Years of Wonders Text Essay help!

[j23]

Can anybody suggest what i should write my paragraphs on with the topic:
 ‘It was “the conventions of this small and watchful town” that proved more harmful than the plague.’
Do you agree?

Please help!! 

[teacher28]

Try framing your paragraphs within the answers to these questions:

What habits and rules, values and attitudes do the inhabitants of Eyam live by?

How are they damaging to the people? What are the consequences of this adherence to the customs and the idea of accepted behaviour?

Is anyone NOT living according to the norm?

What is the nature of the vigilance?

What is the destructive nature of the plague and how is it less detrimental than the  code of conduct of the villagers??

[jeanweasley]

Can anybody suggest what i should write my paragraphs on with the topic:
 ‘It was “the conventions of this small and watchful town” that proved more harmful than the plague.’
Do you agree?

Please help!! 

It's pretty much saying that it was the way Eyam operated as a society: patriarchal, judgemental, restrictive, oppressive, reliant on religion, science vs. medicine etc. that caused more harm than the plague. Here you could talk about reasons why that is. What harmful effects did the plague have and why, because of the society they weren't able to withstand it because they turned on each other: scapegoating, blaming others, turning away and questioning religion. I think you could contrast the effects of the Plague physically compared to the emotional, mental and physical aspects of Eyam as a whole that divided the villagers compared to how they were united in the beginning. Or you could say that it is because of how Eyam was as a society that they were unable to respond to challenges because they, most of them anyway, were concerned only for their selves (Bradfords, Josiah, Aphra). However, you could also argue that there are people that do face the challenges of the Plague and become stronger people because of it.