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GRAAD 12
NATIONAL
SENIOR CERTIFICATE
GRADE 12
ENGLISH HOME LANGUAGE P2
NOVEMBER 2018
MARKS: 80
TIME: 2½ hours
This question paper consists of 24 pages.
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English Hl Grade 12 P2 NSC November 2018 Question Paper (English)
Grade 12 English Hl Paper 2 question paper from the NSC November Exam 2018 (English), 24 pages. Read online or get the free PDF download, memo linked when available.
English Hl · Grade 12 · NSC November Exam · 2018 · English. Question paper, 24 pages. Read online or download the PDF.
- Subject
- English Hl
- Grade
- Grade 12
- Language
- English
- Document type
- Question paper
- Year
- 2018
- Exam period
- NSC November Exam
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- 2
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- CAPS
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- 24
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INSTRUCTIONS AND INFORMATION
1. Read these instructions carefully before you begin to answer the questions.
2. Do not attempt to read the entire question paper. Consult the table of contents
on page 4 and mark the numbers of the questions set on texts you have
studied this year. Thereafter, read these questions and choose the ones you
wish to answer.
3. This question paper consists of THREE sections:
SECTION A: Poetry (30)
SECTION B: Novel (25)
SECTION C: Drama (25)
4. Answer FIVE questions in all: THREE in SECTION A, ONE in SECTION B
and ONE in SECTION C as follows:
SECTION A: POETRY
PRESCRIBED POETRY – Answer TWO questions.
UNSEEN POEM – COMPULSORY question
SECTION B: NOVEL
Answer ONE question.
SECTION C: DRAMA
Answer ONE question.
5. CHOICE OF ANSWERS FOR SECTIONS B (NOVEL) AND C (DRAMA):
• Answer questions ONLY on the novel and the drama you have studied.
• Answer ONE ESSAY QUESTION and ONE CONTEXTUAL QUESTION.
If you answer the essay question in SECTION B, you must answer the
contextual question in SECTION C.
If you answer the contextual question in SECTION B, you must answer
the essay question in SECTION C.
Use the checklist to assist you.
6. LENGTH OF ANSWERS:
• The essay question on Poetry should be answered in about 250–300
words.
• Essay questions on the Novel and Drama sections should be answered
in 400–450 words.
• The length of answers to contextual questions should be determined by
the mark allocation. Candidates should aim for conciseness and
relevance.
7. Follow the instructions at the beginning of each section carefully.
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8. Number your answers correctly according to the numbering system used in
this question paper.
9. Start EACH section on a NEW page.
10. Suggested time management:
SECTION A: approximately 40 minutes
SECTION B: approximately 55 minutes
SECTION C: approximately 55 minutes
11. Write neatly and legibly.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION A: POETRY
Prescribed Poetry: Answer ANY TWO questions.
QUESTION NO. QUESTION MARKS PAGE NO.
1. 'First Day after the War' Essay question 10 6
2. 'Remember' Contextual question 10 7
3. 'somewhere i have never Contextual question 10 8
travelled,gladly beyond'
4. 'An African Elegy' Contextual question 10 9
AND
Unseen Poem: COMPULSORY question
5. 'Autumn' Contextual question 10 10
SECTION B: NOVEL
Answer ONE question.*
6. The Picture of Dorian Gray Essay question 25 11
7. The Picture of Dorian Gray Contextual question 25 11
8. Life of Pi Essay question 25 13
9. Life of Pi Contextual question 25 13
SECTION C: DRAMA
Answer ONE question.*
10. Hamlet Essay question 25 15
11. Hamlet Contextual question 25 15
12. Othello Essay question 25 19
13. Othello Contextual question 25 19
14. The Crucible Essay question 25 22
15. The Crucible Contextual question 25 22
NOTE: In SECTIONS B and C, answer ONE ESSAY and ONE CONTEXTUAL question.
You may NOT answer TWO essay questions or TWO contextual questions.
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CHECKLIST
Use this checklist to ensure that you have answered the correct number of questions.
NO. OF
QUESTION TICK
SECTION QUESTIONS
NUMBERS ()
ANSWERED
A: Poetry
(Prescribed Poetry) 1–4 2
A: Poetry
(Unseen Poem) 5 1
B: Novel
(Essay OR Contextual) 6–9 1
C: Drama
(Essay OR Contextual) 10–15 1
NOTE: In SECTIONS B and C, ensure that you have answered ONE ESSAY and ONE
CONTEXTUAL question.
You may NOT answer TWO essay questions or TWO contextual questions.
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SECTION A: POETRY
PRESCRIBED POETRY
Answer any TWO of the following questions.
QUESTION 1: POETRY – ESSAY QUESTION
Read the poem below and then answer the question that follows.
FIRST DAY AFTER THE WAR – Mazisi Kunene
1 We heard the songs of a wedding party.
2 We saw a soft light
3 Coiling round the young blades of grass
4 At first we hesitated, then we saw her footprints,
5 Her face emerged, then her eyes of freedom!
6 She woke us up with a smile saying,
7 'What day is this that comes suddenly?'
8 We said, 'It is the first day after the war'.
9 Then without waiting we ran to the open space
10 Ululating to the mountains and the pathways
11 Calling people from all the circles of the earth.
12 We shook up the old man demanding a festival
13 We asked for all the first fruits of the season.
14 We held hands with a stranger
15 We shouted across the waterfalls
16 People came from all lands
17 It was the first day of peace.
18 We saw our Ancestors travelling tall on the horizon.
In 'First Day after the War', the speaker focuses on the celebration of new beginnings.
With close reference to diction, imagery and tone, critically discuss the validity of this
statement.
Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 250–300 words
(about ONE page). [10]
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QUESTION 2: POETRY – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION
Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow.
REMEMBER – Christina Rossetti
1 Remember me when I am gone away,
2 Gone far away into the silent land;
3 When you can no more hold me by the hand,
4 Nor I half turn to go yet turning stay.
5 Remember me when no more day by day
6 You tell me of our future that you plann'd:
7 Only remember me; you understand
8 It will be late to counsel then or pray.
9 Yet if you should forget me for a while
10 And afterwards remember, do not grieve:
11 For if the darkness and corruption leave
12 A vestige of the thoughts that once I had,
13 Better by far you should forget and smile
14 Than that you should remember and be sad.
2.1 Account for the repetition of the word, 'remember' throughout the poem. (2)
2.2 Refer to lines 5–8: 'Remember me when … then or pray.'
Explain what these lines suggest about the speaker's relationship with her
loved one. (2)
2.3 Comment on the significance of the reference to 'the darkness and corruption'
(line 11) in the context of the poem. (3)
2.4 Refer to lines 13–14: 'Better by far … and be sad.'
Critically comment on how the speaker's tone in these lines reinforces the
central idea of the poem. (3)
[10]
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QUESTION 3: POETRY – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION
Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow.
somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond – ee cummings
1 somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond
2 any experience,your eyes have their silence:
3 in your most frail gesture are things which enclose me,
4 or which i cannot touch because they are too near
5 your slightest look easily will unclose me
6 though i have closed myself as fingers,
7 you open always petal by petal myself as Spring opens
8 (touching skilfully,mysteriously)her first rose
9 or if your wish be to close me,i and
10 my life will shut very beautifully,suddenly,
11 as when the heart of this flower imagines
12 the snow carefully everywhere descending;
13 nothing which we are to perceive in this world equals
14 the power of your intense fragility:whose texture
15 compels me with the colour of its countries,
16 rendering death and forever with each breathing
17 (i do not know what it is about you that closes
18 and opens;only something in me understands
19 the voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses)
20 nobody,not even the rain,has such small hands
3.1 Refer to lines 1–2: 'somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond/any
experience'.
What impression of the speaker is created by the use of 'gladly' (line 1)? (2)
3.2 'Spring' (line 7) is the only word that is capitalised in the poem.
Explain the effect of this capitalisation in context. (2)
3.3 Refer to line 4: 'or which i cannot touch because they are too near'.
Discuss the significance of the paradox in this line. (3)
3.4 Refer to lines 17–19: '(i do not … than all roses)'.
Critically comment on how the speaker's tone in these lines reinforces the
central idea of the poem. (3)
[10]
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QUESTION 4: POETRY – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION
Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow.
AN AFRICAN ELEGY – Ben Okri
1 We are the miracles that God made
2 To taste the bitter fruit of Time.
3 We are precious.
4 And one day our suffering
5 Will turn into the wonders of the earth.
6 There are things that burn me now
7 Which turn golden when I am happy.
8 Do you see the mystery of our pain?
9 That we bear poverty
10 And are able to sing and dream sweet things
11 And that we never curse the air when it is warm
12 Or the fruit when it tastes so good
13 Or the lights that bounce gently on the waters?
14 We bless things even in our pain.
15 We bless them in silence.
16 That is why our music is so sweet.
17 It makes the air remember.
18 There are secret miracles at work
19 That only Time will bring forth.
20 I too have heard the dead singing.
21 And they tell me that
22 This life is good
23 They tell me to live it gently
24 With fire, and always with hope.
25 There is wonder here
26 And there is surprise
27 In everything the unseen moves.
28 The ocean is full of songs.
29 The sky is not an enemy.
30 Destiny is our friend.
4.1 Refer to line 8: 'Do you see the mystery of our pain?'
Suggest a reason for the inclusion of the rhetorical question. (2)
4.2 Refer to line 9: 'That we bear poverty'.
Explain what the word, 'bear' implies about the local people. (2)
4.3 Refer to lines 16–17: 'That is why … the air remember.'
Comment on the significance of the music's being 'so sweet' that it 'makes the
air remember'. (3)
4.4 Refer to the final stanza.
Critically comment on how the speaker's tone conveys the central idea of the
poem. (3)
[10]
AND
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UNSEEN POETRY (COMPULSORY)
QUESTION 5: UNSEEN POETRY – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION
Read the poem below and then answer the questions that follow.
AUTUMN – Douglas Ridley Beeton
1 Patterns of old green-gold trees,
2 Patterns of aloes dipped in blood;
3 The khaki veld hums, a long singing
4 Late-noon dream. And I shall come
5 Up to the house and its purple shades,
6 And talk to my father, and he will
7 Tell me of the world that has been,
8 And I shall tell him of the world
9 That will come, and he will tell me
10 That it is wrong, wrong, and I
11 Shall think that he is wrong, old and wrong.
12 But when I emerge into the khaki veld
13 And feel the fine air stabbing out at me,
14 And the night that is sweeping up
15 Across the world, I shall sometimes
16 Think that he is right, young and right.
5.1 How does the description of the landscape in the first stanza support the title
of the poem? (2)
5.2 Refer to lines 3–4: 'The khaki veld hums, a long singing/Late-noon dream.'
Explain how these lines convey the mood of the first stanza. (2)
5.3 Refer to line 13: 'And feel the fine air stabbing out at me'.
Comment on the effectiveness of the image in this line. (3)
5.4 By referring to the poem as a whole, discuss the change in the speaker's
attitude toward his father. (3)
[10]
TOTAL SECTION A: 30
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SECTION B: NOVEL
Answer ONLY on the novel you have studied.
THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY – Oscar Wilde
Answer EITHER QUESTION 6 (essay question) OR QUESTION 7 (contextual
question).
QUESTION 6: THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY – ESSAY QUESTION
In The Picture of Dorian Gray, the inability to distinguish between art and reality has
tragic consequences.
Critically assess the validity of the above statement.
Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 400–450 words
(2–2½ pages). [25]
QUESTION 7: THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION
Read the extracts below and then answer the questions that follow.
EXTRACT A
'Good God, Dorian, what a lesson! What an awful lesson!' There was no answer, but
he could hear the young man sobbing at the window. 'Pray, Dorian, pray,' he
murmured. 'What is it that one was taught to say in one's boyhood? "Lead us not into
temptation. Forgive us our sins. Wash away our iniquities." Let us say that together.
The prayer of your pride has been answered. The prayer of your repentance will be 5
answered also. I worshipped you too much. We are both punished.'
Dorian Gray turned slowly around, and looked at him with tear-dimmed eyes. 'It is too
late, Basil,' he faltered.
'It is never too late, Dorian. Let us kneel down and try if we cannot remember a prayer.
Isn't there a verse somewhere, "Though your sins be as scarlet, yet I will make them 10
as white as snow?" '
'Those words mean nothing to me now.'
'Hush! Don't say that. You have done enough evil in your life. My God! Don't you see
that accursed thing leering at us?'
Dorian Gray glanced at the picture, and suddenly an uncontrollable feeling of hatred for 15
Basil Hallward came over him, as though it had been suggested to him by the image
on the canvas.
[Chapter 13]
7.1 Place this extract in context. (3)
7.2 Refer to line 5: 'The prayer of your pride has been answered.'
Explain the meaning of Basil's statement in context. (3)
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7.3 Refer to lines 2–4: 'Pray, Dorian, pray … not into temptation.'
Using these lines as a starting point, discuss how they reflect the differences
between Basil Hallward's and Lord Henry's attitude toward life. (3)
7.4 Refer to lines 7–8: 'It is too late, Basil'.
Comment on Dorian's assertion that it is 'too late' for him to repent. (3)
7.5 Refer to lines 15–16: 'suddenly an uncontrollable feeling of hatred for Basil
Hallward came over him'.
In your view, is Dorian's 'hatred for Basil' justified? Motivate your response. (3)
AND
EXTRACT B
It was a lovely night, so warm that he threw his coat over his arm, and did not even put
his silk scarf round his throat. As he strolled home, smoking his cigarette, two young
men in evening dress passed him. He heard one of them whisper to the other, 'That is
Dorian Gray.' He remembered how pleased he used to be when he was pointed out, or
stared at, or talked about. He was tired of hearing his own name now. Half the charm 5
of the little village where he had been so often lately was that no one knew who he
was. He had often told the girl whom he had lured to love him that he was poor, and
she had believed him. He had told her once that he was wicked, and she had laughed
at him, and answered that wicked people were always very old and very ugly. What a
laugh she had! – just like a thrush singing. And how pretty she had been in her cotton 10
dresses and her large hats! She knew nothing, but she had everything that he had lost.
...
[He] began to think over some of the things that Lord Henry had said to him.
Was it really true that one could never change? He felt a wild longing for the unstained
purity of his boyhood – his rose-white boyhood, as Lord Henry had once called it. He
knew that he had tarnished himself, filled his mind with corruption, and given horror to 15
his fancy; that he had been an evil influence to others, and had experienced a terrible
joy in being so; and that, of the lives that had crossed his own, it had been the fairest
and the most full of promise that he had brought to shame. But was it all irretrievable?
Was there no hope for him?
[Chapter 20]
7.6 Refer to line 11: 'She knew nothing, but she had everything that he had lost.'
Explain how this line reflects Dorian's mood at this point in the novel. (3)
7.7 Refer to lines 8–9: 'He had told … and very ugly.'
Comment on whether Hetty's assertion in these lines reflects the general
attitude of people in Victorian society. (3)
7.8 Refer to lines 13–19: 'Was it really … hope for him?'
Dorian's eventual ruin offers a warning about the dangers of following
a hedonistic lifestyle.
Using your knowledge of the novel as a whole, discuss the extent to which
you agree with the above statement. (4)
[25]
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LIFE OF PI – Yann Martel
Answer EITHER QUESTION 8 (essay question) OR QUESTION 9 (contextual
question).
QUESTION 8: LIFE OF PI – ESSAY QUESTION
The novel, Life of Pi, suggests that, despite offering contradictory approaches to life,
reason and faith can co-exist.
Critically discuss the extent to which you agree with the above statement.
Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 400–450 words
(2–2½ pages). [25]
QUESTION 9: LIFE OF PI – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION
Read the extracts below and then answer the questions that follow.
EXTRACT C
The elements allowed me to go on living. The lifeboat did not sink. Richard Parker kept
out of sight. The sharks prowled but did not lunge. The waves splashed me but did not
pull me off.
I watched the ship as it disappeared with much burbling and belching. Lights flickered
and went out. I looked about for my family, for survivors, for another lifeboat, for 5
anything that might bring me hope. There was nothing. Only rain, marauding waves of
black ocean and the flotsam of tragedy.
…
I inched my way along the oar till my feet were against the bow of the boat. I had to
proceed with extreme caution. My guess was that Richard Parker was on the floor of
the lifeboat beneath the tarpaulin, his back to me, facing the zebra, which he had no 10
doubt killed by now.
…
Of greater significance to me was the strange fact that Richard Parker had not killed it.
In the normal course of things he should have killed the zebra. That's what predators
do: they kill prey. In the present circumstances, where Richard Parker would be under
tremendous mental strain, fear should have brought out an exceptional level of 15
aggression. The zebra should have been properly butchered.
The reason behind its spared life was revealed shortly. It froze my blood – and then
brought a slight measure of relief. A head appeared beyond the end of the tarpaulin.
It looked at me in a direct, frightened way, ducked under, appeared again, ducked
under again, appeared once more, disappeared a last time. It was the bear-like, 20
balding-looking head of a spotted hyena.
[Chapter 41]
9.1 Refer to lines 1–2: 'Richard Parker kept out of sight.'
Explain Richard Parker's presence on the lifeboat. (3)
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9.2 Refer to lines 4–7: 'I watched the ship … flotsam of tragedy.'
What do these lines suggest about Pi's state of mind as the ship sinks? (3)
9.3 Refer to lines 20–21: 'It was the … a spotted hyena.'
Comment on the significance of the hyena in the context of the novel as a
whole. (3)
9.4 In the light of the novel as a whole, critically discuss how Pi's knowledge of
animals ensures his survival on the lifeboat. (3)
AND
EXTRACT D
The smell of vegetation was extraordinarily strong. As for the greenness, it was so
fresh and soothing that strength and comfort seemed to be physically pouring into my
system through my eyes.
…
I heard a growl. I turned. Richard Parker was observing me from the lifeboat. He was
looking at the island, too. He seemed to want to come ashore but was afraid. Finally, 5
after much snarling and pacing, he leapt from the boat. I brought the orange whistle to
my mouth. But he didn't have aggression on his mind. Simple balance was enough of
a challenge; he was as wobbly on his feet as I was. When he advanced, he crawled
close to the ground and with trembling limbs, like a newborn cub. Giving me a wide
berth, he made for the ridge and disappeared into the interior of the island. 10
I passed the day eating, resting, attempting to stand and, in a general way, bathing in
bliss. I felt nauseous when I exerted myself too much. And I kept feeling that the
ground was shifting beneath me and that I was going to fall over, even when I was
sitting still.
…
[Richard Parker] killed beyond his need. He killed meerkats that he did not eat. 15
In animals, the urge to kill is separate from the urge to eat. To go for so long without
prey and suddenly to have so many – his pent-up hunting instinct was lashing out with
a vengeance.
[Chapter 92]
9.5 Place the extract in context. (3)
9.6 Refer to lines 9–10: 'Giving me a … of the island.'
Based on your knowledge of the novel as a whole, discuss the implication of
Richard Parker's behaviour in these lines. (3)
9.7 Refer to lines 16–17: 'To go for … have so many'.
Comment on the extent to which these lines foreshadow the effect that Pi's
ordeal will have on his life. (3)
9.8 Refer to lines 11–12: 'I passed the … bathing in bliss.'
Do you agree that the island represents the contrast between reality and
illusion? Justify your response, using this extract as a starting point. (4)
[25]
TOTAL SECTION B: 25
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SECTION C: DRAMA
Answer ONLY on the play you have studied.
HAMLET – William Shakespeare
Answer EITHER QUESTION 10 (essay question) OR QUESTION 11 (contextual
question).
QUESTION 10: HAMLET – ESSAY QUESTION
Gertrude and Ophelia's passivity makes them vulnerable to exploitation and
manipulation.
Critically discuss the extent to which you agree with the above statement.
Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 400–450 words
(2–2½ pages). [25]
QUESTION 11: HAMLET – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION
Read the extracts below and then answer the questions that follow.
EXTRACT E
GUILDENSTERN
But we both obey,
And here give up ourselves in the full bent,
To lay our service freely at your feet
To be commanded.
CLAUDIUS
Thanks Rosencrantz, and gentle Guildenstern. 5
GERTRUDE
Thanks Guildenstern, and gentle Rosencrantz,
And I beseech you instantly to visit
My too much changéd son. Go some of you
And bring these gentlemen where Hamlet is.
GUILDENSTERN
Heavens make our presence and our practices 10
Pleasant and helpful to him!
GERTRUDE
Ay, amen!
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern off
Enter Polonius. He speaks apart with the king.
POLONIUS
The ambassadors from Norway, my good lord, 15
Are joyfully returned.
CLAUDIUS
Thou still hast been the father of good news.
POLONIUS
Have I, my lord? Assure you, my good liege,
I hold my duty as I hold my soul,
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Both to my God and to my gracious king, 20
And I do think, or else this brain of mine
Hunts not the trail of policy so sure
As it hath used to do, that I have found
The very cause of Hamlet's lunacy.
CLAUDIUS
O speak of that! That do I long to hear. 25
POLONIUS
Give first admittance to th'ambassadors.
My news shall be the fruit to that great feast.
CLAUDIUS
Thyself do grace to them, and bring them in.
Polonius off
He tells me, my dear Gertrude, he hath found 30
The head and source of all your son's distemper.
…
[Re-enter Polonius]
POLONIUS
You know sometimes he walks four hours together
Here in the lobby.
GERTRUDE
So he does, indeed. 35
POLONIUS
At such a time I'll loose my daughter to him.
Be you and I behind an arras then.
Mark the encounter.
[Act 2, Scene 2]
11.1 Refer to lines 1–4: 'But we both …To be commanded.'
Explain what has prompted Claudius and Gertrude to send for Rosencrantz
and Guildenstern. (3)
11.2 Refer to line 8: 'My too much changéd son.'
Account for the change that has come upon Hamlet. (3)
11.3 Refer to lines 18–20: 'Assure you, … my gracious king'.
Discuss how this statement is typical of Polonius's character. (3)
11.4 Refer to line 36: 'At such a time I'll loose my daughter to him.'
Based on your knowledge of the play as a whole, comment on the role
Ophelia plays in influencing Hamlet's attitude toward women. (3)
11.5 Refer to lines 10–11: 'Heavens make our … helpful to him!'
Comment on the irony of Guildenstern's words in the above lines. (3)
AND
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EXTRACT F
CLAUDIUS
O, my offence is rank, it smells to heaven;
It hath the primal eldest curse upon't,
A brother's murder! Pray can I not,
Though inclination be as sharp as will.
My stronger guilt defeats my strong intent. 5
…
Enter Hamlet and pauses, seeing the King
HAMLET
(Approaches the entry to the lobby) Now might I do it pat, now he is
a-praying –
And now I'll do't (He draws his sword) and so he goes to heaven,
And so am I revenged. That would be scanned. 10
A villain kills my father, and for that
I his sole son do this same villain send
To heaven.
Why, this is bait and salary, not revenge.
He took my father grossly, full of bread, 15
With all his crimes broad blown, as flush as May,
And how his audit stands who knows save heaven?
But in our circumstance and course of thought,
'Tis heavy with him. And am I then revenged
To take him in the purging of his soul, 20
When he is fit and seasoned for his passage?
No.
He sheathes his sword
Up, sword, and know thou a more horrid hent,
When he is drunk asleep, or in his rage, 25
Or in th'incestuous pleasure of his bed,
At game, a-swearing, or about some act
That has no relish of salvation in't,
Then trip him that his heels may kick at heaven,
And that his soul may be as damned and black 30
As hell whereto it goes. My mother stays.
This physic but prolongs thy sickly days.
Off
CLAUDIUS
(Rises) My words fly up, my thoughts remain below.
Words without thoughts never to heaven go. 35
[Act 3, Scene 3]
11.6 Refer to line 3: 'Pray can I not'.
Account for Claudius's inability to pray for forgiveness. (3)
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11.7 Refer to Hamlet's words and the stage directions in lines 7–9: '(Approaches
the entry … draws his sword)'.
If you were the director of a production of Hamlet, how would you instruct the
actor to deliver these lines? Pay specific attention to body language and tone.
Motivate your instructions. (3)
11.8 Hamlet's hesitation in taking revenge is a sign of cowardice.
Critically comment on the extent to which you agree with this statement. (4)
[25]
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NSC
OTHELLO – William Shakespeare
Answer EITHER QUESTION 12 (essay question) OR QUESTION 13 (contextual
question).
QUESTION 12: OTHELLO – ESSAY QUESTION
Desdemona and Emilia contradict the idea that Venetian women are submissive and
immoral.
Critically discuss the extent to which you agree with the above statement.
Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 400–450 words
(2–2½ pages). [25]
QUESTION 13: OTHELLO – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION
Read the extracts below and then answer the questions that follow.
EXTRACT G
DUKE
I think this tale would win my daughter too …
Good Brabantio,
Take up this mangled matter at the best.
Men do their broken weapons rather use
Than their bare hands. 5
BRABANTIO
I pray you hear her speak.
If she confess that she was half the wooer,
Destruction light on me if my bad blame
Light on the man! Come hither, gentle mistress.
Do you perceive in all this company 10
Where most you owe obedience?
DESDEMONA
My noble father,
I do perceive here a divided duty.
To you I am bound for life and education.
My life and education both do learn me 15
How to respect you. You are lord of all my duty;
I am hitherto your daughter. But here's my husband,
And so much duty as my mother showed
To you, preferring you before her father,
So much I challenge that I may profess 20
Due to the Moor, my lord.
BRABANTIO
God bu'y! I ha' done.
Please it your Grace, on to the state affairs.
I had rather to adopt a child than get it.
Come hither, Moor. 25
I here do give thee that with all my heart
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Which, but thou hast already, with all my heart
I would keep from thee. For your sake, jewel,
I am glad at soul I have no other child,
For thy escape would teach me tyranny 30
To hang clogs on them. I have done, my lord.
…
DUKE
The Turk with a most mighty preparation makes for Cyprus. Othello,
the fortitude of the place is best known to you; and though we have
there a substitute of most allowed sufficiency, yet opinion, a more
sovereign mistress of effects, throws a more safer voice on you. You 35
must therefore be content to slubber the gloss of your new fortunes
with this more stubborn and boisterous expedition.
[Act 1, Scene 3]
13.1 Account for Brabantio's approaching the Duke and the Senate on the issue of
Desdemona's marriage. (3)
13.2 Refer to lines 1–3: 'I think this … at the best.'
Explain what has prompted the Duke's response in these lines. (3)
13.3 Refer to lines 7–11: 'If she confess … you owe obedience?'
Discuss the accuracy of Brabantio's perception of Desdemona. (3)
13.4 Refer to lines 32–37: 'The Turk with … and boisterous expedition.'
In the light of later events, comment on how Othello compromises his
reputation. (3)
AND
EXTRACT H
OTHELLO
O monstrous, monstrous!
IAGO
Nay, this was but his dream.
OTHELLO
But this denoted a foregone conclusion.
IAGO
'Tis a shrewd doubt, though it be but a dream:
And this may help to thicken other proofs 5
That do demonstrate thinly.
OTHELLO
I'll tear her all to pieces!
IAGO
Nay, but be wise. Yet we see nothing done;
She may be honest yet. Tell me but this.
Have you not sometimes seen a handkerchief, 10
Spotted with strawberries, in your wife's hand?
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OTHELLO
I gave her such a one; 'twas my first gift.
IAGO
I know not that, but such a handkerchief
(I am sure it was your wife's) did I today
See Cassio wipe his beard with. 15
OTHELLO
If it be that–
IAGO
If it be that, or any that was hers,
It speaks against her, with the other proofs.
OTHELLO
O, that the slave had forty thousand lives!
One is too poor, too weak for my revenge. 20
Now do I see 'tis true. Look here, Iago–
All my fond love thus do I blow to heaven …
'Tis gone.
Arise, black vengeance, from thy hollow cell!
Yield up, O love, thy crown and hearted throne 25
To tyrannous hate! Swell, bosom, with thy fraught,
For 'tis of aspics' tongues!
IAGO
Pray be content.
OTHELLO
O, blood, Iago, blood!
IAGO
Patience, I say. Your mind perhaps may change. 30
[Act 3, Scene 3]
13.5 Refer to lines 10–15: 'Have you not … his beard with.'
Account for Iago's deliberate mention of the handkerchief at this point in the
play. (3)
13.6 Refer to line 1: 'O monstrous, monstrous!'
If you were the director of a production of Othello, how would you instruct the
actor to deliver these lines? Pay special attention to body language and tone.
Motivate your instructions. (3)
13.7 Refer to line 30: 'Patience, I say. Your mind perhaps may change.'
Explain the irony of Iago's advice in the above line. (3)
13.8 Iago's treachery is a sign of cowardice.
Critically comment on the extent to which you agree with this statement. (4)
[25]
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NSC
THE CRUCIBLE – Arthur Miller
Answer EITHER QUESTION 14 (essay question) OR QUESTION 15 (contextual
question).
QUESTION 14: THE CRUCIBLE – ESSAY QUESTION
The manner in which Salem views its women contributes to the tragedy that unfolds.
Critically assess the validity of this statement.
Your response should take the form of a well-constructed essay of 400–450 words
(2–2½ pages). [25]
QUESTION 15: THE CRUCIBLE – CONTEXTUAL QUESTION
Read the extracts below and then answer the questions that follow.
EXTRACT I
TITUBA (already taking a step backward): My Betty be hearty soon?
PARRIS Out of here!
TITUBA (backing to the door): My Betty not goin' die …
PARRIS (scrambling to his feet in a fury): Out of my sight! (She is gone.) Out of
my – (He is overcome with sobs. He clamps his teeth against them and 5
closes the door and leans against it, exhausted.) Oh, my God! God
help me! (Quaking with fear, mumbling to himself through his sobs, he
goes to the bed and gently takes Betty's hand.) Betty. Child. Dear child.
Will you wake, will you open up your eyes! Betty, little one …
He is bending to kneel again when his niece, ABIGAIL WILLIAMS, 10
seventeen, enters – a strikingly beautiful girl, an orphan, with an
endless capacity for dissembling. Now she is all worry and
apprehension and propriety.
ABIGAIL Uncle? (He looks to her.) Susanna Walcott's here from Doctor Griggs.
…
SUSANNA Aye, sir, he have been searchin' his books since he left you, sir. But he 15
bid me tell you, that you might look to unnatural things for the cause
of it.
PARRIS (his eyes going wide): No – no. There be no unnatural cause here. Tell
him I have sent for Reverend Hale of Beverly, and Mr Hale will surely
confirm that. Let him look to medicine and put out all thought of 20
unnatural causes here. There be none.
SUSANNA Aye, sir. He bid me tell you. (She turns to go.)
ABIGAIL Speak nothin' of it in the village, Susanna.
PARRIS Go directly home and speak nothing of unnatural causes.
SUSANNA Aye, sir. I pray for her. (She goes out.) 25
ABIGAIL Uncle, the rumour of witchcraft is all about; I think you'd best go down
and deny it yourself. The parlour's packed with people, sir.
[Act 1]
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15.1 Refer to the stage direction in line 1: '(already taking a step backward)'.
Explain what prompts Tituba's behaviour here. (3)
15.2 Refer to line 18: 'There be no unnatural cause here.'
Account for Parris's contradiction of this statement when he later supports the
witchcraft allegations. (3)
15.3 Refer to lines 11–12: 'with an endless capacity for dissembling.'
Discuss the accuracy of this description of Abigail. (3)
15.4 Based on your understanding of the nature of Salem society, discuss the
reasons for 'the rumour of witchcraft' (line 26) spreading so quickly. (3)
AND
EXTRACT J
DANFORTH Who is this man?
FRANCIS Francis Nurse, Your Excellency.
HALE His wife's Rebecca that were condemned this morning.
DANFORTH Indeed! I am amazed to find you in such uproar. I have only good report
of your character, Mr Nurse. 5
HATHORNE I think they must both be arrested in contempt, sir.
DANFORTH (to Francis): Let you write your plea, and in due time I will –
FRANCIS Excellency, we have proof for your eyes; God forbid you shut them to it.
The girls, sir, the girls are frauds.
DANFORTH What's that? 10
FRANCIS We have proof of it, sir. They are all deceiving you.
DANFORTH is shocked, but studying Francis.
HATHORNE This is contempt, sir, contempt!
DANFORTH Peace, Judge Hathorne. Do you know who I am, Mr Nurse?
FRANCIS I surely do, sir, and I think you must be a wise judge to be what you 15
are.
DANFORTH And do you know that near to four hundred are in the jails from
Marblehead to Lynn, and upon my signature?
FRANCIS I–
DANFORTH And seventy-two condemned to hang by that signature? 20
FRANCIS Excellency, I never thought to say it to such a weighty judge, but you
are deceived.
[Act 3]
15.5 Place this extract in context. (3)
15.6 Refer to line 10: 'What's that?'
If you were the director of a production of The Crucible, how would you
instruct the actor to deliver these lines? Pay specific attention to body
language and tone. Motivate your instructions. (3)
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15.7 Refer to line 3: 'His wife's Rebecca that were condemned this morning.'
Using this line as a starting point, discuss how Rebecca Nurse's execution
influences the villagers' changing perception of the court. (3)
15.8 Danforth's refusal to listen to the truth is a sign of cowardice.
Critically comment on the extent to which you agree with this statement. (4)
[25]
TOTAL SECTION C: 25
GRAND TOTAL: 80
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