The use of language in About a Boy
Nick Hornby uses a range of linguistic devices (language techniques) in About a Boy. The narration itself is from a limited third person perspective, so the narrator tells us what Will and Marcus see, think and feel.
The narrator does not know what other characters are thinking, and Hornby uses the deviceA technique (used in literature). of Fiona’s suicide note to allow the reader an insight into her thought processes. The dual narration is also useful in that the reader is able to form a more balanced opinion of events as they happen because they are seen from the two different perspectives. For example, in Chapter 13 when Will takes Marcus and Fiona out for the day, Marcus is proud of the way his mother looks, in her best leggings and a baggy, hairy jumper,
while in Chapter 14 Will thinks that she should have made more of an effort... why didn’t she wear clothes which looked like they mattered to her?
It is left to the reader to formulate an opinion on Fiona.
The different techniques used in About a Boy can be categorised as follows:
- contemporary references
- literary references
- metaphor
- simile
- humour
- irony
When analysing the use of language in About a Boy, you should concentrate on what is written, how it is written and the effect this has on the reader.
Evidence and explanation of the language used
The use of contemporary references
How?
She was beautiful in a very winning, wholesome, Julie Christie-type way.
She had pointy features and red cheeks; she looked like Worzel Gummidge’s friend Aunt Sally.
It was so obvious that Will would rather talk about the fat bloke on Countdown than about what had happened before that for a moment Marcus felt a little stab of temper because he didn’t have the same kind of choice.
There’s always a new Nirvana album to look forward to, or something happening in NYPD Blue to make you want to watch the next episode.
Why?
This quote is showing that Will is a man who grew up in the 1960s. Julie Christie played the part of Lara in the film Doctor Zhivago (1965). It was a worldwide hit.
Worzel Gummidge was shown on British television from 1979 to 1981, which means that Will would have watched it when he was in his early 20s.
Will watches Countdown every day, showing that he has no other commitments such as work or a family.
Rachel says this to Will in a bid to make him realise how solitary his life is.
Effect on reader
If Will really was as cool as he thinks, he would not have compared Angie with Julie Christie, but with somebody famous in the 1990s. The reader is able to see that although Will tries desperately hard to be trendy, he is really an ordinary 36 year-old who wants to be thought of as younger.
The fact that Will was watching children’s TV when he was already an adult emphasises the fact that he is very immature at the start of the novel.
The reader can see that Marcus is very worried about his mother and Will only asks Marcus how she is as an afterthought. This is another sign of his reluctance to involve himself in other people’s problems.
The reader is able to see exactly what Rachel is doing here. She does not criticise Will directly, but her words manage to force him to look at this life critically and understand that he has no interaction with others.
The use of literary references
How?
Once, years ago, when he was a kid, he told a schoolfriend (having first ascertained that this friend was not a C. S. Lewis fan) that it was possible to walk through the back of his wardrobe into a different world.
Why?
This is a reference to the Narnia books by C. S. Lewis, written in the 1950s, in which a family of children enter a magical world of witches and kings and queens and talking animals by walking through the back of a wardrobe. Will would have read these as a child in the 1960s.
Effect on reader
The reader can immediately see the connection between the children in the stories and Will. Once the children become too old in the real world, they are unable to enter Narnia. Will is the opposite of the Pevensie children in that he refuses to grow up, whilst they were sad, but accepted the fact that they had become adults.
The use of metaphor
How?
Until he’d played the Marcus card he’d kept slipping off before he’d even started. Now he felt as though he were climbing a mountain, rather than a glacier. He imagined himself right at the bottom of the cliff-face, looking up and around for footholds.
...and other days, like Christmas day or today, they seemed to be a long way away, in the middle lane of a motorway and cruising. On the Dead Duck Day it had been way too close, two wheels over the edge and lots of terrible skidding noises.
Why?
Will realises that he is in love with Rachel at a New Year’s Eve party. He wants to impress her and lets her think that he is a single father with a son called Marcus.
Marcus compares his feelings about living with his mother after her suicide attempt with driving on a motorway.
Effect on reader
The reader can see that Will desperately wants to impress Rachel so he congratulates himself for not actually lying to her. He thinks that before he mentioned Marcus, Rachel was not interested in him. However, the comparison with climbing up a mountain emphasises how tricky Will’s situation is, even though it has improved because Rachel thinks he is a brave single parent. Before she heard about Marcus, he felt that he was trying to climb a glacier, made of pure ice. The reader knows that Will still has a hard climb ahead of him to make Rachel see him as a responsible adult.
Most readers will have experienced driving on a busy motorway. Although all the cars are moving smoothly in the same direction, it only takes one mistake to turn the whole thing into a dreadful disaster. The comparison emphasises how precariousDangerous or insecure. Marcus feels his and his mother’s security is.
The use of simile
How?
Ever since the Dead Duck Day he had imagined his mother’s suicide to be something like the edge of a cliff: sometimes, on days when she seemed sad or distracted, he felt as though they were a little too close for comfort...
Why?
Marcus compares the way he feels with being on the edge of a cliff.
Effect on reader
Standing on the edge of a steep cliff can obviously be very dangerous. It only needs one strong gust of wind or a stumble to propel the person over the top, and to fall to his death. The reader understands the way that Marcus feels so insecure after Fiona’s attempt at killing herself.
The use of humour
How?
Why don’t you just go home, Marcus?
All right. But I’m going to tell my mum.
Ooooh. I’m scared.
...or, more crucially, the name of his own child – for some reason he couldn’t stop thinking of him as Ted, and he had only christened him Ned this morning...
This looks more like pet and owner rather than boyfriend and girlfriend.
That’s OK,
said Marcus cheerfully.
You don’t mind being treated like a ...like a gerbil?
No. Course not.
Why?
Marcus has found out that Will does not have an ex-wife or a son. He threatens to tell his mother so that Will will not be able to go to any more SPAT meetings.
Will is worrying that he will make a mistake about his invented child when he is at the SPAT meeting.
Marcus has just told Will how much he adores Ellie, but Will can see that it is a rather uneven relationship.
Effect on reader
The interchange between Marcus and Will is exactly what you would expect to hear between two small children. The reader enjoys the use of humour here, as it makes Will seem very immature.
This is very funny, because Will is proving the point that people who tell lies just create more problems for themselves. Nobody else knows about the invented child, but Will is already having problems with him!
Comparing Marcus with a pet gerbil is very entertaining, because they are small, furry, cute little animals. Marcus is small with fuzzy hair and glasses, and Ellie finds him cute. The reader can see how funny it is when Marcus just accepts the comparison – all he wants is to be near Ellie.
The use of irony
How?
You might as well stay for Neighbours now,
Will said.
Why?
Marcus has just called round to Will’s flat and so Will invited him to stay for a while.
Effect on reader
The reader can see how ironic it is that Will obsessively watches Neighbours, a programme all about people who interact with others all the time and are involved with one another’s problems. In real life, Will would be horrified if he had to be as involved as the people he watches on screen.