Topic 11 - Conversational structure and character (Session A) > Analysing Major Barbara > Task I > Answer

Analysing Major Barbara

Task I - Our answer

Lady Britomart and Stephen respectively fit the powerful and powerless prototypes completely. Indeed, given the heavy patterning in relation to each of the factors we have examined, they are clearly very extreme cases of the dominating and dominated character types. This in turn is where some of the humour of the extract comes. Lady Britomart, in particular, is not just an exemplar of the conversational behaviour of the powerful, she is a massive over-exemplar, someone who has a ludicrous cornucopia of both social and personal power.

Home ¦ Outline ¦ Contents ¦ Glossary