English Language - IGCSE
Touching the Void (I)
Viewpoint
• 1st person account vs 3rd person account
• 2nd person accounts are normally instructional
• 1st and 3rd person accounts may contain 2nd person passages
• biographical vs fictional literature – here autobiographical
Structure
• structure relates to the arrangement of the material
• it can make a considerable impact on the reader, affecting
plot, suspense, persuasiveness, etc.
• here we have two accounts of one incident, i.e. a bifocal
Touching the Void (II)
Title
• void = physical space/emptiness (literal meaning)
• void =moral emptiness/sense of abandonment (metaphorical meaning)
• neither kind of void can be “touched”
• so a powerful double metaphor
Figures of Speech
• dozens of different types
• metaphors are the most important figure of speech
• metaphors vs similes: implicit vs explicit comparison
• metaphors are “condensed similes”
• don’t confuse metaphors with hyperbole (exaggeration) For example, “I’m starving. I
could eat a horse.” is not a metaphorical expression, it’s a hyperbolic one!
Can you recognise metaphors?
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I swallowed his story whole, I'm sorry to say.
Her eyes were filled with pain and I couldn't look at her.
Taking this job is a gamble but I hope it works out well in the end.
Hotels have sprouted up all over Thailand.
The minutes crept by as the party was so dull!
Bush said he would stay the course in Iraq.
There was a huge amount of fallout over Blair's decision.
Low interest rates fuelled the house-prices boom.
His idea was warmly received.
The two presidential candidates were neck and neck.
We'd better go back to square one and start again.
His refusal set off a chain of events that ended in his arrest.
She made a fatal mistake when she signed the agreement.
Compare and Contrast
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A key phrase in examination questions!
Compare means identify similarities.
Contrast means identify dissimilarities (differences).
For example, an exam paper might ask you to “compare and contrast the
different reactions of Joe and Simon to the accident.”
In your answer you might state that:
• both climbers share the view that a climbing accident of this kind
inescapably spells death for the victim (a similarity)
• but they consider this proposition in very different ways, i.e. Joe’s
emotional horror at the prospect vs Simon’s dispassionate acceptance of it
(a difference)
Make as many good points as you can, and look for short quotations to back
them up.
Joe’s pain – physical vs mental
• physical pain
– knee pain
– nausea
• mental pain
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shock of seeing broken leg
dark (as yet unclear) thoughts
false hope (“maybe I’ve just ripped something”)
danger of falling into panic and screaming
prospect of being abandoned and dying alone
Essay
Compare and contrast Joe’s and Simon’s reactions to the
accident. To what extent do you think their reactions were
determined by (i) the situation and (ii) their character?
Tips:
• Try to deal with comparisons and contrasts even-handedly.
• Make as many good points as possible, making frequent use of short
quotations to support them.
• Structure your essay for maximum effect.
• Avoid spelling and grammatical errors, as these will distract your
readers.
Comparisons
• A close climbing team before the accident, sharing same
adventure, tied to same rope.
• Both experienced enough to appreciate the fatal
consequences of such an accident.
• Both understand that Simon cannot possibly save Joe in
this situation.
• Both state their thoughts with extreme openness and
honest, Simon even admitting he wished Joe would fall
to his death.
Contrasts
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Joe
Accounts covers shorter time period
Physical pain & nausea
Highly emotive language, full of pain
and anguish
Gradual realisation of situation
No reference to Simon during middle
of account
Not resigned to death
Tendency to panic – calm on surface
Lingering hope of survival.
Fear of abandonment
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Simon
Account starts earlier and ends later
No physical pain
Fairly unemotive language, lacking pain
and anguish
Rapid realisation of situation
Constant reference to Joe during
account
Resigned to Joe’s death.
Dispassionate, calm, even cavalier
(“matey”)
Certain that Joe is dead.
Readiness to abandon Joe
Using Quotations
• Support your points with frequent relevant quotations.
• Keep them short – they shouldn’t take up more than one quarter of
your total essay.
• Use quotation marks, and quote exactly.
• Use ellipses (…) to omit intervening material you want to skip.
• Use block quotes for longer passages, i.e. quotes on separate lines.
• Use a mixture of both (i) point-quote pairs and (ii) point-quotecomment triads.
• Occasionally put quotation first and comment second.
• Avoid overuse of point : quotation device.
• Unless it’s obvious, indicate the relationship between your point
and the quotation.
Quotations (II)
• Use commas before quotation marks.
• John said, “I saw my friends at school today.”
• “I saw my friends today”, John said, “and they told me
everything.”
• “Give it to me”, she said.
• Note comma in last sentence, not full stop.
• Nested quotations: use either:
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‘“”’
“‘’”
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Help your reader!
• Express yourself simply and clearly. Vigorous writing is
concise!
• Don’t leave it to the reader to work out what you’re saying.
• Make your comparisons and contrasts clearly and cleanly.
Be succinct.
• Use one paragraph per key idea.
• Use connectives (conjunctive adverbs) to link paragraphs
(‘firstly’, ‘secondly’, ‘furthermore’, ‘on the other hand’, etc.
Anaphora
• So far we’ve considered metaphors, similes and
hyperboles.
• Anaphora is the repetition of certain words at the
beginning of successive phrases.
• In time the savage bull sustains the yoke,
In time all haggard hawks will stoop to lure,
In time small wedges cleave the hardest oak, In
time the flint is pierced with softest shower.
Thomas Kyd (Spanish Tragedy)
Joe’s writing
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analyse writing techniques, not just content
consider Joe’s writing style
lots of short sentences
frequent repetition
accumulation of powerful verbs of destruction and
pain (line 28)
• use of metaphors
• u-turn in thinking (lines 22-24)
Homework
• Guide to Beach Safety - RNLI
• Anthology contains selected pages for exam
• Separate pdf (see link below) contains them all and in a
much more readable format
• www.edexcel.com/quals/igcse/igcse09/eng/englanga/Pages/default.aspx
On The Beach – some terms
• Abbreviations
– Don’t use periods if first and last letter used, e.g. Rev. vs Revd
– Acronyms form pronounceable words (e.g. AIDS, NASA)
– Initialisms don’t (e.g. BBC, RNLI)
• 8-page extract or excerpt (synonymous terms)
• Is front-page picture artificial (made by human art or artifice) rather
than natural?
• Add interest to an informational text by:
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clear, well-presented facts which avoid the predictable
varied layout including bullet points
short paragraphs
frequent use of relevant graphics (photos, drawings, diagrams)
human-interest stories
On the Beach – Purpose?
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Cover (front and back)
1. Public guide relating to beach
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ii.
safety
fun (no examples in extract)
2. RNLI publicity
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life-first philosophy (motto + emergency contact numbers)
charitable status & contact details
True Story
– No blame attached to boys. Rips explained. (1)
– Lifeguards given heroic qualities (2)
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Know your Flags & Swimming/Surfing Info
– Concentrates on the informational (1)
– “Follow the advice of / alert the lifeguards” (2)
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The RNLI (2)
– Charitable status emphasized
– Size of organisation and costs emphasized
– Implicit request made for donations
Homework
• “What techniques does this leaflet use to achieve
its purpose? How well do you think it succeeds?”
• Write two pages.
• Make succinct, well-ordered points.
• Avoid grammar and spelling mistakes like the
plague!
Touching the Void – Student Book
• not just Andes, but “Siula Grande in Peru”.
• how story ends: Simons cuts rope; Joe crawls down
mountain.
• target audience? non-technical writing.
• modal verbs stress speculation
• Simon not just a ‘realist’, but ‘hard-hearted’, ‘unsympathetic’
• explain effects of ellipses, exclamation marks, direct speech,
emotive language, rhetorical questions
• Climbers’ thoughts given in direct speech, but mutual
communication in indirect speech, emphasising isolation.
On the Beach - Questions
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What colour flag shows the lifeguarded area?
What colour flag indicates surfboarding area?
What shouldn’t be used when orange windsock is flying?
What is the main word in the RNLI’s motto?
Name one of the boys swept out to sea?
Name the current that sweeps swimmers out to sea.
There are two types of boarding: surf and what?
What is the emergency number to phone?
How do you signal for help if you’re in trouble?
What percentage of RNLI work is preventative?
What is tel. number for RNLI info? 0800 ……
On the Beach – Student Book
• No named writer for most of the leaflet
• Text distinguished by visual presentational
devices.
• The special artwork includes:
– layout (incl. subtitles, bullet points, & spacing)
– colour (carefully co-ordinated – more on this later)
– lettering (different fonts and sizes)
– images (see next slide)
On the Beach
• Images include:
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photographs
diagrams
watermarks
logos
warning signs
flags
• Note that three images appear to have been
sellotaped on at their corners. Why?
On the Beach
• Three photographs. What is their function?
• 1st – children are happy and safe. (Artificial? Children
sitting in jacuzzi? Man stepping out of jet ski boat to walk
on water? Perspective?)
• 2nd – grateful reunion with son who nearly died
• 3rd – what an actual rescue looks like
• triangular warning signs
• flags
• diagrams
• logos – RNLI and National Beach Safety Council
On the Beach - Persons
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Ignoring the front and back covers…
Find two accounts written in 1st person
Find three accounts written in 2nd person
Find one account mainly written in 3rd person.
Comment on background colours used for each.
Is this correlation accidental or intentional?
If intentional, how is it intended to work?
Techniques
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General layout (page size, sections, paragraphs, subtitles, bullet points)
Use of graphics (various types)
Use of fonts
Use of colour
Do the graphics complement the written content?
Variety of written content
– safety information
– human-interest stories
– facts & statistics
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Style of writing (e.g. Ist person vs 2nd person)
Vocabulary used (e.g. technical or general?)
Weaknesses?
How not to answer an exam question!
• Ignore the question altogether!
• Just say anything you like about the piece!
• Hope examiner will find an answer to his question
somehere in your essay!
• Answer the question minimally.
• Pad out the rest of it by
– piling up lots of (uncommented) quotations
– rewriting the content using your own words
• Hope the examiner won’t notice just how far you’ve
deviated from the question!
Climate Change: The Facts
See original article dated 28 April 2008 at
www.guardian.co.uk/science/2008/apr/28/scienceofclimatechange2
Kate Ravilious, freelance science writer
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Anthropogenic (man-made) global warming – truth or fiction?
“This is a controversial subject…” Edexcel Student Book
The Facts? or Opinions? or Lies?
A balanced presentation of both sides of the controversy?
Or a one-sided (biased) account to convince the don’t-knows that man-made
global warming is “a reality”?
Climate Change: Some Terms
• climate change vs global warming
• natural global warming vs anthropogenic
(man-made) global warming
• is Earth a planet = a body in space that orbits
a star?
• is “fossil fuel” really derived from fossils?
• is the Earth really millions (not to say billions!)
of years old?
Climate Change: Facts or Opinions?
Facts or an appeal to consensus opinion and conjecture?
• “the majority of scientists agree that…
• “There is little doubt that …”
• “The rise in temperatures seems too much of a
coincidence…”
• “Most people now agree that…”
• “Estimates … suggest that…”
• “Whether it ... is unclear.”
• Global temperatures are predicted to rise.”
Climate Change
Imagine you are the secretary of the chief editor
of the Guardian. You are sitting in his office
listening to two of his junior editors arguing
heatedly in front of him about whether Kate
Ravilious’ article should be published or not.
One thinks it superb, the other dreadful. You
notice that at the end of their argument the
chief editor appears undecided. Report what his
junior editors said.
Questions
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What is CO2?
Name one other greenhouse gas.
And another.
How much has the average global temperature gone up in last 100
years?
5. By how much could this go up in next 100 years (according to IPCC)? Give
max only.
6. Name the climate threshold that could trigger a major change if passed.
7. Apart from extra heat, how else could global warming affect the world?
8. How does man mainly raise global CO 2 levels?
9. What does IR stand for in IR radiation?
10. Which newspaper published this article?
Climate Change: A Hoax?
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The biggest scam of modern times… a ‘religion’ for crazies!
Deliberate fraud backed by big money of globalists.Aim is to promote one-world
government and higher taxes.
Despite what Kate Ravilious says, most scientists view global warming as either
unproven or false.
Overall, earth has actually been cooling over last 15 years! Only in northern
hemisphere has temperature gone up a little.
Middle Ages were warmer than today.
Global warming scientists have been caught fabricating data.
IPCC is a highly politicized UN environmental advocacy group, not a group of “best
scientists” as Kate Ravilious calls them.
Their projections are based on fraudulent computer models.
If people are genuinely committed to protecting our atmosphere, they will oppose
chemtrails!
Climate Change: the Pluses
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appealing layout
well-chosen FAQs
clear, well-written
lots of facts, informative
avoids extremes of being too technical and too nontechnical
• scientific sources quoted
• carefully avoids overstating the case
• hint of humour? (farting & burping)
Climate Change: the Minuses
• blatantly biased propaganda piece
• full of erroneous assumptions
• argument based on conjecture, not
indisputable facts
• doesn’t understand meaning of ‘hot potato’
• spells ‘gases’ in two different ways
• gas breakdown bar unintelligible
Climate Change: the Minuses
• blatantly biased propaganda piece
• full of erroneous assumptions
• argument based on conjecture, not
indisputable facts
• doesn’t understand meaning of ‘hot potato’
• spells ‘gases’ in two different ways
• gas breakdown bar unintelligible
Full stops
It’s raining again, the weather is terrible. X
It’s raining again. The weather is terrible.
It’s raining again; the weather is terrible.
It’s raining again, the weather is terrible, and I’m
fed up.
• It’s raining again, and the weather is terrible.
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• Mispunctuate at your peril!
Essay Question
• Achieving balance is difficult! Consider it a little like
tightrope walking.
• The Climate Change essay required two kinds of
balance:
– pro arguments vs contra arguments
– the drama of an imaginative essay vs the solid arguments
of a persuasive essay
• If you want to write brilliantly, intertwine two themes –
but balance them.
• Compare musical counterpoint.
Narrative example
… Hamish, another of our junior editors, came
through the door. He looked his usual self with his
messy hair, slightly askew tie, and trousers that had
permanent-looking creases in them. Whenever I
looked at Hamish, it made my poor womanly ‘clean
and tidy’ instinct tingle with the work possibilities
that lay there. Right now he was in the act of
stuffing some tea-stained looking papers into his
bag.
Dialogue example
“I think Kate Ravilious’ article on climate change is
superb”, began John.
“You what?” said Sarah in a surprised voice. “I think it’s
dreadful. It’s a blatantly biased piece of propaganda, and
it’s written as if everyone believes in climate change and
there’s no doubt that it’s a fact”.
“It is a fact”, said John, raising his voice a little, “and you
can’t be biased about something that’s a fact. Kate
Ravilious has even put in quotes from scientific sources to
prove that it’s a fact. This is serious stuff. It says in her
article, ‘the result is likely to be more extreme weather.’ ”
One way of expressing controversial views
• Many Christians might well take offence at …
• Not everyone would agree with …
• Many people might take issue with …
… the anti-biblical nature of some of the views
presented, that is, the idea that the earth is a planet
and that its age should be measured in millions
rather than thousands of years.
Ecoterrorism
• Are Global Warming campaigners spreading
fear, not just lies?
• Fox News report:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqTd0g48ZY4
• For full video see
www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfnddMpzPsM
A Game of Polo … Ten Questions
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In which city does the race take place?
Where did EL park to obtain best view of race?
How long did she have to wait?
What is the top speed of the donkeys?
“This was [racing car sport] without rules.”
How does oncoming traffic get out of way?
Name the driver.
Apart from the steering wheel, what else does he hold all the time
as he keeps up with the race?
• What was the finishing line?
• How many ‘punters’ had staked money on the race?
A Game of Polo …
• A mixture of the comic and serious.
• The different interests of EL and the boys
combine perfectly in this race.
• Elements of humour:
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contrast between motor car and donkey racing
coexistence of jollity and seriousness in spectators
crazy unconcern for safety
cheeky excitement and daring of boys
final twist, proving that this is one race where it pays
to disregard the rules!
Three Races?
EL says, “There were two races – the
motorized spectators at the back; in
front, the two donkeys.”
1. “The two [donkeys] were neck and
neck…” (line 22)
2. “… the vehicles jostled to get to the
front of the convoy.” (line 28)
3. “ ‘Will you try and get to the front?’
… We waited for eternity on the
brow of the hill …” (lines 6-8)
Observations
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Focus is at three levels:
(i) socio-cultural “wackiness”!
(ii) the people in story (participants)
(iii) the race itself
Lines 2-6: indirect speech followed by direct speech where it’s obvious
who is talking.
Paragraph 4: sudden transitions:
(i) transition from inactivity to the excitement of the actual race
(ii) transition from EL’s doubts to the unmistakable reality of race
In this foreign land, both EL’s assumptions prove wrong! Lines 17 and 49.
EL gives instructions; then boys take over with enthusiasm, fulfilling them
to perfection.
But roles are reversed from line 58: the boys order EL to stay in car, then
recommend her to leave, and she obliges!
Questions
• “We waited for eternity...” What figure of speech is this?
• “The two donkeys were almost dwarfed by their entourage.” What is
an entourage?
• What language is this word borrowed from?
• “… a volatile situation.”What does volatile mean?
• “oncoming traffic … had to dive into the ditch …” What figure of
speech is this?
• “This was Formula One without rules.” What figure of speech is this?
• “… drove off at a more sedate pace.” What does sedate mean?
• What is EL’s reaction to Y’s news at end? (anger, surprise,
disappointment, relief, shock, or delight)
Homework
“Hey, did I miss something?! Hanging around for an
hour to see a couple of donkeys running down the
road in a so-called race isn’t my idea of fun. And just
when things start to get interesting and one of those
stupid creatures hits the dirt, the race is over and
Emma Levine can’t even be bothered to tell us how it
ended. I want my money back!”
How would you answer this observation?
Emma Levine
• Is EL a sports commentator, a professional
photographer, a travel writer, or a journalist?
• What does she hope to obtain: a good film, a good set
of photos, a good story, a good spectator experience?
• Is EL interested in the unusual and wacky?
• Apart from the race itself, what else is wacky?
• The two boys. Man on wobbly bicyle. Spectator
enthusiasm. Spectator anger. The general culture itself?
Fictitious Critic
• Displays a one-sided outlook (not to say vulgarity
of mind)
• Fails to understand EL’s purpose in writing.
• What are his criteria for a good account?
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instant action of the kind available on television
powerful competitors of the kind found in the West
stimulating sports commentary
full coverage of conflictual situations
cutting out of everything irrelevant to sport fans
UK centres
2011 specifications: 4EAO
Last certification May/June 2017, with a final
retake only certification in January 2018
2016 specifications: 4EA1
First certification May/June 2018
International centres
2011 specifications: 4EAO
Last certification May/June 2018, with a final
retake only certification in January 2019
2016 specifications: 4EA1
First certification May/June 2018
A Passage to Africa - Homework
• Read piece carefully, at least twice.
• Look up words you don’t know.
• Write essay (500+ words) :
Discuss George Alagiah’s reactions to the various
types of human misery he encounters in war-torn
Somalia. Would you react like this?
Essay
• Whole passage is focused on and structured
around the depiction of GA’s reactions:
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professional insensitivity (paras 3-5)
pity and revulsion (paras 7-8)
unsettled by smile (paras 9-12)
regret (para 13)
• ‘How should I feel to be standing there so strong
and confident?’
20 Words from a Passage to Africa
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ghoulish
callous
compile
edible
enervate
whimper
fester
fuse
revulsion
degeneration
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taboo
breach
excretion
surreptitious
aspire
inure
(unwritten) code
passive
tacit
seminal
English Vocabulary
• Using English words, we
– think
– talk, listen
– read, write
• Each new word we learn is a major achievement.
• Do you have a vocabulary book?
• Ask yourself:
– could I define the word?
– could I give an example of it in a sentence?
– could I use it myself in an essay?
George Alagiah’s reactions
• His job – to track down and report human misery in all
its horrible detail – is done well.
• The hardened journalist vs the sensitive inner man.
• Admits pity and revulsion – both explored.
• Admits being embarrassed by the unknown man’s
embarrassment.
• Implies that his “answer” to the man’s “question” is the
answer of the reporter, not the inner man.
• Reveals shame for his callous behaviour, even though he
justifies it (and blames BBC audience).
Structure of 13 paragraphs
• 1: the face
– 2: geographical info (isolation/desolation)
– 3: operational info (search for ultimate misery)
– 4-5: two harrowing vignettes
• 6: the face (even more stirring for GA)
– 7: revulsion
– 8: pity
• 9-13: sight of face, mystery of smile,
understanding, embarrassment, resolution to
make amends, gratitude
Examination criteria
Foundation level
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demonstrates superficial
understanding of text
presents a few simple obvious
points
throws in quotations without
commentary
spends much time recounting
content
spends little time analysing
writer’s techniques
imperfect grammar/spelling
Higher level
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demonstrates thorough
understanding of text
makes many good wellconsidered points
comments effectively on
quotations
spends little time recounting
content
spends much time analysing
writer’s techniques
excellent grammar/spelling
Moving to Higher level
• Assume your reader knows the basic factual contents
of the piece.
• Don’t introduce the story to him.
• Don’t recount the story or elements of it except in
the most minimal way.
• Don’t tell him the obvious.
• Instead, tell him the things he might have missed.
• And discuss the structure, the language, and the
stylistic techniques used.
Bring out the less obvious features that your
reader might have missed.
• For example:
• the squalor in which the inhabitants now live - even the mat must
double up as a shroud.
• the imminent and inevitable death of the inhabitants - note the
accumulation of words relating to death.
• their feeble (even partly delusional) attempts to preserve a vestige
of visible dignity.
A Passage to Africa
• Para 3: images of insensitivity
• Para 4-5: unemotional, detached reporting with a
‘photographic’ level of detail
• Para 7: TV-reporting taboo prevents expression of
revulsion (and pity?)
• Para 8: pity stirred by their (i) squalor, (ii) imminent
death, (iii) attempt to retain dignity
• Para 9: the “face” so absorbs GA that it is treated as
detached from its “owner”
A Passage to Africa
• Para 10: discovery of man’s embarrassment –
contradicts para 8?
• Para 11: another unwritten code restraining GA –
the man appears to have overturned it.
• Para 12: GA writes “with all the power and
purpose” he can muster.
• Para 13: one regret (one only!) – that he failed to
complete his account by including the man’s
name.
Comprehension Questions
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How far away were the hunters from land?
What are their boats called?
What is another name for blubber?
What vitamin is it a rich source of?
What does KH call the waters north of the Arctic Circle?
What is the name of the hunters’ town?
How often does the plane from W Greenland visit?
How long will a narwhal feed a team of dogs?
Which fish do narwhal have a predilection for?
What is a tupilak?
Objective 2(i)
 Read with INSIGHT and ENGAGEMENT…
 … making APPROPRIATE REFERENCES TO TEXTS …
 … and DEVELOPING and SUSTAINING
INTERPRETATIONS of them.
• In Section A, the focus is on interpreting the texts
with insight, e.g. spotting themes (both stated
and unstated)
Objective 2(iii)
 UNDERSTAND and make some EVALUATION of
how writers use LINGUISTIC and STRUCTURAL
DEVICES to achieve their effects.
• In Section B, the focus is on understanding and
evaluating the writer’s techniques:
• linguistic devices
• structural devices
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Kari Herbert
Nostalgic
Daydreamer? (lines 13-14)
Fascinated by history of survival techniques
Keen eye for detail (lines 9-10)
Youthful immersion in natural world
Alive to the beauty of environment and wildlife
But doesn’t mention the Creator once!
Sensitive to plight of both hunters and narwhal
Very practical about health and surival issues
Strong original writing – avoids clichés (lines 7-8)
Analysis Questions
• Who is the ruler of the “glittering kingdom” (7) – the
Inughuit, the narwhal, nature, or God?
• Is narwhal-hunting a sport, despite its danger and
economic necessity? Nothing but fishing on a grand
scale? (para 4)
• The Inughuit “do not kill [seals] for sport”. (68)
• Does KH do enough to answer the objections of the
“environmentalists”?
• Who were “the men” battering seals “several years
ago”? Why doesn’t KH say?
Remember!
• To subjoin a quotation simply without an explicit
introduction, use a colon (:), e.g.
• She has a keen sense of natural beauty: “The
evening light was turning butter-gold.”
• Use point-quotation-comment triads! You have to
sustain your interpretations! We might go on:
• “It is not the sun or even the sky that is described
thus, but the very light itself. Everything is bathed in
this gloriously rich atmosphere.”
Essay Question
‘I’d shoot those pesky Eskimos! Killing whales is
criminal! If they can’t get food without risking
their stupid lives and butchering the magnificent
creatures of the Arctic deep, they should clear
off and find somewhere else to live!’
Do you agree? Discuss with reference to KH’s
treatment of the subject.
•
•
•
•
•
Explorers or Boys Messing About?
Whose phrase has Steven Morris borrowed?
Whom does he expect to answer this question?
How quickly does he address it?
Question: What is a “farce”?
Answer: An absurd or ridiculous situation; a particular
kind of humorous play.
• Imagine a prosecutor describing past crimes before telling
the jury what the new crime is!
• How much sympathy do we have in para 2 when we learn
of the near-tragedy?
Explorers or Boys Messing About?
• “helicopter plunged” (9); “the men were plucked” (11);
“ditched into the sea” (40); “scrambled into the lifecraft”
(42). Farce?
• Compare the verbs used for the rescue services!
• Why is Mr Brooks’ wife called Ms Jo Vestey?
• Is there evidence that the two men are a couple of youngminded gadget freaks?
• Who is Q? Suggestion of juvenile nature?
• How much emphasis is there on the disruption caused to
the rescue services?
Explorers or Boys Messing About?
• Why are their ambitions treated in such a careless
manner? Was it not easy to establish them?
• How well-prepared were the two men?
• Why was it ‘nothing short of a miracle’ that they had
survived? (70)
• Is SM fairer to the two men from line 73?
• Impressive adventure track record, belying claim that
they are boys messing about.
• What can we surmise about JV from her honeymoon?
• Lines 111-115 reveal a more serious side to their
activities!
Explorers or Boys Messing About?
• Quotations at the end:
– choice of R44 questioned (repetition of 22-26)
– weather conditions excellent (69) – a mystery what
had gone wrong – a cover-up?
– taxpayer provoked (repetition of 18-21)
– Ms Vestey gets last word! (and the first)
• Does Ms Vestey show any concern for her
husband? Or merely an amusing disdain?
Essay Question on
Explorers, or Boys Messing About?
From the evidence presented in this article, what
reactions do you think the author Steven Morris
was trying to provoke in his audience? Do you
agree with his approach?
How to tackle last essay question
• First read the question VERY carefully. Did you REALLY understand
it?
• In your jottings identify the reactions SM is seeking to provoke:
– resentment over squandering readers’ taxes
– contempt for foolhardy juvenile explorers
• Make a simple plan to develop thse points.
• Choose whether to agree/disagree with SM’s agenda as you discuss
the reactions he stirs up or defer your opinion to the end.
• Make sure EVERY paragraph is clearly relevant to the question.
• If you wander off track and ‘do your own thing’, you will lose points,
no matter how well you write in other respects.
Anthology – Section A
• Do selections reveal a “feminist bias”?
• Excluding the anonymously written leaflet Your Guide to
Beach Safety, 5 of the 8 pieces are written by women.
• Which explorers/travellers suffer massive failure or
embarrassment?
• Which writers suffer no embarrassing situations.
• Which writers appear most “scientific” in their approach.
• Which writers successfully struggle against the odds and
achieve their aims?
Taking on the World (I)
• In what ways is EM “taking on the world”?
• Similarities behind climbing a 90ft mast and
mountain-climbing? (aerial view, hike to the top,
whole mast to climb down, began my descent)
• Lapses into clichés near the end? (heart in mouth,
felt like a million dollars)
• But overall piece has some intensely descriptive
writing that maintains the tension.
• Bravery, perseverance and humility apparent?
Taking on the World (II)
• What happens when an unstoppable object meets an
immovable object?
• This is a philosophical conundrum.
• What happens when total determination confronts
impossible conditions?
• This is a great basis for a story.
• Compare this piece with a tense step-by-step sports
commentary.
• Does EM succeed in maintaining our interest?
Taking on the World (III)
• “I climbed the mast on Christmas Eve.” Final outcome known in
advance. Loss of suspense?
• Resourceful, determined, strong, but vulnerable.
• Vulnerability vs ferocity of conditions.
• Relentless focus on:
– mental agony (“agonized for hours…”, line 4)
– physical agony (“the physical drain…”, line 26)
• Near end, she urges herself on like a jockey on a racehorse.
There are two EMs! Mind over matter.
• Highly graphic descriptions (“mast slices erratically through the
air, shuddering slowdown”)
Essay Question
How does Ellen MacArthur
seek to maintain the reader’s
interest in her description of
replacing a sailboat’s
halyard? Does she succeed?
Some suggestions on last question
• Heart of the story: man vs the elements
• A 5’2” woman vs the brutal wind and sea.
• Planning, determination, courage, tenacity vs
awesome power and unpredictability of nature.
• Analyze and contrast the descriptions of each.
• Overall ordeal broken down into a series of highly
graphic mini conflicts.
Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
Why was AYM summoned home?
What was the name of her school?
How old is she at this time?
How many of AYM’s brothers had already gone
to university before her?
5. What would she specialize in after graduation?
What do we learn of Adeline’s feelings towards
school from these opening paragraphs?
What makes this an effective piece of dialogue?
What does this tell us about AYM’S attitude
towards her family?
Notice any dramatic irony here?
Questions for reflection
• Did AYM’s father help her in the long run or did
he hinder her?
• Does this piece show evidence of feminist bias?
• Did AYM break the Fourth Commandment by
showing up her father in public?
• How dysfunctional was AYM’s family in your
opinion?
Essay Question on
Chinese Cinderella
What evidence do you see of Adeline Yen Mah’s
drama-writing ability in this excerpt?
Suggestions for Last Essay
• Gone with the Locusts was a play. So examine:
• quantity & nature of dialogue in extract
• dramatic characterization: oppressed but
resourceful heroine, churlish driver, vain
overbearing father
• dramatic irony of father’s comment
concerning his daughter’s English
Disabled
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Irregular stanza lengths and rhyming patterns.
Frequent alliterative effects.
Soldier’s vanity and immature attitude to war.
It then turns into an attitude full of despair and cynicism.
Soldier’s suffering seen as futile.
Wounds seen as self-inflicted.
Tragedy is unredeemed by concept of patriotic selfsacrifice (‘Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori’ -Horace).
• Nor is there any belief in the afterlife. (Hymns sadden him
and the priest’s attentions irk him)
15 Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
How is the man's isolation conveyed in the first stanza?
What is the effect of the alliteration used in ‘ghastly suit of grey’?
What does ‘sewn short at elbow’ tell us about the man’s disability?
What are the connotations of the word ‘mothered’? What is the
connection between this word and sleep?
The second stanza focuses on happier memories. How are feelings of
warmth and happiness conveyed in this stanza?
How is the alliteration of the letter ‘g’ used to different effect in this
stanza?
List all of the reasons the man conscripted to the army in stanza four.
Why were the soldiers ‘smiling’ as he joined the army? What was the
‘lie’?
15 Questions (contd)
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
Examine lines 33-36. How would you describe the man’s image of war as
he joins up?
How is the man greeted by the public upon his return home from war in
stanza five?
Why is stanza five so short? How does this contrast with the previous
stanza?
What is the tone of the final stanza?
How does the question ‘Why don’t they come/And put him into bed?’
link to the phrase 'waiting for dark’ in the first stanza?
Who are ‘they’ in the final two lines?
Describe the rhyme scheme and rhythm used in the poem? How might
these link to the overall themes in the poem?
Brief notes on questions - I
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
No one to be seen. Only children’s voices heard. Even these are ‘mothered’ away FROM him.
alliterative g’s: in this context, harsh, discordant, chilling – not pleasant
loss of lower arms
connotations = associated meanings of a word; ‘mothered’ connotes gentleness, care,
protective love; sleep personified – almost like a shepherd lovingly rounding up his sheep with
as much care as he might his own children
Town: ‘swing so gay’, ‘glow-lamps budded’. Girls: ‘glanced lovelier’, ‘slim waists’, ‘warm their
subtle hands’
gay … glow … girls … glanced: here perhaps evokes the plaintive quality of solid, distinctly
visualized memories that can never be relived
To please Meg (the artist silly for his face); fall sense of elation due to football victory and
alchohol; vanity of regimental dress & customs; vanity of incorporation.
Duping delight due to mutually shared tacit understanding of deception. He was obviously
noticeably younger than 19, perhaps only 16 or 17.
Brief notes on questions - II
9. exclusive focus on all the deceptive attractions of military life; neglect of its negative aspects
10. Only ‘some’ cheered him home, and in subdued manner. Clergyman (‘solemn man’) offers
fruit and thanks in an apparently calculated gesture.
11. joy is expansive and of many words; misery is constrictive and of few
12. despairing; expects to die in a few years, bound by impersonal rules, and receiving pity, not
true affection
13. Gives a unity of time to the poem. Evening was approaching when he began his reflections.
Now it is dark.
14. Nurses presumably. Described impersonally. He feels no affection towards them, as they
appear to feel none for him. Querulous, impatient tone.
15. Each stanza represents a vignette (brief highly visual sketch) of a different phase in his life. To
bring this out each has its own slightly different rhyme scheme, containing two or three
rhyme endings. Sometimes rhymes overlap, perhaps like reminiscences flow into one
another without clear lines of demarcation. No rhyme for hands – emphasizing that he will
never again experience anything like that.
Essay Title
Discuss Robert Frost’s use of contrast in his
poem Out, Out … Here are some contrasting
themes you may wish to discuss:
– serenity/calm vs violence/panic
– youth vs adulthood
– speech vs silence
– life vs death
Further Points on Last Essay Question
•
•
•
•
See slide 26. Write the question at the top.
Identify up-front the contrasts you will discuss.
Opening vs closing scene.
What might have been vs what was:
– And nothing happened: day was all but done.
– Call it a day, I wish they might have said.
Feelings evoked in poem
How do refugees feel?
• nostalgic for what they’ve lost (country & home)
• sensitive to unkindness (note irony & cynicism)
• jealous of the freedoms of animals
• fearful of future, even to extent of paranoia
How do we feel?
• sympathetic to refugees
• angry at bureaucrats even more than Hitler
• entertained by kaleidoscopic imagery
• entertained by irony
How to answer last question!
• So how successful was Moniza Alvi in presenting her feelings?
• What feelings? Analyze the poem! Find out! Draw up a list!
• List these feelings up front in your essay. That way your reader will
know you intend to address the question directly, in a structured
manner.
• Contrast the joy and despondency in the poem. Which comes over
more strongly? more successfully?
• Is Moniza Alvi more successful in radiating
– a sense of JOY from fulfilling her nostalgic yearnings or
– a sense of DESPONDENCY at the thought that her attempts to
reconnect with her cultural roots are temporary, illusory, even
somewhat desperate?!
Some features you may have missed
• structure
– anticipation (lines 1-17)
– excitement (lines 18-31)
– authorial regret (lines 32-38)
•
•
•
•
‘Closing, Closing. Light!’ – countdown!
repetitions
short clauses
hushed, reverential aspect, incl. several scriptural allusions
Scriptural allusions?
‘their lamps filled with oil’ - waiting for ‘the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps’
electric light to appear in the evening
– waiting for bridegroom to appear in the
evening (Mt 25.3)
‘Light!’
And there was light! (Gn 1.3)
‘grass bent forward … like so many
bowed heads’
reminiscent of congregation at Mass,
particularly at the consecration?
‘a voice in the wind whispered’
‘there was the sound of a gentle whisper’
(1 Kg 19.12)
‘Is there one among us to record this
moment? But there was none… and it
was too late.’
‘Who is worthy to open the scroll? But no
one … was able … And I wept.’ (Ap 5.2-4)
Last essay
• Short, episodic, photographic, sketches of
squalor, misery, and vain attempts to escape the
inevitable.
• These build up, i.e. accumulate, to paint a picture
of despair.
• The phases of the night act as a final countdown a countdown made more gripping by the fact that
some of the characters seek to delay it.
Essay Question
Explain, with close reference to the text, what
makes this tale so poignant.
Veronica
1. What name does Veronica call narrator by?
2. Why didn’t he help her more when a child?
3. What does he promise to send her when qualified?
4. What age is he when he goes to University?
5. What does he give Veronica just before he leaves?
6. After how many years does he return to village?
7. What does she offer him?
8. How long had Veronica been married at this time?
9. How long does he stay there this time?
10. How long then before he returns to village?
Point-Quote-Comment triad
Veronica is wholly preoccupied with the mundane
practicalities of everyday village life and adamantly
refuses even to contemplate an alternative lifestyle:
‘Don’t talk foolishness’, she said and stood up, ‘I have to
go and cook, my father will be home soon.’
Not only does she brusquely reject Okeke’s kind offer of a
correspondence course as ‘nonsense’, she flees from him
as though he were undermining the very bedrock of her
existence!
• came to hate the Catholic
religion
• contracted syphilis (form of
venereal disease) as a
young man
• became paranoid &
morbidly afraid of death
• attempted suicide by
cutting his throat
• was committed to an
asylum
• claimed he had coveted
everything and taken
pleasure in nothing!
C'était une de ces jolies et
charmantes filles, nées, comme
par une erreur du destin, dans
une famille d'employés. Elle
n'avait pas de dot, pas
d'espérances, aucun moyen
d'être connue, comprise,
aimée, épousée par un homme
riche et distingué; et elle se
laissa marier avec un petit
commis du ministère de
l'Instruction publique.
The Necklace – Ten Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
In which city does the story take place?
In which ministry does Mr Loisel work?
What is Mr Loisel’s favourite dish?
What is Mme Loisel’s first name?
How does Mme Loisel know Mme Forestier?
In what street do the Loisels live?
What does Mme Loisel’s new dress cost?
What does the new necklace cost?
How long does it take to pay off debt?
In which street does last scene take place?
BONUS: What is Mme Forestier’s first name?
The Necklace – General Points
• Self-contained French story, with surprise ending.
• Narrative + 4 Dialogues – notice pattern:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
Loisels discuss ball dress
Mme Loisel borrows Mme Forestier’s jewellery
Loisels discuss lost necklace
Mme Loisel meets Mme Forestier again
• Literary devices
– peripeteia (sudden reversal of protagonist’s fortune)
– poetic justice (vice attracts apt punishment)
– twist in ending
The Necklace – Our Reactions
• INITIAL: “If they’d only come clean and told Mme Forestier,
they could have avoided poverty and Mme Loisel could
have stayed beautiful!”
• REFLECTIVE: “Yes, Mme Loisel lost money, standing in
society, good looks, but she gained much more. She lost
most of her vanity and unhappiness and gained a sense of
true worth.”
• Evidence for second interpretation is more subtly provided
than for first interpretation as author seems to equate
happiness with wealth and social standing.
The Necklace – The moral?
• The moral of a story is the key lesson or principle
contained within it.
• Which of these might you choose?
 Check your belongings before you get out of a taxi.
 Don’t marry anyone who’s not rich or talented.
 Life can be really cruel.
 Honesty is always the best policy.
 Don’t wear expensive jewellery.
 Misfortune is a blessing in disguise.
 Happy are the poor in spirit.
The Necklace – Mme Loisel
•
•
•
•
Do we like Mme Loisel more at the end?
At first she is vain, frivolous, unhappy and artful.
At end, she is resigned, heroic, at peace, artless.
How well does this capture the first Beatitude?
“Happy are those who are poor in spirit.”
• Is she a Christian?
–
–
–
–
she went to a convent school
she believes God made her for dresses & jewellery
she lives in the rue des Martyrs (symbolic?)
she takes a break from work on Sunday
The Necklace - Values
• What does Mme Loisel value?
–
–
–
–
admiration? good standing in society? wealth? (yes)
happiness? (no, she thinks this the same as above)
real love? (no, she “went along with a proposal”)
wisdom? (no, she reveals no interest in the treasures of the
mind)
• She loses even the little wealth and happiness she has. “To
those who have not, even what they have will be taken
away!” (Mt 13:12)
• Wealth, a sense of peace, and even a degree of wisdom
slowly climb back over 10 years.
The Necklace – Other Points
• Compare the detailed daydreams of wealth and
refinement at the beginning with the detailed harsh
realities of working life at the end.
• Note how the realisation of the loss of the necklace and
the consequent sense of horror is powerfully built up.
• Note how husband is dull, over-indulgent, and
unsophisticated, but honourable, hard-working and kind.
• Note how, following loss of necklace, Mme Loisel is shaken
from her rudeness to her husband and defers to him.
The G.K. Chesterton Deception
less than 5 mins long
by ChristianTruth
www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7FnPYr3LAo
Essay Question
How does the writer try to make the character
of Madame Loisel interesting for the reader in
‘The Necklace’?
In your answer you should write about:
• the way she is presented up to the loss of
the necklace
• her relationship with her husband up to this
time
• the changes after the loss of the necklace
• the use of language
Do you know these words?
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
hierarchy (21)
Sphinx-like (45)
immoderate (116)
rapture (118)
diffidently (118)
apprehensively (119)
ecstatically (128)
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
homage (130)
evoked (131)
exorbitant (200)
mortgaged (202)
haggling (224)
extortionate (232)
fickle (241)
A Hero – Ten Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
What is the boy called?
How old is he?
In which country does the story take place?
What is the only thing needed to fight a tiger, according to his
father?
5. Which room is he made to sleep in?
6. What concession did the boy wring from his father about sleeping
there?
7. What was he terrified of in the dark?
8. Which part of burglar’s anatomy did he bite?
9. Who actually overpowered the burglar?
10. What time did the boy go to bed the next night?
•
•
•
•
•
•
TIPS
Be creative! Reporters make things up - all the time!
However, make sufficient use of the evidence in the text to convince
the reader that your story at least has some basis in reality.
You might wish to refer to the tiger story in an imaginative way.
Describe perhaps more of Swami’s conversation with the Inspector.
Drop in some quotes (either actual or fabricated) from Swami and
the rest of his family. Make sure they reflect some aspect of their
character, even if they are obvious distortions.
Be humorous - but in an ironic, subtle, understated manner.
King Schahriar – Ten Questions
1. What story collection is this tale taken from?
2. “neighbors [sic]” (line 5) What does sic mean?
3. Spell the heroine’s name.
4. Name her sister.
5. Which empire does Sultan rule?
6. What country does Sultan give his brother?
7. What title does his chief minister have?
8. When must younger sister rouse her sibling?
9. How does Sultan kill off his one-night brides?
10. Name two subjects heroine had studied.
More Questions
• What is the meaning of ‘chronicles’?
• What is a ‘dynasty’?
• The Sultan’s mind ‘almost gave way’ from the shock
of his wife’s infidelity. Almost? Or completely?
• It’s one hour before dawn. Would you prefer to
listen to a story or continue sleeping?
• Is Scheherazade a ‘complex character’?