1.      List all the words and phrases describing Mr. Bounderby

Mr. Bounderby is: He was a rich man: banker, merchant, manufacturer. A big, loud man, with a stare, and a metallic laugh. A man made out of a coarse material, which seemed to have been stretched to make so much of him. A man with a great puffed head and forehead, swelled veins in his temples, and such a strained skin to his face that it seemed to hold his eyes open, and lift his eyebrows up. A man with a pervading appearance on him of being inflated like a balloon, and ready to start. A man who could never sufficiently vaunt himself a self-made man. A man who was always proclaiming, through that brassy speaking-trumpet of a voice of his, his old ignorance and his old poverty. A man who was the Bully of humility. Mr. Bounderby looked older. He had not much hair.

2.      Collect the 4 phrases which explicitly convey the narrator’s opinion of Mr. Bounderby’s character and find in a dictionary adjectives of the same meaning.

The 4 phrases which explicitly convey the narrator’s opinion of Mr. Bounderby’s character: A man made out of a coarse material, which seemed to have been stretched to make so much of him. A man with a great puffed head and forehead, swelled veins in his temples, and such a strained skin to his face that it seemed to hold his eyes open, and lift his eyebrows up. A man with a pervading appearance on him of being inflated like a balloon, and ready to start. A man who could never sufficiently vaunt himself a self-made man. A man who was always proclaiming, through that brassy speaking-trumpet of a voice of his, his old ignorance and his old poverty. A man who was the Bully of humility.

He is rude, overbearing, inflated with vanity and a self – made man.

3.      Now go back to the list you made for exercise 1. which of the other items on it are connected with one or more of the author’s comments.

Most of the phrases that describe Mr. Bounderby coincide with the author’s comment.

4.      The surname of the character contains the word bounder on purpose . Look it up in the dictionary. Which of the phrases you have listed reinforces the meaning of the surname?

Bounder means a man who behaves badly or in a way that is not moral, especially in his relationships with women. The phrase which reinforces the meaning of the surname is A man who was the Bully of humility.

1. Mr. Bounderby is described as coming from a poor family, without , without education and self-made. In other contexts these attributes might be presented as worthy of sympathy and/or admiration. Why aren’t they here?

The adjectives used to describe Mr. Bounderby are not presented him as a sympathetic person because according to the mentality of the time if you had not had a good education and you belonged to a poor family, you could not make progress in the society. As a result you were considered a social outcast.

1. Now go on reading and see if what Bounderby says is consistent with the description of his character.

What Bounderby says is  consistent with the description of his character. In fact, he says to be born in a ditch, therefore, he is very poor and also sick. Moreover, he is a rude and arrogant because he says he has learned to be what he is alone without anyone's help (self-made man).

1. Which aspect/s of Bounderby’s character is/are emphasized in what he says?

Bounderby emphasizes his poverty. As a matter of fact he tells he was born in a ditch, he did not have shoes and he was very sick. People did not help him because they were fear of being infected.

1. Does what he says confirm or modify his portrait in the previous text?

               What he says confirm his portrait in the previous text.

9.      Consider the way Bounderby speaks.

a) Underline any repetition of pronouns, words or sentence pattern in the extract

you have read .

b) How would you define his way of talking

c) How does his way of talking fit in with his character as described by the narrator?

a) He repeats the words: ditch, inflammation, I was determined, I don't know.

b) He uses simple terms to describe his condition. He is not a cultured person.

c) He uses simple terms to describe his condition. In addition, he repeats several times the same words and phrases, perhaps because he is afraid  that his interlocutor cannot understand what he means. As a result he feels insecure. In conclusion what he says reflects his real-life conditions of poverty.