Analyse how features of ONE important section made it particularly effective.

In Frank McCourts memoir, Angelas Ashes, an important section in the book that was particularly effective was Franks experience in the fever hospital at the age of 10. This section is effective as the story takes place in the 1930s and 1940s Ireland in the era of the Depression. This results in poverty, food scarcity and poor living conditions which steers the Irish to take their faith of Catholicism seriously, as they depended on the catholic church and God to have sympathy on their hard lives. this memoir also highlights the influence of catholic teachings and rituals in Franks life. Such ritual was the confirmation. After Franks confirmation, he gets a bloody nose, and fever and is diagnosed with typhoid and the important section is when he was taken to the fever hospital at the City Home.

One of the features used in this important section is the use of the Narrative style. This writing style is just like a story written in a childs perspective as he uses simple dialogue and he tells exactly what he sees due to lack of knowledge. When the nurses arrive by his bedside to set up the equipment, Frank describes the drip as "jars of red stuff that they hang from tall poles". This is written exactly as the 10 year old Franks point of view as he is unable to fully describe what a drip is and is rather perceiving what he knows to be similar by associating the blood with the 'red stuff'. The use of humour is also used to light up tragic scenes and also highlights the immaturity of the 10 year old Frank stating that he knew he would get better as  "a doctor would never fart in the presence of a dying boy". The use of this humour makes the reader admire his ability to see the bright side of the fact that he was ill in a fever hospital.

The characterisation of the nuns and nurses is also another feature of this important section. These nurses and nuns are characterised as wearing white with rosary beads showing their strict belief in the catholic faith. They are also shown as rigid, unfeeling and legalistic towards patients talking to each other. When Frank starts talking to another patient, Sister Rita forbids saying "Diptheria is never allowed to talk to Typhoid" According to her, Frank should spend his time "giving thanks and reading stories about saints and reciting the rosary by his bedside" because there is to be "NO talking between typhoid and diptheria". These legalistic attitudes shows that these nurses and nuns of authority only cares about following rules, even when the rules do not make sense as it is not possible to contract diptheria by talking across the ward and vice versa. Sister Rita also tries to stop Frank reading 'The Highwayman' and tells him off saying that he should "beg God's forgiveness for reciting a pagan poem". It seems to Frank that these nuns sees pleasure of any kind is associated with guilt. This shows the criticism of the restrictive and the strict moral rules enforced by the nature of the church. 

Franks love of literature is also another significant feature of this section. This is a significant feature because he developed his love confined to his bed with typhoid. Frank is grateful for his confined environnmnet as he states that "its lovely to know that the world can't interfere with the inside of your head". McCourt's love for shakespeare is evident as he continually recites "I do believe, induced by potent circumstances that, that thou art mine enemy", a phrase he does not understand but "its Shakespeare and its like having jewels in my mouth". This simile shows that the shakespearan words and phrases are like precious treasures to Frank, when he recites it. So despite the fact that Frank has typhoid so serious he was in hospital, reading books passes the time and it fulfills his education which later on is a ticket out of Ireland to America ("the land of opportunities").

To conclude, many features of the important section of Frank's admission to the fever hospital was particularly effective. The narrative style of writing in the perspective of the 10 year old Frank made it easy for the reader to connect to Franks thoughts and feelings and also the use of humour along with this narration made this section entertaining to read. The characterisation of nuns and nurses gives the reader a deeper insight to the strict attitudes imposed onto the patients and the discovery of literature in this section becomes an asset to Franks life later on.

Analyse how the author’s choice and presentation of setting helped develop a main theme

In Frank McCourt's memoir, Angela's Ashes, the reader is taken to places such as Ireland and America to gain an insight on his childhood experiences in the 1930s and 1940s. McCourt's presentation of his childhood family status, Poor Irish Catholic childhood and the social alcoholic status which his father Malachy could not resist helps develop significant themes in the memoir. This is done to develop the themes of poverty and hunger which plagues his family. However, the purpose of this autobiography is to convey the hardship of life in Ireland and why Limerick holds such an important place in McCourt's heart.

The anti-English sentiment was very strong in Ireland as most of the adult characters in the memoir condemn the history of the invasion of Ireland and the repression of the Irish by the English. Due to this fact, the McCourt family were seen as outsiders from America and were therefore treated with spite.With incredulity and disgust people keep asking Malachi and Angela (parents) if their children are Yankees. When Angela, Franks mum went to St Vincent de Paul society for charity, she was greeted with suspicion as to why a woman wearing an American coat was asking for charity. When she later confides of the miscarriage of her new born baby, she is then treated with sympathy and given a docket for groceries. The place where you lived in Ireland also had an effect as to how people treat you in terms of respect and exploitation of opportunity. When Frank's dad takes him to the church to be an altar boy, the door gets slammed on their face when the man takes one look at Frank. Angela, the mum later states "Tis class distinction. They don’t want boys from the lanes on the altar. … That’s what it is and ‘tis hard to hold onto the faith with the snobbery that’s in it" and this shows the rejection of opportunity because they are poor. So the 'Yankee' and the 'people from the lanes' status made life difficult for the McCourt's family as Frank was denied opportunities imposed by class divisions. These limitations deprived Frank of furthering his education as he was rejected as a poor boy dressed in rags and living in the lanes.

In the desperate need for food, money and shelter, the catholic church is the solace where confessions can be made, sins be forgiven and a place to plead for charity for better living conditions. McCourt narrates this childhood experience with humour and without self pity stating that "It was of course a miserable childhood: the happy childhood is hardly worth your while. Worse than the ordinary miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood, and worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood.” The repetition of 'miserable' emphasises the extent of his unhappiness as a child growing up. Raised in the slums of limerick, Angela, Franks mother barely has money to feed her children, therefore having to plead in humiliation and desperation for charity at the church. As Angela continues to have more children than she can feed and sometimes enduring starvation, the children wears rags for diapers and had to beg for a pigs head for Christmas dinner. Frank continues to endure poverty as himself, brothers and mother walk along the roadside to pick up coals from the ground to light a fire to warm their house, because their father is too 'grand' or is too full of pride to go looking for coal for his family. So even though the catholic people depended on the church, it only provided them with temporary relief such as dockets for food, shoes and clothing after humiliating them about their poverty and forcing them to beg. Due to this embarrassment forced upon the women begging for charity, Frank decides to steal rather than beg to survive.

Malachy, Franks father is an alcoholic who tend to use his wages for a 'pint' in the pub rather than catering for the basic needs of his family. Due to this selfish act his family are forced to beg and get help from friends and strangers, sometimes having to go without food leaving the children starved and driving Angela to retreat to staring in the dying ashes in the fireplace. Malachy's dependency on alcohol drove his family into deeper poverty leaving his children with diseases caused by weakness and malnutrition. Irritated by the lack of responsibility, Angela confronts Malachy stating “Where’s the money? The children are hungry. You mad oul bastard, did you drink the money again?”. Not only does this show desperation of money but also the different roles that husband and wife plays. We see that drinking is one of the ways to escape the hardships of Irish life, for example the death of baby Eugene. This drinking habit is encouraged by Franks grandmother who explains that the drinking is a medicine that eases his suffering. However the onslaught of poverty caused by excessive drinking has detrimental effect on the family and since they depended on the wages of the man, hunger and poverty continue to plague the family.

To conclude, McCourt's memoir of Angela's Ashes is mainly set in Limerick in the era of the great depression during the 1930s and 1940s. The family's poor Irish Yankee family status, the miserable Irish catholic childhood and the loquacious alcoholic father helped develop themes of extreme poverty and hunger. McCourt's purpose in writing this memoir is not only to reflect his childhood experiences, but also to make the reader aware of the difficulties his family faced. Despite all the odds, Limerick holds an important place in Frank McCourt's life as it was the place he grew up.