Summary
Cal is a 19 year old Catholic boy who lives with his father Shamie in a Protestant neighbourhood. His mother died when Cal was a little boy. De protestants who live in the neighbourhood don't want that Cal and Shamie live there so they forse them to move out. Crilly, an old schoolfriend of Cal's who works at the I.R.A and Skeffington, a friend of Crilly's want that Cal becomes a getaway driver for the I.R.A. Cal didn't have the guts to say no, so he says yes. One night Cal drives Crilly to a farm where the Protestant man Robert Morton lives. Crilly shoots Robert.
A year later sees Cal that a new woman is working in the library. He finds out that it is Marcella Morton, the widow of Robert Morton. He falls in love with her. Marcella lives on the farm with her daughter Lucy and her parents in law. Cal needs a job and Marcella's mother in law asks Cal if he wants to work on the farm. Cal wants that. After his first day at work he went home. He saw that something burning and when he came closer he saw it was his house that was on fire. Luckily he saw his father. Cal takes Shamie to Dermot Ryan, Shamie's cousin, where they were allowed to sleep. The next morning Cal goes to his work. He goes to the cottage he had seen before. He stays there. Marcella and her mother in law find out that Cal lives there and Marcella decides that Cal may live there. One day Marcella's parents in law go to Belfast. Marcella invites Cal for a dinner at her place and Marcella and he fall in love. They make love. Cal is scared that he might tell Marcella what he and Crilly had done. He wants to tell her, but he is afraid that she doesn't want him anymore if he tells. The next day Cal goes to see his father. His father wasn't there anymore. Dermot says that the doctor put him in for treatment in Gransha. Cal goes to the library, where he runs into Crilly. Crilly says that Skeffington wants to talk to him. At Crilly's place, Crilly says to Cal that they put a bom in the library. Then the police came to Crilly's house. Cal got away, but Crilly and Skeffington didn't. Cal goes to Marcella. They make love again. When Marcella is asleep, he goes back to the cottage. De nex day, Christmas morning the police came and Cal was arrested.
Questions
A Who tells the story?
The story is told by the alknowing narrator. The narrator is using he and she and the names of maincharacters.
" Cal switched out the light and tiptoed into the darkness of the front room " (lines 8-9, page 27)
You also know that the writer is telling the story, because you get to know the thoughts of all the characters. By example:
" I think I love you,' said Cal " (line 33, page 141)
B When and where does the story take place?
You don't know exactly when the story takes place. I think the story takes place round the seventees.
" He put on an LP of the Rolling Stones " (lines 1-2, page 10)
" With the hair the lenght it was, he had had to develop some female gestures " (lines 4-5, page 10)
In the seventees they listened to the Rolling stones and a lot of men had long hair.
In the novel are also a few pages of the diary of Marcella. In her diary stood
August 4th, 1962. When she wrote it she was younger than he was now. Cal is 19
and Marcella is now 27. So it's about 1973 when the story takes place.
The story takes place in a small town in Northern Ireland, in Ulster.
" He felt he had come out from under the weight and darkness of Protestant
Ulster, with its neat stifled Sabbath towns " (lines 7-8, page 39)
C How long does the story last?
The story lasts a few months. When the story begins a year has passed since the
murder on Robert Morton. The story starts in the autumn " It was an autumn
morning " (line 28, page 8) and it finished on christmas Eve " The nex morning, Christmas Eve, almost as if he expected it, the police arrived to arrest him "
(lines 14-15, page 154). There are a few flash-backs, but they do not belong to the real story.
D How is the novel structured?
The novel is structured like this:
Chapter 1: Introduction, the real story starts
Chapter 2: The story how it's now happening to Cal
Chapter 3: The story how it's now happening to Cal and a flash-back
Chapter 4: The story how it's now happening to Cal and some flash-backs
Chapter 5: How the story ends
The story begins a year after Robert Morton's murder. Cal is experiencing
everything like it happens to him. There are a few flash-backs in this story about
what happened to Cal in the past. By example the murder on Robert Morton.
" He lay inert on broken glass, his eyes open to the night, and saw again the
terrible thing he had done " (lines 30-31, page 83)
The stucture adds nothing special to the novel. The only thing are the flash-backs,
cause of them you know what happened to Cal in the past.
E Explain the titel
The titel of the book CAL, has everything to do with the main-character Cal. The whole story is about him. The only thing the titel means is that Cal is the maincharacter.
F What is the kernal passage of this novel?
I think the kernal passages of this novel are the fights between the Catholics and the Protestants in Northern Ireland.
" because his father and he were the only Catholic family left in the whole estate.
Fear had driven the others out but his father would not move "
(lines 9-10-11, page 9)
G Does the story have a deeper meaning?
Yes, the story has a deeper meaning. It could have been a real happened story,
because all the things like murdering, fighting and bomb outrages are really
happened and they are still happening. I think that the reason of the writer is to let
people think about what is happening and what has happened in Northern Ireland.
What happens to Cal in the story is only a detail.
H Do you identify yourself with a character in the story?
No, that is not even possible. We don't live here like the people in Northern Ireland.
We live here in peace. We don't kill each other because one is a Catholic and the
other is a Protestant.
I What did you find the most notable of the novel?
I think that the most notable of this novel is that it also could have been written in
1998, because still nothing has changed there. Protestants and Catholics are still
fighting with each other.
J Are you satisfied with the end of the story?
Yes, I am satisfied with the end of the story. Cal hasn't been arrested for nothing, he
had helped as well. You don't even can change the end of the story, because that's
the way it is. If it is a real happened story it would have ended the same way.
K What did you think of this story?
I really liked this story, it was so realistic. It has been written by the thought that you should think about it. I also liked how Cal met Marcella. What he did to get her. If
you started to read in this novel, you couldn't stop reading. What I also liked about
this book that it hadn't too many pages.
Cal is a 19 year old Catholic boy who lives with his father Shamie in a Protestant neighbourhood. His mother died when Cal was a little boy. De protestants who live in the neighbourhood don't want that Cal and Shamie live there so they forse them to move out. Crilly, an old schoolfriend of Cal's who works at the I.R.A and Skeffington, a friend of Crilly's want that Cal becomes a getaway driver for the I.R.A. Cal didn't have the guts to say no, so he says yes. One night Cal drives Crilly to a farm where the Protestant man Robert Morton lives. Crilly shoots Robert.
A year later sees Cal that a new woman is working in the library. He finds out that it is Marcella Morton, the widow of Robert Morton. He falls in love with her. Marcella lives on the farm with her daughter Lucy and her parents in law. Cal needs a job and Marcella's mother in law asks Cal if he wants to work on the farm. Cal wants that. After his first day at work he went home. He saw that something burning and when he came closer he saw it was his house that was on fire. Luckily he saw his father. Cal takes Shamie to Dermot Ryan, Shamie's cousin, where they were allowed to sleep. The next morning Cal goes to his work. He goes to the cottage he had seen before. He stays there. Marcella and her mother in law find out that Cal lives there and Marcella decides that Cal may live there. One day Marcella's parents in law go to Belfast. Marcella invites Cal for a dinner at her place and Marcella and he fall in love. They make love. Cal is scared that he might tell Marcella what he and Crilly had done. He wants to tell her, but he is afraid that she doesn't want him anymore if he tells. The next day Cal goes to see his father. His father wasn't there anymore. Dermot says that the doctor put him in for treatment in Gransha. Cal goes to the library, where he runs into Crilly. Crilly says that Skeffington wants to talk to him. At Crilly's place, Crilly says to Cal that they put a bom in the library. Then the police came to Crilly's house. Cal got away, but Crilly and Skeffington didn't. Cal goes to Marcella. They make love again. When Marcella is asleep, he goes back to the cottage. De nex day, Christmas morning the police came and Cal was arrested.
A Who tells the story?
The story is told by the alknowing narrator. The narrator is using he and she and the names of maincharacters.
" Cal switched out the light and tiptoed into the darkness of the front room " (lines 8-9, page 27)
You also know that the writer is telling the story, because you get to know the thoughts of all the characters. By example:
" I think I love you,' said Cal " (line 33, page 141)
B When and where does the story take place?
You don't know exactly when the story takes place. I think the story takes place round the seventees.
" He put on an LP of the Rolling Stones " (lines 1-2, page 10)
" With the hair the lenght it was, he had had to develop some female gestures " (lines 4-5, page 10)
In the seventees they listened to the Rolling stones and a lot of men had long hair.
In the novel are also a few pages of the diary of Marcella. In her diary stood
August 4th, 1962. When she wrote it she was younger than he was now. Cal is 19
The story takes place in a small town in Northern Ireland, in Ulster.
" He felt he had come out from under the weight and darkness of Protestant
Ulster, with its neat stifled Sabbath towns " (lines 7-8, page 39)
C How long does the story last?
The story lasts a few months. When the story begins a year has passed since the
murder on Robert Morton. The story starts in the autumn " It was an autumn
morning " (line 28, page 8) and it finished on christmas Eve " The nex morning, Christmas Eve, almost as if he expected it, the police arrived to arrest him "
(lines 14-15, page 154). There are a few flash-backs, but they do not belong to the real story.
D How is the novel structured?
The novel is structured like this:
Chapter 1: Introduction, the real story starts
Chapter 2: The story how it's now happening to Cal
Chapter 3: The story how it's now happening to Cal and a flash-back
Chapter 5: How the story ends
The story begins a year after Robert Morton's murder. Cal is experiencing
everything like it happens to him. There are a few flash-backs in this story about
what happened to Cal in the past. By example the murder on Robert Morton.
" He lay inert on broken glass, his eyes open to the night, and saw again the
terrible thing he had done " (lines 30-31, page 83)
The stucture adds nothing special to the novel. The only thing are the flash-backs,
cause of them you know what happened to Cal in the past.
E Explain the titel
The titel of the book CAL, has everything to do with the main-character Cal. The whole story is about him. The only thing the titel means is that Cal is the maincharacter.
F What is the kernal passage of this novel?
I think the kernal passages of this novel are the fights between the Catholics and the Protestants in Northern Ireland.
" because his father and he were the only Catholic family left in the whole estate.
(lines 9-10-11, page 9)
G Does the story have a deeper meaning?
Yes, the story has a deeper meaning. It could have been a real happened story,
because all the things like murdering, fighting and bomb outrages are really
happened and they are still happening. I think that the reason of the writer is to let
people think about what is happening and what has happened in Northern Ireland.
What happens to Cal in the story is only a detail.
H Do you identify yourself with a character in the story?
No, that is not even possible. We don't live here like the people in Northern Ireland.
We live here in peace. We don't kill each other because one is a Catholic and the
other is a Protestant.
I What did you find the most notable of the novel?
I think that the most notable of this novel is that it also could have been written in
1998, because still nothing has changed there. Protestants and Catholics are still
J Are you satisfied with the end of the story?
Yes, I am satisfied with the end of the story. Cal hasn't been arrested for nothing, he
had helped as well. You don't even can change the end of the story, because that's
the way it is. If it is a real happened story it would have ended the same way.
K What did you think of this story?
I really liked this story, it was so realistic. It has been written by the thought that you should think about it. I also liked how Cal met Marcella. What he did to get her. If
you started to read in this novel, you couldn't stop reading. What I also liked about
this book that it hadn't too many pages.
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