Grade 7, 8 and 9 Exmplars

Literature Paper 1

Macbeth:
In the play ‘Macbeth’, Shakespeare presents Macbeth as a male character who changes a lot
during the play. From a noble thane, hesitant about committing treachery, to a determined rebel,
and ultimately to a hopeless man, engulfed in guilt – Macbeth embodies all of these throughout
the course of the play.
At the very beginning, the protagonist is introduced to the readers as a noble general – although
very violent, he uses his loyalty to the King correctly. While fighting rebels, he is described to
have “unseam’d (MacDonwald) from the naves to the chops” which depicts his gruesome
nature, already foreshadowing the ever-so-present theme of violence in the play. Then, after the
Witches inform the hero of his destiny, Macbeth hesitates. He, both the King’s “kinsman and
loyal subject”, wouldn’t dare commit the sin of regicide. Lady Macbeth, however, doesn’t share
his morality, convincing Macbeth do go through with ‘The deed.’ “Was the hope drunk, wherein
you dressed yourself?” is a rhetorical question that she asks her husband in order to spark his
ambition. The use of the adjective “drunk” by Shakespeare shows how foolish it was for
Macbeth to contemplates the murder, yet hesitate about it. The protagonist had been “drunk” on
the idea of becoming king, but hasn’t sacrificed enough for it to come true. Such a bold
accusation and the undermining of his manhood convinced Macbeth to commit the crime, since
in The Jacobean era society was patriarchial. It was humiliating for the hero, a man of great
power and strength, to be undermined by his own wife. From this moment on, the audience
witnesses the first transformation of Macbeth: from a loyal thane to an ambitious rebel, ready to
murder the King to fulfill his goal.
In the given extract, which comes much later in the play, there is a clear decline in the ambition
of Macbeth. He admits that “honour, love, obedience, troops of friends, I must not look to have”.
By listing a wide range of things he cannot afford, the protagonist demonstrates the limit to his
achievements – whilst he had become King, he’s had no sacrifice both the lives of his subjects
as well as all of the favourable qualities that he possessed. Particularly the use of the noun
“honour” displays the irony in Macbeth’s fate: to achieve the most honourable title of them all,
the title of “King”, he has lost all of the honour that he had accumulated in his life by being loyal.
Shakespeare uses Macbeth’s decline in ambition to prove that it is condemnable to defy the
Great Chain of Being, which was a belief in the Jacobean society that the King was chosen by
God. Macbeth had failed to obey the Great Chain of Being, committing regicide and claiming the
title for himself. While his ambition grew, everything dear to him, everything good that he has
done was fading, and this resulted in another change of the male character from one filled with
ambition to one who slowly grasped the horror of its consequences.
Lastly, by the end of the play, Macbeth becomes hopeless. Upon hearing of his wife’s death, he
proclaims that “life is but a walking shadow”. This metaphor shows that, no matter how hard you
try, being a flashback to the protagonist’s elaborate schemes such as killing the King and
anyone else who stood in his way, it is all meaningless. The noun “shadow” implies something
that can never be caught, slipping away from one’s grasp. After Macbeth realises his hamartia,
his fatal flow, which had been his ambition, he begins to have nihilistic views on everything that
he’s known. And even though he fits to the end, the fact that he had accepted his defeat
ultimately proves his last change as a character: from an ambitious tyrant to a man who has lost
all meaning in life.

29/30

A Christmas Carol
Through his allegorical novella, Dickens seeks to explore the effects of loneliness and isolation.
Through the characterisation of Scrooge and the Cratchit family, he aims to establish how
loneliness in childhood can effect the morals you hold in adulthood. He seeks to encourage his
audience to accept social responsibility and kindness into their hearts in an attempt to expose
them to the plight of the proletariat.
Through the characterisation of Scrooge as a young boy, Dickens seeks to explore how the
experiences you have as a child reflect your personality as an adult. Young Scrooge is
described as “solitary”, this is repeated in the exposition of the novella when Scrooge is first
described, the repetition of the word conveys how his loneliness as a child has built his way of
living as an adult. He doesn’t want to be sociable with anyone as he has never had a proper
experience with it, he doesn’t know how to socialise or be friendly. The use of the lexis “solitary”
and “neglected” convey the message that although he is materialistically wealthy, he is
emotionally impoverished; this is Dickens way of giving reasoning as to why Scrooge is the way
he is.
The effects of loneliness are also explored through the experiences of the Cratchits. When the
ghost of Christmas past takes Scrooge to view the Cratchit family Christmas the audience sees
the juxtaposition between the two. While Scrooge is wealthy in money, he is poor of emotions;
while the Cratchits are poor of money, they are wealthy with joy and family. This idea is
presented through the Cratchits home and the characterisation of Tiny Tim. The family home is
small and they hold very little valuables; their glass cupboard has “a custard cup without a
handle”, this represents the fact that they are deprived of essential things just as the cup is
deprived of its handle. The cup demonstrates how even though they don’t have much they are
still happy, joy is their money. Tiny Tim is a construct designed to elicit sympathy from the
reader, the repetition of words such as “little” and “withered” convey to the reader how this “little”
innocent boy who can’t have done any wrong is still suffering as a result of the fallacy created
by Maltheus. Dickens uses Tiny Tim to convey the message that this boy who has had a hard
and terrible life is kept happy and strong by the company and help of his family, further
reinforcing how the company of others during childhood effects the person you will grow up to
be. Contrasted to Scrooge who pushes his family away and is a “solitary” and “cold” man as a
result of that.

Finally, Dickens explores how the embrace of charity and social responsibility can invite people
into your life that will destroy that loneliness and isolation. Scrooge’s redemption presents this.
As he embraces change his loneliness begins to vanish, he begins to spend Christmas with his
nephew and becomes “a second father” to Tiny Tim, this demonstrates how it is never to late to
change and accept responsibility and doing so will abolish the hardships of constant isolation.
However, critical theorist Wilson argues that Scrooge’s redemption is short lived, this is labelled
as the Scrooge Problem. He states that after a short while Scrooge will go back to being an old
misanthropic “sinner” after he thinks his fate has changed its course and he has worn down “the
chain (he) forged in life”. Although it can be argued that he never changed at all. His redemption
was fuelled by egotism rather than altruism, the change only occurred after he saw his own
grace prompting the idea that he changed to save himself rather than the millions suffering.
In conclusion, Dickens explores loneliness through the juxtaposition of Scrooge and the
Cratchits, conveying that money does not equal happiness and kindness. He also demonstrates
to his audience of educated bourgoise.

27/30

Language Paper 1

Q2
The writer employs language devices in order to portray Foxcote Manor as uncanny and
malevolent well established as a symbol of affluent parts of society. The oxymoron “tall, rusting
gate” is intriguing as despite the adjective “tall”, we are able to see behind it as the gate doesn’t
fulfil its duty properly or privacy and mysteriousness. Moreover, “tall” implies the manor belongs
to a reputable family, but it feels ironic as considering it is a “tall gate”, which indicates power
and status, they don’t spend their wealth to upgrade the “rusting gate”, suggesting the manor
isn’t properly taken care of any maybe even abandoned. Additionally, the writer says the manor
“erupts from the undergrowth”, implying it is so derelict and out of shape, the personification
further emphasises the juxtaposing idea of having a manor, but not maintaining it to be in
pristine condition. As a result, it causes the manor to feel uncanny and dystopian.

Also, the writer employs language techniques to demonstrate how linked the manor is with
nature, making it seem like no one lived there in the first place and stands in the heart of nature,
fading away as it becomes part of it. Through the semantic field of nature (“undergrowth”,
“trees”, “bees”) the manor appears to be described as an image of peace, nature often
representing the beauty of a simple life. But, it also results in the manor feeling like a living
thing, forgotten and in a state of deprivation. This can be demonstrated with “colossal”, the
adjective describing the manor’s location as if it is protected by nature, detailed views of it
[sealed shut] from the outside. By being described as secretive which is shown by its part with
nature, it is almost upsetting the manor is in this condition. Furthermore, the simile “like a
snapped spine” humanizes the manor, as it is in a state of suffering. This makes the manor
appear to be hiding something and is guarded by the sheer vastness of nature, through the use
of language.

7/8
Q3
The author begins the extract by describing when the heat first began and then in the next
paragraph using a flash forward to keep the reader interested. By firstly describing the origins of
the head and its effects, the writer sets up an atmosphere of tension as we read of how
insufferable the heat was, and how badly it affected Mary. By including a flash forward, the
author emphasises the extent of the pain caused by the heat, as lots of time has now passed
with no change, and builds tension as we wait for what may happen as a result of this long
period of heat. In the middle of the extract, a flash back is used to describe Mary’s old
relationship with weather when she had lived in the town. By including this, the author highlights
how unprepared Mary is for the very extreme weather she is experiencing now and conveys the
extent of her subsequent suffering even further as the reader waits to read what may become of
her.
The focal shifts throughout the extract are used to maintain the reader’s focus, constantly
zooming in and out. In the beginning of the passage, the focus is broader as it describes the
effects of the heat not only on Mary but on the environment around her and animals too. This is
use to portray the strength of the heat as it affects everything in the area. The focus then
narrows to focus on Mary, during the flash back, to highlight her inexperience with dealing with
such occurences, leaving the reader to wonder how she’ll manage to cope. At the very end of
the passage, the focus narrows once more as Dick and Mary begin to argue over the water. By
ending the passage with such a narrow focus, a stark contrast to the broad focus at the
beginning, the author gradually creates tension and lets it build up towards the end, where it
reaches its peak. This is as the reader is now focusing on the relationship of Dick and Mary and
noticing how strained it is in this moment creates suspense for what might next await the pair.

8/8

Q4

I mainly disagree because I think Dick’s anger is only partially unfair as Mary was unfairly using
up water. I completely disagree that Mary is totally powerless, as she seems to have complete
control over the results of arguments between the couple.
On one hand, Dick’s anger towards Mary is really unfair because of her obvious, honest
obsession with when the rain will come to break the endless heat. Lessing says Mary was
‘screwing up her eyes’ at the sky, looking for signs of rain. The verb choice ‘screwing’ suggests
her utter enthralment and obsession over when the rain will come. The verb also creates a
sense of pain or discomfort, as the bright sun will be hurting her eyes. So her enthralment and
fact she's willing to hurt her eyes to look for rain shows her obsession with the dry spell ending.
This shows her hatred and obvious dislike of the heat. So it's unfair for Dick to get angry at her
when she's just trying to relieve herself of the suffocating temperature, that she obviously
dislikes. Lessing also describes the clouds as ‘blocks of glittering crystal quartz’. The similie
evokes the poised beauty of crystals and transfers that onto the clouds. So Lessing’s
characterisation of the clouds as precious, natural, beautiful features shows Mary’s fixation and
enthralment on the clouds that have a chance of bringing rain. So it seems hugely unfair for
Dick to get angry to her for using up water, when she's so fixated and enthraled by the chance
of rain clouds bringing cooling water and an end to the suffocating heat.
However Dick’s anger seems justified due to the difficulty others go to, to bring the water to
Mary. So the fact she's using it up irresponsibly shows how Dick’s anger is fair. Lessing uses
the metaphor of someone being in ‘agonised pain’ to describe the water being brought to her.
This creates a sense of the extreme hardship, suffering and struggles that people go through to
bring the water to her. This shows that her extravegant water usage is completely irresponsible
and unfair, showing Dick’s anger at her is justified and fair. Lessing uses polysyndetic listing to
show all the things people need to do to bring her water. The writer says they need ‘a driver,
and two workers, and two oxen’. This listing builds a sense of the great efforts people go to, to
bring Mary water. So this makes her irresponsible water useage seem unfair and unjust towards
everyone who his struggling to bring it to her. So Dick’s anger is justified and not unfair because
of the irresponsible way she is using up water and disregarding other people’s struggles.

I disagree that Mary is totally powerless because of the way Dick ends up backing down and
apologising to her. Lessing says the argument ended with ‘he apologising, blaming himself, and
she forgiving him’. The writer’s use of listing and gentle, natural, continuous verbs makes it
seem like this is a normal, gradual thing that has happened before. So the fact that Dick always
backs down (as he has done now) shows Mary’s power over him. Lessing also says their
argument became ‘another one of those little scenes’. This creates a sense of the repetitive
nature of their argument where Dick backs downs. So the fact that Dick always seems to
apologise and blame himself, even when he has a right to be angry, shows Mary’s power over
him.

In conclusion, I overall disagree with the statement. I think that Dick’s anger towards her is only
partially unfair, as she was unfairly and irresponsibly using up water. I definitely don’t think that
Mary is powerless, as she seems to have control and power over her husband constantly
backing down in arguments.

19/20

Q5
Even though the shoes had claimed to be waterproof, wading through the shallowest of puddles
had thouroughly drenched her feet but its not like the rest of her was doing much better. It had
been a rough day for Ocean. She argued with the other members in the choir, failed her first test
in three years and now she was soaking wet. The reflection in the puddle glared back at her
with contempt as the lampposts slowly flickered to life creating an ominous glow on her rippling
face. Self-obsessed. They all called her self-obsessed. But she knew how to care for others,
they were just being ridiculous and impertenant. However, even as she assured herself of her
social abilities she no longer had the juristiction to tell the difference between rain or tears
causing the movement in the pool of water below her. Ocean was useless; a wase of space; a
good-for-nothing who would only end up like her parents no matter how hard she tried.
“Meow.”
A frail cry from the thin alley pleaded for her attention. The train of self-depricating thoughts
derailed off of its track as all movement and thinking stopped in order to listen...
“Meow.”
The sound grew in confidence. Losing all sense of self-preservation, Ocean followed the sound
into the narrow alley between the dying stores. One of the stores was a hairdresser and situated
outside the dilapidated side door was a large, rusted bin. Overflowing with chopped hair and
fully-used beauty products, it was barely a surprise that often bits of cardboard were discarded
on the floor and left to rot as the seasons changed, but this box looked newer, cleaner and the
noise was coming from within its recyclable walls.

As Ocean leaned forwards to pull back one of the tabs a small, furry face popped out like a
children’s jack in the box. It was only now she was certain the noise was what she thought it had
to be. A curious ginger kitten rested its head on the edge of the box, carefully observing the girl
in front of it before stumbling out of the box. He was small and clearly malnourished as his ribs
protruded unnaturally creating ripples in his fur which grew limp and soggy from the rain. The
small pink nose twitched in the air as the cat’s one doll-like eye tried to decipher the scruffy
Ocean as she carefully kneeled down next to the cat who scampered onto the warmth of her
knee after determining that it was safe.
She had always heard tales of people abandoning kittens by the roadside but it felt odd for one
to be tucked away in an alley way with all of the rubbish. Groggily, the kitten fidgeted in his
sleep and Ocean couldn’t help but chuckle. The realisation then struck her. Somebody was
trying to get rid of this cat with no care as to his fate – tomorrow morning was paper and card
recycling so if she turned away...
Dreading to think what could happen if she left him behind, Ocean made the hasty decision to
bring the cat home with her. No one would really mind. Her parents were borderline negligent:
never caring for her achievements or future and this could prove to the other members of the
chamber choir that she wasn’t self-obsessed. If she could care for the unfortunate little fellow
she could succeed socially. Seeing no disadvantages to her situation, Ocean shifted the
sleeping creature to cover his fragile form with her school blazer and took one last glance at the
box. ‘Karnack the Great: spare parts and instruction manual’ was plastered across the box in big
ugly letters and made it very clear that the cat had come from the travelling funfair which was
only a short walk away. Karnak. It was a name imbued with power, wisdom and mystery – the
perfect qualities for her new little friend. Karnak the cat, wild but adorable. And for the first time
in years Ocean couldn’t help but smile genuinely at the bundle of fur she had tucked away from
this harsh world.

36/40

Language Paper 2
Q2
Both sources are written in very different eras yet both writers have similar
opinions on the behaviour of the drivers.
Source A describes the drivers as people who play a game with his life. The
metaphore ‘a very real roll of the dice’ shows that the drivers behave in a very
care-free manner and don’t consider their 'appalingly common’ actions. This implies
that the drivers view the cyclists as insignificant and so take very little care in
looking out for cyclists. Similllarly, the writer in Source B describes the behaviour of
the drivers as care free by using emotive language ‘suddenly and loudly to shout
‘Hi’ which puts an emphasis on the sock that they bring to the cyclist. This shows
how inconsiderate the drivers are and don’t take into account any appropriate
behaviour. This use of emotive language could also enhance the care free attitude
of the drivers as the drivers in source B are driving carriages and as a result are
also alarming the horses when they demonstrate such outrageous behaviour and
therefore source A and source B are both alarming the cyclists with their carefree
attitude.
Also Source B suggest that the driver enjoy ‘inflicting torture on a fellow - creature’
as this suggest that the drivers behave in such a way that alarming cyclists is
almost a sport to them and it fills the drivers with adrenaline that it forces them to
feel the urge to ‘torture’ the cyclists again. Source A also suggests that the drivers
behaviour could be from adrenaline. ‘However much of a rush you think you’re in’
suggests that the drivers, like in source B are full of adrenaline and as a result this
results in dangerous and fatal behaviour as like in source B the drivers cannot
controll their emotions.
8/8

Q3
Within this extract, the writer uses mainly negative language to describe her cycling
experiences.
The phrase “try my fate in traffic” is used to convey how dangerous cycling can be.
The word “fate” emphasises the risk and suggests it can be a matter of life or death
to cycle. This helps the reader comprehend and understand the fear the countess is
facing.
Next, the simile “nervous as a hare... greyhound’s breath” is used to portray the
writer’s bad experiences with cycling. The writer feels such genuine fear and terror
that it is similar to being hunted alive by a dangerous prey. The word “nervous”
emphasises the negative connotations and anxiety the writer feels towards cycling.
This makes the reader feel pity for her, having to experience such a traumatic
event.
Finally, the writer uses the metaphor “stormy oceans of Sloane Street” to describe
her cycling experiences. The weather imagery of “stormy oceans” implies that the
streets are incredibly dangerous and a never-ending threat. The word “stormy” is a
violent adjective used to convey how the roads are brutal and controlling a
frightening experience for the writer. The noun “oceans” suggests that the roads
are wild and uncontrollable. The writer feels submerged and trapped within them,
making her cycling ordeal seem even more terrifying. Finally, it suggests that the
writer is out of her depths and unsafe being on the road, since like oceans, they can
be a genuine threat to life.
11/12

Q4
In source A and source B, it can be inferred that drivers enjoy the danger and
chaos they cause to cyclists. Source A uses adverb ‘gambling’ and repeats this idea
in the metaphor ‘roll of the dice’ to show that not only are they taking a chance on
people’s lives but enjoy the thrill of it, however, it is always a losing game as
overtaking the cyclist ‘had all been for nothing’ as it just puts the cyclists in danger.
This shows the reader the huge risk the drivers are playing for the little reward, so
the reader understands the frustration of the cyclists.
This idea is repeated in source B, where the opening starts with a short sentence
that describes the cab drivers monstrous activities as a ‘new sport’, showing the fun
and enjoyment the drivers seem to receive from putting the cyclist through a
stressful situations for a game of cat and mouse, with the defenceless cyclist being
the ‘prey’. This short, simple sentence increases the tension and gets the reader’s
full focus to the barbaric minds of the ‘drivers of hansome cabs; and the sarcasm
that it isn’t fun at all for the cyclist.
The stress of the cyclists is shown vividly in source B using the metaphor ‘buring
my fate into the traffic’ contrasted with the similie ‘as nervous as a hare that feels
the greyhound’s breath’. Buring is a powerful adverb that suggests the cyclist is
making a bold influence on the traffic, or perhaps could suggest that there is no
changing her fate as it is already burnt onto the pavement. The fact that she is
nervous could be a foreshadowing to the events that would occur and how she is
paralised to stop them, as her life is in the drivers hands.
Although not as vivid and descriptive, the writer in source A still shows the mental
stress cyclists are open to, as they are described as, ‘vulnerable’ and road users are
metaphorically ‘cocooned within a ton of metal’ to show how because they're
protected, they are more likely to make risks and have a catagoric effect on people.
The writer helps back this up by using the statistics of the damage that can be
caused by a driver at 120mph compared to 30mph, and tries to place the
responsibility back on the drivers to show their affect on cyclers in the city.
Q5 (Newspaper Article about sport)
1st place for corruption goes to sport.

Fair, fun and accesible. In an ideal world sport would display these imperative
qualities that would guide us to a healthier and happier nation. However,
capitalism, corruption and greed seem to be the prevailing dark forces shaping and
tainting the sport industry. I think we can all agree this needs to stop.
It is outrageous how sport is now centred around income. Why does a footballer
earn more than a midwife? I’d like to see Messi free-kick his way into safely
delivering a newborn. It is outrageous how sport is centred around fame and
pollitics. It is outrageous that sport has began to embody discrimination and
exclusive traits.
What message are we sending our increasingly obese population if we support
these sports pumped with money greed and corruption? It is undeniable that the
commersialisation of these corrupt sports is responsible for more at home arm-
chair viewing while the fat deposits itself in your arteries and much less people
actually partaking in the sport.
But who can blame them? These armchair viewers really have it all figured. No one
wants to partake in sport with its current greedy nature. Not naturally gifted – sport
isn’t for you. Not wealthy – sport isn’t for you. With rising fees to even join a gym,
let alone a competitive club, partaking in sport seems no less than impossible.
Albeit, I may be passionately over the top and seemingly degrading sport entirely,
however this is not my intention. I merely believe sport should adapt a new
welcoming attitude making it for everyone and thrillingly fun. Still don’t agree?
Listen to the facts. In a survey in 2016 it was found that only 20% of girls over 16
partake in sport, further research showed that this percentage would increase to
80% if it were not for the dauntingly competitive nature of sport. It would be
ridiculous to ignore these statistics. The sport industry needs to be changed. It
needs to be changed now.
When did ‘taking part is all that counts’ be replaced with ‘second is the first loser’?
As an ex-competitive gymnast I can assure you with full confidence that at the
vulnerable and impressionable age of 8 I was conditioned as if I were a robot to aim
for 1st place; second was failure. Second was me chocking back sobs as the tears
stained my pillow. What did this conditioned aggressively competitive attitude
cause? Me to win? No, it caused me to quit the sport and feel an unnerving wave of
nausea when I so much as see gymnastics on TV.
I am not alone. Sports vile and toxic competitive turn for the worse can only be
described as the death of sport, with the sporting leaders and officials dressing its
corpse; decorating it as if it is something we should be celebrating. It is time we
stopped being ignorant and saw sport for the over commercialised, corrupt and
greedy villain it is and not the daydream of fair fun, and accessible opportunities.
39/40

Literature Paper 2

AIC

In ‘An Inspector Calls’, JB Priestley uses the character of Eric Birling as a symbol
that attitudes must be changed for the better. He uses Eric to depict ideas that
capitalism and selfishness are not the way forward, considering Priestley’s views on
families such as the Birlings in relation to the upcoming First World War just a few
years after the year the play is set in (1912). Priestley wanted change in the way
the system worked and he knew that the younger generations were going to be the
ones that brought the change. He used Eric in particular possibly because of his
gender, considering the males were more dominant and more convincing, even
though in the play it is Sheila that enforces her wish to change. The audience
watching the play will have still been fixated on the fact that the male population
was more convincing.
At the beginning of the play, Eric is portrayed as “half shy, half assertive”,
suggesting that he is aware of everything that is happening, especially the threat of
“war” on the country, but he is “shy” because his family does not allow him to
express his opinions, especially his father, Br Birling, who is always cutting off what
he has to say or ask. This could be due to the fact that he is so young, in his ‘early
twenties’, suggesting that his father does not see him as mature enough to
understand concepts such as war, but it could also be because his father himself
does not understand war, calling it “fiddlesticks” in order to end the conversation.
Because Eric grew up in a capitalist family, he has been brought up to believe that
living “like bees in a hive” is “awkward”, the adjective “awkward” possibly
suggesting that the idea of community is a taboo subject in the family, or that
talking about war is “awkward” because Eric is the one who knows most about the
consequence, and his father doesn’t want to allow him to show his knowledge and
awareness. Because of this, throughout the opening of the play he mostly keeps
quiet and listens, even though he is “not quite at ease”, particularly his eagerness
to express his views. Priestley has chosen to do this to create the idea that Eric
may be a troubled child because he is not allowed to express himself, which may be
why he did some of the things that are found out through the Inspector, Priestley’s
mouthpiece, who acts almost like a therapist for the characters, allowing them,
especially Eric, to let their thoughts out and get attention for once.
 As they play progresses, Eric uses many euphemisms such as “and then it
happened” and “hellish thing” to refer to him likely raping Eva Smith when drunken.
The euphemisms like “it” and “thing” further portray the lack of allowance for
letting out his feelings, he is not explicitly saying what “it” is or what happened,
possibly due to him seeing his parents hide their responsibility. Although he does
own up to what he has done, he may have been influenced by his family’s views of
hiding their wrong doings. If Sheila hadn’t confessed before him, he may have
never gotten the push from somebody to accept what he did, which shows that he
is only ever listening to his parents, presenting him as immature, therefore making
it hard for him to change. However, due to the Inspector and Sheila helping him, he
finally manages to overcome his parents’ manipulation towards him. Quite rapidly,
he changes from euphemisms “it” and “thing” to more explicit language. He is no
longer trying to hide the fact that he had a role in Eva’s life and he was one of the
reasons she killed herself. He reportedly says the verb “killed” three times after the
Inspector leaves, showing that he finally has the courage to give his opinion and
cite the truth. Priestley has done this to show that with a little bit of help, even the
most immature and young characters have the ability to change for the better,
showing the audience that it is not impossible to become a good person.
Although it is quite a shock that Eric shifts from being under his parents’ influence
to trying to be their influence, the idea that his parents never really knew him could
be one of the factors which caused his change. For example, besides his father
never letting him have a say, his mother states that he is “not the type to get
drunk”, “type” highlighting that in her mind there are only groups of people, and
the “type to get drunk”, is one of the negative groups in her opinion, but his mother
didn’t know that he was the “father of the child”, which shows that he is nothing
she expects of him, and she thought she knew him well, but actually he turns out
to be exactly what she fears.
In conclusion, Eric is not a character that has a drastic change in attitudes because
he only ever had opinions his family didn’t allow him to say, and he always had
socialist views, but growing up in a capitalist environment, he was not allowed to
rebel, so when he is given the chance to do so by the Inspector, he becomes more
brave, leaving hope that he will go on in life and follow the Inspector and Priestley’s
views, just as Priestley wants to influence the audience to rebel against the
capitalist views and become better people.
27/30 + 4/4 SPaG

Anthology Poetry
Both Percy Shelley and Robert Browning explore ideas about arrogance and control,
and about tyrants who value their power over human life. Shelley, writing near the
time of the French Revolution, in which people rose up against a tyrannical
monarchy, writes about someone whose power has faded away, and, as a Romantic
poet, points out how man is humbled in the face of nature. Robert Browning, on the
other hand is writing in response to a story about the Duke of Ferrara, a cruel duke
who clung onto control and whose wife died in mysterious circumstances.
Shelley describes a statue in a distant land, whose “shatter’d visage” is “half-sunk”.
The “visage” is perhaps a metaphor for the king’s identity, his ideals, his power and
Shelley makes a point of highlighting that it is “shatter’d” and “sunk”, that is, his
power is broken, taken away, sinking in the “lone level sands”, which are symbolic
of time, to represent how his tyranny and authority have been washed away,
destroyed by time, faded into history. The speaker himself is separate from the
statue, having heard of it from a “traveller”, and this distance adds to the sense
that Ozymandias’ power has disappeared. However Browning presents ideas about
a tyrant who still exerts power and control. The first line in the poem is “that’s my
last Duchess painted on the wall”, and the possessive pronoun “my” gives it a
sinister tone, implying ownership over the duchess, who is only ever defined by her
status as his wife, as, in the duke’s eyes, she only exists to worship him. This sense
of possession is emphasised in a later line, in which the duke mentions he’s the
only one with the power to “draw” the “curtain” to the painting, and Browning gives
perhaps even a sense of morbid pleasure as the duke says this, as he couldn’t
control who looked at the duchess in life, he can now that she’s dead, being able to
hide or expose her as he pleases.
Both poets express the tyrant’s boasting, highlighting their annoyance and pride.
Shelley describes the inscription in which Ozymandias describes himself as “King of
Kings”, perhaps alluding to himself as being a God, ruler of all, maybe even
immortal, as he believed his power would last forever. There’s a sense of irony here
as Shelley describes that a “colossal wreck” is all there’s left of his power. The
oxymoron in “colossal wreck” maybe even mocks Ozymandias as it points out how
his arrogant boast about his authority is in the middle of the ruins of his broken
statue. Browning also expresses the duke’s arrogance through boasting, as he
mentions the “gift of a nine hundred years name”. The word “gift” has connotations
of charity, and implies the duchess should be thankful of everything the duke gives
her, should worship him like a God as she’s beneath him and should be glad he
even gives her his time.
Both poets use very strict structures to emphasise the need for control that that
characters have. Shelley uses a sonnet, a very controlled form, ironically as
Ozymandias’ power has faded. Sonnets are also typically about love, and there’s a
sense of mockery as Ozymandias is in love with himself and his power, but
everyone else has forgotten about him and his arrogance. Browning uses rhyming
couplets throughout My Last Duchess, to symbolise the duke’s control and
authority. There’s perhaps something sinister there as it is suggested his wife didn’t
even want to be with him in life, the couplets might imply she now doesn’t have a
choice or even that his next wife won’t, having even less liberty than the Duchess.
Although the couplets show his control, Browning uses more and more enjambment
in the duke’s dramatic monologue, to show he’s being carried away by his anger,
but maybe as well to imply he is also losing his power, and desperately holding
onto it. It may be that the message of both poets was that control and tyranny are
unsustainable and are eventually lost.

30/30

Unseen Poetry

In ‘On Aging’, Maya Angelou presents the speaker’s attitudes to growing old as
something which shouldn’t be pitied and felt sad about. She understands that
growing old is inevitable, and wants the reader to understand that it is not a bad
thing and that life carries on.
She uses the simile “like a sack left on the shelf”, which has ambivolent meanings.
It could mean that she is the unwanted person or lonely on the shelf, the last one
left, or it could mean that she is something special displayed on a shelf to grab
people’s attention. She doesn’t want anybody to feel sorry for her and wants people
to “stop” their “sympathy”. The repetition of the verb “stop” could mean that people
hadn’t listened the first time and they keep insisting which greatly annoys her, or it
could be a dramatic effect to show the effects of growing old such as forgetting and
having to repeat something. However, this could also be used in a humorous sense
to show that it isn’t her who is forgetting things, but rather the people who insist
upon helping her acting like they are old, forgetful people, which could make her
feel younger.
Despite people thinking that the older generation need a lot of help with things such
as walking, the speaker wants them to know that her only “favour” she will ask
from them is not to help her, which could be because she wants life to go on and
she wants to overcome obstacles, almost like learning how to walk again or going
from being a baby to being an adult, or in her case from being old to being young
again. The idea of carrying on with life is continued until the end of the poem, she
is still the “same” person as she was before, which highlights to the reader and the
people wanting to help her that she is not a different person and she still has the
ability to do normal things, even though she has “less hair” and “much less wind”.
The only thing she agrees that she is losing is her attractive features, which, in the
way she expresses them, come across as unimportant to her. She is humorous
about losing these features, which enhances her carelessness for them, by making
them seem worse every time she mentions them. For example she goes from “a
little less” to “much less”, but results in being grateful for what she does have, such
as the ability to “breathe”, which is the main thing that keeps her alive. She is
grateful for being alive, and being a “sack” who “stumbles” does not make her any
less alive than she is.
24/24

In ‘Jesse Emily Schofield’ and ‘On Aging’ the speakers show some similarities in
their attitudes to growing old, but also numerous differences.
First of all, ‘On Aging’ is written in first person, which makes the poem seem like a
personal experience, and we are told exactly how the speaker feels about growing
old, that she doesn’t like “sympathy” and she wants the reader to understand that
she is still alive and people shouldn’t feel pity and sorry for her. In ‘Jesse Emily
Schofield’, however, the speaker is talking about her grandmother in third person
and giving her own opinion of how she thinks her grandmother is like a “learning
child” who needs all the help she can get. In the second poem the view of the
grandmother is exactly what the speaker in the first poem doesn’t want people to
have, showing the difference between what a younger person feels about older
people to what an old person feels about themselves.
The theme of death is apparent in the second poem, as if the speaker already feels
like their grandmother is dead, due to the imagery of the “skull” and the “delicate”
way she feels about her grandmother, while in the first poem the speaker tried to
avoid the theme of death and focus on living instead and how alive she feels. In the
second poem the speaker feels like their grandmother is dying because of her
physical appearances, her “bending” and being “deaf” but in the first poem physical
appearances are something the speaker doesn’t really care about, which shows the
different attitudes to how growing old changes a person. In the first poem, it hardly
changes a person, while in the second poem it changes a person completely and
makes them seem dead.
8/8