"Homework" is a

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

written by Helen Simpson and published in 2007.

Plot summary

The opening of the

story Story or stories may refer to: Common uses * Narrative, an account of imaginary or real people and events ** Short story, a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting ** News story, an event or topic reported by a news orga ...

begins with George entering the house complaining to his mother that his

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. w ...

, Mr. Mottram, has assigned the students a three-page paper that must describe an event that changed their life. As George continues to complain that he does not like the assigned topic, his mother realizes that he had all of the

Easter Easter, also called Pascha ( Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in t ...

holidays to complete this assignment. Although his mother should scold him for not doing his assignment during the holiday, she feels sympathy for her son and says that she will only help him this one time. George agrees with his mother's proposition, and they begin to compile ideas for George's three page paper. George's mother begins developing ideas to write about such as parents getting

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganising of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the M ...

d, extreme

argument An argument is a series of sentences, statements, or propositions some of which are called premises and one is the conclusion. The purpose of an argument is to give reasons for one's conclusion via justification, explanation, and/or persu ...

s, terrifying

dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensation (psychology), sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around ...

s, and major life rearrangements after divorce. Despite all the ideas, George is hesitant about writing them in his paper because none of the ideas are actually happening in his life. The more ideas George's mother contributes, the more hesitant George becomes to writing them. She continues to add ideas about George having an older

sister A sister is a woman or a girl who shares parents or a parent with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to ref ...

, the father having

another woman Another Woman may refer to: * ''Another Woman'' (1988 film) * ''Another Woman'' (2015 film) * "Another Woman (Too Many People)", a song by Samantha Fox from the album ''Just One Night'' (Samantha Fox album) {{dab ...

in his life, and the way the woman intrudes on the attention the children get from their

father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. A biological fat ...

. George's mother notices the worried expression on George's face and explains that there is no problem with him writing about the ideas because it is considered creative writing After constant explanation from his mother that Mr. Mottram will never know if the story is true or false, George becomes less hesitant and feels more confident about writing his three-page paper. At the end of the story, George realizes that he has become more capable of writing his paper and as a result, he sends his mother away while stating he can write the paper on his own.

Characters and setting

* The narrator- An adoring unnamed mother who helps her son with

homework Homework is a set of tasks assigned to students by their teachers to be completed at home. Common homework assignments may include required reading, a writing or typing project, Exercise (mathematics), math problems to be completed, informatio ...

when he comes home complaining about his English assignment. She wants to help her son, but does not realize how uncomfortable her ideas are making her son. * George- The narrators 13-year-old son who struggles to find ideas for his English paper. He is extremely uncomfortable with the ideas his mother provides for his paper because he thinks he will get in trouble by his teacher for

lying A lie is an assertion that is believed to be false, typically used with the purpose of deception, deceiving or misleading someone. The practice of communicating lies is called lying. A person who communicates a lie may be termed a liar. Lies ...

. * Mr. Mottram- George's English teacher who assigns his

student A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution, or more generally, a person who takes a special interest in a subject. In the United Kingdom and most The Commonwealth, commonwealth countries, a "student" attends ...

s a three-page paper.

Sources

*Charters, Ann. Comp. ''The Story And Its Writer Compact, An Introduction To Short Fiction''. 8th. Boston: Bedford/st Martins, 2011. 770–776. Print. *https://archive.today/20120710164849/http://literature.bureau-va.com/helen-simpson *https://www.theguardian.com/books/2006/jan/07/featuresreviews.guardianreview9
Homework sources
2007 short stories British short stories {{2000s-story-stub