Noughts and Crosses is an amazing novel written by Malorie Blackman, about a world that is divided in two, the dark skinned crosses and the light skinned noughts. Crosses are the most privileged race and are the rulers, noughts are slaves to the crosses and are second class citizens that are treated very poorly, quite a lot like what’s happening in our world today but if the race and class were switched. Sephy is one of the main characters, she is a cross and a daughter to Kamal Hadley, who is very powerful and has a lot of control over the world. Callum is a nought, a son of Maggie McGregor, which is Sephy’s nanny. Their close childhood friendship slowly turns into love, and becomes stronger the older they get.
I was amazed and happy that Sephy and Callum continued to secretly see each other even after Maggie lost her job as Sephy’s nanny, and even though they were forced to lie and make up excuses so they could meet each day, I think it’s incredible how much they would do for each other, no matter how difficult it is, and this shows me to be dedicated and have trust in others even when things are tough, but this can also show that most secrets cannot last forever and sometimes they may need to be told for the best.
In the novel, a new law had been passed that a limited number of noughts would be able to attend cross schools and I was pleased that Callum had been accepted into Sephy’s school, Callum however knew that letting their close friendship go public could put each of them in danger, and I think that we can relate to this well, for example you could be talking to someone online or over text and not want to talk to them in person because you are afraid of what others will think and how they would react, this is quite common and relevant with teenagers today.
The Term Paper on World War I: The Overthrow of the Romantic
“If literature should not only indicate how mankind thinks, but also how mankind feels, then the poems of the First World War succeed on both counts.” (Lee)Romanticizing of war has existed since man first marched off to his earliest battles. Men historically were taught that their role was to fight for country and the honour of loved ones back home. Women were historically trained to ...
I was shocked to find out that Callum’s brother, Jude, and father were part of a nought terrorist group called the Liberation Militia, which was held responsible for a bomb exploding in the shopping mall. The bomb not only wrecked the shopping mall but put the lives of many, including Sephy and Callum’s, in great danger. But what surprised me was that Callum went to the mall to save Sephy from being injured, and this showed me how much love Callum has for Sephy and it proves that he would risk his own life for her, and I think that we should all relate to this.
The bombing incident soon spread to the news and they made very unfair statements towards Callum, blaming him for the incident. This made me think about the media and how quickly they are to assume something that isn’t true, “The news lies all the time. They tell us what they think we would want to hear” and I think that this proves how much someone can hide from you and how well they can keep it a secret.
I thought that Noughts and Crosses is sometimes distressing, sometimes disturbing, and sometimes heart breaking, Malorie Blackman made me really feel for the characters in the novel, and made me feel like I was going through the exact same thing that they were going through.
Noughts and Crosses is about discrimination and injustice, yet it is also about love and respect. It made me look more closely at the questions of skin colour, class and social injustice that still affect the world we live in, and made me “dream of living in a world with no more discrimination”.
