Talk:Vera Drake

Drake a victim of sexual abuse when young?
"She is an honest woman who feels driven to perform these procedures because she was subjected to sexual abuse as a young girl." -- Is this fact (of her having been sexually abused) actually established in the film? I've just seen it & do not recall this being said this bluntly. I do recall that during the grilling session at the police station Vera is asked whether she herself had had an abortion, & she fails to answer the question. But unless I missed something I don't think it's said anywhere in the film that Vera had an abused childhood. ND 05:41, 26 June 2006 (UTC)


 * Aha, I see it's been edited out now. Good. ND 02:43, 12 July 2006 (UTC)

Citation style
This article has page numbers to someone called 'Watson' and 'Fuller', and includes the note '(2 of 4)'... Yet no-one has bothered to list the title of Watson's or Fuller's books anywhere. Please fix this.Cop 633 23:07, 11 March 2007 (UTC)

There's also a quotation from someone named "Jim Leach" with "(61)" at the end of the quotation, but no further information on the source of the quotation or the identity of Jim Leach. The internal link to a minor American politician of that name is almost surely incorrect, so I have removed the link. I notice that this, along with the Watson/Fuller peculiarities noted by the first poster in this section, was added by in a single extensive edit by 207.96.47.130 at 21:18, 24 April 2006.--Jim10701 (talk) 22:44, 2 August 2009 (UTC)

Higginson syringe method
I've removed the assertion that this method is "usually fatal" - it is indeed highly risky (especially in inexperienced hands which is why women turned to 'practitioners' such as Vera in the first place) but wildly incorrect statements shouldn't be included in the article just because some may be concerned that the film may influence real-life behaviour! Plutonium27 (talk) 03:46, 7 January 2008 (UTC)
 * The source says invariably fatal. The author (Jennifer Worth) doesn't quote her source for this assertion. It seems to be anecdotal. I find it hard to believe a 100% fatal method would have been used at all. Robertcornell68 (talk) 15:29, 18 April 2008 (UTC)

Jennifer Worth was the author of the book "Call the Midwife", basis of the British television series, and a professionally trained nurse-midwife herself. She saw the results of botched abortions in the 1950's and was one of the several doctors and nurses to criticize this film for its suggestion that the syringe method was generally quite safe. In other words, SHE was the source of her own opinions.Lolliapaulina51 (talk) 22:52, 21 May 2015 (UTC)

Male Lack of Understanding
I wouldn't say that a "male lack of understanding" of the pressures women face when dealing with an unwanted pregnancy is actually a "theme" in this film. Vera's son is openly opposed to abortion on the grounds tht the victims are "little babies," but no one tries to argue, in the face of his opposition, that women have abortions for specific reasons. Vera's soon-to-be son-in-law does remark fairly gently, just before the film ends, that people shouldn't have to have more children than they can afford, but he is male, after all, and very understanding. The male psychiatrist is also helpful when Susan seeks an abortion. Different points of view, held by both men and women, appear in the film, so I'd say this claim needs to go. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.251.32.105 (talk) 23:22, 1 November 2010 (UTC)

Criticism is fulminated?
"Criticism of this stereotype was fulminated to the greatest extent by the film". Whoever wrote this seems not to realise what "fulminate" means. For one thing, you don't "fulminate something", you "fulminate against something". And the verb itself means to "criticise fiercely", "protest vigorously against". So, as this sentence stands, it literally means "Criticism of this stereotype was fiercely criticised...", which is surely the very opposite of what the writer meant, namely "This stereotype was fiercely criticised in the film".84.243.236.9 (talk) 15:59, 4 March 2019 (UTC)
 * Thanks, I've fixed it. You could have done that yourself. Graham 87 01:10, 5 March 2019 (UTC)