Kirk Balk Academy

English Department

GCSE Revision Guide English Literature

Paper 2

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This exam will test your ability to:

A01 – read, understand and respond to texts. Students should be able to:Maintain a critical style and develop and informed personal response.Use textual references, including quotations, to support and illustrate interpretations.A02 – analyse the language, form and structure used by a writer to create meanings and effects, using relevant subject terminology where appropriate.AO3 – show understanding of the relationships between texts and the contexts in which they were written.AO4 – use a range of vocabulary and sentence structures for clarity, purpose and effect, with accurate spelling and punctuation.

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Contents:

Paper 2

DNA page 4 Anthology Poetry page 23 Unseen Poetry page 30

PAPER 2DNA (section A)

Section A will give you a choice of two questions on DNA. You only answer ONE question. You should spend 45 minutes on this section/question.It is likely that one question will be about character and one will be about theme.There are 30 marks available plus 4 for SPAG.

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Advice from the exam board for any DNA question

The specification states that answers should:

– be relevant – you don’t need to write everything you know about the text, only the things that relate to the question.

– be sufficiently detailed – it is better to give a lot of detail about a small part of the text than trying to cover lots of different points. Write a lot about a little!

– be well structured – include a clear introduction which addresses the question and a clear conclusion that returns to the question.

– use effective vocabulary – including subject specific terminology where relevant.

– use well-chosen evidence/quotations to support points.

– To gain a top grade, candidates should show an enthusiastic and critical personal response. The best candidates write about the author’s methods and achievements, and will concentrate on comment, not content.

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“When I was younger, grown-ups were of complete irrelevance. You know, I wasn’t scared of what a teacher was going to do to me, I wasn’t scared of what an adult was going to do, or my parents. I was really scared what someone in the playground might do to me. They were the people with real power.”

Dennis Kelly

Whole text messages:• Modern Society is dysfunctional.• Violence is infectious.• Power is corruptive.• The view for the future is negative.• Bullying is destructive.• The view for humanity is bleak.• Human behaviour is ruled by consequence not by a sense

of what is right or wrong.

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Key themes and characters in ‘DNA’• Violence• Responsibility• Good and evil• Human beings and animals – different/similar• Morals/morality• Choices• Law and order• Power• Control • Leadership• Bullying• Gangs• Teenagers• Victim• Responsibility

• Leah• Phil• John Tate• Adam• Brian• Cathy• Richard• Danny• Lou• Mark and Jan

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 Top tips for ‘DNA’:

• Read both questions carefully, highlighting key words in the question.

• Choose ONE question.

• Make a bullet point plan – aim for five paragraphs.

• In your first paragraph, answer the question directly, using key words from the question and give an overview.

• Choose four to five quotations from different parts of the play to support your ideas.

• Choose one quotation that has a stage direction in it.

• Write at least four PEEL paragraphs.

• Refer to key words from the question throughout.

• Analyse key words, devices or structural features (probe).

• Explain and explore the effect on the audience.

• Explain what message the writer is trying to give the audience - connect with themes.

• Use the writer’s name throughout – Kelly suggests that…

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Steps to approaching a question:

Step 1: Read both questions and identify the keywords.

Step 2: Select one question.

What is the importance of Cathy in the play DNA and how does Kelly present her?

Step 3: Now brainstorm a basic plan:

Cathy’s character/personality Character: violent, selfish, immoral, cruel, without remorse, lacks intelligence.

Methods used to present Cathy Methods used: stage directions, dialogue and reaction of other characters.

Cathy’s role in the play Cathy’s role in the play: a symbol of selfish and sinister violence. She is the leader at the end which suggests a bleak future.

Step 3: Find quotations to match your points.

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• Aiming High: focus on how Kelly uses language to reveal the character - so rather than just finding a quotation about Cathy, make sure you find a quotation where language is used to reveal something about her characterisation.

“Better than ordinary life.” (about Adam’s death.)“Cathy was on the telly. She’s like a celebrity.”“They might give me money.”“Pause. They all stare at Cathy.” (when they learn the police have matching DNA.)“You told us to get DNA evidence. We got DNA evidence.” (About framing the postman.)

“Cathy: I threatened to gouge one of his eyes out.”(About Adam when she finds him alive living in a hedge.)“Brian: She loves violence now.”“Phil looks to Cathy. She nods.” (implies she will kill Adam with a plastic bag.)“Cathy doesn’t care. She’s too busy running things. She cut a first year’s finger off.” (End of the play.)

Step 4: Write the overview. Answer the question in a sentence:

Aiming high: link to message.

The writer effectively constructs the character of Cathy through dialogue, stage directions and the reaction of other characters, to symbolise the very worse traits of the group; she is an evil, selfish bully who enjoys violence and feels no remorse. As the play progresses, Cathy’s character deteriorates further as her actions become increasingly more violent. However, as her behaviour deteriorates, her status in the group increases. Therefore, she is instrumental in presenting Kelly’s most disturbing message; violence creates power.

Step 5: Now write your first paragraph:

From her first appearance, the writer reveals a disturbing lack of remorse from Cathy which only grows as the text continues.

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Arguably, it is this clear lack of remorse which creates such a sinister feel to the play. When we first meet Cathy in Act 1, scene3, the other gang members are panicking because they believe they have murdered Adam. Although their concerns are largely selfish as they focus on possible outcomes for them, “We are screwed”, they at least comprehend that something bad has happened. However, Cathy’s response of, “it’s quite exciting” implies she is enjoying the drama of the situation and shows no concern for either the future or Adam.

• Start with a connective• Make a clear point• Use inference words• Link to the question • Link to whole text message• Write in the third person• Name language devices • Pick on keywords in quotations

Step 6: Now write three to four more paragraphs.

Step 7: Conclusion. Link back to the question and the text message.Model answer:

How does Kelly present a completely negative view of human nature in ‘DNA’?

DNA successfully conveys a bleak outlook on the future of the next generation, and therefore it is arguable that Kelly is using the violent, sadistic nature of the gang to represent a severe shortcoming of human nature.

The play is cleverly structured so that the violent nature of the gang continues to develop and intensify, even as the leaders of the gang change. For example, in Act One where John Tate is leader, Cathy is described to find Adam’s death “exciting” and “better than ordinary life”, suggesting that Cathy is

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Tip: Use the PEEL structure.

wholeheartedly sadistic. With this interpretation, the audience expects that Cathy will not become leader, due to her violent tendencies. However, by the end of the play, Richard proclaims how Cathy is now the gang leader, who was so violent that she “cut a first year’s finger off”. It could be argued that Kelly has used this predicament of Cathy becoming leader through sheer violence in order to criticise this happening in modern societies: Kelly may be implying that modern leaders could seize power and control through exerting sheer violence, and this is a law of human nature, in that humans are able to take control through exerting violence, like Cathy.

Moreover, the setting of a “field and a wood” for the majority of the play may be evidence of Kelly using darker, isolated scenery in order to emphasise that the gang is operating on the fringes of society, where adult influence is not present. Troublingly, it is within this isolated “field” and “wood” where a gang of teenagers is able to wrap a plastic bag “airtight” around Brian’s head, and scheme a heinous plot to frame a man using DNA for murder. Extrapolated further, this could be interpreted as Kelly criticising human nature: perhaps, if the audience was allowed to operate a gong in a setting with no legal consequences or influence from society, they would act in the exact same fashion as the gang, because human nature is opportunistic. Therefore, this is clearly evidence of Kelly presenting a bleak view of human nature.

However, Kelly cleverly uses the character of Leah as a figurehead of hope within the gang. This can be inferred from Leah’s reaction to the gang’s involvement with the killing of Adam: when sat with Phil in the final stages of the play, she is described to “suddenly get up” and she then “spits the sweet out” that Phil gave her. it could be interpreted that Leah’s spitting out of the sweet is symbolic of her rejection of both Phil and the gang, and also of her disproval of the gang’s behaviour regarding Adam. Therefore, the fact that Leah left the gang at this pint successfully offers the audience a feeling of hope: Leah’s moral compass could not be styled by the violent sphere of which she had been immersed in, and eventually her reasonable human nature rose to the surface, and manifested itself in forcing her to leave the gang. Therefore, Kelly uses the departure of Leah from the gang to demonstrate that morality

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does exist in human nature, which offers an argument against the interpretation of DNA presenting a completely negative view on human nature.

Despite the more positive view on human nature demonstrated by Leah, Kelly is quick to offset this with the appointing of Richard, who takes Leah’s place oat the side of Phil. The fact that, even as Leah leaves the gang, another person assumes her role almost immediately, conveys to the audience that gang culture will transcend its members: even as members leave a gang, new people are quickly assimilated into their roles, presenting the dystopian view that violence and gang culture are somehow a part of human nature, and therefore they cannot be purged when one member simply “leaves in disgust”.

Kelly also displays a key theme o bullying throughout the play, which could be interpreted as Kelly declaring that bullying is a regrettable part of human nature. In the earlier stages of the play, Mark and Jan describe how they bullied Adam into “eating some leaves”, and this was acceptable because “we were just having a laugh”. The claver use of the collective pronoun “we” suggests that bullies believe their actions to be acceptable because “we” were all “having a laugh” together. This could be further interpreted as Kelly suggesting that bullying does exist in human nature itself, and that it is only human to then justify this by pretending it was all in jest.

To conclude, it is apparent that Kelly wishes to criticise human nature within the play, and he successfully achieves this through the themes of bullying and the cyclical nature of gang culture. Although Kelly offers glimmers of positivity, such as how the human moral compass can sometimes prevail, this is only an isolated example. Therefore, it could be agreed that DNA serves to represent a wholly negative outlook of human nature.

26 marksSPAG 4

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Practice – plan answers to some of the following questions.

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Character Character traits QuotationLeah Weak/strong

Desperate

Intelligent

A thinker

Chatty

A gossip

Decent

Reasonable

Phil Strong

Manipulative

Cruel

Leader

Powerful

Abuses the trust of othersSilent

Richard Responsible

Leader

Calm

Challenges others

John Tate Threatening

A leader

Powerful (at the start)Aggressive

Insecure in his leadership

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Cathy Evil

Unstable

Unpredictable

Mean

Thrives on excitement

Jan and Mark

Followers

Excitable

Don’t think

Adam Victim

Easily led

Follower

Desperate

Lonely

Bullied

Danny Follower

Self-absorbed

Panics

Lou Follower

Concerned about othersPanics

Easily manipulated

Brian Follower

Weak

Easily manipulated

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Theme Ideas to think about Characters/scenes/quotations

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Bullying Victims – and the reasons for becoming victims.Single bullies.

Bullying by a group.

What is bullying?

Different types of bullying.What are the effects of bullying?Reasons people bully.

Friendship What is friendship?

Which friendships in the play are equal?Are any of the friendships true friendships?What other reasons might the characters hang about together, rather than for true friendship?

Gangs What makes an effective leader? Who are the leaders? What makes the leaders succeed or fail?What other roles are there within the group? What is the hierarchy?What happens to change the hierarchy? How does it change?

Loyalty Who inspires loyalty? Why?Who is loyal to whom?What are the motivations behind the loyalty?

Power Who has power and

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at which points of the play?Who has power and then loses it?Who gains power within the play?What different types of power are held? By whom?How do we respond to powerful characters?

Strength/weakness

Which characters are strong? What makes them strong?Which characters are weak? What makes them weak?Consider how the characters are stronger as a group.

Abuse What different types of abuse do we see in the play?Which characters are abusers? Why do they abuse?Which characters are abused? Why do they become abused?

Victims Who are the victims?How do the audience react to them?Why do the characters become victims?

Fear What does fear do to the characters?Do any of them conquer their fears?

Violence How does Kelly create an atmosphere of threat and violence whilst very little actual violence is shown on stage?How is violence used to control others?

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Comparing poetry (section B)

There will be ONE question on the ‘Power and Conflict’ cluster of poems.One poem will be printed in the exam paper.The question will be linked to a THEME and will ask you to compare the specified poem to another (from the anthology) of your choice.

• You have 45 minutes to answer ONE comparative question.

• Use five minutes to plan, 35 minutes to write and five minutes to check.

• You must compare in every paragraph.• You must unpick quotations in detail and name devices.• You must show inference.• You must link to the whole text message.• You must focus on the question.

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Top tips for comparing poetry:• Make a bullet point plan – aim for five paragraphs.• In your first paragraph answer the question directly,

using key words from the question and give an overview.

• Choose four to five quotations from different parts of the poem to support your ideas.

• Write at least three PEEL plus compare paragraphs. • Refer to key words from the question throughout.• Analyse key words, devices or structure (probe).• Explain and explore the effect on the reader.• Explain what message the writer is trying to give

the reader.• Use the writers’ names throughout. • Use inference words.• Use connectives to compare and contrast in every

paragraph.

Inference words:

• Implies• Suggests• Conveys• Reflects• Shows• Illustrates• Depicts

Vocabulary to compare: Vocabulary to contrast:

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• This clearly conveys …• The writer implies …• The effective use of• This indicates to the audience…• Which is illustrated by …• The use of … suggests …• A sense of … is conveyed through …

Sentence stems:

• like • the same as • similar to • as • in both• comparable to • also • equivalent • alike• in addition• parallel

• on the other hand • unlike • however • less• contrasting with • different from • nevertheless • whereas • opposite • diverge • conflicting

Steps to approaching a question:

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Step 1: read the question in the conflict section and identify the keywords.Select a poem to compare the named poem to.

How is power presented in ‘London’ and one other poem?

Step 2: now brainstorm a plan. Include: Language Structure Link to text message Link to questionCompare in every section.

REMEMBER:All the poems show the

strength of nature, conflict, power or

human emotion.

Step 3: write the overview. Answer the question in a sentence.Aiming high: link to the poets’ messages and compare.

Example:The romantic poems, ‘Ozymandias’ by Percy Shelly and ‘London’ by William Blake both present human power as a brutal and destructive force. Despite a strong parallel theme of negativity towards power and a desire for freedom, the poets’ focuses diverge. Blake uses the capital city to symbolise the destructive effects of oppressive power on his own society while Shelly takes a

more abstract view of power through describing a “shattered” statue of the Egyptian ruler Ozymandias to present the fruitless nature of human power.

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Example:The romantic poems, ‘Ozymandias’ by Percy Shelly and ‘London’ by William Blake both present human power as a brutal and destructive force. Despite a strong parallel theme of negativity towards power and a desire for freedom, the poets’ focuses diverge. Blake uses the capital city to symbolise the destructive effects of oppressive power on his own society while Shelly takes a

more abstract view of power through describing a “shattered” statue of the Egyptian ruler Ozymandias to present the fruitless nature of human power.

Step 4: now write your first paragraph.Tip: use the PEEL-C structure.

• Start with a connective• Make a clear point• Use inference words• Link to the question • Link to whole text

message• Make a comparison• Write in the third person

Example:Both poets use vivid imagery to describe their negative attitude towards oppressive power. Blake uses the metaphor, “mind-forged manacles” effectively to convey his frustration towards both those in power and their victims who seem to do nothing to escape the control. Here “mind-forged” suggests the poverty stricken citizens of London have created their own internal prison as “forged” has connotations of man-made and therefore conveys a sense of being self-created. The use of “manacles” depicts images of imprisonment. Therefore, the metaphor suggests the citizens of London fail to see they have the power to resist the oppressive control inflicted on them. Perhaps this is the most sinister aspect of power; the victims of corruptive power are blind to their situation and therefore are utterly hopeless. Shelley also includes effective imagery to convey power as oppressive. The metaphor, “sneer of cold command” depicts the cruelty of Ozymandias’s power. The alliteration emphasises the connection between cold and command suggesting a lack of empathy in Ozymandias’s rule. Coupled with “sneer”, the imagery portrays a sense of cruelty and lack of care towards his citizens thus creating sympathy for them. Again, a sinister tone is created in order to convey a sense of negativity.

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Step 5: now write two more paragraphs.Tip: use the PEEL –C structure.

REMEMBER: Language Structure Link to text message Link to question

Compare in every section.

Step 6: mini-conclusion.

Example:It has been clearly shown through these romantic poems that suffering is a consequence of power. Each poem is a reflection and meditation of oppressive power; ‘London’ on the bleak life of the citizens of London, and ‘Ozymandias’ on the futility of power. They elicit our sympathy and oblige us, the readers, to share the writers’ view that human power is a negative force.

Revision tips: Chart thematic links between the poems. Learn key quotations linked to themes. Learn quotations that demonstrate use of language or

structural devices. Revise the names of language and structural devices.

Create plans for the following questions:

Compare how poets present the power of nature in ‘The Prelude: Stealing the Boat’ and in one other poem from ‘Power and Conflict’.

Explore the ways in which individual experiences are portrayed in ‘War Photographer’ and one other poem from ‘Power and Conflict’.

Compare the way that poets present memories in ‘Remains’ and one other poem from ‘Power and Conflict’.

Compare the way that the power of nature is presented in ‘Storm on the Island’ and one other poem from ‘Power and Conflict’.

Compare the ways poets present ideas about loss in ‘The Emigrée’ and one other poem from ‘Power and Conflict’.

“A first person narrator is the most effective way of conveying human emotions in a poem.”Using this statement as a starting point, compare the use of narration in ‘The Prelude: Stealing the Boat’ and one other poem from ‘Power and Conflict’.

“Striving for power is ulitimately pointless.”Using this statement as a starting point, compare the presentation of human power in ‘Ozymandias’ and one other poem from ‘Power and Conflict’.Unseen poetry (section C)

What does section C of paper 2 (unseen poetry) involve?

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1 Answer a question analysing an unseen poem. This is worth a maximum of 24 marks. You should spend 30 minutes on this.2 Answer a question comparing this first poem with a second poem. This is worth a maximum of 8 marks. You should spend 15 minutes on this.

• Q1 10 minutes to read and plan. 20 minutes to write. • Q2 five minutes to read and plan. 10 minutes to

write.• You must unpick quotations in detail and name

devices.• You must show inference (implies, suggests, conveys).• You must be evaluative (effectively, clearly,

deliberately).• You must link to the whole text message.• You must focus on the question and the key word from

the question MUST appear in every paragraph.• You must compare in every paragraph on Q2.

Question 1 (analysing one unseen poem):

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Steps to approaching the question:

Step 1: read the question and identify the keywords.Step 2: Now read the poem and follow the five steps for approaching an unseen poem:

• Step 1: what is the poem about? (What is the subject? Who is speaking? Who to?)

• Step 2: what are the themes and messages? (Why has the poet written the poem? What are they trying to say?)

• Step 3: what are the attitudes and feelings? (What is the mood or atmosphere? How are these expressed?)

• Step 4: what techniques has the poet used? (How has the poet used language devices, form and structure to convey ideas and feelings?)

• Step 5: evaluation (How successfully has the poet conveyed ideas? What is the impact on the reader?)

Step 3: Write the overview. Answer the question in a sentence.Aiming high: set your concept; state your interpretation.Step 4: Now write your first paragraph.

• Tip: use the PEEL structure.REMEMBER:• Start with a connective• Make a clear point• Use inference words• Name language devices• Link to the question • Link to whole text message• Write in the third person, never say I.

Step 5: Now write two more paragraphs.• Tip: use the PEEL structure.

Step 6: Mini-conclusion.

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Question 2 (analysing a second unseen poem and comparing it to the first):

Steps to approaching the question:

Step 1: Read the question and identify the keywords.Step 2: Now read the poem and follow the five steps for approaching an unseen poem:

• Step 1: what is the poem about? (What is the subject? Who is speaking? Who to?)

• Step 2: what are the themes and messages? (Why has the poet written the poem? What are they trying to say?)

• Step 3: what are the attitudes and feelings? (What is the mood or atmosphere? How are these expressed?)

• Step 4: what techniques has the poet used? (How has the poet used language devices, form and structure to convey ideas and feelings?)

• Step 5: evaluation (How successfully has the poet conveyed ideas? What is the impact on the reader?)

Step 3: Write the overview. Answer the question in a sentence. Compare the two poets’ messages.

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Aiming high: set your concept; state your interpretation.Step 4: Now write a two paragraph response:

• Paragraph 1: compare how language is used to convey the messages.

• Paragraph 2: compare how form and structure are used.• Tip: Use the PEEL-C structure.• Step 5: Mini-conclusion - make a final comparative point.

Top tips for unseen poetry comparison:• Make a bullet point plan – aim for three paragraphs

(introduction and two comparative paragraphs).• In your first paragraph answer the question directly,

using key words from the question, and give an overview of your argument.

• Choose two to three quotations from different parts of each poem to support your ideas. (Challenge: six small quotations).

• Write two PEEL plus compare paragraphs. • Refer to key words from the question throughout.• Analyse key words, devices or structure (probe).• Explain and explore the effect on the reader.• Explain what message the writer is trying to give

the reader. • Use the poets’ names throughout. • Use inference words (implies, suggests, conveys,

indicates, highlights, infers, emphasises).• Use connectives to compare and contrast in every

paragraph.

Exam practice

Practise your skills by applying the steps to any poem you do not know well.

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NOTES

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