I recently wrote a story inspired by this "back to school visit", called "Blake Back at Bloomersdown." In it, talk show host Christine receives an underpants-down strapping for "woolgathering" during her chemistry lesson.
The Headmaster spots the engagement ring on her finger, prominently visible in the newspaper photos, and the photo above, and is torn on whether he should punish her for a uniform violation. The story closes with:
The vacillating Headmaster stood in the study, his mind awash in ambivalence and ambiguity, uncertain as to what to do. The Headmaster, uncertain as to what to do, reached for the phone. Imagine as you are reading this, the phone rings. It is your friend the Headmaster, and he is calling you for advice on a troubling matter. He summarizes his situation and the facts to date. He asks you to give him your opinion, taking the following points into account:
1) The nature and the gravity of the offense. Consider please the existing rule allowing rings, as well as the underlying spirit of the dress code.
2) Whether the price of the ring matters, or should impact the severity of the penalty.
3) The student's past record, up to and including her conduct today at school.
4) The available punishment options, ranging from nothing, to scolding, to detention, to lines, to the strap, and finally as a last resort, the cane.
5) The disposition of the ring. Should it be given back to her immediately, or kept until a punishment form is signed, and a parent or guardian comes around to collect it?
6) Motive: does the fact that Christine was unaware of her true intentions mitigate the offense? Can a girl be justly punished when no offense was deliberately intended?
When five or six readers explain their advice on the matters above with a brief response of at least two paragraphs I will submit the next chapter, which will follow the best suggestions and the group consensus.
Please note that merely stating the punishment will not suffice. The Headmaster needs to hear a proper discussion of the six points above. His decision (and the story) will proceed from there. The idea is that you write the frame of the next chapter. There are some more photographs of the ring in question here, and a further discussion in chapter 3 of the story.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/tv/3803113/Christine-looks-class-y-in-un iform.htmlWhat would you advise the Headmaster to do? Please answer in detail, so that a decision can be made. Remember, Bleakley's fate rests entirely in your just but merciful hands.