lack of building regulations. How didn’t they think about planning for an earthquake? What was going through their minds when they decided we were better off without building codes? Not that people could afford it anyway. People aren’t well-off here. But the earthquake made it worse- people lost their jobs and money, so they couldn’t afford to leave the campsite.

It's hot, but still a fine chalky fog rises up from the faraway buildings. Dust and ruin.

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V. Change - Year 11

M. Brown - Year 13

M. Garness-Saunders - Year 9

M. Brown - Year 13 32

Journey to the Centre of the Earth

By M. Audsley - 9S

We were finally doing this! We were actually going to travel to the very centre of the Earth – through the crust, the mantle, the outer core and then the inner core. Never done by man before. If we did this right it could be one of the greatest achievements in the whole of history. 40 years of research, and it all comes down to this. Of course, there’s the possibility that we won’t make it back, but that’s a risk I’m prepared to take.

A hexagonal vehicle is standing before me, the spaceship-like transportation that would take me and 3 others to the centre of the Earth, the inner core.

Made of tantalum carbide and hafnium carbide, materials that can withstand scorching temperatures of nearly 4000 degrees Celsius. Reinforced with other materials to withstand the incredible heat. Stuffed with lots of scientific equipment, food and supplies – enough to last us for roughly 9 months; we have no idea how long this was going to take.

A large crowd of fans and paparazzi are standing behind a fence screaming and calling our names. This whole experience is unreal!

We’ve just reached as far a man has ever reached before Marianas trench, 11,000m below sea level, you can just feel begin the pressure. We still have 20 km before we hit the mantle. We’ve been going for 1 week.

I just reached the mantle. The mantle is made of hot molten rock, magma, and is around 2000°C. The pressure is extremely high. This stage is 2900km deep, the thickest part of the Earth’s structure. We reckon it’ll take around 2-3 weeks to get through this stage; we’re hoping we won’t melt! I’m feeling really excited and confident about this trip, although there is a small fear it’ll go wrong; but I know that was always a risk, a risk I was happy to take - for geography and for science.

Every day we upload any findings - technology has been updated so that we can- if we were to die at least they would still get something out of it.

It’s 4 weeks later: we’ve just dived into the outer core. The heat is almost unbearable, at a massive 4500°C. You can feel it through the walls of the ship.

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The pressure is practically intolerable, however we’re struggling through. At the moment I’m feeling less and less excited by the day, I’m becoming increasingly nervous and scared- reality has really hit that I really might not make it out alive.

Making predictions and focusing on the data for the scientists and geologists up on Earth has really helped. We’ve been down here for roughly 3-4 months.

Thinking about home really makes me realise what a haven it is. The structure of the outer core is liquid, liquid iron and nickel which we have taken samples of to examine. The depth of the outer core is 2200km deep, so it will take less time than the mantle but more the crust. I think this layer will be hardest to cope with.

We’ve reached the edge of the outer core, teetering on the inner core, and discovered a problem the inner core is solid iron and nickel due to the insane pressure; we can’t get inside. This is just as well because I don’t think our transport can take any more heat or pressure. Some of our measuring instruments couldn’t cope and broke! It feels momentous and incredible to have got this far! The inner core’s radius is 3485km so I don’t think we would survive.

Now the only thing we need to do is to take some tests and then try and get back up to Earth in one piece!

Wow! That was an experience of a lifetime, we made it back up! We got back to Earth after 8 long months of extensive geographic and scientific research. We made it! I can sleep in my own bed! Our contributions have changed the world and the way we think about it forever. I am utterly exhausted. The ascent was just as exciting as the descent but I’m glad to be back. The crowds that greeted us were staggering and overwhelming. It's nice to know that so many people supported us. I just hope that the people in the past know that we finally made their dreams of reaching the centre of the Earth come true.

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The Theory Of Plate Techtonics

By W. Wiseman - 9F

The theory of plate tectonics was first brought up by Alfred Wegener a meteorologist from Germany. His theory stated that all continents used to be joined together in one huge continent called Pangaea and that they drifted apart into the continents that they are today. The theory of plate tectonics is that the world rests on large plates that move slowly on top of the mantle: this is known as continental drift.

One of the first pieces of evidence to back up the idea of plate tectonics was the fact that continents, when viewed on a large scale, looked like pieces of a jigsaw that had once fitted together. For example, the east coast of South America (which is on the South American plate), looks as if it would fit perfectly into the east coast of Africa (which lies on the African plate). Surely this could not just be by sheer coincidence! In fact, this helps to demonstrate how the super continent Pangea would have looked over 200 million years ago. Pangea was a huge continent that began to break up around 175 million years ago and since then million has travelled to the positions that we know today.

These huge pieces of earth would have needed some way to move into the places that we see them today. They move because they sit on tectonic plates which effectively float on the molten inner Earth. Their origins and movement are evidenced by the fact that similar plant and animal life can be found in fossils on continents that are today so far away from each other. Such as the Mesosaurus which has been found as fossils from the early Permian period in the south of Africa and also in South America. These were freshwater animals living in lakes and ponds so they would not have had the ability even to attempt to swim the thousands of kilometres between these two continents.

So, the only logical conclusion would be that these two continents were once connected by land.

Another convincing piece of evidence is the fault lines that run all over the world. These are breaks or fractures in the ground that occur at plate boundaries. There is a lot of physical evidence that shows this. For example, the San Andreas plate runs for 1,200km along the border between the North American plate and the Pacific plate. This fault line is clearly visible in some parts of the Californian desert and has caused many major earthquakes. For example, the 1906 earthquake measured 7.9 on the Richter scale and is believed to have killed 700 people.

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Another earthquake that has occurred on this fault line was the 1857 Fort Tejon earthquake that is also believed to have had a magnitude of 7.9 on the Richter scale. This proves that there is plate movement on this boundary and, therefore, helps to show the theory of plate tectonics.

Finally, there is the newer evidence. The idea of sea floor spreading came around at the end of WW2 when the increased exploration of the seabed led to a better understanding of the sea floor. Large underwater mountain ranges were found such as the mid-Atlantic Ridge that lies on a constructive plate boundary and stretches out over 10,000 miles. As the plates move apart magma rushes up from the earth's mantle and over time creates the underwater mountain ranges that run through oceans today. Some places in the world have actually been created by this formation of crust. For example, Iceland was created on the boundary of the North American and Eurasian plates. This creation of new crusts proves that the earth’s tectonic plates are moving around as we speak.

Palaeomagnetism is the study of earth’s magnetic field in rocks, sediment and archaeological material over time. The record showed by these rocks can tell us past behaviour of earth's magnetic field and the past location of tectonic plates. Palaeomagnetism can also be used to match up land masses that are now separated from each other but have previously been joined. This also helps to prove seafloor spreading, because as the rocks form they lock-in a record of the direction and intensity of the magnetic field. When scientists studied the magnetic signatures of rocks of the seabed they saw that some rocks had different magnetic field lines despite being next to each other. This shows that as the new rock pushes up from the ridge the old rock was pushed away, thus proving sea floor spreading.

In conclusion, the theory of plate tectonics is a well-supported theory. From the fact that the shapes of the continent suggest that they would have pieced together to the common geological findings between the separated continents and the magnetic field evidence from rocks, it is clear plate tectonics have been in operation since the cooling of the earth’s crust.

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Im Here

By A. Murphy - 10K I’m here as you walk right past me I’m here and you see me but don’t I’m here so why is it that you ignore me I’m here or am I just too dumb to be seen I’m here when someone finely sees me I panic I’m here and then I lie and say I’m ok I’m here and you ignore this and walk on by I’m here why don’t you see me I’m here all I want, is for you to look me in the eye I’m here.

A. Orpin - Year 8 37

An Inspector Calls Analysis of Mr Birling in Act One

By A. Tahir - 10M The character of Mr Birling is presented by Priestley as a symbol of capitalism because he is a member of the upper middle class who are only wealthy because they have exploited their workers and have not behaved ethically.

Priestley undermines Mr Birling’s views by highlighting all of his faults which in turn criticises capitalist society and shows the audience that socialism is the way forward for society.

Priestley presents the character of the Inspector as a mouthpiece for his own socialist views and uses him to undermine Mr Birling’s message. Mr Birling’s reaction to the Inspector’s questioning of him reveals his arrogance and selfishness (and therefore that of the upper classes). This is apparent when the Inspector asks him why he dismissed Eva from his factory when he speaks in a “surprised” tone and asks, “Did you say, why?” His reaction to the Inspector asking him a simple question shows that he is not used to people questioning and challenging his decisions. By using the adjective “surprised”, Priestley is implying that Birling does not have any doubt in his mind that he was right to dismiss to Eva, a poor working class girl who had no other means of income from his factory. This in turn reflects negatively on the upper class and suggests that they are selfish and do not consider the consequences of their decisions on other people; in short, they have no sense of social responsibility. This makes the audience resent Mr Birling and everything he stands for.

Priestley depicts Mr Birling as a greedy person who does not have any empathy for others. In his long speeches to the family, he is shown to always prioritise his business and profit, even over his family. When he is talking about Gerald and Sheila’s engagement, instead of talking about his daughter’s happiness, he expresses his relief that “Crofts and Birlings are no longer competing but working together for lower costs and higher prices.” The verb ‘competing’ suggests a tension between Mr Birling and Gerald’s father. Mr Birling is clearly glad that his daughter’s marital union will allow them to start “working together”, so that he can continue to make money without worrying quite so much about the competition to his business.

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The fact that he is talking about business at his daughter’s engagement party shows that he values money and profit over family and could suggest that capitalism makes people selfish and obsessive with money. This establishes him as an exploitative capitalist who has lost his empathy towards other people in favour of material gain. This highlights to the audience that capitalism can cause people to lose their humanity, an idea particularly endorsed by the events of World War I and II, and in turn, this urges them to act differently to Birling.

The writer further establishes Mr Birling as exploitative and emotionless later in the play, by revealing his attitude to Eva Smith’s suicide and his behaviour towards her. This is shown when Mr Birling says he “can’t accept any responsibility” for “the wretched girl’s suicide”. The adjective “wretched” being used to describe Eva makes it seem as if she had done something bad or wrong as opposed to desperate. Mr Birling almost seems to be shifting the blame from himself onto Eva herself. This draws attention to the manipulative side of Mr Birling as he is making Eva and her suicide seem less important and irrelevant when he knows he is partially to blame for it. His inability to claim responsibility shows how disconnected he is from the rest of society and how unaware he is of the suffering that his social class inflicts upon the working class. It gives the audience a sense of the complacency of the upper classes and of their isolation from everyone else. Priestley has used Eva’s suicide as a way to represent the workers who have been let down by capitalism, which some of the audience may relate to. By showing Mr Birling’s dismissiveness of it, he may be implying that the upper class do not care about them which would them to relate to Priestley’s socialist ideas.

In conclusion, Priestley has presented Mr Birling as a self-centred and selfish character. He has used his character as a way of expressing the opposite of his own views. This character shows the audience that capitalism is an ideology that is inherently selfish and can have disastrous effects on the working class because of the upper class’s attitudes towards them. Birling is used to persuade the audience away from capitalism because of his immoral behaviour and help them to sympathise more with socialism, which in the post-war era may help to bring major change in society, something Priestley was hoping he could achieve. Birling is a warning to the audience of what they themselves could become if they act like him and don’t take responsibility for their actions.

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A. Zhu - Year 11 40

Snowglobe

By F. Wilding - 11Y

The young girl entered the room. Her light blue eyes fell straight to the large snowglobe standing on the scrubbed table. She bounded across the room, her short legs projecting her a couple of feet above the carpeted bedroom floor.

She held out her small, warm hands and picked up the snowglobe eagerly; her long, winter jumper stretching out as she did so. She pushed the short, straight hair out of her happy, smiling face and shook the globe, closing her eyes as she did so, her small eyelashes gently caressing her smooth cheeks.

She shook for a few seconds, her eyes jammed tightly shut, her imagination running wild with colourful and magical ideas. Then she opened her eyes.

The artificial snow was falling gently all around a minute village setting. The blue eyes opened wider in awe, the snowglobe reflected in both pupils.

Another smile creased onto her delighted face. Now the snow had settled, and she saw the immense detail of each tiny house; the paned windows and brass door handles. She pressed her face closer, eager to see more. Her greedy eyes swept over village shops, horse carts, small roads and even a church.

She thought she could hear the chatter of non-existent people going about their daily business. Then, quite distinctly, she heard a booming church bell, ringing out across the sleepy village.

She was in the village! She was standing in the middle of the road she had seen just a moment ago, with people, real people, wandering all around her, leaving houses with paned windows, walking into little shops and climbing into carriages led by horses. It was all so magical for her because it was the last thing to expect when looking into a snowglobe. As she stood there in the utmost bliss, a terrible thought struck her. She had imagined this happening as she was shaking the globe for the very first time! What sort of potentially dark sorcery had possessed her and made it so her childish thought would become a reality? Suddenly, dark thoughts overcame her bliss. What if she was stuck there forever? Would anyone find her? Would anyone know where she had gone?

She felt very small and cold in this fantasy, dreamlike world. Slowly, she made herself walk and set off down the road.

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The Old Woman

By K. Willcocks - 11S Colourful, calm, content; the balmy air which hugged you was completely still.

Not even the sea of trees swayed on the overgrown bushes at the end of the garden. The environment was like a painting which was rich of fresh, damp, emerald vegetation and had the odd splash of fuchsia from the flowers hidden deep inside. The aged house was crumbling and cracking, and was almost as old as the woman who lived there.

Her transparent skin was riddled with wrinkles, curves and creases like bunched up silk and each had its own story to tell. She had sleek, shiny, slicked hair, as white as snow which she wore in a short, sophisticated style, reflecting her conservative manner. She was wearing a long, casual aqua blue dress, and although it looked as if it was as old as her, it suited her well and fitted her like a glove. She had dainty black glasses which sat right on the tip of her perky, upturned nose, littered with freckles and tan marks. As she began her early morning stroll through her garden, you could see her pride with every silent footstep she took through the newly trimmed grass. The impressive pool is glistening under a large patch of sunlight and is very well kept, despite the lack of use it has obtained through the years.

Her attention quickly turns down from the beautiful sight to her bony, fragile fingers where a golden band lay, containing one solitary diamond. It was slightly dirty and dull, but well-kept, nevertheless. As she focused in on the precious, sparkling, glowing gemstone, two spherical shapes appeared. Slightly confused, she looks even closer and sees the shape take form: they are eyes!

Ones she was no stranger to. They were the brightest blue eyes she had ever seen. Those were the eyes that took care of her, that nurtured her, that loved her for all those years.

Her husband’s eyes...

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She felt hope and passion as she saw that face. A face she had missed since the day he went. A sense of closure filled her heart, but that comforting sense very quickly turned to an ache as the eyes started to fade. She did not want to lose him again, but there was nothing she could do.

When the image disappeared, her eyes started to fill with tears once more.

She pulled up her heavy head from her finger and something had changed.

There now flowed a chilling breeze that surrounded her vulnerable body.

The trees looked as if they were crying for help while the flowers which were once vivid and cheerful had been pulled into the abyss of dark, dismal, demonic greenery. Her garden which she once taken pride in and knew well had now become associated with the depressing memory of him.

J. Zhu - Year 13 43

The Dome

By L. Vavasour - 11K An array of reflective white specks fell from the top of the fragile white dome.

The child, dressed in her nightgown, continued to gently shake this world of wonder, marvelling at its sublime beauty. The corners of her mouth were slightly elevated, revealing a set of pearly teeth and a pink tongue. Her rosyred lips pressed again the fragile glass ever so gently, the power of a child’s happiness is truly a magical thing. Her little button nose lit up as she continued to play with her dome, giggling and laughing all the while.

She loved her dome, more than anything in the world. She began to roll it across the floor and toss it up into the air as though it were a rocket-ship.

“Oh no!”

She’d forgotten to catch it. As the fragile glass orb hurtled towards the solid stone floor, she felt her heart stop.Her emotions chased each other across her now pale-white face.

“Oh no! Oh no! Oh no!” she continued to think, panicking as time ticked by. She was afraid. Not afraid of getting into trouble or being punished, but afraid because she’d destroyed something so fragile, so innocent and defenceless and she’d broken it.

“Smash!” Her dome was broken. Her happiness was gone. The colour left her nose and lips, leaving a blank canvas where a once beautiful canvas was hung.

A single drop of water rang down her pale cheek, onto the floor, where her dome was. She knelt down and began to repair it. Avoiding the blades of glass, she began to fix it back together. However, no matter how hard she tried, no matter how persistently she prayed, it was gone. Her dome was destroyed.

The little life left in her drooping eyes abandoned her. Defeated and despairing, the girl sunk to the floor and cried.

She cried, and cried, and continued to cry until there were no tears left. She lay motionless, her head in her hands, legs crossed, surrounded by tears. She laid still for minutes. Those minutes turned into hours, and those hours dragged on and on.

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When all joy and spirit had left her body, she looked up and was shocked.

Her cheeks began to glow, her nose lit up, every muscle in her body sprang back to life. Her pointy ears pricked up and her short blonde hair shone like gold.

“I…” She tried to speak, but the words were overcome with sheer joy. In utter bewilderment the girl did a little skip of excitement. The life restored back into her magical little mind she began to smile, and that smile turned into a giggle, and that giggle turned into pure, innocent laughter. Laughter so loud and contagious that everyone, everywhere, began to laugh.

She jumped for joy. It was her dome. Her magical, glass, sparkly, incredible little dome was back. She didn’t know how, or why, but to be perfectly honest she didn’t really care: she was too happy to care.

The magic of this credible moment flowed through her tiny body. A miracle had occurred, a truly unbelievable moment, and yet she still did not care. She didn’t care about anything, except, of course, her magical little orb.

An array of bright little specks appeared all around her. Her tiny little feet lifted off the stone floor. Her whole body floated like a little cloud of pure joy.

A smile beamed from her rosy face. At this exact moment, she was happy, and that’s all that mattered in her magical little world.

B. Coote - Year 11 45

Language Change

“English has developed not only through the addition of new words, but also through shifts in the meanings of existing words”. How far do you agree with this statement?

By G. Jamieson - 13S In the last century, the language we use every day has changed dramatically.

Lots of it comes from new words that are invented and cemented into our everyday language and the dictionary. However, it is very clear to see that in our day to day lives we are taking words that are already in use in our language and using them for different purposes, creating a range of different homonyms. This can be seen with homonyms being created to describe something completely new or just another way to describe something. It is clear to see that English has developed because of this, however, it is a matter of debate whether English has benefited from this, or not.

Firstly, it is clear to see that technology is the driving force behind the language development we have been experiencing in recent times. It has been driving language development both physically with the new pieces of technology being created and also the way we interact using technology online, for example on social media. In terms of the new technology there are lots of new homonyms that have been created. For example, the noun ‘bug’ was created to describe errors that occur in computers and offers a semantic broadening to the noun so it now has a dual purpose rather than just denotating the actual living bug. There are countless more examples of words gaining more meanings such as ‘glitch’, ‘surge’ as in a ‘power surge’ and the verb ‘to execute’ is very much different to its other meaning. All of these terms have developed the English language and with the rise of technology these words will only become more embedded in our language and so it very strongly shows that shifts in the meaning of words can develop the English language.

Secondly, using this technology online on social media has created a vast array of new styles of discourse. Applications such as Twitter and Facebook have provided a platform for people to write, and this has created more meanings to already existing words. The semantic broadening of words such as ‘woke’ and ‘snowflake’ to describe others have quickly found their way into the mainstream media and then into our everyday language.

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However, it is debatable whether social media has assisted in creating shifts in meanings of existing words. It has created some new meanings as mentioned above, but, overall, has created more words that are brand new such as ‘selfie’ and ‘lol’. It has also created much more compounded or blended words, such as ‘hangry’ or ‘smog’.

Finally, it is clear to see where the most amount of words gain duality in their meanings. This can be seen in the different cultures that are present in the U.K. For example, the homosexual community that has been growing in the last half a century or so have redefined the meanings of many words, giving these more than one meaning. Examples, of this are ‘gay’ and ‘queer’ which at the time gave the words more than one meaning, however, despite this, the noun ‘gay’ has become an archaic word and ‘queer’ is being used less and less.

Despite this, however, it is a strong example of cultures having an effect on the English language. Another example is the dialect of multicultural English (MLE) that has impacted the English language so greatly since the War. This dialect, much of it viewed as slang, has popularised many words that have changed in meaning and these have swept the country. The word ‘sick’ is the most common example and it has ameliorated massively from something quite disgusting to something most positive. Another example which although rarely recognised for having undergone change is the word ‘literally’. Excusing the pun, this word has lost its literal meaning, and this has been from excessive usage as a filler by those who speak the dialect and MLE and after this way of speaking has been popularised as a ‘cool’ way to speak it has spread across the country giving the word ‘literally’ another meaning.

In conclusion, there have been many words that have been formed in recent times from already existing words. These homonyms have been driven by new inventions in technology and how we use technology. Also, different cultures and dialects have also allowed different groups of people to create new meanings to words. Reflecting on this, it is also clear to see that the way we use technology has managed to push out the homonyms created by different dialects and cultures as they speak online to an unlimited audience spreading these new words because of the informality of speaking online. Whether this is good or not is a matter of debate, with these new meanings of words dividing many.

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A. Day - Year 8

E. Putland - Year 11 48

Occupational Language

‘Evaluate the idea that occupational language needs to be in plain English.'

By D. Windibank - 13F Plain English is a style of communication which enables a person to understand the message of the language the first time they read or hear it.

For example, writing or speaking in Plain English would use clear, concise short sentences and everyday words without occupational jargon. Plain English is often used when it is essential to have a clear understanding, for example a teacher to a young student; however, a professor to a master's student may engage in a more educationally advance language. Language has varying functions within the occupational workplace, that is often more advanced than Plain English and the phatic or everyday interactions between people. Some occupations require more advanced or specialist language, specific to certain groups or for a more occupational requirements that need to be more than plain English.

Linguist John Swales claims there are discourse communities where people in different groups communicate in a certain way, for example a student would talk to a professor in a very different way than they would talk to a fellow student. Swales claims different discourse communities have six common features; common goals, intercommunication between members, provision of information, utilise genres, specific lexis and threshold levels. Within a person’s life there can be many different discourse communities, in school, sports teams, work, church. Certain occupations will have their own form of language to each other for a variety of reasons; this could be on a technical level like a scientist or doctor, or specific to a trade or profession where they will not speak to others in Plain English which the everyday person will understand, they talk within their own discourse community structure. For example, two surgeons discussing a heart operation will use technical medical terms but if one surgeon were to discuss the same operation with the patient, they would talk in Plain English so the person can understand more easily.

Occupational jargon can help efficiency in the workplace for certain groups, Swales gives the example of the emergency service who say ‘bagging’ to describe the forcing of oxygen into a patient's lungs, this more rapid way of speaking is quick and better suited to the fast-paced occupation and does not have the need for Plain English.

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Different occupations have their own ways of conversing which affects the language they use, one could argue this is Plain English as we understand immediately what is being said however the actual language is stereotypically associated with certain professions and may not be understood by everyone.

For example, a plumber might call a young lady ‘love’ and his boss ‘the gaffer', whereas a supermarket assistant will say ‘miss' and ‘boss’, a soldier ‘lass’ and ‘Rodney’ and a police officer ‘miss / young lady’ and ‘guv’. The Daily Mail wrote an article on ‘doctor slang’ in 2011, this exposed the doctor's own specific language and abbreviations when talking to each other which allowed them to communicate to each other in a type of language which patients would not understand. Examples given were ‘FLK’ meaning ‘funny looking kid’ and ‘GLM’ meaning ‘great looking mum’ as well as referring to surgeons as ‘slashers’. This was considered malicious and exclusionary to patients as this was a specific group language that was allowing doctors there own form of communication, perhaps one could argue where Plain English is more appropriate.

Janet Holmes is a New Zealand linguist who studied occupational language.

She wrote a book ‘Power and Politeness in the Workplace’ 2002 which looks at how a group of people talk at work in everyday life. She discusses the “politicking” in our lives, how people do “power” and “politeness” in the workplace through various discourse strategies, whilst maintaining good collegial relationships. Holmes’ research found there is a clear difference in language used in the occupational structure of the companies which challenges the use of Plain English across the board. Senior staff generally set the agendas, gave orders, expressed approval, gave advice, solved problems and made the decisions within the workplace. She studied “small talk” and the use of humour and noted those in charge did not converse in this too much, although the right amount could influence the behaviours of subordinates and create good relationships, however with too much small talk and power could be lost. She found that subordinates had a greater interest in “small talk” with superiors than viva versa, clearly showing group language boundaries.

Linguist Robert Levine agrees with Holmes; his study showed employees appreciate the chance to engage in small talk, but the employers preferred to restrict this to maintain superiority and maintain a professional distance from their employees. Linguist Norman Fairclough agrees that people in positions of power decide what conversation in the workplace is appropriate which determines their ability to express their power.

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Drew and Heritage discuss different language in the workplace in their book “Institutional talk’ 1992 where they discuss how workplace and professional talk differs from ordinary conversation. They believe that in work there are with different goals, professional lexis and participants focusing on specific tasks within different structures. A normal workplace conversation between two colleagues, a boss and a subordinate showed asymmetrical interaction in terms of knowledge and experience, the boss at all times knew more than the worker and the conversation kept to this pattern of structure. In some professional contexts there are special turn taking rules through discourse, for example, in a courtroom there are special turn-taking rules on which lawyer is speaking. In other occupations such as doctor to patient there are unwritten restrictions, and the doctor tends to ask more formal questions. In contrast when a group of students were observed there were very ‘loose’ turn-taking structures, with frequent overlapping of informal conversation.

Drew and Heritage also showed how the workplace can use specific language which is reflected in lexical choice, i.e. special lexis or vocabulary which is specific to that occupation and therefore not in Plain English. An example given is an editorial office who use lexical terms specific to publishing; reprint, font, key but also use other more general business terms such as stock, estimate; the technical jargon used can make it difficult for the nonprofessionals in a certain occupation to understand.

To conclude, I believe that Plain English clearly has a place in occupational language, where it is important for a person immediately to understand another, be it an instruction or receiving information. However, linguists have clearly shown that language in the workplace is much more complex, on a hierarchy and controlling level and in occupational specific technical terms.

Some occupations have required people to be educated to a much higher level than others which commands more complex language that not all will understand, for example in medicine. Other occupations are naturally more associated with Plain English; for example, Robert Leander states that occupations like hairdressers and receptionists are often more relaxed environments with a more question and answer styling to maintain politeness and a clarity of communication with a wider audience.

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Economic Weakness and Decolonisation ‘‘Economic weakness was the main reason why Britain decolonised’ How far do you agree?

By A. Hutchinson, Year 13S The decline of the British Empire in the decades following the Second World War was due to a number of factors. Economic weakness was important, as it made the British significantly less able to afford the expenses of maintaining their empire. It was most crucial, however, in allowing the USA to gain not only influence over the British, but a way of forcing British policy to align with them, therefore accelerating the process of decolonisation.

The economic weakness of Britain after the Second World War was a vital factor in the decline of the British Empire. The effort of fighting Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan had largely bankrupted the UK, which had a national debt of £4,198 million in 1945. This, combined with a decline in manufactured and invisible exports, which meant that the balance of payments deficit was £750 million, caused serious economic problems. This led to Britain’s inclusion in the Marshall Plan, receiving ten per cent of the $15 billion sent by the US to Europe. This meant that Britain’s economy was largely dependent on the US, and their continued willingness to fund Britain and not call in all their debts.

So the economic weakness allowed the US, an anti-imperialist power, to gain even more influence over their ally. Britain also had a legacy of poor economic performance throughout the 20th century, with inflation spiralling and industrial output stagnating. This accelerated decolonisation, for instance Wilson’s government abandoned all of their military bases ‘east of Suez’ as a deflationary measure. Economic weakness meant that not only could the US gain almost total influence over British policy, they were forced to abandon their presence overseas much faster.

The Suez Crisis in 1956 exposed many of the issues Britain was suffering in the 1950s. This was an action motivated largely by imperial sentiment, as Eden was worried that this would cause Egyptian dominance of the Middle East, and that Nasser’s control of the canal amounted to him having his ‘thumb on our windpipe’, as two-thirds of the oil shipped to Western Europe passed through the Suez Canal.

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The subsequent Anglo-French-Israeli attack on Egypt does suggest that, despite the economic difficulties that the British were facing at the time, they were capable of launching an effective assault – the British and French troops were able to push the Egyptians 30 miles down the canal. As they were acting without American support, however, they did not benefit from the influence that the Americans held over international sentiment, as the Assembly voted 65 to 1 in favour of Britain, France and Israel evacuating Egyptian territory.

The Suez Crisis also shows how British economic weakness could be exploited by the US in order to change British policy. An IMF loan request by the British was blocked by the US, which was incredibly damaging to them as the Bank of England had lost $45 million between October 30th and November 2nd, meaning they would not be able to fund their war effort. Eisenhower even ordered his Secretary of the Treasury to prepare to sell the US government’s Sterling Bond holdings. This threat of what were effectively economic sanctions was an important reason in forcing British withdrawal as, despite their successes, without US economic support they were unable to maintain their forces in Egypt.

The Suez Crisis, although it is often seen as a catalyst for decolonisation, was not a cause but rather a symptom of the wider issues facing the British at this time. It revealed the disapproval of the majority of the international community for this imperialist campaign, as evidenced by the 65 to 1 UN majority for British withdrawal from Egyptian territory. We can see the power that the US held over the British thanks to British economic weakness, and their ability to influence British foreign policy was clearly immense, as shown when they forced the British to maintain their bases east of Suez to help them in the Far East. Suez also revealed that actions seen as imperialist would be opposed by the UN, and so showed the British that if they wanted to fight for their empire they would have to do so in the face of significant international disapproval.

The rise of nationalist movements also had an effect on the fall of the British Empire. The majority of the colonies of the empire had some form of nationalist movement in the post-war years. Some took the form of guerrilla campaigns, for instance Kenya, Cyprus and Malaya, and others were more democratic, for instance when the nationalist leader was elected in Ghana.

All of these nationalist movements meant that the British had to choose between maintaining control of the colonies against the wishes of the inhabitants or let them go.

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The growing anti-imperial sentiment across the world, as the two superpowers, the USSR and the USA, were both strongly anti-imperial (which was to an extent hypocritical, seeing as the USSR had gained control of most of Eastern Europe and the USA was expanding their economic dominance over the world), meant that it was very challenging for the old colonial powers such as Britain, France and Portugal to hold on to their colonies in the face of increasing international disapproval. The problem of international disapproval grew larger as the colonies began to be freed, as the UN was then full of pronationalist former colonies, who could also apply pressure to the governments to get them to decolonise and prevent any action they saw as imperialist. This then prompted the US to move further away from British policy, as they decided to woo the now independent colonies rather than supporting the British, once it became apparent that the British could no longer hold on to their colonies.

The nationalist movements were important as they forced the British to either commit huge amounts of manpower and equipment – the Malayan Emergency took 40,000 Commonwealth troops and the Cyprus campaign tied up 25,000 – which, due to economic weakness, could not be afforded, or to allow the nationalist movements to win. Even though the British had the ability to win in many of these campaigns (both the Malaysian and Cypriot uprisings ended in a British victory), in order to win they had to commit large numbers of troops, which became increasingly challenging as time passed and the economic difficulties became more apparent. The economic weaknesses of the British after World War Two were partly due to the burdens of defence. By the late 1940s, the British were spending 14% of their GNP on defence, which contributed to the poor performance of the British economy in the late 1940s.

This was partly due to the defence of the empire caused by the nationalist uprisings, and the poor economic performance meant the British were less willing to fight and hold on to their colonies, for instance Macmillan pulled out of Kenya due to the Mau Mau uprising.

In response to this economic pressure, they abolished conscription in 1957, and defence demands on scientists and engineers were reduced. The rise of nationalist sentiments revealed that the British were unable to hold on to their colonies in the face of determined resistance from the native population, but this was only because of their economic weakness making extended campaigns seem unattractive. British occupation had always been unpopular, so the success of nationalist movements is more a symptom of decline, showing their inability to defend their empire, than a cause.

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The attitude of the USA was another important factor. As previously discussed, Washington had a large amount of influence over the British government, due to the weakness of the economy, and also due to the fact that the British felt they needed the Americans to protect them from the USSR. Evidence for the British desire for American protection can be found in the Korean War, where one of the reasons for British participation was an establishment of a bureaucracy in NATO that tied the US even more firmly to the defence of Europe. The failure of the British to act unilaterally during the Suez crisis showed that they could no longer act without US support, as they were no longer powerful enough to stand up to the USSR or the UN without them. The high burden that defence placed on the economy was also partly the fault of the US, as they encouraged the British to maintain their high defence spending in order to help them against the USSR. They used their influence over the British to ensure this, for instance they only agreed to loan the British money if they maintained their presence east of Suez. The American influence, therefore, forced the British to spend more money on defence, increasing their economic problems, and this was due to their economic weakness in the first place. The anti-imperial attitude of the US, as they wanted to woo the newly independent colonies in Africa meant that any action that the British took in defence of the empire would likely have to be unilateral, and after the Second World War the UK no longer had the power to act in defiance of the US and the UN, due mainly to their economic weakness.

The Second World War also had an impact on the fall of the British Empire.

The war had caused the economic weakness that was such a large issue for Britain in the second half of the twentieth century, as the country was forced to take on large debts, mostly from the Americans (for instance the Lend Lease agreement), in order to keep the war effort going. While the Second World War did not cause British decline (that had been in progress since the First World War) it dramatically accelerated it, as the effort of fighting the Nazis exhausted the British, and made them significantly more unwilling to fight to hold on to their colonies. The Second World War also allowed the Americans to gain influence over the British, beyond the economic influence. The US emerged from the war one of only two superpowers in the world, and British power, already in a decline, was dented even further by the war effort. The Second World War, and the conditions of the peace treaty, were what allowed the USSR to gain influence over Eastern Europe and start the Cold War. This meant that the British had to rely on the Americans to protect Europe from the Soviets, allowing the Americans to gain even more influence over British policy, so they could apply pressure to force decolonisation. The Second World War, therefore, was the root cause of many of the factors that forced Britain to decolonise.

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Changing political attitudes in Britain were also a factor in decolonisation. The increasing popularity of a more socialist form of government, shown by the success of Attlee in the post-war election and the subsequent reforms, such as the NHS, meant that British governments were more concerned about domestic politics than global ones. The Labour government under Attlee also began the process of decolonisation, releasing India in 1949, because they were less concerned with empire-building than domestic policies. Macmillan was an important figure in the decolonisation of Africa, recognising the ‘wind of change’ and ensuring that by 1970 Africa was almost completely decolonised by the British.

However, political attitudes were not the most important factor. As the Suez Crisis showed, even if the British were willing to fight to hold on to their colonies, they would not have been able to do so, due to the lack of international support these actions would have got. The political attitudes in Britain did not change the fact that decolonisation was going to happen, as Britain simply not hold on to the colonies due to economic weakness and the anti-imperial attitude of the US, but they meant that the British left their colonies relatively quickly and sometimes bloodlessly, meaning that nationalist movements were successful, and so spread throughout the colonies.

British economic weakness meant that they were considerably less able to hold on to their empire, which had always been an incredibly expensive undertaking. It also allowed the US to gain significant influence over British policy, due to the Marshall Plan and subsequent loans that were needed due to the uniformly poor economic performance of the UK. With this influence, the US then ensured not only that the British had to decolonise, thanks to the anti-imperial stance of the US, it also increased the economic weakness by making sure that the British maintained their high level of defence spending.

The US’s unwillingness to subsidise the British empire led to their fall, as the British were no longer able to pay for the empire themselves after World War Two. Bibliography – Mahmood K. (1962), Britain and the Suez Crisis Peden G. (2012), Suez and Britain’s Decline as a World Power

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M. Ellul - Year 8

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O. Or - Year 11

Choose to Challenge the Dragon Inspired by International Women’s Day

By E. Freedman and E. Hawkes A harsh beast shrouded, blocked, obscured by denial Dismissed as a myth, its legend an armour Its intense evil shines through an indiscriminate eye.

It is everywhere.

It plagues our land, raining terror in our minds, and forcing our hands Spewing hate through its bitter mouth.

A thirst for loathing between the people A thirst that can only be quenched by a warrior; by acceptance; by equality.

A thirst that can only be quenched by a warrior who looks it in the face, stares into its icy gaze, its tainted ways And brings about change.

We are warriors.

We are strong and beautiful, We are brave We are invincible Our voices are our weapons Clean and true We could beat the dragon, but first we need a sword.

We need you.

E. Freedman - Year 9

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F. Russell - Year 13

Editors: Ms. H. Luckett and Mr. T. Bragge With thanks to: Mrs. H. Ndongong, Mrs. R. Smith, Ms. J. Russell, Miss J. Denton, Mrs. N. Rayner, Mr. T. Vafadis and Mr. I Rayner Special thanks to: Mrs. S. Kershaw, Ms. D. Harmse and the Ashford School Marketing Team

A.