POSTERS FOR "HOW GREEN IS MY VALLEY", directed by John Ford

ESSAYS ON THE FILM "HOW GREEN WAS MY VALLEY", DIRECTED BY JOHN FORD

“There is no fence nor hedge round Time that is gone. You can go back and have what you like of it, if you can remember.”

What are the memories which Huw holds dearest and why?
What are your observations of Huw’s world: the events and the people he remembers?

     Huw’s whole story is a memory but some parts of the film stand out. I think that one of the most important memories and part of Huw’s life was the colliery.

     The main part of the small Welsh village in which the film is set is the colliery. Nearly all the men would work there. It is a big part in Huw’s life because all his brothers and his father work at the colliery. Huw’s father, the head of the family, the great provider, would influence Huw a lot, not to mention the brothers he wanted to be like. When Huw graduates from his new school he decides not to be a doctor or a lawyer but Huw says he wants to work at the colliery. I think Huw wants this because when he was younger he would never get any privileges. He wouldn’t get any money except on rare occasions, and was never really part of the group of his father and brothers, perhaps because he was the youngest member. When the men were returning from a day at the colliery they would give in their earnings and wash up. Huw would help bring the buckets and such, but he wanted to be washing off a hard day’s work with his father and brothers. He wanted to feel like he had helped bring money to the family.

     When Huw was given the opportunity to choose what he was going to do with his life he chose the colliery. Huw didn’t want to once again be differentiated from his family; he wanted to enter the group. Also, maybe by working at the colliery Huw thought things would be like before, with his group and family. But there is no way this could happen. The family members were already going their separate ways, and in time it would probably be worse for Huw. Huw would think about the good days, and realise that working at the colliery would not bring back his old life… nor would it bring back his family.

     To Huw the colliery represented the good days, when his family were united, and that by working at the colliery he would show his respect towards the family, and try and bring them back together.

Huw himself looks back to see how wonderful it was when he was a child, but it really wasn’t that great a time. Many terrible things were happening during his childhood, such as the deaths of people he loved. The separation from loved members of the family, not being able to walk when he was paralysed in an accident and the divorce of his sister were events, which left their mark on Huw. Probably at the time that all that was happening Huw was not happy, but he realises now that it was a better time than the one he is living in now. The colliery continued expanding and destroying the village’s beauty, the loss of religious faith in the community and family deaths were elements of Huw’s youth, which had a strong impact on him.

The way I see it is that at the time, in the past which he recalls, the calamities which struck Huw could seem better than they really were because now, fifty years later, Huw’s world has become much worse. Most of the events that Huw remembers are quite bad to more objective eyes but he does not see them as bad because of the strong feelings he has for those times and his loved ones.

Huw has good memories of Mr. Gruffyd because he saw him as a wise man. There were many helpful words that Mr. Gruffyd said that made a great impression on Huw. Probably the best memory that Huw had of Mr. Gruffyd was when they went up to the mountain, which overlooked the valley. Huw did not believe he would walk again, but Mr. Gruffyd showed Huw that with God on his side and the will he could do anything.

Lucas S. 7DT

     "How Green Was My Valley" is a movie from the point fo view of the main character Huw Morgan. He describes the valley as a horibble place now, but recalls of the now gone beauty. This movie is a "sandwich" of his memories.

     The first scene in the movie portrayed Huw packing up and getting ready to leave his native village. He says that with him he would take his books. These books were the ones given to him by the preacher: Mr Gruffydd. These books must be very dear to him because Mr Gruffydd was like a second father to him. These books were read to him during the period in which he had a disease where he couldn't walk. They were his only friends except for his family and Mr. Gruffydd. One of these books was Treasure Island.

     Huw recalls times when he spent nice sunny days walking with his father. His father was a pretty symbolic figure. He was the head of the house and very dear to Huw. Huw lost his father at the end of the movie when there is an explosion in the mine. His father had hopes for Huw: he wanted him to have an academic future and he had the idea of teaching him how to box so that he could defend himself when he was bullied at school. But the most important fact is that Huw was the only child that didn't leave him. Probably Huw remembers most vividly the time when he lost his father in the colliery. On a dark day an accident occurred in which the colliery was flooded. Mr Morgan got crushed by the rocks and died in Huw's arms.

     Huw recalls how his sister sweetly sang to him. He probably likes to remember her because they were separated when she married. His sister was also one of the people that read to him during his period of illness when he couldn’t walk.

     I think that one of the most important scenes in the movie is the scene in which Huw first attempts to walk. In this scene he and Mr Gruffydd are together and they are looking over the valley. One of the most important stills from this movie was made during this scene. We see Huw and Mr Gruffydd looking over their valley, with above them trees and they are surrounded by wonderful lilies and tulips. This scene portrays a little fragment of the beauty that is still left.

     This is a very subjective movie because Huw narrates from his point of view. In the film we see how Huw sees the events, but how we see them may not be the same. Huw says that the valley was once beautiful and that now the colliery has destroyed it. This was partially true. He says that the valley used to be beautiful but he doesn’t see that the colliey was already killing all the nature. Huw doesn't see all in the way that is happening therefore we don't know if everything happened exactly in the way he remembers it.

Dina 7DT

“There is no fence nor hedge round Time that is gone. You can go back and have what you like of it, if you can remember it.” How Green Was My Valley; John Ford, 1941. This quote marks the beginning of the older Huw Morgan’s tale of when he was a young boy. It says that if you try to remember something hard enough, you will get your wish. Some of these examples below are from the movie, but they all point back to this interesting quote.

One of the first examples I recall about the Morgans is when one of the six children, Ivor, gets a letter from the Queen asking him to go to Windsor Castle to sing in front of the Queen. Not long after that scene though, Ivor is killed in a tragic accident in the colliery, which starts the break-up of the Morgans. Another event in the small Welsh mining village, Cwn Rhondda, is the marriage between Huw’s sister, Angharad, and the son of Mr. Evans, the colliery owner. The marriage definitely is not a happy and wanted one because Angharad tells Huw she wanted Mr. Gruffydd, the part-time preacher. Unfortunately, there is a twist. The Angharad-Huw private conversation was overheard by a housemaid, who then told the whole neighbourhood about it.

The second thought I had is more about Huw and the family break-up. Huw goes to school and succeeds academically, but he doesn’t want to be a doctor or lawyer as his father had hoped. He wants to work in the coal mine with his father. This is a shock for the whole family, but they sadly agree. Another memory is when the brothers leave for America because some of them get fired from the colliery and some of them get left behind because the colliery is no longer able to find a position for them. So the break-up of this loving family begins.

The last thought I had focuses on pain, anger and sadness. One of these events was when the father was saddened about something and went to the deathly coalmines, where he died shortly after in a tragic explosion. This was the end of the united Morgans who stood strong and proud for many years.

Another sad moment was school. Yes, school was a ‘hellish and barbaric land’ for Huw too. Teachers beat him, children attacked him and bullied him but soon some friends came and helped him to resolve his problems.
This was a great movie but a sad one, which is set in the little town of Cwn Rhondda in Wales, of a boy named Huw.
“I am never coming back to the valley”, and so he leaves after fifty years because of the colliery which ruined the valley . . . . . “How green was my valley then . . . ”.

William 7DT

Memories are events or things that happen. They are memorable and you will never forget them. They will always stay with you and they will make a part of you. They are your characteristics. For example, if someone is good at running and they win a race and win a trophy, they will remember this and be proud of their running. Memories can be good and bad, happy ones or sad. Memories can also cause nostalgia, meaning that you miss something from the past. When Huw is an adult, and he looks back into his childhood, he wishes that it were still like that in the present, because so many changes have happened.

Huw has a big recollection of memeories. He can tell a whole different story from the past that doesn’t exist anymore. A memory that Huw will always remember is how green and peaceful his valley was. People were singing, and everyone was happy. Huw likes this memory and he will never forget it because it’s wonderful. But we people in the present gaze, awe-inspired at that valley, because there are very few places that have this kind of environment anymore. We stare at it much more longingly than Huw, because when Huw is an adult, the disaster has only begun, while in the present, the disaster is grinding its way through nature. Huw can roam freely with no restrictions. We can’t do that very often now. Huw is poor but happy. Not many people are now. A little Welsh village in a beautiful valley is the setting for the film. It doesn’t exist anymore now. We have fallen apart and the best thing we have is to look back and see the good times.

We also see some of Huw’s decisions as a bit on the strange side. When he decides to go down into the mines, we get a bit of a shock. He should have gone to college, like his father had expected him to do. Instead he went to the coal mines because he looks up to and follows his brothers. They all went into the mines, so he also wanted to have this honor and follow the family. When Huw is bullied at school, he doesn’t tell his parents, but they soon discover it and they teach the teacher a lesson. Huw is scared and humble, and we value these qualities because humility is a special quality. Huw makes bad decisions sometimes, but that’s because he is too young and he doesn’t know enough yet about reality.

We see Huw’s life as a very different one from ours. He lives a life in a beautiful valley in a small town with friendly people. Huw also sees this, but we notice it more because it doesn’t exist anymore in our world. We see that Huw loves ladies that are much older than him and we think that that’s a bit strange and exaggerated because people normally marry other people about their own age. Huw sees this as a normal thing. He liked a person older than him because she was pretty, so he thought it was normal. He thinks this because he is too young and he remembers it because he likes the feeling of love. Another dear thing he remembers is his family. He loves his mother and father. We also agree with him because if we were Huw, we would also love them because they are loving and kind people. He also finds Mr. Gruffydd very dear and he was almost part of Huw’s family. Mr. Gruffydd helped Huw recover from a serious condition and get on with life again. He gave Huw advice and convinced Huw that he would get better. Mr Gruffydd was like a second father to him. He owed a lot to him, since Mr Gruffydd helped Huw so much. And Huw sees him as an older, kind man who has committed no sins but just helped people to do the right things. But we see the other side of Mr Gruffydd. He has had a relationship with Angharad, which was against the rule of the church. Huw thought that he was brave, but he didn’t go and have the courage to say goodbye to Angharad when he was going to leave the valley. Yes, he was brave, but sometimes he did other things. So when Huw is older and looks back to his childhood, he sees what we see, and secrets are told to him. That is why he is leaving the valley. But he also leaves the valley because the mines have destroyed the environment and left his home surrounded by ugly slag heaps. The good nature and the beautiful environment that he remembered didn’t exist anymore.

Huw rememebers what he loves, and things which he will never forget. When his father died in the mine, he was very sad and he probably didn’t want to remember the thought but he reassured himself that his father would never leave him and that his father would always be there to help him. That’s why he remembers his father’s death so vividly. We see that Huw didn’t have a very comfortable life in the same way that we do. In the beginning it was very loving and pleasant, but then things began to collapse. Death, pollution, anger and guilt set in to destroy the world he knew as a child. Huw’s life is also very like John Ford’ s life. Huw has many memories which cover much of his childhood and explain a lot about his life. But the main aspect of the film is about his dear memories of the ones that he loves and the ones that he will never forget. Huw had a life of both sorrow and happiness and this is what he remembers as he packs his belongings and leaves the valley fifty years later.

James H. 7F

If you see this movie, you will see things and think things differently for the rest of your life. One of the memories is when Huw is a fully grown man and he leaves his valley at the beginning of the movie. I think one of the reasons Huw remembers that specific memory is because he loved the place a lot and he wanted to depart because the valley wasn’t green anymore.

Huw loved his mother dearly. He never wanted to forget who raised him, who cared for him, and loved him. He didn’t want to forget part of his family.
Huw remembers the father that he loved so much and how he dies in his arms after a mining explosion. Losses are always hurtful and the tragedy of losing someone stays with you, it never leaves you. Any loss is hard to deal with. You can never forget a death. It’s normal to keep their dead souls in your heart. And that’s what Huw did. He kept them in his heart.

When Huw first started going to school he was bullied by his teacher and school mates. This is one of his strongest memories. I think he remembers this because of the pain and the hurt. The pain when he got beaten with the cane, which was slashed across his back. He also remembers the children beating him, punching and slapping. Physical bullying and also verbal bullying. The teacher said, “Oh, you’re one of the Morgans, coal boy.” And everybody laughed.

A dramatic feature of the movie is when Huw was able to walk again after an unforgettable incident in which he fell into ice-cold water with his mother. Huw got severe frost-bite and was in bed for almost a year. This is when he overheard the doctor saying that his frostbite was severe and that he was chilled to the bone and that he probably would not walk for a very long time, if at all. The day he walked again was when he was in the meadow with Mr Gruffydd. Mr Gruffydd wanted Huw to walk. He tried and tried but Huw wasn’t really willing, then when Mr Gruffydd encouraged Huw by telling him to have confidence and faith in himself, Huw stumbled across into Mr Gruffydd’s arms. That was probably one of the best moments in his life. No one would forget that.

Generally I think he remembers his world, with everything perfect, peaceful and all in unison. And my observations are that life in Huw’s world was very scheduled, that is, bells rang, hooting alarms sounded for danger and every day people went to work at the right time and came home to their families at the end of the day. There was always a strict routine in everyday life. My observation is that being a coal miner wasn’t the best choice for Huw even though he thought it was the best. The people Huw remembers are Mr Gruffydd, the preacher who said words in church and Beth Morgan, the mother, and the father, the coal worker, his brothers and Angharad, his sister and the lover of Mr Gruffydd.

When Huw is older he realises how the valley had changed, so he departed. When he was smaller he couldn’t tell. Only when he was older, he realised.
I think that the work that people had was a little bit risky and dangerous. The miners put little children at risk by making them work. I personally think that that is very irresponsible of them. But Huw didn’t see it that way.
“First you have to see it to believe it.” When Huw was smaller he didn’t realise that but now that Huw was older, he woke up and saw it.

Nadia 7T

Huw’s memories were very strong because his dad died quite early in a mining accident. He said goodbye to Huw for the last time when he was stuck in the cave. When they came up in front of everybody the dead body was lying in Huw’s arms. He also had some memories of his family and the girl he fell in love with. When John Ford said, ‘There is no fence nor hedge round time that is gone”, I think Ford is saying that if something good has happened in the past and you remember it, no one can stop him from thinking about it. If I had been in Huw’s head, I would have gone to a university or school instead of working in the mines. I think language is fun. In schools we learn a lot but in caves you don’t learn anything. I think he did that because he wanted to be like his big brothers.

Huw liked his memories since his dad died. He had lots of good memories but even some bad ones. One good memory was the days he started working, and when he came back he washed like his brothers except they weren’t there anymore since they had lost their jobs at the mine. So it was only Huw and his father. Another good memory of course was when he first fell in love with a girl after he got some money and took off to the toffee shop. I think it was a very good memory since he changed his manners that day. There were some bad memories too, like the day his brothers went to the army, and when he and his mom fell into ice-cold water. The most tragic of all was when his father died.

When the big boys had had enough of their job they stood up one day when they were eating dinner and they protested against their father and took off to look for work elsewhere. Huw sat with his father alone for the first time in many years. They both felt a little strange I think when they sat there alone. When Huw finished his dinner he was dismissed alone. The other bad memory was of an event that lasted a very long time. It was when Huw and his mum went to speak to the strikers that they shouldn’t hurt her family and if so she would do something against them. She walked home with Huw in the dark. They didn’t see the ice so they fell into the water. They must have been in the water a very long time because they were almost frozen to ice when a group of men found them. Huw couldn’t walk or see his mum for a very long time. When Huw had worked in the mines some time he was in the church office when the alarm came on. The alarm was used to warn the villagers about dangers or accidents, so everybody hurried up to see what was happening. When they got to the mine entrance some people came out but some people went down to see if they could rescue anyone who was still underground. When they were down there there was a flood of water and rocks that had fallen because of the explosion.

Huw is a very interesting boy because lots of unusual things happen that don’t happen very often like when they fell into the ice. His family is a little poor so they couldn’t let the big brothers go to school but even though Huw could have gone to school he didn’t want to. John Ford explains his feelings a lot in this film. This film was made during the second world war. Ford is trying to say that he was rich but also other people that were rich didn’t have it that good during the war. So I think that’s why the film is named How Green was my Valley.

Huw’s feelings are very strong and clear because he had a lot of difficult times after he fell into the water, especially when his father died. That was when he said ‘How green was my valley then . . .’.

Samuel 7F

‘There is no fence nor hedge around time that is gone. You can go back and have what you like of it, if you can remember.’ As a middle aged man, Huw Morgan packs his belongings and prepares to leave the valley; the unpretentious Welsh, coal-mining community that served as his home since he was born. As he packs, his memories of his past boyhood come flooding back.

‘If his father was the head of the house, then his mother was its heart.’ Huw cherishes the memory of his family around the table, joking, singing and conversing amiably. The family Morgan functions in a simple and loving way. Huw recalls his father, who was his most important mentor. Huw never found anything his father told him to be wrong or worthless. There is a very strong bond between him and his father. John Ford draws from his own life to portray Huw and his father. In ‘A man and his films’ by Tag Gallagher, John Ford recalls a strong love between him and his father. Another important aspect of John Ford’s life that is depicted in ‘How Green was my Valley’ was his mother’s love. ‘Her refusal to kiss him was harsher than any beating.’ This is also true in the film. Sara Allgood who plays Beth Morgan, plays her with a passionate and iron character, ready to defend her family against the spite of others.

Upon traversing home with his mother on a cold stormy night, after her raging at the coal miners for fighting her husband’s refusal to join the unity, she leans against a rotten handrail, and plunges into the water below. Huw’s love for his mother is evident as he plunges in after her. They are finally saved, but both are frozen to the bone and confined to bed. It was this time in bed, when he met another mentor, Mr Gruffydd, the town preacher, (played by Walter Pidgeon) who built up his self confidence and swore to him he would walk again. Huw recalls him with love and respect, for he showed him how to believe in himself and God. He holds these memories dearest because the memory is selective. He remembers these scenarios because of their emotional link. All were joyful, depressing or bittersweet. He remembers some in great detail and others in less.

One’s memory is relatively selective and subjective. This movie is about the valley and the people in it, seen through the eyes of a young, innocent boy. An older more worldly person’s judgments would have been different. I believe the lack of work and poverty brought out the worst in the people of the valley. However, it is sad to consider that perhaps the evil was underlying in these people’s hearts. For example, one of Huw’s memories of a woman who had had a child out of wedlock was, in those days considered sinful. However, today to have a child out of wedlock is common and does not make one inferior to others.

‘You might say it is not possible for so young a child to fall in love. But believe me that on that day I did.’ When young Huw Morgan falls in love with Bron, the wife of one of his older brothers, I believe that perhaps time has exaggerated this statement. Perhaps Huw felt a great endearment to her due to her amiable nature.

I believe memory is an important thing, for it brings us closer to loved ones when sharing a past event, and also helps us make well judged decisions. Huw’s memory gives him a lifelong bond to the valley so he can look past the slag heaps from the colliery, and see the valley he knew as a child.

Olivia 7F

“How Green Was My Valley” is a story which tells about a child who lives in a world that is mostly dark but he sees mostly the bright side of it. Huw’s dearest memories could be when he falls into an ice cold lake with his mother and is then told that his legs are frozen to the bone. His mother recovers and is able to walk again, while Huw is still in bed. A doctor comes to visit Huw and says that the chances of him walking again are extremely low. The new preacher comes and carries him outside to a beautiful green valley and tells him that he must believe that he can walk, if he wants to walk. Therefore, slowly but steadily, Huw was able to walk again. Another dearest memory that Huw has was when his father hugged him for the last time and then died. Huw’s father had worked in the mine, like his sons, but there was an accident and the ceiling fell onto Huw’s father, but Huw found him just in time to say good-bye.

My observations of Huw’s world are that many sad things happen: like Huw’s brother and father die, and his family is poor as they work in the mine and get paid very little. Yet with all this pressure, Huw seems to go along with what he has and makes the best out of it. I have observed that Huw’s family is very interesting. First of all he has many brothers that each have their lives, are grown-ups yet live in the same house. I find Huw’s father the most interesting character because when Huw comes back home, all beat-up from school his father says, “Well done! You have gotten into a fight? Well, for every black eye and bruise, I will pay you!” One would think a father would care if his son got hurt at school and would talk to the principal and make it stop. But not Huw Morgan’s father. Instead his father wants Huw to fight back! I find Huw’s mother also quite interesting as she’s very motherly but also has a lot of humor, which one wouldn’t expect a woman with many sons to be that funny!

The difference that Huw sees in his world and what I see is quite a lot. Huw sees everything as a beautiful flower, and if someone dies in his family, he loses some petals but life still goes on, a beautiful flower. If I were to be in that situation, I would be very sad and depressed for all those sad and unfair things going on. This is the difference: a dark room with a beautiful flower doing photosynthesis - Huw, and a worried little mouse not knowing where to go, chewing everything in its sight and falling into mouse traps, me.

Alessandra 7T

“There is no fence nor hedge round time that is gone. You can go back and have what you like of it, if you can remember.” What someone chooses to remember are things that they want to remember. Huw Morgan shows us this in a film.

Huw has many memories of his childhood past. At the beginning when he is packing and leaving the valley he says, “I am packing my belongings in a shawl my mother made for me long ago.” He remembers “How Green Was my Valley then.” He remembers the beautiful sunny days and how grass was green and the coal-mine was just regular everyday work for Dadda. He remembers his mother and his father and Mr. Gruffydd. He remembers when he walked for the first time. All of Huw’s memories are expressed in a film, but only the dearest parts take a long time to see.

Huw’s dearest memories are usually very emotional. There is the time he almost froze to death, and while he was lying in bed, Mr. Gruffydd was there to comfort him, reading Treasure Island. How Huw communicated with his mother and when he finally saw her, you could see both their eyes welling with tears. Huw remembers that moment with his extended arms, waiting for his mother to come in. And then there is the time where Huw could walk again. Sitting in the meadow with Mr. Gruffydd. The fear he had for walking, but how wonderful it was when he fell into Mr. Gruffydd’s arms. And finally, the feeling of being able to stand up and see the valley again. Huw remembers the moment he saw Bronwen. “Maybe it was then that I fell in love with Bronwen.” She was part of the family now; and when Ivor died, she was all alone and Huw felt he had to go comfort her. He remembers most dearly, Dadda. The last scene is when he dies in Huw’s arms, and then it shows a flashback of all the moments Huw remembers with Dadda.
“Men like my father cannot die.” Dadda was most special. And finally, there is Angharad. How kind she was to Huw, and Huw remembers going to visit her, and having her cry in his arms. These are all dearest to Huw because he loves them and so that is what he chooses to remember.

Huw’s observations as a child have the essence of innocence. The way he saw things was different, even though he understood how other people saw things. The strike is a main event in the life of the Morgans. Huw doesn’t understand what the big deal is all about. Huw thought: What is this all about? Why do they need money? Then he would speak his thoughts and get a response that would turn his questions down. But Huw feels for his father. All the brothers have gone and Dadda says, “Yes Huw, my son, I know you are there.” Now Huw goes happily back to eating, because his father realized that Huw was there, to support him. Huw is being innocently superficial.

Angharad’s business is what Huw wants to help with. In the colliery the other boys tease Huw because there is a rumor going around that his sister is going to divorce. Huw understands Angharad’s pain, since he is very observant. Even though sometimes he does not understand, he is always willing to help.

In How Green Was My Valley John Ford depicts Huw Morgan in a certain way. One part of the movie is when Huw is in bed. John Ford had diptheria as a child, and Huw Morgan was John Ford transfigured in that particular scene. John Ford’s point of view was similar to Huw Morgan’s, as he loved reading, but did badly in school, just like Huw was not a huge success in his class. John Ford said that the two most important people in his life were his father and his teacher. Huw Morgan could also say this. Huw loved his father dearly, and they were very close. Huw’s teacher was not exactly important, but he is definitely a character to be remembered.

Huw also thought it incomprehensible that his brothers wanted to go to America. They could just stay here in the village until this whole thing goes away. And why did they have to go? Even though Huw had all those questions on his mind, he still felt the pain everyone was going through.

Huw Morgan’s life is very similar to John Ford’s, and it could be to ours, too. Huw Morgan uses the same innocence, knowledge, and feeling that every child has. You could feel his feelings through the music, but also in how the movie is narrated. Huw is the movie. Huw and the valley are family, and when he moves away, the valley moves with him.

Matilde 7T

In the film How Green was my Valley, memories are the key and characteristic of the entire film. It can be seen by two points of view: Huw’s, who is the main character, and from ours, us looking into is world, his memories, while he is living them. Life back then was very different from how it is now, and families were different. Huw, in his flashback, only remembers the most important and memorable events that took place.

In my opinion, Huw’s most vivid memory was that of pay day, when his four brothers and father were paid, and when they came home and scrubbed all the coal off their bodies. There would be buckets of cold and hot water, and Huw, his mother and his sister would help scrub every inch of black off them, but their hands never, ever, became clean. This memory was very dear to him because it was actually what he wished he could do when he got older. Eventually he did follow his father’s and brother’s footsteps, so the memory is extremely important. The money they all earned was then distributed among them, to then go and buy what they wished. Little Huw would sometimes get some money, which he would then use to buy sweets in the candy shop. Those were the good days, but when the salaries got cut, and older miners were discharged, Huw’s family was in crisis. Not long before that, Huw had become paralysed after falling into icy water and had to stay in bed for a long time.

The second most important memory Huw recalls, in my opinion, was that of school. Being from another valley, and having been taught at home, he was bullied, and was very often caught in fights, which led him to return home bloody and bruised. His father got two men to teach Huw how to fight, and one day, they showed up at the school, to give a boxing demonstration, but using the teacher. “Accidentally,” the teacher is beaten up. I think this memory is dear to Huw because it taught him to stand up for himself and to show people who he really was. It taught him and showed him he had strength and also, the memory of the teacher being beaten up is pretty hilarious. Another memory Huw has, and feels dearly about, concerns his sister Angharad, and the preacher, Mr. Gruffydd. Huw knew the two were in love, and he admired Mr. Gruffydd for his courage and for telling Angharad to marry a rich person, because she would be poor if they married. Mr Gruffydd is only one of the many people Huw remembers, but I feel that he felt mostly for Mr. Gruffydd.

From my point of view, Huw Morgan’s story and memories are very important and have a meaning. The story sends out a message to people, reminding people about how much our industrialization and greed for material wealth is destroying nature; the environment that surrounds us. When Huw was a child, it was normal for children to work, and working in the colliery was such a tough job. Nowadays, the situation is totally different because people can’t work until they’re eighteen years old or sixteen in Britain. I was impressed, because working underground is dangerous and unhealthy, especially for a child. But I also find everything Huw says to be true, and I actually feel how he must have felt.

John Ford’s film allows us to see two points of view: subjective and objective. Huw’s point of view is subjective. He can change something or do something because he sees things as they are happening, while our point of view is objective. We view the memories not only differently because they aren’t ours, but also because they happened in another century from ours. It is important to keep and recall memories, not only for pleasure, but also to learn from them.

Emma Z. 7DT

Huw looks back at his childhood very fondly. He holds all his memories close to him. He thinks of his childhood as a marvelous, wonderful, beautiful place. The memories that he holds dearest are the ones of his family, when he and his mother were re-united after their long rests in bed, or when he finally got to go work in the mine, or his long walks and talks with his father. These things were not always as perfect as Huw remembers, nor are the people as kind and good inside and out.

One of the things Huw looks back on with respect is the coalmine. Huw admired it and the people working in it – his whole family worked in the mine. What is ironic is that later, when he leaves the valley, the mine is the biggest cause of his departure. The way it has dirtied the valley with smoke and with wastes disgusts Huw, yet as a child he looked up to it in awe. In fact, he chooses to go work in the mine, despite his father's wish of him becoming a doctor or a lawyer. After all, he was the only one in the family who had the honour to be educated as a scholar. In my opinion, the mine isn't anything I respect or that I would choose to work in. I think it is filthy and despicable, despite Huw's complete respect towards it.

Another memory that Huw holds close is Mr. Gruffydd's visit when he was ill. Huw did not have any faith in his survival, because he had heard the doctor say: ”Nature must take its course.” Mr. Gruffydd knew the boy had heard, and visited him in his room. He told the boy that as long as he had faith, anything could happen. He gave Huw the book Treasure Island. Huw kept the book all through his life with love.

The re-union with his mother is yet another memory Huw treasures, After weeks of tapping morse code through the ceiling of his room, his mother was finally well enough to get out of bed and come downstairs. When Huw meets his mother for the first time since they fell into the icy water, he is filled with joy and happiness, and I find the scene very touching. What I think is sad is that right after, the mother finds out one of her sons is leaving her. For the mother, I don't think the end of her illness is as happy and delightful as it is for Huw.

Huw admired his father very much, but I actually don't think he was always as respectful towards Huw as he ought to have been. I don't find him angel-like. He is a good man, but just like all of us, he has his flaws. For example, when he sends Huw upstairs, he is pretty rude and harsh – ”These are not things for little boys”, he says. And I don't approve of him encouraging Huw to fight. Huw just chooses not to see his father’s faults, and to believe that he is perfect.

Overall, Huw looks at everything with a childlike innocence. Our picture of what is right and what is wrong is very much influenced by out parents. People have many different points of view – in fact, in most situations, there is no definite right or wrong. Just like in people – rarely is anybody entirely bad or entirely good, but rather good, with a hint of bad, or bad, with a hint of good. Most of us hit somewhere in the middle.

Pihla 7T

Memories are things no one can ever take away from us. In fact, after fifty years, they are still compressed in Huw Morgan's mind.

'How Green was my Valley' itself is a memory, which narrates an important period in Huw's life, so it's all dear to him. While ours is an objective view, his is a subjective view. He remembers about the love, between Angharad and Mr. Gruffydd and the love for his family. Death is an unforgettable memory, such as when his father died. His job in the mine and his days in school are also vividly recalled. We, on the other hand, see it superficially. The people who are watching get a sad view of a once happy period. We don't feel the same emotions as Huw and the rest of the town people.
When Huw Morgan looks back at the past, he feels a nostalgic and dramatic reminiscence of a time that is gone and a family now disintegrated. He remembers his choices once made: after having gone to school with a good future ahead of him, he decided to work in the mine, because he thought that it was a respectable job. He also remembers the long walks he took with his father, through a land that hadn't yet been industrialized.

But I believe the strongest memory he holds is the time in which his family members were beginning to go their own ways, such as when his brother, Ivor, got married and went to live with his wife, and when the other three brothers decided to go and live in America, hoping to find a better life. He also recalls when Angharad, against her will, went to live with the man she married. I find this memory important because it was characterized by other events. For example, the mine was the cause of conflict between the people who were working there and wanted to strike against the Morgans’ father, who would not let his sons do what he thought was wrong. The mine was also the cause of Huw and his mother being paralyzed, after having gone out to talk to the strikers one night. Without the mine these dramatic events would not have happened. Above all, the mine was also the cause of his father's death.

Another memory Huw recalls is of a man who had been an important presence in his life: Mr. Gruffydd. Mr. Gruffydd has a great role because he had a certain friendship with Huw. It was he who inspired Huw's love for books, and it was he who encouraged his recovery from the paralysis after falling into the freezing pond. It was Mr Gruffydd who told Huw that he that he could walk again by believing in himself and in God. There is a touching scene where Mr. Gruffydd accompanies Huw up on the mountain, which overlooks the valley and tells him to walk towards him. Huw also remembers the love story Mr. Gruffydd had with his sister, Angharad, and the difficulties they encountered, like her unwilling marriage with the son of the mine's owner.

'How Green was my Valley' is not only the title of the film, but also Huw Morgan's reflection of the past.

Camilla 7DT

Huw Morgan, is a young child when he decides to go to school and to work at the colliery, and although he’s old when he looks back at his past, he still remembers certain things vividly. Huw remembers his early life, as a child would remember it; calm, beautiful and harmonious. It is a perfect life.

He remembers his father as his hero, and when his father, unfortunately, dies, because of the working in the colliery, Huw is sure that a man like his father would always be remembered and would always be in people’s hearts. “A man like my father cannot die”, he says, as he remembers. By that, I think he meant, that his father would always be remembered by everyone in the town, for his sweetness and his bravery. Huw also remembers his brother who died in the colliery, and how happy his life was when everyone in his family was alive. He remembers Mr. Gruffydd who was in love with his sister, Angharad, but that he couldn’t marry her because of his poverty. Angharad was in love with the preacher, Mr. Gruffydd, but she was made to marry another man who had money and could keep her fed and safe.

Most of all Huw remembers the valley in which he first started to walk again. Earlier, Huw and his mother had fallen into a very cold river, and when people rescued them and brought them home, they had to stay in bed for many months. Huw was a child, and as time passed, his legs would get weaker and weaker everyday, so Mr. Gruffydd takes him onto the mountain which overlooked this valley, and this is where Huw starts walking again.

Huw remembers his early life as green; a colourful and cheerful colour, and at the end of the film, he sighs and says, “How green was my valley then”. This is what Huw remembers of his life, but by watching the events and people in the film, I formed my own point of view about Huw’s world. My life is very different from Huw’s. It is a lot more technical and my world is an easier world to live in. I personally think that our memories seem small, but are huge, and when these memories are very important to us we cry, because we know it won’t be like that again. Huw lived a sad life, but he was not the only one. There were other people who couldn’t go to school, and who lost part of their family in the same way Huw’s lost his father and brother.

Life wasn’t easy back then, and I can understand that Huw had some difficulties during his life, like the boy at school with whom he fought, the teacher that slapped and bullied him, the cold river that almost killed him, and many more. But he wasn’t the only one to suffer in these ways. I think Angharad should have married Mr. Gruffydd and that she should have lived a happy and poor life, rather than an unhappy and rich life.

Angelica 7T

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