Prison hulk

A ship no longer used for normal sailing service, converted into a floating prison.

An old ship kept moored and used to hold prisoners, sometimes before transportation overseas.

Prison hulks were old ships used as floating prisons. They helped accommodate prisoners when land prisons lacked space, including people awaiting transportation overseas. In the novel, the hulks lie offshore near the Kent marshes, making imprisonment part of Pip’s childhood surroundings.

A ship no longer in normal seagoing service that has been converted into a floating prison.

Connect context to the passage: prison hulks help explain the leg-iron, warning guns and soldiers’ pursuit, rather than requiring a separate history paragraph.

Both parts: context is not assessed in the novel question. Use knowledge of prison hulks to understand the action, not as a separate historical paragraph in your answer.

Either question: connect context to the specific argument—for example, explain how the prison hulks make the imagery of chains significant rather than adding a separate paragraph about Victorian punishment.

An old ship used as a floating prison. Magwitch escapes from a prison hulk before meeting Pip.

A ship no longer used for ordinary seagoing service, converted into a floating prison.

A ship no longer used for sailing that has been converted into a floating prison.

A prison hulk was a ship converted into a floating prison. Britain used these vessels partly because prisons on land were overcrowded. Some held convicts awaiting transportation overseas.

A ship no longer used for normal sailing service that has been adapted to hold prisoners.

A ship no longer used for normal sea service and converted into a floating prison.

A disused ship converted into a floating prison.

Prison hulks were disused ships used to hold prisoners when land-based prisons were overcrowded. Their presence makes punishment part of the landscape of Pip’s childhood rather than something remote.

An old ship used as a prison. In Great Expectations, prison hulks are moored near Pip’s marshes.

A ship used as a floating prison. The hulks near Pip’s village make imprisonment a threatening presence in his childhood.

Definition

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AQA GCSE English Literature · 8702

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Edexcel GCSE English Literature · 1ET0

OCR GCSE English Literature · J352