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- The novel is structured in a non-linear fashion, moving back and forth between the perspectives of the four main characters. Through their experiences, the novel portrays the complex and often fraught nature of interracial relationships, as well as the challenges that immigrants face in adapting to a new culture and society.
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Intro. Small Island Summary. Next. Prologue: Queenie. The novel opens as Queenie, one of the protagonists, visits the British Empire Exhibition as a young girl. She goes with her parents, who run a butchery together, and is chaperoned by two of their employees, Emily and Graham.
- Characters
Small Island Character Analysis | LitCharts. Small Island...
- Chapter 56: Gilbert
That night, Gilbert folds himself into the armchair to sleep...
- Chapter 47: Queenie
Need help with Chapter 47: Queenie in Andrea Levy's Small...
- Characters
The best study guide to Small Island on the planet, from the creators of SparkNotes. Get the summaries, analysis, and quotes you need.
Plot Summary. Small Island, Andrea Levy’s 2005 historical novel, is told from the perspective of four characters: Queenie, Hortense, Gilbert, and Bernard. The point of view shifts frequently between these characters and across the years, spanning from just after World War I to 1948. The four characters make up two couples, one white and one ...
- Overview
- Beginning
- Hortense
- Gilbert
- Queenie
- 1948
- Climax
- Ending
Small Islandhas 59 chapters and a prologue. This study guide examines the chapters in groups of three.
A girl named Queenie visits an exhibition in the 1920s where she sees black people for the first time. Nearly 20 years later, a Jamaican woman named Hortense arrives in England. Her new husband Gilbert Josephhas been in England for six months, but he forgets to meet her. She arrives at his apartment in a home owned by the now-adult Queenie and is d...
Hortense's mother and father were never married. She grew up in the house of her father's brother Philip Roberts and alongside Philip's son Michael Roberts. Hortense's adoptive parents made their preference for Michael clear. Michael departs for boarding school while Hortense trains to become a teacher. Michael returns as a young man, and Hortense ...
Gilbert has already been to England once. He joined the Royal Air Force and trained in the United States and England where he found many people to be racist. He meets a confused old man named Arthur Bligh while stationed in England and escorts him home. The farm he returns to is owned by Queenie who becomes good friends with Gilbert. Queenie's husb...
Queenie has grown up on a farm. Her father is a butcher, and the entire family is involved in the business. Queenie hates life on the farm and eventually is allowed to move to live in London with her Aunt Dorothy. Queenie is taught how to behave in polite society and works in her aunt's candy store. She meets a man named Bernard but finds him to be...
In 1948 Queenie and Hortense spend time together. They return from a shopping trip to find Bernard at the front door. Bernard had spent the war stationed in India. He did not like the Indian people or culture but appreciated the sense of purpose the military provides. He had made friends with a man named Maxi who died in a fire while trying to orga...
Bernard is not pleased that black people live in his house. He wants to evict them immediately but is worried about Queenie's cold reaction to his return. One day he breaks into Gilbert and Hortense's room. They catch him, and a fight erupts. Queenie tries to stop the fight, but the excitement forces her to reveal that she is pregnant and about to ...
Gilbert is offered a better job with better accommodation. He and Hortense move out, but Queenie insists that they take her baby because she cannot give the baby the life he deserves. Bernard has grown affectionate toward the baby. Gilbert pleads with an angry Bernard to abandon his racist views, but Bernard refuses. Gilbert and Hortense accept Que...
This Study Guide consists of approximately 42 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more - everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of Small Island. Get Small Island from Amazon.com
Novelists. Small Island (2004) is a novel by Andrea Levy, a Black British author of Jamaican descent. The novel is about two Windrush immigrants, Gilbert and Hortense, living and surviving in Britain.
This study guide for Andrea Levy's Small Island offers summary and analysis on themes, symbols, and other literary devices found in the text. Explore Course Hero's library of literature materials, including documents and Q&A pairs.
