The Pupil Sparknotes

2004 Question 2 Affluence versus poor, an age-old battle, especially during the “two worlds” time period of Victorian England. In Henry James’s The Pupil, this battle is brought to life as a poor young man, Pemberton, attempts to negotiate a salary as an in-house tutor for a very wealthy family, the Moreens. Through the use of diction and detail, James creates a specific tone that surrounds each character. Taken together, these various tones create a central tone of mockery and ridicule of the relationships amongst the characters. Additionally, James tells this story through the perspective of an omniscient narrator, that focuses mostly on the perspective of Pemberton, with a few shifts to a more neutral position. This perspective facilitates

The diction that surround Pemberton include words such as “poor” (line1), “nervously” (line 13), and “squeezing out” (line 65) create a tone of timidity that surrounds him. This tone paints a picture of Pemberton as a scared and poor young man, afraid to be assertive. The diction that surrounds Morgan Moreen, the alleged pupil of the story, include words and phrases like “only with the casual observation” and “the honor of taking his education in hand” create a tone of arrogance that surrounds the boy as well as a tone of ridicule towards the boy for acting in such ungrateful ways. The words “casual” and “honor” are clearly rooted in sarcasm and begin to illustrate the child’s deeply unsettling belief that he is above everyone else and does not need to pay respect to others. The diction that surrounds Mrs. Moreen includes words like “affable” (line 8), “save when she lowered her voice to sigh” (lines 32-33), and “expensive identity” (line 68). These phrases establish a tone of pompousness and frivolity that surrounds Mrs. Moreen, thus depicting her as a shallow and affluent woman. The diction also creates an undertone of derision that shames Mrs. Moreen for being so out of

The excerpt begins with a mostly neutral understanding of the scene. This facilitates a well-rounded depiction of Pemberton and the Moreens. However, in line 27 the point of view shifts to emphasize Pemberton’s emotions. The narrator says “Pemberton supposed it was precisely to approach the delicate subject of his remuneration. But it had been only to say some things about her son which it was better that a boy of eleven shouldn’t catch” (lines 27-31) The brief thoughts of Pemberton are given in a subtle way that clearly illustrates him as a charcter and build on his desperation in his relationship with Mrs. Moreen. He is so eagerly waiting for her to bring up his salary, that with each moment she doesn’t he is unable to manage. This portrays him as desperate and afraid, thus weak. Furthermore, it deepens the understanding of his dependency on Mrs. Moreen. After line 31, the point of view returns to a more holistic view of each character, only to return to Pemberton’s thoughts in line 50 to the end of the excerpt. The final paragraph begins with the line “Pemberton only wondered, while he took up his hat, what ‘all that’ was to amount to” (lines 72-73). This ending establishes him as desperate