This document is a school project by Samantha A. Walters on single parenting. It includes an introduction outlining the topic, a short story titled "A Walk on the Wild Side" about a family broken up by domestic violence leading the father to abandon the family, and an analysis of the story. The analysis discusses the intimate language register used to depict the relationship between characters and how artifacts and senses are used as communicative behaviors to develop characters and roles and strengthen the narrative. The document serves to educate readers on the implications of single parenting through an engaging short story and communicative literary devices.

1. In Partial Fulfilment of
Caribbean Advanced
Proficiency Examination
School Based
Assessment for
Communication Studies
2015-2016
Name:Samantha A. Walters
School: Belmont Academy
Candidate #:
Centre #:
Territory: Jamaica
Teacher:Ms. Smalling-Powell
Theme: Single Parenting
Topic: Good or Bad?

2. Table of Contents
Page
General Introduction 2
Preface 3
Reflection 4
Analysis 7
Bibliography 9
General Introduction

3. This project is focused on single parent families. According to the Collins Dictionary a single
parent is a person who has a dependent child or dependent children and who is widowed,
divorced, or unmarried. As a member of this institution the researcher decreed a privilege to
investigate the implications that are linked to my topic. It was researched in the exposition and
presented in the form of a narrative entitled “A Walk on the Wild Side”. It is interesting that
whilst she is a victim to this phenomenon it is coherent that there are others in society that are
baffled by the social, economic and educational experiences of a single parent families as seen in
both genres.
Hence, the researcher believes that pertaining to her academic interests this project will
contribute significantly in obtaining an Associate’s Degree of Humanities in the upcoming
Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination she is preparing for. In addition, her findings will
increase the skills and knowledge necessary to greater understand the area of Social Work that
she is aspiring for. Coupled with the skills and incisive garnered it will also aid in developing her
analytical and problem solving skills.

4. Preface
“A Walk on the Wild Side” is a short story depicting a family broken up because of domestic
violence, resulting in the father of the house abandoning his responsibilities for his wife and son.
It impacted their family drastically and their child became violent and joined a gang where he got
his ultimate punishment that turned his life around forever.
This short story serves to educate and inform readers of the implications of single parenting and
the effects it has on both the parent and children involved. This story was created to be recited at
meetings to single parents in a school but all parents from any union can read it. This genre was
chosen to bring awareness of issues developed socially, emotionally and educationally by being
in a single parent family. Also, by sharing it with this audience it captivates parents from
different societies, age ranges and gender to formulate ways to cope with similar problems that
could have or even to prevent it from happening.

5. Reflection
A Walk on the Wild Side
“Dustin mi cah do dis nuh more”, said Mavette panting “If yu did listen to mi this would’n
happen!” he barked still washing his hands. Dustin Jackson, a police officer at Franksville
County, comes home just to lay his hand on his wife, not for pleasure but for pain. Mavette was
getting ready for their big anniversary trying to please him, almost ten years. They were high
school sweethearts and feel in love instantly, at first sight, more reason to fight for her marriage.
But this time, Dustin left for work after a heated argument and never returned, clearing out the
house clean of his stuff and a bit of hers too. A relief for Mavette, Kendrick their son took it so
hard, especially because this was two days before his thirteenth birthday, blaming his mother for
his father’s leaving.
Three years passed, Mavette’s pre-occupation fuelled his anger with his father’s take off and
grew his bitterness towards her. He gave Mavette a bloody nose, black eyes and two broken
fingers. Love and torture, her own son to continue the same behaviour of Dustin. But her
undying strengthen to keep her family together, prevailed all the hurt. While she was at work,
calls from his school about him misbehaving. He turned out for the worse skipping school,
constant fights and the ultimate impregnating a girl who he says he doesn’t know. He even took
it a step further and left the house and never returned. She then wondered what she did wrong for
her family being torn apart.

6. That same night Kendrick spent the night with his friend Blingy, THE DON. He mentioned to
him that he could make easy money by working for him. Kendrick was not up for it at first but
he was desperate because he did not have any money. So, he agreed to do it. He got his gun on
the spot. The first job was to steal $20 thousand dollars from the Franksville Commercial Bank.
But an hour before he went he got a message and ignored it.
Brring, Brring, Brring, a call from the Franksville County “Mom I’m in trouble come and bail
me out please!” with no hesitation the phone hangs up. The bail was made and the following day
on his arrival to school, he was expelled because of being involved in illegal activities. The
decision of quitting school was the option he took. Working for Blingy gave him more money
than going to school all day. His success in his previous job promoted him to kill Blingy’s enemy
Paul K. Kendrick grimly said no to the deal and Blingy told him “bwoy mi own yuh and if
yuh nuh do it mi a geh yuh til 12 tonight”. He panicked and ran out keeping himself busy for the
whole day because he knew someone was going to die that night and it sure wouldn’t be him.
The phone rang “Kenny yuh doh haffi do dis come back home”, he slammed the phone down
and turned it off. Night fell and it was time. Heart pounding, chest caving in, he had to do
something. “I can snitch, I won’t!” he thought. He got dressed, strove his gun on his side and was
ready for the battlefield, the clash of the gangs had begun. He drove by the place where Paul K
lived and saw him walking to the play field in his red outfit that he and his gang always
wears. Feet away as much as to not be seen gripping the steel that determines his
future…Bratatat! Bratatat! The gun went off. A crowd of police then surrounded him. Paul K
was Officer Paul Kardigan of the Longville County, private investigator.

7. Kendrick was caught red-handed, handcuffed and brought to the police station for questioning.
He did not tell the officers about Blingy and served twenty years behind bars for attempted
murder and having an illegal gun. Most of his time he spent reminiscing on what he did and
decided to get counselling and change his life. December 17, 2015, he was released and became
a personal mentor for boys that faced similar situations as he did at the Empowerment Society
for Boys (ESB). He also reconnected with his mother and developed a relationship to last a
lifetime.

8. Analysis
The reflective piece “A Walk on the Wild Side” depicts a family being broken up into a single
parent family because of the absence of the father who was domestically abusing his wife. Their
son took his father going away very seriously and turned out for the worst being involved in
illegal activities. Illustrating how single parenting can have multiple effects. A range of language
registers, dialectal variations, attitudes to language and communicative behaviours were used to
bring across the seriousness of the topic being explored. However for analysing, the prose
language register and communicative behaviour were chosen to be discussed thoroughly.
Language Register is the anticipated approach and stages of formality correlating with varieties
of language. It is understood by the reader from the writer's approach towards, tone and stages of
formality. Formal, frozen, consultative, casual and intimate are the five stages, named by
linguists. The register used in the prose above is the intimate register. Evidently seen in line 3-4
“Dustin mi cah do dis nuh more”. The Jamaican Creole was used with an intimate tone because it
highlights a language somewhat used between persons who share a close relationship or bond.
Mavette is over with the abuse but the tone is subtle giving the impression that she is not quite
done, which is communicated to the reader.
The writer of the short story utilizes the communicative behaviours of Artifacts and Five Senses
in the piece. The use of Artifacts is seen in line 25- 26 “He drove by the place where Paul K

9. lived and saw him walking to the playfield in his red outfit that he and his gang always wears”
the object of a red outfit that was worn signifies someone belonging to a group that can be easily
identified. The colour red could also be symbolic of danger in the story. The Artifact strengthens
as a warning signs that something wrong was going to happen. Five Senses, line 27 “gripping the
steel that determines his future”, is a communicative behaviour that brings about the anxiety of
wanting to know the next move. Will he go through with it or will he give up?
The prose is more developed when using language registers and communicative behaviours. In
using them, character’s personalities and roles are more “fleshed out”.

10. Bibliography
Books
Veronica Simon and Sandra Osborne. (2009). Comunication studies for CAPE Examinations.
London: Macmillian Publisher Limited.
Ramsawak, R and Umraw, R. (2003). Modules in Social Studies. La Romaine: Caribbean
Educational Publishers.
Internet Websites
Danique, W. (2011, February 9). Language Registers. Retrieved on December 21, 2015, from
Blogspot: http://cape-commstudies.blogspot.com/2011/02/language-registers.html.