Diane Samuels’ Kindertransport contains many powerful lines that reveal character, develop relationships and connect to the play’s central themes. Choosing flexible quotations can help you write focused essays on separation, identity, memory, survival, family and responsibility.

Using precise vocabulary can help you explain ideas clearly in an essay on Kindertransport. Choose words that match the character, theme or dramatic method you are discussing, then expand on how the word applies to the play. You do not need complex language in every sentence, but a targeted number of well-chosen terms can make […]

Understanding the context of Kindertransport helps explain why the characters make difficult choices and why the past continues to affect Evelyn’s family. Context is not assessed as a separate objective in Edexcel IGCSE English Literature Paper 2 so your main focus should remain on the play, supported by analysis of Samuels’ language, form and structure. […]

Family relationships lie at the core of Diane Samuels’ Kindertransport. Eva’s separation from Helga changes their relationship permanently. Lil gives Eva a home in England and becomes a second mother to her. As an adult, Evelyn struggles to tell Faith about her childhood. Lil connects the two generations because she knows about the history that […]

Diane Samuels uses a small group of characters to explore separation, identity, memory and family. Eva/Evelyn stands at the centre of the play, while Helga, Lil and Faith represent different generations of mothers and daughters. The Ratcatcher gives visible form to the fear that follows Eva into adulthood.

Diane Samuels uses symbols throughout Kindertransport to connect Eva’s childhood with Evelyn’s adult life. Characters, settings and objects carry memories from one time period into another. They help the audience understand Eva’s fear, changing identity and relationships with her family. Symbolism is especially useful for AO2 because it allows you to discuss language, dramatic form […]

Diane Samuels’ Kindertransport centres on the enduring effects of separation. Eva’s journey from Germany to England defines her identity, her memories and her relationships throughout the play. These experiences also affect Faith, who grows up not knowing her full family history.

Diane Samuels’ Kindertransport is a play about memory, identity, separation and survival. It follows Eva Schlesinger, a Jewish child sent from Germany to England on the Kindertransport before the outbreak of the Second World War. As she grows older, Eva changes her identity to become Evelyn, an English woman who has tried to bury her […]