The History Boys - Alan Bennett

The History Boys

***

The History Boys is a theatrical staple. As it’s studied on both GCSEs and A-level syllabuses, I went into reading this text expecting it to redefine the literary art form, which was a fault of my own making. As it was my first play of the year, I set the bar too high, and upon reflection, I don’t think any play would have grasped it. The History Boys is a good play, and with the right directorial vision, I can see how it has become a British staple.

However, the play in itself was good - just good.

The play follows two teachers and a group of students at a grammar school in England in the 1980s. With the exam period over, Hector, a Cutlers' Grammar School teacher, feels it is appropriate to educate the boys on a wide range of literary texts and poems. He openly expresses his views on education and his belief that there is more to life than prestigious universities such as Oxford and Cambridge. However, his views contrast with the will of The Headmaster, who wants to raise the school's profile through the boys’ academic achievements. The Headmaster hires Irwin to teach history and give the boys a rebranding that would make them stand out against all the other university applicants.

Irwin is introduced to the class and is met with varying degrees of acceptance. But the main talking point of this scene is that Hector offers to take the boys home on his motorbike, which sounds nice—right? However, Hector uses this opportunity to grope the boys while they are on the bike. None of the boys seemed outraged by this (like I was); they were highly deadpan about it.

Later, we are treated to Irwin's views on how the boys should use their knowledge and that it’s better to be provocative than truthful to your beliefs, which outright combats Hector's teachings. The things he has taught them are not for exams but to aid them in later life. As we read this tennis match of ideals, we are also introduced to Mrs. Lincott, another history teacher. Who serves as the play’s ‘female voice’ and strongly represents the view of the female historian and how history has treated women. We also learn of Posner, one of the boys, and his crush on classmate Dakin. Posner believes himself to be gay and talks to Irwin about it as he thinks Irwin also may have a slight crush on Dakin (sounds like an ITV reality tv show).

Act one ends with The Headmaster confronting Hector about his motorcycle activities (about time) and implores him to retire at the end of the year. Hector does not take the request well, to which The Headmaster responds by saying that Hector and Irwin will share their classes for the rest of the term. For me as a reader, this was quite refreshing. This play was riddled with people talking about what should or shouldn't be done, but nobody was actually doing anything. It was nice to see someone taking action, even if it was the prick of a Headmaster.

Act Two begins with an unnecessary jump into the future in which we’re exposed to Irwin being a TV historian, Posner being a journalist and a rumour of something transpiring between Dakin and Irwin.

When we return to the original time, Hector is melancholy after a class discussion, clearly expressing his feelings of losing the boys' minds to Irwin.

The Headmaster tells Mrs Lintott about Hector’s groping and says he’s almost glad it happened. He wanted to fire Hector anyway because Hector’s results were hard to quantify. Mrs. Lintott then tells Irwin that the Headmaster is a “twat.” Which isn’t new news to anyone.

The shared lesson was one of the highlights of the play. It was a glorious 2v2 battle between Irwin and Dakin against Hector and Posner. Both discussing whether the holocaust is an appropriate topic to speak about in an exam. Team Hector is arguing no, and Team Irwin is arguing, so why not? The coming to verbal blows felt like it would be a turning point in the play. The two teachers pitted against each other were now finally in each other's faces. They did not speak to each other through the students but directly, and no holds were bared. No one took the belt home during the battle. But after a letter from parents, Irwin got scolded and had to apologise. I think Hector took that dub.

After mock interviews and some flirtatious banter between Dakin and Irwin, the play begins to wrap up. We are told of the boy's interview experiences and whether they were successful in getting into university. Some getting in for better reasons than others. Dakin then confronts Irwin about him falsely proclaiming to have attended Oxford. Irwin accepts that it was a lie; Dakin uses this, his wit and natural flirtatious abilities to convince Irwin to go for “a drink” (we all know what that means).

Then came my main gripe with the play: how it ends. As it just ends. With weak resolutions, such as Hector being let off for groping the boys due to Dakin blackmailing The Headmaster with information about his attempts to move to Fiona, his secretary. Hector then takes Irwin on the bike, crashes the bike and dies (why would anyone get on that thing). Due to the crash, Iwrin forgets his arrangement to have his “drink” with Dakin.

The boys share their memories of Hector, and Mrs Lintott updates us on their lives. Most of the boys succeeding in their careers, with others being not so successful. The play ends when Hector says that the main lesson he wanted to leave the boys with was: “Pass the parcel. That’s sometimes all you can do. Take it, feel it, and pass it on.”

In conclusion, the play was interesting. It was a fascinating take on education, its importance and its purpose. The main cast had a clear job within the story: Hector - learning to learn, Irwin - learning to pass, The headmaster - School prestige and targets, Posner - exploration of identity, Dakin -  acceptance of identity. Bennett was clearly able to paint all the essential images with this cast of characters. However, so many things were happening that not everything was dealt with in the capacity it should have been. Dakin using Irwin's teachings to save Hector's job; although it was a nice way to re-emphasise Irwin's thoughts through Dakin’s actions, it just didn’t sit right with me. Also, many of the boys fell into the background during the play. So, after being treated to an update about their life, I found myself thinking, “Who’s that again.” This play deserves the revelry it gets; however, it just wasn’t mind-blowing for me. Let's hope the next play I read is.