Andrea Ashworth's Once In A House On Fire

Andrea Ashworth’s autobiography of the poetic memoir ‘Once in a House on Fire’ was set in 70’s Manchester, where she was born. Throughout her life she suffered untold sadness from the death of her father, which she used humour to mask the serious situation. The themes of emotional, physical and mental abuse is prevalent throughout the text. As Peter Hawkins, one of the main protagonists is violent, controlling and tries to ruin Andrea’s right to education because he is the flame to the fire, destroying lives around him.

The author, uses the simple declarative sentence “Boots brushed and scraped on the door mat.” (pg.4) To portray an aggressive connotation to create the sense of suspense, making the reader feel anxious for Andrea. Therefore,

the use of symbolism expresses that Peter is a predator, so she feels threatened and uncomfortable by his presence. The word ‘scraped’ implies that she is exploring sensory language to make Peter sound rough or harsh, like a bull marking his territory on where he stands in the household. Thus, ready to unveil anger and confrontation upon his prey. He displays intimidation to his own selfish advantage. Emphasising the point that Peter manipulates fear to gain control.
Moreover, the extract “Our stepfather gripped Laurie and me by the scruff of our necks and thrust our faces close to the mess on the floor” (pg.10) describes Peter Hawkins as violently treating his step-children like animals, where he should be comforting, solace and loving.

The word ‘gripped’ suggests that he is uses his power and control irresponsibly over Andrea and Laurie. “by the scruff of our necks” implies that he is using great force to “thrust our faces close to the mess on the floor”, meaning that he is teaching them a lesson; showing them his authority and degrading them. The declarative sentence shows the reader that the abuse keeps a firm hold on them and they have no escape because it is constantly lingering around them, like a shadow. This builds up tension and discomfort for Andrea, making her feel on edge and uneasy. Therefore, Peter is unpredictable and capable of harming

anything.
Furthermore, “broken noses, affairs and drained whisky bottles whispered through” (pg.5), suggests that he is abusive, reluctant and secretive about his past relationships.

The assonance phrase “Whisky bottles whispered through”, perceives the step-dad as having a false persona to be someone his not. This means he can come across as being desirable and trustworthy to the mum, so implicitly he can deceive situations. The adjective ‘broken’ interprets Andrea’s feelings of giving up hope because the family has cracks beneath the surface, exposing their vulnerability to the reader. The word ‘drained’ suggests that she feels like the happiness in her life has been removed, which is displaying emotive language.

“We kept our eyes on the black shark fish. They flared red when we tapped on the glass to distract them from nibbling the tiddlers” (pg.12)

Andrea, paints negative imagery towards her step-dad because the adjective ‘black’ associates with death and the grim reaper, suggesting that he is heartless, dark and

evil.

“He tore out every single page to the end, to the empty spine and the cover that still said Fairy Tales, through all the endings had been scrunched into paper fits and scattered over the carpet” (pg.18)
Andrea Ashworth is referencing to ‘fire tales’ in the text, as ‘Once in a House on Fire’ is like ‘once upon a time’, which the quote “all the endings had been scrunched into paper fits and scattered over the carpet”, suggest that her fairy tale ending has been destroyed and is taken away from her. Deducing that the abuse has left her thoughts morbid, giving up her chance of freedom since she is stuck in limbo. The word ‘Fists’ is foreshadowing the abuse that is about to happen. “He tore out every single page to the end, to the empty spine and the cover”, shows that in one cruel moment Andrea is left defenceless and doesn’t stand up for herself. Proving that Peter has power over her and she is letting herself go; suppressing the pain she wants to feel.
As a whole, my feeling towards ‘Peter Hawkins’, is that he has tainted Andrea’s emotions to express affection and contentment. Through the consistent scarring of trauma that she has to be faced with, trying to bring her spirit down by refusing her of her imagination. Disallowing her to be an individual, with the potential to succeed in education. He is vile and vicious and does everything to be little people and make himself feel better, when in contrast he is a weak man exspecting everyone to take care of him.