LEARNING TO SWIM BY GRAHAM SWIFT PRESENTATION BY NADINE & NATHAN PRESENTATION BY NADINE & NATHAN

SUMMARY This is the story of a young couple and their child whom are on a holiday and it follows Mr and Mrs Singletons emotions toward each other in an omniscient 3 rd person showing how desperately unhappy they are. The stories purpose is to ultimately show the adults unhappiness's affect on the child. This is the story of a young couple and their child whom are on a holiday and it follows Mr and Mrs Singletons emotions toward each other in an omniscient 3 rd person showing how desperately unhappy they are. The stories purpose is to ultimately show the adults unhappiness's affect on the child.

Nathans personal reflection  I thoroughly enjoyed this novel because it was well written and full of meaning.  I found Mr Singleton particularly relatable as I felt as though I had a strong understanding of the character, his views, characteristics and emotions.  I thought that the book was interesting to read in the way it was structured from different perspectives.

Nadine’s Personal Reflection  I enjoyed this story mostly because we, as readers, were able to read both sides of the relationship of the Singletons, and thus were able to make an informed, non-biased, decision about which side we are on.  I utterly enjoyed the story, it was short and precises and had very good meaning and representation of relationship perspective.

VIEWS PRESENTED  The main view presented by the author in the story was that Mr and Mrs Singletons egos which clashed to create relationship problems and the petty nature in which they dealt with(or neglected to deal with) their issues had a negative effect on their child. Putting their son in an unfair position where he is torn by his parents childish competition.  The authors views on the resulting effects on the child are expressed through the boys changed outlook and independence.

VALUES PRESENTED  The main values which the author conveys to the reader is of the importance of prioritising children in families. The author persuades the reader of this value by depicting two adults acting in a childish and competitive manner which takes an unjust toll on the innocent child.  A further value which is presented is the importance of a child's journey toward independence from their parents especially under compromising circumstances such as those In the story.

CONTEXT PRESENTED  The context of this story is within a relationship of a relatively young modern day couple whom are both struggling in there marriage in which the present setting is on the beach where their child also occupies the scene.

LITERARY TECHNIQUES  METAPHOR “when you lay on the beach it seemed that you too became a hot basking rock”- PAGE 9  SIMILE “…there were eucalyptus trees like dry, leafy bones” –PAGE 9  DEHUMANISING- through out the story the protagonists are referred to as ‘Mr’ a ‘Mrs’.  IMAGERY “she lay on her back, eyes closed, on the coarse sand of the beach… It was hot and, if she opened her eyes, the sky was clear blue.” – PAGE 11  HYPERBOLE “… orchestra was playing some titanic, large-scale work.”- PAGE 14  ANALOGY “…Paul was some toy being pulled and swung relentlessly…” PAGE 20  JUXTAPOSITION “…she had run her fingers over his long, naked back. Mrs Singleton sat up and rubbed sun tan lotion on to her thighs. PAGE-28  SYMBOLISM “The water’s edge was like a dividing line between them which marked off the territory in which each existed PAGE-34

OVERALL INTERPRETATION  Our general interpretation of the story is that this is a narrative which poignantly highlights the indifferences of a young couple and its destructive effect on their neglected relationship. And subsequently a damaging effect on their child.