Brief synopsis ‘’Cal’’ by Bernard Maclaverty is a novel which focuses on the relationship between a young man Cal and a woman called Marcella, during the course of this novel, his obsessive love is very evident. There is a lot violence caused by the IRA and UVF which Cal gets caught up in. Cal and Shamie’s relationship is based around the situation and they are not very welcome in their community. Cal’s forced inconvenient with Crilly and Skeffington ultimately leads to him getting arrested.

CAL His mum died Sounds like he was a mummy's boy No shoulder to cry on When he was 8 His mum was a strong catholic Tries to carry on the tradition- goes to mass Talks about her a lot- feels uncomfortable Prays for his mum- it shows his love personality Creepy/stalker Stalks Marcella Deeply in love with Marcella Determined to get her He feels guilty all the time Because of what he was involved in He is also sexually and mentally confused Relationship with Shamie unusual Shamie is still affected by the death of his wife Cal takes a lot of responsibility Cal is more of a parent He washes the dishes etc Always look out for each other When he goes in the fire to get the guns- protection This shows their love to one another They both act like parents IRA Cal doesn’t want to be a part of it Forced into doing things he doesn’t want to i.e Marcella's husbands death This is because of Crilly and Skeffington-pressuring & threaten him

SHAMIE Goes to church every Sunday Protective over Cal Afraid police will find the gun Worries about Cal Catholic Appearance changes- old, thin Gets hospitalised Depression His life is ruined by the violence and hatred of Ulster Wife died His other son died in a car crash He is a broken man by the end He is stubborn as he doesn’t want to move house unlike Cal Works at the abattoir He cries several times at Cal’s visit He doesn’t like Crilly UVF wants to burn down his home He fights for his rights He wants to be a good parent to Cal

ShamieCal Similarities Quiet Doesn’t like to involve guns Likes Crilly Very reserved talking to Shamie Still talks about his mother Doesn’t like violence Refuses to work in the abattoir Becoming more the parent Sexually confused (towards Marcella) Inner turmoil Goes along with what others do with violence Willing to break the law Turns to guns to solve problems Doesn’t like Crilly Encourages Cal to talk about his life Tries to move on with his life after wife’s death Willing to use violence Works in the abattoir Becoming more the child Wants to spend more time with Cal Doesn’t follow people Doesn’t break the law Both worried about their safety Both catholic Both struggle with the death of their wife/mum Both dislike UVF Both don’t talk about their problems Both depressed

Possible Question & Introduction Choose a novel or a short a short story where there is an incident which is a turning point crucial to the fate of the main character. Briefly describe what happens at this point and go on to explain why this is crucial to the fate of this character Introduction. ‘’Cal’’ by Bernard Maclaverty is a novel set in Northen Ireland during the time of the conflict between Catholics and Protestants. There is an incident which there is a turning point crucial to the fate of the main character, Cal. This turning point is when Cal meets and falls in love with the widow of the man he helped kill, Marcella in which this adds to his inner turmoil. The theme of love is highlighted thoroughly in many ways throughout the novel as he tries to cover up his past because he does not want to lose Marcella which leads to his fate of getting arrested because he reports a bomb in the library as he loves her and does not want her to get hurt.

Or… ‘’Cal’’ by Bernard Maclaverty, the incident which changes Cal’s fate is when he meets Marcella, this coming together of people leads to his sad and unlucky ending, which is when he gets taken away by the police. This novel is about a young man who finds himself in a bad situation, in Northern Ireland, during the ages of the IRA and the UVF scandals. He meets a young women called Marcella who he has more in common than he thinks, which ultimately leads to his tragic fate. His love for Marcella is highlighted throughout the novel and we also see other sides to Cal,.ie. Sexually frustrated, confused, etc. we also see that he is in love with Marcella as he lies to her to be in a relationship, this is also a different side to Cal as he is trying to cover up his past. Unfortunately his relationship comes to a tragic ending as he is arrested and this is for his criminal offences. Both good introductions, the first one is short and straight to the point and the second goes into depth about the novel which is convenient.

More possible essay questions Chose a novel or a short story in which you feel there is an incident of great importance to the story as a whole. Describe the incident and go on to show its importance to the development of the characters and the central concerns of the text. When Cal and Crilly kill Marcella’s husband Cal develops feelings for Marcella and feels more and more guilty Choose a novel or a short story in which setting in place and/or time is and important feature. Briefly describe the setting(s) and explain the importance of this feature to the story. Living in Ireland (Catholics living in protestant area) Time of conflict (IRA & UVF at war)