Tasks: Into Exile - English (Vocational) - NDLA

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Tasks: Into Exile

Here you will find a variety of tasks to the text "Into Exile" by Joan Lingard.
Barbed wire fence where a wire is shaped like a heart. Photo.
Image: Shutterstock, NTB scanpix / CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Comprehension

  1. Why are Kevin and Sadie living in London?
  2. How are they daily reminded of their background?
  3. How do they make ends meet?
  4. Why does Sadie decide to go out on her own one night?
  5. Why is Father Mulcahy an important part of their lives?
  6. Why does Kevin decide to go back on a visit to Belfast?
  7. Comment on the title Into Exile. What does it mean?

Discussion

  1. Sadie and Father Mulcahy reflect on the disagreement between Protestants and Catholics.
    "Maybe it’s not much to do with religion. People the world over seem to find reasons to hate each other," Father Mulcahy says.
    What do you think? Do people find reasons to hate each other, one way or the other? Discuss with a partner.
  2. Use Into Exile as a starting point to discuss these old proverbs: "Birds of a feather flock together" or "opposites attract".
  3. Into Exile was written in 1973 before the age of the Internet and SMS. Do you think the story would have had a different outcome if Sadie and Kevin had had their own mobile phones? Discuss why/why not?
  4. Kevin and Sadie are both seventeen and married. What are the odds against them? How do feel about young marriages like this one? What do you think will happen to Kevin and Sadie?

Writing

  1. Write a summary of the audio play. Take notes while you listen and then write the summary.
  2. Write a characterization of Kevin and Sadie.
  3. Sometimes people find themselves at a crossroads like in this audio play. What will they do? Which way will they go? Write a short story or an essay about making a new start.
  4. Kevin and Sadie choose to flee to England. What do you think would have happened if they had stayed in Belfast? Write their story.
  5. “Life is limited; we inhabit one body, one mind, and see the world through one pair of eyes. But by writing, and reading we can enter into different worlds, get inside the skins and minds of other kinds of people in different places, and in so doing, push out the boundaries of our own lives.” (Joan Lingard.) Use this quotation to write an essay.

Further Research

Find information about current issues in Northern Ireland and make a presentation.

Related content

Subject material
Into Exile by Joan Lingard

This short radio play is based on Joan Lingard's novel, Into Exile, and is set in the conflict-torn capital of Northern Ireland.

Written by: Åse Elin Langeland.
Last revised date 10/08/2018