No.3 Nick (Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE English Literature): Revision Note
Exam code: 0475 & 0992
Nick analysis
In the exam, you will be asked to answer one question from two options. Both questions will be on a different text from the selection of ten texts in Stories of Ourselves Volume 2.
Because there are so many text options, make sure you read through the exam instructions carefully, and look for the questions on Stories of Ourselves.
The following guide to Nick by Christina Rossetti contains:
Plot summary
Themes, ideas and perspectives
Writer’s methods
Key quotations
Plot summary of Nick
Christina Rossetti’s short story Nick was written in 1853, and is part of a collection called Commonplace and Other Stories. The cautionary tale follows the dissatisfied protagonist, Nick, who lives in a fairytale village.
Nick has a comfortable life. He is self-sufficient, and has a thriving farm. But he is envious of all the things his neighbours have. Despite his own material wealth, Nick is jealous and wishes bad luck and harm on his neighbours.
To teach him a lesson, a magical “little rosy woman” the size of a “butterfly” appears to NIck. She tells him he has the power to wish to be anything he likes for an hour at a time. So follows a series of Nick’s poorly-intended wishes. First of all, he wishes to become a flock of sparrows to attack his neighbour’s cherries. When he is shot down and attacked by a cat, he wishes to be a dog. In the form of a dog he attacks the cat, which leads the townspeople to chase him. To save himself, Nick turns himself into a stick, but is taken home by one of the villagers, where he is thrown into their fire.
A furious Nick then decides to transform himself in the fire itself, so he can burn the villager’s house down in revenge. As he does so, he is doused with water and becomes a small flame. At this point, an exhausted Nick finally realises his choices have been destructive, and have caused nothing but pain.
Eager to make a good wish, he wishes to be a rich old man so he can help the villagers, but, that very night, robbers break in and steal his possessions and plan to murder him. As he lies in his own grave, he wishes to be himself once more, and manages to escape.
Back home, a humbler man, Nick seeks redemption by fixing all the damage he has done, and never wishes for anything else again.
Examiner Tips and Tricks
In order to answer the question in Section B of the CIE Literature in English Poetry and Prose Paper 1, it is best to have a thorough knowledge of the story’s plot. This will help you to form a structural analysis, which means you will be considering how themes and characters develop (or not) through the story.
Themes, ideas and perspectives in Nick
For top marks, you need to form a critical understanding of the text’s themes and ideas. This is best when it includes personal judgements and evaluations of the themes, ideas, and perspectives of the text. Here are some of the key ideas you will need to understand in Christina Rossetti’s Nick.
What are the key themes in Nick?
Theme | Analysis |
|---|---|
Envy
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Redemption |
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Writer's Methods in Nick
How does Rossetti present her ideas and perspectives?
Rossetti uses natural imagery and a traditional narrative structure to create an allegory.
Technique | Analysis |
|---|---|
Symbolism |
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Omniscient narrator |
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Examiner Tips and Tricks
Examiners report that the best answers to the prose question focus on the authors’ choices of language and literary methods, and the effects these might have on a reader. You will be rewarded for a thoughtful argument that is closely supported by detailed references to the text, and analysis of the writer’s choices.
For example, in the short story Nick, Christina Rossetti explores ideas about envy by using the literary form of a magical fairy-tale. This helps her present universal, timeless ideas about morality in a light-hearted, less didactic way.
Key quotations in Nick
The mark scheme for the CIE IGCSE Literature in English Paper 1, Section B asks you to showcase your knowledge of the story in the question. To do this, you should refer to the text through references and quotations. Remember, though, that summarising, paraphrasing, referencing single words, and referencing plot events are all considered valid supporting evidence for your points.
The best way to revise quotations is in connection to a theme. Below you will find explanations and analysis of some key quotations from Christina Rossetti’s Nick, arranged by the following themes:
Envy
Redemption
Envy
In Christina Rossetti’s story Nick, the protagonist is a fortunate and successful man, but he looks upon his neighbours’ possessions with jealousy, and thinks that if they had less he would have more.
“It was in vain that his apples were the largest for miles around" — Narrator
Meaning and context
The narrator says that even though Nick’s apples were the best in the whole village and beyond, it was for nothing as Nick did not appreciate them
Analysis
This line is the first of two that lists Nick’s successes
The narrator suggests the idea of waste in the phrase “It was in vain”, implying he might as well not have had anything at all
Rossetti shows that abundance cannot bring happiness if jealousy exists:
Despite Nick having the best apples, and “lambs” that were “fat and thriving”, he cannot enjoy them
“He would sit grumbling and bemoaning himself as if every other man's riches were his poverty" — Narrator
Meaning and context
The narrator describes how Nick becomes unhappy and resentful because he is jealous of others’ possessions
Analysis
Rossetti uses present tense verbs “grumbling and bemoaning” to present Nick as constantly miserable as a result of his envy
Rossetti suggests envy leads to a kind of poverty:
She implies that his perception of being less well off than his neighbours means he sees himself as poorer than them
Rossetti presents envy as socially destructive, as well as personally damaging:
His resentment at others’ success leads to his isolation
He has no “family to labour for or friend to assist”
“It was provocation enough to be burned; but to contribute by his misfortune to the well-being of his tormentors was still more aggravating” — Narrator
Meaning and context
Even as Nick (in the form of a stick in the villager’s fire) burns, he is envious that his “tormentors” are enjoying the warmth he creates
This is even more annoying than being burned
Analysis
Rossetti shows how envy can lead one to be spiteful even at one’s own expense
That Nick is more annoyed by the “well-being” of the villagers than the fact he is being burned is humorous
Rossetti suggests envy is irrational and foolish
Redemption
“Then she gave him a slap in the face, which made his cheek tingle as if a bee had stung him” — Narrator
Meaning and context
The “little rosy woman” (a fairy) tells Nick that he “shall straightway become everything” he wishes, and then slaps him for being a “churl” (a rude person)
The “slap” makes his “cheek” sting
Analysis
Rossetti uses a simile to compare the “slap” to a bee sting
This connotes to a punishment, or a shock that aims to awaken Nick
Rossetti implies that redemption is a painful process
Natural imagery (a “bee”) contributes to the story’s simplistic, fairy-tale style
“In this wish he burned out” — Narrator
Meaning and context
As Nick smoulders as “one blue flame”, he reflects on his actions
He decides that his next wish should be one that benefits him but does not harm his neighbours
As he wishes to become a “rich old man”, he burns out
Analysis
Rossetti perhaps uses Nick’s transformation into fire as symbolic:
Fire is often used as a symbol either of ultimate punishment or purification
Indeed, Nick finally learns an important lesson when he is reduced to a “blue flame”:
His own success should not be at the expense of others
“And now entertained only one wish — that he were himself again” — Narrator
Meaning and context
Finally, Nick makes his last wish, to transform back into “himself”
Analysis
Rossetti’s presentation of the theme of redemption is delivered via the painful and humiliating consequences of Nick’s badly intended wishes
By the end of the story, Rossetti implies that Nick’s sins, his ungratefulness and his spiteful jealousy, are redeemed through humility
That Nick wishes to be “himself again” culminates his cyclical journey of self-development
Sources
Wilmer, M (ed.), 2018, Stories of Ourselves: Cambridge Assessment International Education Anthology of Stories in English Volume 2, Cambridge University Press.
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