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Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level English Literature Sample Assessment Materials PDF Free Download

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level English Literature Sample Assessment Materials PDF free Download. Think more deeply and widely.

INTERNATIONAL ADVANCED LEVEL

ENGLISH

LITERATURE

SAMPLE ASSESSMENT

MATERIALS

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Subsidiary in English Literature (XET01)

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature (YET01)

First teaching September 2015

First examination from June 2016

First certiﬁcation from August 2016 (International Advanced

Subsidiary) and August 2017 (International Advanced Level)

Issue 4

Edexcel, BTEC and LCCI qualifications

Edexcel, BTEC and LCCI qualifications are awarded by Pearson, the UK’s largest awarding body

offering academic and vocational qualifications that are globally recognised and benchmarked.

For further information, please visit our qualification websites atqualifications.pearson.com.

Alternatively, you can get in touch with us using the details on our contact us page at

qualifications.pearson.com/contactus

About Pearson

Pearson is the world's leading learning company, with 22,500 employees in more than

70 countries working to help people of all ages to make measurable progress in their lives

through learning. We put the learner at the centre of everything we do, because wherever

learning flourishes, so do people. Find out more about how we can help you and your learners

at qualifications.pearson.com

References to third party materials made in these sample assessment materials are made in good faith.

Pearson does not endorse, approve or accept responsibility for the content of materials, which may be

subject to change, or any opinions expressed therein. (Materials may include textbooks, journals,

magazines and other publications and websites.)

All information in this document is correct at time of publication.

ISBN 978 1 4469 4318 2

All the material in this publication is copyright

Summary of Pearson Edexcel International Advanced

Subsidiary/Advanced Level in English Literature sample

assessment materials issue 3 and 4 changes

The table below lists changes made between issues 3 and 4. The most recent changes made in issue 4 are

marked with *.

Summary of changes made between previous issue and this current issue Page

number

In Unit 1, Question 1 and the accompanying mark scheme, poem

A Leisure Centre is Also a Temple of Learning by Sue Boyle has been removed from

assessment from June 2022 onwards. A replacement poem History by John

Burnside now features in the sample assessment materials.

7, 17

In Source Booklet for Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose, Section A, the following

poems have been removed:

Inheritance, Eavan Boland

A Leisure Centre is also a Temple of Learning, Sue Boyle

The War Correspondent, Ciaran Carson

The Fox in the National Museum of Wales, Robert Minhinnick

Fantasia on a Theme of James Wright, Sean O’Brien

You, Shiva, and my Mum, Ruth Padel

Song, George Szirtes

This change is effective as of June 2022 onwards.

In Unit 4, Question 12 and the accompanying mark scheme, poem To Autumn by

John Keats has been removed from assessment from June 2022 onwards. A

replacement poem Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats now features in the

sample assessment materials.

80, 84, 91-2,

105

In Source Booklet for Unit 4: Shakespeare and Pre-1900 Poetry, the following

poems have been removed:

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Fare Thee Well, George Gordon, Lord Byron

To Autumn, John Keats

To a Wreath of Snow, Emily Brontë

R. Alcona to J. Brenzaida, Emily Brontë

Julian M. and A.G Rochelle, Emily Brontë

Last lines, Emily Brontë

*Additionally, a note with reference to The Rime of the Ancient Mariner has been

removed.

This change is effective as of June 2022 onwards.

*Layout of information in the mark schemes has been changed so that the

levels- based mark scheme no longer appears after indicative content for each

set of questions in a relevant section, but instead follows indicative content for

all questions in that section in each unit.

throughout

Earlier issues show previous changes.

If you need further information on these changes or what they mean, contact us via our website at:

qualifications.pearson.com/en/support/contact-us.html.

Edexcel, BTEC and LCCI qualifications

Edexcel, BTEC and LCCI qualifications are awarded by Pearson, the UK’s largest awarding body

offering academic and vocational qualifications that are globally recognised and benchmarked.

For further information, please visit our qualification websites atqualifications.pearson.com.

Alternatively, you can get in touch with us using the detailson our contact us page at

qualifications.pearson.com/contactus

About Pearson

Pearson is the world's leading learning company, with 22,500 employees in more than

70 countries working to help people of all ages to make measurable progress in their lives

through learning. We put the learner at the centre of everything we do, because wherever

learning flourishes, so do people. Find out more about how we can help you and your learners

at qualifications.pearson.com

References to third party materials made in these sample assessment materials are made in good faith.

Pearson does not endorse, approve or accept responsibility for the content of materials, which may be

subject to change, or any opinions expressed therein. (Materials may include textbooks, journals,

magazines and other publications and websites.)

All information in this document is correct at time of publication.

ISBN 978 1 4469 4318 2

All the material in this publication is copyright

©Pearson Education Limited 2021

1/1/1

Contents

Introduction 1

General marking guidance 3

Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose – Question Paper 5

Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose – Source Booklet 15

Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose – Mark Scheme 17

Unit 2: Drama – Question Paper 25

Unit 2: Drama – Mark Scheme 39

Unit 3: Poetry and Prose – Question Paper 53

Unit 3: Poetry and Prose – Source Booklet 63

Unit 3: Poetry and Prose – Mark Scheme 65

Unit 4: Shakespeare and Pre-1900 Poetry – Question Paper 73

Unit 4: Shakespeare and Pre-1900 Poetry – Source Booklet 83

Unit 4: Shakespeare and Pre-1900 Poetry – Mark Scheme 97

Introduction

The Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Subsidiary and the Advanced Level in English Literature

are designed for use in schools and colleges. They are part of a suite of International Advanced Level

qualifications offered by Pearson.

These sample assessment materials have been developed to support this qualification and will be

used as the benchmark to develop the assessment candidates will take.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

2Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

General marking guidance

• All candidates must receive the same treatment. Examiners must mark the last

candidate in exactly the same way as they mark the first.

• Mark schemes should be applied positively. Candidates must be rewarded for what they

have shown they can do, rather than be penalised for omissions.

• Examiners should mark according to the mark scheme – not according to their

perception of where the grade boundaries may lie.

• All the marks on the mark scheme are designed to be awarded. Examiners should always

award full marks if deserved, i.e. if the answer matches the mark scheme. Examiners should

also be prepared to award zero marks if the candidate’s response is not worthy of credit

according to the mark scheme.

• Where some judgement is required, mark schemes will provide the principles by which

marks will be awarded and exemplification/indicative content will not be exhaustive.

However, different examples of responses will be provided at standardisation.

• When examiners are in doubt regarding the application of the mark scheme to a

candidate’s response, a senior examiner must be consulted before a mark is given.

• Crossed-out work should be marked unless the candidate has replaced it with an

alternative response.

Specific marking guidance

When deciding how to reward an answer, examiners should consult both the indicative content

and the associated marking grid(s). When using a levels-based mark scheme, the ‘best fit’ approach

should be used.

• Examiners should first decide which descriptor most closely matches the answer and place

it in that level. The mark awarded within the level will be decided based on the quality of

the answer and will be modified according to how securely all bullet points are displayed

at that level.

• Indicative content is exactly that – they are factual points that candidates are likely to use

to construct their answer.

• It is possible for an answer to be constructed without mentioning some or all of these

points, as long as they provide alternative responses to the indicative content that fulfils

the requirements of the question. It is the examiner’s responsibility to apply their

professional judgement to the candidate’s response in determining if the answer fulfils the

requirements of the question.

Placing a mark within a level

• Examiners should first decide which descriptor most closely matches the answer and place

it in that level. The mark awarded within the level will be decided based on the quality of

the answer and will be modified according to how securely all bullet points are displayed

at that level.

• In cases of uneven performance, the points above will still apply. Candidates will be placed

in the level that best describes their answer according to the descriptors in that level.

Marks will be awarded towards the top or bottom of that level depending on how they

have evidenced each of the descriptor bullet points.

• If the candidate’s answer meets the requirements fully, markers should be prepared to

award full marks within the level. The top mark in the level is used for work that is as good

as can realistically be expected within that level.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

• If the candidate’s answer only barely meets the requirements of the level, markers should

consider awarding marks at the bottom of the level. The bottom mark in the level is used

for an answer that is the weakest that can be expected within that level.

• The middle marks of the level are used for an answer that is a reasonable match to the

descriptor. This might represent a balance between some characteristics of the level that

are fully met and others that are only barely met.

Instructions

• Use black ink or ball-point pen.

• Fill in the boxes at the top of this page with your name,

centre number and candidate number.

• Answer one question from Section A and one question from Section B

• Answer the questions in the spaces provided

– there may be more space than you need.

Information

• The total mark for this paper is 50.

• The marks for each question are shown in brackets

– use this as a guide as to how much time to spend on each question.

Advice

• Read each question carefully before you start to answer it.

• Check your answers if you have time at the end.

English Literature

International Advanced Subsidiary

Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose

You must have:

Source booklet (enclosed)

Prescribed texts (clean copies)

Centre Number Candidate Number

Write your name here

Surname Other names

Total Marks

WET01/01

Paper Reference

Sample Assessment Material for first teaching

September 2015

Time: 2 hours

S49776A

1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1 *S49776A0110*

Turn over

Pearson Edexcel

International

Advanced Level

4Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

• If the candidate’s answer only barely meets the requirements of the level, markers should

consider awarding marks at the bottom of the level. The bottom mark in the level is used

for an answer that is the weakest that can be expected within that level.

• The middle marks of the level are used for an answer that is a reasonable match to the

descriptor. This might represent a balance between some characteristics of the level that

are fully met and others that are only barely met.

Instructions

• Use black ink or ball-point pen.

• Fill in the boxes at the top of this page with your name,

centre number and candidate number.

• Answer one question from Section A and one question from Section B

• Answer the questions in the spaces provided

– there may be more space than you need.

Information

• The total mark for this paper is 50.

• The marks for each question are shown in brackets

– use this as a guide as to how much time to spend on each question.

Advice

• Read each question carefully before you start to answer it.

• Check your answers if you have time at the end.

English Literature

International Advanced Subsidiary

Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose

You must have:

Source booklet (enclosed)

Prescribed texts (clean copies)

Centre Number Candidate Number

Write your name here

Surname Other names

Total Marks

WET01/01

Paper Reference

Sample Assessment Material for first teaching

September 2015

Time: 2 hours

S49776A

1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1 *S49776A0110*

Turn over

Pearson Edexcel

International

Advanced Level

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49776A0210*

BLANK PAGE

*S49776A0310* Turn over

SECTION A

Post-2000 Poetry

Answer ONE question from Section A.

You must select your second poem from the prescribed poems listed in the

Source Booklet on page 2.

Write your answer in the space provided.

EITHER

1 Compare the ways in which poets write about the sense of danger in History by John

Burnside and one other poem of your choice from Poems of the Decade: An Anthology

of the Forward Books of Poetry 2002–2011.

In your answer, you should consider the following:

• the poets’ development of themes

• the poets’ use of language and imagery

• the use of other poetic techniques.

(Total for Question 1 = 25 marks)

2 Compare the ways in which poets explore changing relationships in Effects by Alan

Jenkins and one other poem of your choice from Poems of the Decade: An Anthology

of the Forward Books of Poetry 2002–2011.

In your answer, you should consider the following:

• the poets’ development of themes

• the poets’ use of language and imagery

• the use of other poetic techniques.

(Total for Question 2 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION A = 25 MARKS

6Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49776A0210*

BLANK PAGE

*S49776A0310* Turn over

SECTION A

Post-2000 Poetry

Answer ONE question from Section A.

You must select your second poem from the prescribed poems listed in the

Source Booklet on page 2.

Write your answer in the space provided.

EITHER

1 Compare the ways in which poets write about the sense of danger in History by John

Burnside and one other poem of your choice from Poems of the Decade: An Anthology

of the Forward Books of Poetry 2002–2011.

In your answer, you should consider the following:

• the poets’ development of themes

• the poets’ use of language and imagery

• the use of other poetic techniques.

(Total for Question 1 = 25 marks)

2 Compare the ways in which poets explore changing relationships in Effects by Alan

Jenkins and one other poem of your choice from Poems of the Decade: An Anthology

of the Forward Books of Poetry 2002–2011.

In your answer, you should consider the following:

• the poets’ development of themes

• the poets’ use of language and imagery

• the use of other poetic techniques.

(Total for Question 2 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION A = 25 MARKS

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49776A0410*

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in a box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 1 Question 2

....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

*S49776A0510* Turn over

SECTION B

Post-2000 Prose

Answer ONE question on your chosen text.

Write your answer in the space provided.

The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini

EITHER

3 ‘A novel that vividly presents both the best and the worst of human nature.’

In the light of this statement, explore Hosseini’s presentation of character in the

novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 3 = 25 marks)

4 ‘Hosseini’s writing is at its best when he describes the effects of war on places.’

In the light of this statement, explore Hosseini’s presentation of the effects of war in

the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 4 = 25 marks)

8Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49776A0410*

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in a box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 1 Question 2

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

*S49776A0510* Turn over

SECTION B

Post-2000 Prose

Answer ONE question on your chosen text.

Write your answer in the space provided.

The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini

EITHER

3 ‘A novel that vividly presents both the best and the worst of human nature.’

In the light of this statement, explore Hosseini’s presentation of character in the

novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 3 = 25 marks)

4 ‘Hosseini’s writing is at its best when he describes the effects of war on places.’

In the light of this statement, explore Hosseini’s presentation of the effects of war in

the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 4 = 25 marks)

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49776A0610*

Life of Pi – Yann Martel

EITHER

5 ‘It is hard to believe that Pi could be kept alive by a tiger, but that is what happens.’

In the light of this statement, explore the role of Richard Parker in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 5 = 25 marks)

6 ‘A story about storytelling.’

In the light of this statement, explore the ways in which Martel presents ideas about

storytelling in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 6 = 25 marks)

*S49776A0710* Turn over

The White Tiger – Aravind Adiga

EITHER

7 ‘Adiga’s portrayal of India is essentially one of contrasts.’

In the light of this statement, explore Adiga’s use of contrasts in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 7 = 25 marks)

8 ‘It is ironic that Balram murders the one person who shows him kindness.’

In the light of this statement, explore Adiga’s presentation of the relationship

between Balram and Mr Ashok in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 8 = 25 marks)

10 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49776A0610*

Life of Pi – Yann Martel

EITHER

5 ‘It is hard to believe that Pi could be kept alive by a tiger, but that is what happens.’

In the light of this statement, explore the role of Richard Parker in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 5 = 25 marks)

6 ‘A story about storytelling.’

In the light of this statement, explore the ways in which Martel presents ideas about

storytelling in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 6 = 25 marks)

*S49776A0710* Turn over

The White Tiger – Aravind Adiga

EITHER

7 ‘Adiga’s portrayal of India is essentially one of contrasts.’

In the light of this statement, explore Adiga’s use of contrasts in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 7 = 25 marks)

8 ‘It is ironic that Balram murders the one person who shows him kindness.’

In the light of this statement, explore Adiga’s presentation of the relationship

between Balram and Mr Ashok in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 8 = 25 marks)

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49776A0810*

Brooklyn – Colm Tóibín

EITHER

9 ‘Although the novel’s title is Brooklyn, it could equally have been Enniscorthy.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Tóibín presents the setting of Enniscorthy

in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 9 = 25 marks)

10 ‘A story that would have been better told through the first-person narrative of Eilis.’

In the light of this statement, explore Tóibín’s narrative choices and their effects in the

novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 10 = 25 marks)

*S49776A0910* Turn over

Purple Hibiscus – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

EITHER

11 ‘A novel in which silence is anything but golden.’

In the light of this statement, explore Adichie’s presentation of silence in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 11 = 25 marks)

12 ‘If there is a hero in this novel, it is Ifeoma.’

In the light of this statement, explore Adichie’s presentation of Ifeoma in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 12 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION B = 25 MARKS

12 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49776A0810*

Brooklyn – Colm Tóibín

EITHER

9 ‘Although the novel’s title is Brooklyn, it could equally have been Enniscorthy.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Tóibín presents the setting of Enniscorthy

in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 9 = 25 marks)

10 ‘A story that would have been better told through the first-person narrative of Eilis.’

In the light of this statement, explore Tóibín’s narrative choices and their effects in the

novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 10 = 25 marks)

*S49776A0910* Turn over

Purple Hibiscus – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

EITHER

11 ‘A novel in which silence is anything but golden.’

In the light of this statement, explore Adichie’s presentation of silence in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 11 = 25 marks)

12 ‘If there is a hero in this novel, it is Ifeoma.’

In the light of this statement, explore Adichie’s presentation of Ifeoma in the novel.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 12 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION B = 25 MARKS

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49776A01010*

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in the box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 3 Question 4 Question 5

Question 6 Question 7 Question 8

Question 9 Question 10 Question 11

Question 12

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

Do not return this Booklet with the question paper.

Paper Reference

Pearson Edexcel

International Advanced Level

Turn over

*S49776A*

S49776A

1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1

WET01/01

Sample assessment material for first teaching

September 2015

Source Booklet

English Literature

International Advanced Subsidiary

Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose

14 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49776A01010*

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in the box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 3 Question 4 Question 5

Question 6 Question 7 Question 8

Question 9 Question 10 Question 11

Question 12

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

Do not return this Booklet with the question paper.

Paper Reference

Pearson Edexcel

International Advanced Level

Turn over

*S49776A*

S49776A

1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1

WET01/01

Sample assessment material for first teaching

September 2015

Source Booklet

English Literature

International Advanced Subsidiary

Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

2S49776A

Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose

SECTION A

Post-2000 Poetry

Question 1

Prescribed collection of poems from Poems of the Decade: An Anthology of the Forward

Books of Poetry 2002–2011

Poem title Poet Page number

Eat Me Patience Agbabi 3

Chainsaw Versus the Pampas Grass Simon Armitage 6

Material Ros Barber 10

History John Burnside 25

An Easy Passage Julia Copus 37

The Deliverer Tishani Doshi 43

The Map Woman Carol Ann Duffy 47

The Lammas Hireling Ian Duhig 51

To My Nine-Year-Old Self Helen Dunmore 52

A Minor Role U A Fanthorpe 57

The Gun Vicki Feaver 62

The Furthest Distances I’ve Travelled Leontia Flynn 64

Giuseppe Roderick Ford 66

Out of the Bag Seamus Heaney 81

Effects Alan Jenkins 92

Genetics Sinéad Morrissey 125

From the Journal of a Disappointed Man Andrew Motion 127

Look We Have Coming to Dover Daljit Nagra 129

Please Hold Ciaran O’Driscoll 132

On Her Blindness Adam Thorpe 170

Ode on a Grayson Perry Urn Tim Turnbull 172

16 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

2S49776A

Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose

SECTION A

Post-2000 Poetry

Question 1

Prescribed collection of poems from Poems of the Decade: An Anthology of the Forward

Books of Poetry 2002–2011

Poem title Poet Page number

Eat Me Patience Agbabi 3

Chainsaw Versus the Pampas Grass Simon Armitage 6

Material Ros Barber 10

History John Burnside 25

An Easy Passage Julia Copus 37

The Deliverer Tishani Doshi 43

The Map Woman Carol Ann Duffy 47

The Lammas Hireling Ian Duhig 51

To My Nine-Year-Old Self Helen Dunmore 52

A Minor Role U A Fanthorpe 57

The Gun Vicki Feaver 62

The Furthest Distances I’ve Travelled Leontia Flynn 64

Giuseppe Roderick Ford 66

Out of the Bag Seamus Heaney 81

Effects Alan Jenkins 92

Genetics Sinéad Morrissey 125

From the Journal of a Disappointed Man Andrew Motion 127

Look We Have Coming to Dover Daljit Nagra 129

Please Hold Ciaran O’Driscoll 132

On Her Blindness Adam Thorpe 170

Ode on a Grayson Perry Urn Tim Turnbull 172

Unit 1: Post-2000 Poetry and Prose – Mark Scheme

Section A: Post-2000 Poetry

Question

Number

Indicative Content

History

All reasonable and relevant interpretations of ‘the sense of danger’ should be

rewarded. A pertinent choice of second poem might be Vicki Feaver’s The Gun.

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• the date September 2001 establishes the fear in Burnside’s poem, as he is dizzy

with the fear of losing everything; Feaver’s poem expresses excitement that a

weapon has been brought into the house - ‘it brings the house alive’

• contrast in Burnside’s poem between the innocent - people jogging, the persona

himself with his child - and the threat from outside shown in the war planes in the

morning light; in Feaver’s poem there is a contrast between the instrument of

death and ‘a spring in your step; your eyes gleam’

• long flowing unpunctuated sentences with use of enjambment in History capturing

speculation and the flow of thought; crisper statements in The Gun, more end-

stopped; the poem deals with shooting things without overt comment or reflection

• both poems deal with the relationship between the speaker and the natural world:

Burnside thinks about how to do no harm in the cherished world; in Feaver‘s

poem ‘he’ moves from practising his aim to killing and trampling fur and feathers

• in both poems the sense of danger heightens the senses and creates a reaction:

Burnside’s persona moves into philosophical reflection, Feaver’s into a

heightened awareness

• History uses small detail, or creatures’ lives, as part of the imagery of the poem to

represent fragility and innocence, linked with a child’s first nakedness or a toddler

on the beach. The Gun ends with a powerful image, the black mouth spouting

golden crocuses, possibly a metaphor for the gun itself, combining images of

death and life.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Effects

All reasonable and relevant interpretations of ‘changing relationships’ should be

rewarded. A pertinent choice of second poem might be Agbabi’s Eat Me.

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• power structures in the relationships, e.g. the change from dependant to carer in

Jenkins, compared to the change from obedience to predation in Agbabi

• the use of food, e.g. to denote shared family nutrition in Jenkins and luxury and

glut in Agbabi

• differing uses of imagery, e.g. Jenkins’ use of the mother’s hands to embody her

decline and Agbabi’s imagery to denote appetite and surfeit

• the tensions between the narrator and mother in Jenkins and the narrator and the

man in Agbabi

• the effects of the differing structural aspects of the poems, e.g. Jenkins’ long

heavily punctuated sentences charting the changing relationship between the

narrator and mother; Agbabi’s use of repetition and short minor sentences

charting the changing relationship between the narrator and the man

• contrasts and comparisons within poems, e.g. in Jenkins, the mother’s changing

attitude to her husband compared to the narrator’s changing attitude to the

mother; in Agbabi, the narrator’s attitude towards the man at different stages of

her experience.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO4 = bullet

point 3, 4

No rewardable material.

Level 1

1–5

Descriptive

• Makes little reference to texts with limited organisation of ideas. Limited

use of appropriate concepts and terminology with frequent errors and

lapses of expression.

• Uses a narrative or descriptive approach that shows limited knowledge of

texts and how meanings are shaped in texts.

Shows a lack of understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Demonstrates limited awareness of connections between texts.

• Describes the texts as separate entities.

Level 2

6–10

General understanding/exploration

• Makes general points, identifying some literary techniques with general

explanation of effects. Aware of some appropriate concepts and

terminology. Organises and expresses ideas with clarity, although still

has errors and lapses.

• Gives surface readings of texts relating to how meanings are shaped in

texts. Shows general understanding by commenting on straightforward

elements of the writer’s craft.

• Identifies general connections between texts.

• Makes general cross-references between texts.

Level 3

11–15

Clear relevant application/exploration

• Offers a clear response using relevant textual examples. Relevant use of

terminology and concepts. Creates a logical, clear structure with few

errors and lapses in expression.

• Demonstrates knowledge of how meanings are shaped in texts with

consistent analysis. Shows clear understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Makes relevant connections between texts.

• Develops an integrated approach with clear examples.

Level 4

16–20

Discriminating controlled application/exploration

• Constructs a controlled argument with fluently embedded examples.

Discriminating use of concepts and terminology. Controls structures with

precise cohesive transitions and carefully chosen language.

• Demonstrates discriminating understanding of how meanings are shaped

in texts. Analyses, in a controlled way, the nuances and subtleties of the

writer’s craft.

• Analyses connections between texts.

• Takes a controlled discriminating approach to integration with detailed

examples.

Level 5

21–25

Critical and evaluative

• Presents a critical evaluative argument with sustained textual examples.

Evaluates the effects of literary features with sophisticated use of

concepts and terminology. Uses sophisticated structure and expression.

• Exhibits a critical evaluation of the ways meanings are shaped in texts.

Displays a sophisticated understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Evaluates connections between texts.

• Exhibits a sophisticated connective approach with sophisticated use of

examples.

18 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Section B: Post-2000 Prose

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Kite Runner

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• Hosseini’s presentation of the heroism of Baba, e.g. in the episode at the Russian

checkpoint

• Hosseini’s presentation of the selflessness of Hassan, e.g. when he confesses to

the theft of the watch and money although he is innocent (and there are many

other examples of Hassan’s loyalty and good nature)

• Hosseini’s presentation of Amir’s initial cowardice and betrayal of Hassan but his

courage when seeking redemption

• Hosseini’s presentation of the brutality of Assef, e.g. his own description of the

massacre of Hazaras in Mazar-i-Sharif

• Hosseini’s presentation of the ways in which war brings out the worst in people,

e.g. the Russian guard at the checkpoint, the Taliban, the civilians who inform on

others

• how Hosseini’s presentation of the best and worst of human nature is linked to

context, e.g. the effects of the Soviet invasion, the Taliban take-over.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Kite Runner

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• Hosseini’s presentation of the effect of the communist coup on life in Kabul, e.g.

the atmosphere of suspicion

• Hosseini’s presentation of the effect of the Soviet occupation on life in Kabul, e.g.

the tanks that patrol the streets

• Hosseini’s presentation of the effect of the civil war and the Taliban take-over on

life in Kabul, e.g. the orphanage, the stadium stoning, the ban on kite-fighting

• Hosseini’s presentation of the effects of war on Afghanistan in the journey Amir

makes from Peshawar to Kabul, e.g. the poverty and dilapidation in “Afghan

Town”

• Hosseini’s presentation of the effects of war on Baba’s house, e.g. in Rahim

Khan’s narrative

• how Hosseini’s presentation of the effects of war on places links to the context of

more than twenty years of conflict in Afghanistan.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Life of Pi

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• Martel’s presentation of Richard Parker as a real tiger with all the instincts of his

species, e.g. killing for food, heading for the jungle

• Martel’s presentation of Richard Parker’s training and feeding by zookeepers,

enabling Pi to control him

• Martel’s presentation of Pi’s need to train and provide for Richard Parker,

enabling him to put his other problems of survival into perspective

• Martel’s presentation of how Pi learns to survive by copying Richard Parker, e.g.

by eating fish and even human flesh

• Martel’s presentation of Pi’s second story to the Japanese investigators, in which

he is Richard Parker

• how Martel’s presentation of Richard Parker links to context, e.g. the parallel

between the animal’s ferocious instincts for survival and the lengths Indira Gandhi

went to in order to maintain power in India in the 1970s, the period setting for the

novel.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Life of Pi

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• how Martel structures the novel to create a frame for Pi’s narrative

• how the veracity of the story is called into question to raise issues about truth and

fact

• Martel’s presentation of Pi’s disdain for facts, and higher regard for stories that

fire the imagination

• Martel’s presentation of storytelling as a means of survival, e.g. the possibility that

Pi has created the story of the animals to deflect the awful reality of his

experience at sea

• Martel’s presentation of the power of stories, e.g. in the claim that ‘I have a story

that will make you believe in God’

• how storytelling links to the religious context of the novel, e.g. in the tales and

fables that disseminate the teachings of Pi’s three religions

20 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The White Tiger

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• Adiga’s presentation of contrasts between the rich and poor in India, e.g. the

Ashoks’ apartment in Delhi and the servants’ quarters

• Adiga’s presentation of Balram writing of two Indias: the ‘Darkness’ of rural India

inland, and the ‘Light’ of urban India on the coast

• Adiga’s presentation of contrasting dualities, e.g. the hospital where Balram’s

father dies and the city hospital visited by The Stork

• Adiga’s presentation of the contrast between the compliant, humble peasant that

Balram was and the ruthless entrepreneur that he becomes

• Adiga’s presentation of the gulf between the traditional way of life in Laxmangarh

and the new globalised way of life in Delhi

• how these contrasts are linked to the context of modern India.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The White Tiger

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• Adiga’s presentation of Balram’s murder of Ashok

• how by killing his master, Balram also betrays his family whom he knows will

probably be murdered in retribution

• Adiga’s presentation of Balram’s changing sense of identity, e.g. through his

choice of Ashok Sharma as a new name

• how Balram tries to rationalise and justify stealing Ashok’s money, e.g. by

convincing himself that it is rightfully his because of the exploitation of the poor by

the rich

• Adiga’s presentation of how their relationship shifts, e.g. the intimacy of the

moment when they swap as passenger and driver, and the detachment of

Balram’s realisation that while he is the White Tiger, Ashok is more like a lamb

• how contrasting aspects of India are linked to context, e.g. the presentation of

Balram and Ashok as twinned versions of each other, one from the ‘Darkness’

and one from the ‘Light’.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Brooklyn

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• Toibin’s detailed presentation of Enniscorthy, e.g. the specific naming of streets,

the descriptions of home life, social events, work

• the significance of creating the sense both of Eilis’s home and of the place from

which she needs to escape

• Toibin’s presentation of Eilis’s identity as being rooted in Enniscorthy, e.g. her

dilemma when she creates another identity in Brooklyn

• how Toibin’s presentation of Enniscorthy provides an example of rural Irish life in

the 1950s, e.g. the close-knit nature of the community

• Toibin’s structuring of the novel which places Enniscorthy at the beginning and at

the end, being the place both to escape from and return to

• the importance of Enniscorthy in linking to the context of Ireland in the 1950s, e.g.

emigration to America, the search for greater opportunities.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Brooklyn

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• the possible advantages and disadvantages of a subjective first-person narrative,

e.g. a more direct, personal voice; less insight into other characters

• Toibin’s use of free indirect style and Eilis as focaliser to provide insight into her

thoughts, feelings and perceptions

• how Toibin’s omniscient narrator stays in the background and allows the

characters to emerge from their speeches and actions

• how Toibin often limits Eilis’s understanding (which might be seen as a

disadvantage)

• Toibin’s use of epistolary narrative when Eilis is in America, and the effects of the

letters, e.g. to intensify the sense of her homesickness

• how Toibin’s use of omniscient narrator provides a sense of context, e.g. the

need for emigration to Britain and America.

22 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Purple Hibiscus

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• how Adichie’s narrator, Kambili, tells the story eloquently but describes powerfully

her previous inability to speak as the result of her father’s repression

• Adichie’s presentation of Enugu as a place where silence betokens repression,

e.g. the voices of Mama and Jaja are repressed when Papa rules over them; after

his murder there is a ‘different silence’, an unspoken acknowledgement of the

truth

• how their time at Nsukka with Aunty Ifeoma helps Kambili, Jaja and Mama to find

their individual voices

• Adichie’s presentation of Jaja’s silence, e.g. as a weapon against his father

• Adichie’s presentation of silence as the effect of trauma, e.g. Jaja adopts silence

in prison, hardened by his terrible experience there

• how Adichie explores the context of political repression in Nigeria, e.g. through

the silencing of Ade Coker; the attempt to intimidate Ifeoma.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Purple Hibiscus

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• how Adichie invites our sympathy for Ifeoma from the start, e.g. she is widowed

and caring for three children on a small salary

• Adichie’s presentation of Ifeoma’s intelligence and liberal values, e.g. her

Catholicism but also her respect for the 'heathen’ traditions of her father

• Adichie’s presentation of the contrast between Ifeoma’s compassion and

Eugene’s coldness, e.g. her care for her father in contrast to Eugene’s inhumane

disowning of him

• how Ifeoma not only raises her children to be confident, inquisitive and

independently-minded but also encourages Kambili and Jaja to rebel against their

father’s repression and find their own path in life

• Adichie’s presentation of Ifeoma’s struggle with hardship, e.g. at the university

among fuel shortages, power cuts and strikes at medical clinics

• it is Ifeoma who grows the purple hibiscus, a symbol of hope and freedom in the

context of a new Nigeria. She also defies the repressive government of the time.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO3 = bullet

point 4, 5

No rewardable material.

Level 1

1–5

Descriptive

• Makes little reference to texts with limited organisation of ideas. Limited

use of appropriate concepts and terminology with frequent errors and

lapses of expression.

• Uses a narrative or descriptive approach that shows limited knowledge of

texts and how meanings are shaped in texts.

Shows a lack of understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Shows limited awareness of contextual factors.

• Shows limited awareness of links between texts and contexts.

Level 2

6–10

General understanding/exploration

• Makes general points, identifying some literary techniques with general

explanation of effects. Aware of some appropriate concepts and

terminology. Organises and expresses ideas with clarity, although still

has errors and lapses.

• Gives surface readings of texts relating to how meanings are shaped in

texts. Shows general understanding by commenting on straightforward

elements of the writer’s craft.

• Has general awareness of the significance and influence of contextual

factors.

• Makes general links between texts and contexts.

Level 3

11–15

Clear relevant application/exploration

• Offers a clear response using relevant textual examples. Relevant use of

terminology and concepts. Creates a logical, clear structure with few

errors and lapses in expression.

• Demonstrates knowledge of how meanings are shaped in texts with

consistent analysis. Shows clear understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Demonstrates a clear exploration of the significance and influence of

contextual factors.

• Develops relevant links between texts and contexts.

Level 4

16–20

Discriminating controlled application/exploration

• Constructs a controlled argument with fluently embedded examples.

Discriminating use of concepts and terminology. Controls structures with

precise cohesive transitions and carefully chosen language.

• Demonstrates discriminating understanding of how meanings are shaped

in texts. Analyses, in a controlled way, the nuances and subtleties of the

writer’s craft.

• Provides a discriminating analysis of the significance and influence of

contextual factors.

• Makes detailed links between texts and contexts.

Level 5

21–25

Critical and evaluative

• Presents a critical evaluative argument with sustained textual examples.

Evaluates the effects of literary features with sophisticated use of

concepts and terminology. Uses sophisticated structure and expression.

• Exhibits a critical evaluation of the ways meanings are shaped in texts.

Displays a sophisticated understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Presents a sophisticated evaluation and appreciation of the significance

and influence of contextual factors.

• Makes sophisticated links between texts and contexts.

Centre Number Candidate Number

Write your name here

Surname Other names

Total Marks

Paper Reference

Turn over

*S49777A0113*

S49777A

1/1/1/1/1/1/1

Instructions

• Use black ink or ball-point pen.

• Fill in the boxes at the top of this page with your name,

centre number and candidate number.

• Answer one question from Section A and one question from Section B

• Answer the questions in the spaces provided

– there may be more space than you need.

Information

• The total mark for this paper is 50.

• The marks for each question are shown in brackets

– use this as a guide as to how much time to spend on each question.

Advice

• Read each question carefully before you start to answer it.

• Check your answers if you have time at the end.

WET02/01

Sample Assessment Material for first teaching

September 2015

Time: 2 hours

English Literature

International Advanced Subsidiary

Unit 2: Drama

You must have:

Prescribed texts (clean copies)

Pearson Edexcel

International

Advanced Level

24 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Centre Number Candidate Number

Write your name here

Surname Other names

Total Marks

Paper Reference

Turn over

*S49777A0113*

S49777A

1/1/1/1/1/1/1

Instructions

• Use black ink or ball-point pen.

• Fill in the boxes at the top of this page with your name,

centre number and candidate number.

• Answer one question from Section A and one question from Section B

• Answer the questions in the spaces provided

– there may be more space than you need.

Information

• The total mark for this paper is 50.

• The marks for each question are shown in brackets

– use this as a guide as to how much time to spend on each question.

Advice

• Read each question carefully before you start to answer it.

• Check your answers if you have time at the end.

WET02/01

Sample Assessment Material for first teaching

September 2015

Time: 2 hours

English Literature

International Advanced Subsidiary

Unit 2: Drama

You must have:

Prescribed texts (clean copies)

Pearson Edexcel

International

Advanced Level

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49777A0213*

SECTION A: Pre-1900 Drama

Answer ONE question from this section on your chosen drama text.

Write your answers in the space provided.

The Rover – Aphra Behn

EITHER

1 ‘Restoration comedy is all about the game of love.’

In the light of this statement, explore Behn’s presentation of love in The Rover.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 1 = 25 marks)

2 ‘Angellica is presented as a victim of society and her character sits uneasily with the

light-heartedness of the play in general.’

In the light of this statement, explore Behn’s presentation of the character of

Angellica in The Rover.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 2 = 25 marks)

*S49777A0313* Turn over

She Stoops to Conquer – Oliver Goldsmith

EITHER

3 ‘It’s very clear that Goldsmith favours country life over the life of the town.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Goldsmith presents the contrast between

rural and urban life in She Stoops to Conquer.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 3 = 25 marks)

4 ‘There is an admirable sense of mutual respect between Kate and Mr Hardcastle.’

In the light of this statement, explore Goldsmith’s presentation of relationships

between parents and children in She Stoops to Conquer.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 4 = 25 marks)

26 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49777A0213*

SECTION A: Pre-1900 Drama

Answer ONE question from this section on your chosen drama text.

Write your answers in the space provided.

The Rover – Aphra Behn

EITHER

1 ‘Restoration comedy is all about the game of love.’

In the light of this statement, explore Behn’s presentation of love in The Rover.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 1 = 25 marks)

2 ‘Angellica is presented as a victim of society and her character sits uneasily with the

light-heartedness of the play in general.’

In the light of this statement, explore Behn’s presentation of the character of

Angellica in The Rover.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 2 = 25 marks)

*S49777A0313* Turn over

She Stoops to Conquer – Oliver Goldsmith

EITHER

3 ‘It’s very clear that Goldsmith favours country life over the life of the town.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Goldsmith presents the contrast between

rural and urban life in She Stoops to Conquer.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 3 = 25 marks)

4 ‘There is an admirable sense of mutual respect between Kate and Mr Hardcastle.’

In the light of this statement, explore Goldsmith’s presentation of relationships

between parents and children in She Stoops to Conquer.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 4 = 25 marks)

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49777A0413*

Twelfth Night – William Shakespeare

EITHER

5 ‘The play seems to be preoccupied by madness.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Shakespeare uses madness in

Twelfth Night.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 5 = 25 marks)

6 ‘For a festive comedy, this play is overly concerned with pain and suffering.’

In the light of this statement, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of suffering in

Twelfth Night.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 6 = 25 marks)

*S49777A0513* Turn over

Doctor Faustus – Christopher Marlowe

EITHER

7 ‘This dark play is at times surprisingly comic.’

In the light of this statement, explore Marlowe’s use of comic scenes in

Doctor Faustus.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 7 = 25 marks)

8 ‘There are moments in the play when Faustus could have changed his mind.’

In the light of this statement, explore Marlowe’s presentation of Faustus’s moral

dilemmas in Doctor Faustus.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 8 = 25 marks)

28 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49777A0413*

Twelfth Night – William Shakespeare

EITHER

5 ‘The play seems to be preoccupied by madness.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Shakespeare uses madness in

Twelfth Night.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 5 = 25 marks)

6 ‘For a festive comedy, this play is overly concerned with pain and suffering.’

In the light of this statement, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of suffering in

Twelfth Night.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 6 = 25 marks)

*S49777A0513* Turn over

Doctor Faustus – Christopher Marlowe

EITHER

7 ‘This dark play is at times surprisingly comic.’

In the light of this statement, explore Marlowe’s use of comic scenes in

Doctor Faustus.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 7 = 25 marks)

8 ‘There are moments in the play when Faustus could have changed his mind.’

In the light of this statement, explore Marlowe’s presentation of Faustus’s moral

dilemmas in Doctor Faustus.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 8 = 25 marks)

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49777A0613*

Othello – William Shakespeare

EITHER

9 ‘Othello never manages to reconcile his private and public roles.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Shakespeare presents the conflict between

private and public life in Othello.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 9 = 25 marks)

10 ‘Cunning manipulation is key to the tragedy in Othello.’

In the light of this statement, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of scheming and

plotting in Othello.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 10 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION A = 25 MARKS

*S49777A0713* Turn over

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in a box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 1 Question 2 Question 3

Question 4 Question 5 Question 6

Question 7 Question 8 Question 9

Question 10

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

30 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49777A0613*

Othello – William Shakespeare

EITHER

9 ‘Othello never manages to reconcile his private and public roles.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Shakespeare presents the conflict between

private and public life in Othello.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 9 = 25 marks)

10 ‘Cunning manipulation is key to the tragedy in Othello.’

In the light of this statement, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of scheming and

plotting in Othello.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 10 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION A = 25 MARKS

*S49777A0713* Turn over

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in a box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 1 Question 2 Question 3

Question 4 Question 5 Question 6

Question 7 Question 8 Question 9

Question 10

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49777A0813*

SECTION B: Post-1900 Drama

Answer ONE question from this section on your chosen drama text.

Write your answer in the space provided.

Top Girls – Caryl Churchill

EITHER

11 ‘There is a lot of discussion about what it means to be successful, but really this is a

play about failure.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Churchill exploits the contrasts between

success and failure in Top Girls.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 11 = 25 marks)

12 ‘Top Girls firmly places issues of motherhood at the heart of a woman’s struggle for

identity.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Churchill presents motherhood in

Top Girls.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 12 = 25 marks)

*S49777A0913* Turn over

A Raisin in the Sun – Lorraine Hansberry

EITHER

13 ‘A play where money is but an illusion and all it brings is nothing but dreams.’

In the light of this statement, explore Hansberry’s presentation of attitudes towards

money in A Raisin in the Sun.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 13 = 25 marks)

14 ‘The minor characters are just as important as the major characters.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Hansberry uses minor characters in

A Raisin in the Sun.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 14 = 25 marks)

32 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49777A0813*

SECTION B: Post-1900 Drama

Answer ONE question from this section on your chosen drama text.

Write your answer in the space provided.

Top Girls – Caryl Churchill

EITHER

11 ‘There is a lot of discussion about what it means to be successful, but really this is a

play about failure.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Churchill exploits the contrasts between

success and failure in Top Girls.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 11 = 25 marks)

12 ‘Top Girls firmly places issues of motherhood at the heart of a woman’s struggle for

identity.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Churchill presents motherhood in

Top Girls.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 12 = 25 marks)

*S49777A0913* Turn over

A Raisin in the Sun – Lorraine Hansberry

EITHER

13 ‘A play where money is but an illusion and all it brings is nothing but dreams.’

In the light of this statement, explore Hansberry’s presentation of attitudes towards

money in A Raisin in the Sun.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 13 = 25 marks)

14 ‘The minor characters are just as important as the major characters.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Hansberry uses minor characters in

A Raisin in the Sun.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 14 = 25 marks)

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49777A01013*

Death of a Salesman – Arthur Miller

EITHER

15 ‘This is a play about the failure of Willy as a father.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Miller presents relationships between

fathers and sons in Death of a Salesman.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 15 = 25 marks)

16 ‘This is a play that highlights the vulnerabilities of man.’

In the light of this statement, explore Miller’s presentation of human weakness in

Death of a Salesman.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 16 = 25 marks)

*S49777A01113* Turn over

A Streetcar Named Desire – Tennessee Williams

EITHER

17 ‘We shouldn’t be shocked by Stanley’s attitude to women and his violent behaviour;

he is just a product of his time.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Williams presents masculinity in A Streetcar

Named Desire.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 17 = 25 marks)

18 ‘Blanche’s tragedy is that she doesn’t belong anywhere and has no useful role to fulfil.’

In the light of this statement, explore Williams’ presentation of Blanche’s isolation in

A Streetcar Named Desire.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 18 = 25 marks)

34 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49777A01013*

Death of a Salesman – Arthur Miller

EITHER

15 ‘This is a play about the failure of Willy as a father.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Miller presents relationships between

fathers and sons in Death of a Salesman.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 15 = 25 marks)

16 ‘This is a play that highlights the vulnerabilities of man.’

In the light of this statement, explore Miller’s presentation of human weakness in

Death of a Salesman.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 16 = 25 marks)

*S49777A01113* Turn over

A Streetcar Named Desire – Tennessee Williams

EITHER

17 ‘We shouldn’t be shocked by Stanley’s attitude to women and his violent behaviour;

he is just a product of his time.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Williams presents masculinity in A Streetcar

Named Desire.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 17 = 25 marks)

18 ‘Blanche’s tragedy is that she doesn’t belong anywhere and has no useful role to fulfil.’

In the light of this statement, explore Williams’ presentation of Blanche’s isolation in

A Streetcar Named Desire.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 18 = 25 marks)

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

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*S49777A01213*

Waiting for Godot – Samuel Beckett

EITHER

19 ‘Vladimir and Estragon seem to be two hopeless men who do nothing but wait.’

In the light of this statement, explore Beckett’s presentation of hope and

hopelessness in Waiting for Godot.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 19 = 25 marks)

20 ‘Despite the awfulness of Vladimir and Estragon’s existence, we find ourselves

laughing as we watch the play.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Beckett uses comedy in Waiting for Godot.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 20 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION B = 25 MARKS

*S49777A01313* 13

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in a box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 11 Question 12 Question 13

Question 14 Question 15 Question 16

Question 17 Question 18 Question 19

Question 20

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

36 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

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*S49777A01213*

Waiting for Godot – Samuel Beckett

EITHER

19 ‘Vladimir and Estragon seem to be two hopeless men who do nothing but wait.’

In the light of this statement, explore Beckett’s presentation of hope and

hopelessness in Waiting for Godot.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 19 = 25 marks)

20 ‘Despite the awfulness of Vladimir and Estragon’s existence, we find ourselves

laughing as we watch the play.’

In the light of this statement, explore how Beckett uses comedy in Waiting for Godot.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 20 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION B = 25 MARKS

*S49777A01313* 13

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in a box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 11 Question 12 Question 13

Question 14 Question 15 Question 16

Question 17 Question 18 Question 19

Question 20

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

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38 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

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Unit 2: Drama – Mark Scheme

Section A: Pre-1900 Drama

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Rover

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• love and sexual intrigue as typical themes of Restoration comedy – and what

audiences would have expected

• play’s focus on marriage - often vilified in Restoration comedy, e.g. Willmore

opposes love and marriage, yet the play ends with three

• use of wit as a means of wooing, e.g. in the verbal sparring between Hellena (in

disguise) and Willmore, she ironically toys with him, calling sea captains

observers of their vows of chastity

• Behn’s handling of the theme of love reflects changing ideas about the role of

women in society

• how the play links love with social class, e.g. Frederick’s sudden suspicion that

her ownership of a diamond ring means she is ‘a Maid of Quality, when we only

believe we ruffle a Whore’

• Behn’s presentation of sexual love, e.g. her use of the carnival to allow characters

to adopt alternative modes of behaviour, e.g. Hellena, destined to become a nun,

adopts the role of a female rake and Angellica, the courtesan, falls in love

• how Behn presents Willmore’s view of love and how this was typical of the ‘rakish’

hero in Restoration drama, e.g. he cynically equates love with sex: ‘Death! Just

as I was going to be damnably in love, to have led her off! I could pluck that rose

out of his hand and even kiss the bed the bush grew in’.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Rover

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Angellica as a foil to other characters, e.g. the differences between Lucetta and

Angellica – for whom does the audience have most sympathy?

• relationship presented between Angellica and Hellena – ostensibly rivals but they

act together to attack Willmore’s character: ‘I am resolved to think on a

revenge/On him that soothed me thus to my undoing.’

• the idea that Angellica shows the ability to hold her own in debate with Willmore –

‘Pray tell me, Sir, are you not guilty of the same mercenary crime?’ and

consideration of how Behn wants the audience to react here

• Angellica as a powerful character and from where her power stems, e.g. the

freedom of courtesans in Restoration society

• Angellica's conversation with Moretta in IV.ii. and her switch to verse. Behn’s

exploration of the power of conversation in this play and the focus on wit as a

typical feature of Restoration drama

• argument that all the women in the play – irrespective of social class – are

objectified, e.g. Angellica’s first appearance is merely as a picture which is then

stolen: ‘Come, let’s be gone; I’m sure we’re no chapmen for this commodity’

• significance of the play’s ending and the fact that there is no happy outcome for

Angellica and what this might suggest about contemporary attitudes to women

and class.

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Question

Number

Indicative Content

She Stoops to Conquer

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• attitudes to town and country as represented by contrasting characters, e.g. Mr

and Mrs Hardcastle (‘I wonder why London cannot keep its fools at home…’);

Tony Lumpkin and Marlow

• theme of town v country as part of a series of dramatic contrasts used by

Goldsmith, e.g. youth v age; upper v lower class

• how the country is presented as ‘old-fashioned’ and the town as ‘modern’

• Goldsmith’s depiction of the country as triumphing over the town, e.g. Lumpkin

successfully tricks Hastings and Marlow

• ways some of the country characters are presented as comic or ridiculous, e.g.

Tony’s lack of learning, Mr Hardcastle’s old-fashioned dullness, Mrs Hardcastle’s

mercenary ambition, Diggory’s ignorance

• Goldsmith’s affection for the country as a reflection of late 18th century

literary/philosophical values

• the play as a response to the ‘comedy of manners’ and its focus on urban wit and

‘sophistication’

• Goldsmith’s use of Feather-bed lane and the final roundabout ride to suggest

changing contemporary society.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

She Stoops to Conquer

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• contemporary attitudes to marriage and how the play explores them, e.g. fathers

still selected their daughters’ husbands

• presentation of the relationship between Mr Hardcastle and Kate and the

compromises they reach, e.g. he insists on her wearing plain clothes in the

evening and she acquiesces

• presentation of the above with the relationship between Mrs Hardcastle and Tony

– she alternately indulges and bullies him – and this as a source of comedy

• parent-child relationships in the light of the play’s running theme of youth versus

age – perhaps reflecting a changing 18th century society

• presentation of Mrs Hardcastle’s tyranny over Constance Neville and its effect on

how the audience react to these characters

• contemporary nature/nurture debates about child-rearing, e.g. Locke v Rousseau;

and how the play exploits these

• presentation of the differing attitudes to Tony by Mr and Mrs Hardcastle and these

as a source of comedy and dramatic irony

• the play’s focus on children with absent parents, e.g. Constance Neville lives with

her aunt, Marlow has spent his youth in boarding schools, Kate Hardcastle has no

mother, whereas Tony Lumpkin has no father – and possible links to Goldsmith’s

own life.

40 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

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Question

Number

Indicative Content

Twelfth Night

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Orsino’s melancholic obsession and the context of Elizabethan attitudes to

melancholy

• Olivia’s excessive grief as a form of madness

• the wildness of Sir Toby and his companions, e.g. ‘What's a drunken man like,

fool? / 'Like a drowned man, a fool, and a madman…’

• links Shakespeare makes between madness and revelry in the context of

contemporary Twelfth Night celebrations and the Lord of Misrule

• Sir Andrew’s delusions as madness, e.g. ‘I was adored once too.‘ / the comic

impact of ‘the gull’

• Shakespeare’s use of madness and folly as themes, e.g. the role of Feste / the

‘wise’ Fool in Shakespearian drama

• Shakespeare’s use of Malvolio’s ‘madness’ and subsequent imprisonment as a

source of comedy (‘I extend my hand to him thus, quenching my familiar Smile

with an austere regard of control…’) / as a source of something darker (‘I’ll be

revenged on the whole pack of you.’).

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Twelfth Night

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• the idea that love is an affliction, e.g. ‘Even so quickly may one catch the plague?’

– and how this might reflect contemporary literary approaches to love

• Orsino’s suffering for love as a source of melodrama and Shakespeare’s

manipulation of comedy

• Malvolio’s Puritanical stoicism (‘respect of place, / persons, [and] time,’) as a form

of self-inflicted suffering

• Shakespeare’s use of Viola’s suffering (loss of her brother / unrequited love for

Orsino) as a counterpoint to the emotional extremes of Orsino and Olivia / Viola

as an enduringly popular character with audiences

• Shakespeare’s use of Olivia’s grief as a source of humour - her tears are

compared to a ‘brine’ that ‘seasons’ her ‘brother's dead love’

• the shaming of Malvolio – too dark for a comedy? – ‘… made the most notorious

geek and gull / That e'er invention played on? Tell me why?’

• reflection on the play’s ‘happy’ ending? – ‘He hath been most notoriously abused’

– and how this sits with notions of festive comedy.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

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Question

Number

Indicative Content

Doctor Faustus

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• how the comic scenes develop, or comment on, the themes of the play

• the presentation of the baseness of Faustus’s ambitions highlighted by Robin’s

plan: ‘now will I make all the maidens in our parish dance at my pleasure stark

naked before me.’

• reference to the Commedia dell’arte tradition and its influence on Marlowe’s

approach

• how the comic scenes contribute to a critique of the Catholic church, e.g. the

scene with the vintner and the goblet

• comic characters, e.g. Robin, Rafe and Vintner as stock characters of

Elizabethan theatre

• comic scenes are used to foreground Faustus’s weaknesses, e.g. Wagner says

Robin is so poor that ‘he would give his soul to the devil for a shoulder of mutton,

though it were blood raw.’

• juxtaposition of comic and tragic scenes – fulfilling the expectations of an

Elizabethan audience.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Doctor Faustus

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• warnings Mephistopheles / Mephastophilis gives Faustus before he signs his pact

with the devil, foreshadowing Faustus’s fate

• the description of Hell and the Fall of Lucifer by Mephistopheles / Mephastophilis

– the dramatic use of language; foreshadowing Faustus’s fate

• dramatic and comic effect of the tricks by Mephistopheles / Mephastophilis to

distract Faustus from changing his mind, e.g. appearance of Helen of Troy

• dramatic device of the Good and Bad Angel to depict Faustus’s struggle to repent

– an internal conflict externalised

• dramatic techniques Marlowe uses to create suspense, e.g. final soliloquy and

Faustus’s desire that ‘time may cease, and midnight never come’ despite the

relentless passage of time and striking of midnight

• religious and political debates at the time the play was written, e.g. the Protestant

Reformation

• traditional depiction of temptation and evil in morality plays.

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Question

Number

Indicative Content

Othello

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Othello the soldier as opposed to Othello the lover; the nature of security and

insecurity in the play

• how Othello is respected in Venice, e.g. his response to Brabantio's anger

• the language used by Othello at the beginning of the play with its imagery and

poetry, e.g. Act 1 Scene 3 in contrast to, e.g. the language of Act 3 Scene 3

• the shift in Othello’s character from greatness to embittered and jealous and the

final acknowledgement of his mistakes and his suicide

• the role of Desdemona and how she draws out his ability to love - and yet publicly

hits her

• the presentation of Iago’s and Cassio’s public and private roles

• the backdrop of the wars between Venice and Turkey in the latter part of the 16th

century

• contemporary attitudes towards non-Europeans.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Othello

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• the presentation of Iago’s scheming, e.g. in relation to Cassio and Montano’s

views of him

• the extent to which Shakespeare presents Othello as being responsible for his

own downfall

• the role of power and control in both Iago and Othello; their response to

manipulation and the extent to which all characters can be argued to be victims of

manipulation

• the language used in the play; Iago's persuasive speeches and his rhetoric in

emphasising Othello’s vulnerabilities

• exploration of race and class issues and the degree to which they are exploited

by Iago

• the range of characters who lack self-knowledge and therefore become 'victims'

of Iago's 'honesty'

• social/political backdrop of the wars between Venice and Turkey in the latter part

of the 16th century and the implications for trust/mistrust

• Elizabethan belief that appearance reflects the inner life, e.g. good/evil and the

misinterpretation by the audience because Iago looks honest.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

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Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO3 = bullet

point 3, 4

AO5 = bullet

point 5

No rewardable material.

Level 1

1–5

Descriptive

• Makes little reference to texts with limited organisation of ideas. Limited

use of appropriate concepts and terminology with frequent errors and

lapses of expression.

• Uses a narrative or descriptive approach that shows limited knowledge of

texts and how meanings are shaped in texts. Shows a lack of

understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Shows limited awareness of contextual factors.

• Shows limited awareness of links between texts and contexts.

• Shows limited awareness of different interpretations and alternative

readings of texts. Limited linking of different interpretations to own

response.

Level 2

6–10

General understanding/exploration

• Makes general points, identifying some literary techniques with general

explanation of effects. Aware of some appropriate concepts and

terminology. Organises and expresses ideas with clarity, although still

has errors and lapses.

• Gives surface readings of texts relating to how meanings are shaped in

texts. Shows general understanding by commenting on straightforward

elements of the writer’s craft.

• Has general awareness of the significance and influence of contextual

factors.

• Makes general links between texts and contexts.

• Offers straightforward explanations of different interpretations and

alternative readings of texts. Some support of own ideas given with

reference to generic different interpretations.

Level 3

11–15

Clear relevant application/exploration

• Offers a clear response using relevant textual examples. Relevant use of

terminology and concepts. Creates a logical, clear structure with few

errors and lapses in expression.

• Demonstrates knowledge of how meanings are shaped in texts with

consistent analysis. Shows clear understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Demonstrates a clear exploration of the significance and influence of

contextual factors.

• Develops relevant links between texts and contexts.

• Offers clear understanding of different interpretations and alternative

readings of texts. Explores different interpretations in support or contrast

to own argument.

44 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

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Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO3 = bullet

point 3, 4

AO5 = bullet

point 5

Level 4

16–20

Discriminating controlled application/exploration

• Constructs a controlled argument with fluently embedded examples.

Discriminating use of concepts and terminology. Controls structures with

precise cohesive transitions and carefully chosen language.

• Demonstrates discriminating understanding of how meanings are shaped

in texts. Analyses, in a controlled way, the nuances and subtleties of the

writer’s craft.

• Provides a discriminating analysis of the significance and influence of

contextual factors.

• Makes detailed links between texts and contexts.

• Produces a developed exploration of different interpretations and

alternative readings of texts. Discussion is controlled and offers

integrated exploration of different interpretations in development of own

critical position.

Level 5

21–25

Critical and evaluative

• Presents a critical evaluative argument with sustained textual examples.

Evaluates the effects of literary features with sophisticated use of

concepts and terminology. Uses sophisticated structure and expression.

• Exhibits a critical evaluation of the ways meanings are shaped in texts.

Displays a sophisticated understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Presents a sophisticated evaluation and appreciation of the significance

and influence of contextual factors.

• Makes sophisticated links between texts and contexts.

• Applies a sustained evaluation of different interpretations and alternative

readings of texts. This is supported by sophisticated use of application of

alternative interpretations to illuminate own critical position.

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Section B: Post-1900 Drama

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Top Girls

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• success shown to be at the cost of family and friendship, e.g. Marlene’s dinner

party companions are not contemporaries / she has given up her daughter for her

career

• the idea that women with ambition must fight to transcend the restrictions of their

sex and, often, their class and ‘pass as’ men, e.g. Louise

• the fact that all of Marlene’s dinner guests had to make significant personal

sacrifices in order to live outside of the societal norms – ‘Oh God, why are we all

so miserable?’

• Marlene and Joyce as extreme opposites – yet by Act 3 neither is fulfilled

• the play’s ending – Angie’s vulnerability is highlighted starkly and her future looks

determined by her poverty and lack of education; her own mother seems content

to consign her to the scrapheap

• Churchill's use of a disruptive dramatic structure – making the audience reflect on

ideas of success and failure

• contextual factors of relevance might include new ideas of female success and

legitimate aspirations following the feminist revolutions of the 1960s and 70s; the

elevation of Margaret Thatcher to become Britain’s first female Prime Minister; the

critical reception of the play on its first performance and on subsequent

productions; the critical interpretation of the play as a significant and successful

intervention in feminist literature.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Top Girls

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• the stories the characters share in the opening scene – not positive accounts of

motherhood, e.g. Lady Nijo was forced to give up her daughter / Griselda only is

reunited with children in return for unconditional obedience

• Churchill’s use of the flashback device for dramatic effect of final revelatory scene

where audience finds out that Marlene is Angie’s mother

• the debate between Joyce and Marlene about having both a successful career

and a fulfilling motherhood

• the issues around women’s fertility, e.g. ‘... I’ve been on the pill so long I’m

probably sterile’; Joyce wants children, but has miscarried; Marlene has had

abortions – how Churchill uses this parallel as a comment on the restrictions on

women’s choices

• the theme of absent fathers throughout the play, e.g. Marlene and Joyce’s father;

Angie’s unnamed, unmentioned biological father, as well as her adopted father,

Joyce’s ex-husband

• contextual factors of relevance might include contemporary feminist debates

about women’s maternal roles; the new opportunities available to women since

the feminist revolutions of the 1960s and 70s; the critical reception of the play on

its first performance and on subsequent productions; the critical interpretation of

the play as a significant contribution to feminist literature and culture.

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Question

Number

Indicative Content

A Raisin in the Sun

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• the presentation of what money represents to various characters and their different

attitudes to it

• the ways in which Hansberry shows the relative wealth of the characters, e.g. Mrs

Holiday’s kitchen / the Arnold’s estate

• how characters appear and what their clothing might symbolise, e.g. George

Murchison’s white shoes / Asagai’s Nigerian robes

• how Hansberry develops her characterisation of the Younger family through their

acquaintances to reveal that money and materialism alone are worthless, e.g. their

refusal of Karl Lindner’s offer

• the impact the arrival of the insurance cheque has on different characters, e.g. the

different choices they make: liquor store, abortion – and how Hansberry uses these

differences to develop the play’s themes

• how characters change in attitude as the play progresses, e.g. Walter: ‘We have

decided to move into our home because my father—my father—he earned it for us

brick by brick’

• contextual factors of relevance might include information about the status of African-

Americans in 1950s America and Chicago specifically; American ideologies

surrounding capitalism, personal responsibility and property ownership; the critical

reception of the play on its first performance and on subsequent productions; the

interpretation of the play as a significant development in African-American theatre

history and in the genre of naturalistic theatre.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

A Raisin in the Sun

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Hansberry’s use of minor characters to illuminate her themes, e.g. issues of gender

and power are illustrated by the various men who interact with Beneatha – ‘…If you

so crazy 'bout messing 'round with sick people – then go be a nurse like other

women…’

• Travis as a representative of the next generation of the Younger family – ‘No. Travis,

you stay right here. And you make him understand what you doing, Walter Lee’

• Mr Lindner as a satirical representative of contemporary, pervasive racism, e.g. ‘…

And we also have the category of what the association calls – uh – the special

community problems’

• George Murchison’s function in developing Beneatha’s character, e.g. her attitudes

to wealth – ‘Well – what other qualities a man got to have to satisfy you, little girl?’

• the role Mrs Johnson plays in illuminating the racial tensions prevalent in

contemporary Chicago – ‘Lord, getting so you think you right down in Mississippi!’

• how Hansberry uses Asagai to introduce a different political philosophy, i.e. one that

runs counter to the Western perception of success at any cost, but also to highlight

some of the ideological problems with pan-Africanist theories of racial identity

• further contextual factors of relevance might include the critical reception of the play

on its first performance and on subsequent productions; the critical interpretation of

the play as a significant development in African-American theatre history and in the

genre of naturalistic theatre.

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Question

Number

Indicative Content

Death of a Salesman

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• presentation of the relationship between Willy and his own father; abandonment;

contrast between Willy and Charley as father

• Miller’s development of the relationship between Biff and Willy – misunderstanding

between them, unresolved to the end of the play, despite Biff’s attempts to tell the

truth

• relationship with Happy – similarities between father and son – irony of Happy’s

future turning out to be like that of his father

• Willy’s inability to understand what his sons need from him, i.e. love and acceptance

• Willy’s attitude to stealing and the consequences of stealing for Biff; the need for Biff

to get away from Willy in the end to become himself and grow up

• the significance of Willy’s death and its meaning for him and his sons

• contextual factors of relevance might include evolving models of masculinity, and

family values, in the aftermath of WWII; Miller’s father’s own experience of economic

struggle; the critical reception of the play on its first performance and on subsequent

productions; the critical interpretation of the play as a significant contribution to the

genre of tragedy and as social commentary on America.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Death of a Salesman

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Willy’s lack of self-awareness and inability to communicate with and relate to his

sons, especially Biff

• Millers’ presentation of Biff and Happy’s weaknesses

• Linda’s powerlessness in the face of Willy’s weakness

• dramatic device of reminiscence and day dreaming which enables the audience to

learn about Willy’s early life and relationships

• role of flashbacks; Willy as an unreliable narrator

• Willy’s state of mind – signs of breakdown or daydreaming and how this elicits

sympathy or repulsion in the audience

• contextual factors of relevance might include a consideration of how the play

conforms to the genre of tragedy in the presentation of Willy’s fatal flaws; the notion,

in modern tragedy, that society and the economy function like the gods in Classical

Tragedy, leaving men vulnerable to fate or chance; the critical reception of the play

on its first performance and on subsequent productions; the critical interpretation of

the play as a significant contribution to the genre of tragedy and as social

commentary on America.

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Question

Number

Indicative Content

A Streetcar Named Desire

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• the ways in which Williams establishes Stanley’s violent nature , both in a

physical and in a psychological sense, especially towards Blanche but to Stella

also

• Stanley’s self-belief and confidence, e.g. status as head of his home, place in

society, pride in his physicality, in contrast to Blanche’s dead husband

• Stanley’s treatment of Stella – contrast with Blanche, but similar lack of respect

for her as he shows to Blanche; Stanley’s lack of remorse at his treatment of

Blanche

• the ways in which Williams depicts Stanley as physically strong and sexually

attractive to Stella and perhaps to Blanche

• similarities and differences between Stanley and Mitch, and the use of Stanley’s

bowling friends to comment on typical patterns of male behaviour

• Stanley’s view of Mitch which adds to dramatic complexity, questioning his

authenticity and casting doubt on his intentions regarding Blanche

• contextual contexts of relevance include mid-twentieth models and ideals of

masculinity in post WWII America; the status of immigrant men in America at this

time; attitudes to sexuality, including prejudice against homosexuality, in Williams’

society; the critical reception of the play on its first performance and on

subsequent productions; the critical interpretation of the play as a significant

contribution to the genre of tragedy and as social commentary on America.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

A Streetcar Named Desire

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Williams’ presentation of Blanche’s language and cultural attitudes in contrast to

those of Stanley and Stella, highlighting that she doesn’t belong

• irony of Blanche’s nostalgia for her lost home and past cruelly revealed as fantasy

by Stanley; irony of finding herself in ‘Elysian Fields’; contrast between her hopes

and the reality of her situation

• Williams’ presentation of the way in which the sisters adapt to their new lives

• Blanche as dramatic representation of the end of a way of life which leaves white,

privileged women without status or role

• dramatic effect of metaphors of shaded and uncovered lights to illustrate

Blanche’s need for secrecy and illusion

• Blanche’s depiction as a sexual object and her degrading treatment by Stanley

and Mitch

• ambiguous attitudes to status and role of privileged, white women who are put on

a pedestal and seen as decorative rather than useful

• contextual factors of relevance might include the genre of tragedy and the

relationship of this play to classical and modern examples; the role and status of

women in mid-twentieth-century America; the critical reception of the play on its

first performance and on subsequent productions; the critical interpretation of the

play as a significant contribution to the genre of tragedy and as social

commentary on America.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

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Question

Number

Indicative Content

Waiting for Godot

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• references to going, followed by inaction and waiting; tension and disparity

between words and action also illustrated in names Didi and Gogo

• dependence on each other which holds them back, but also demonstrates human

companionship, care, protection and loyalty

• changes between Act 1 and Act 2, e.g. tree has leaves, blindness of Pozzo;

symbols can be interpreted as signs of hope or hopelessness

• attempts to hang themselves – which rather than ending in tragedy become

farcical and humorous

• theatrical devices to demonstrate both the passage of time and uncertainty

regarding the passage of time

• desire of the characters to be known, but the uncertainty about their identity and

even existence, e.g. Estragon’s forgetfulness; Vladimir’s attempts to construct a

sense of continuity; finding Lucky’s hat

• timeless setting – absurdist device, reductive, non-specific; all time and no time

• contextual factors of relevance might include Beckett’s interest in existentialism;

social and cultural reactions to the end of WWII; the critical reception of the play

on its first performance and on subsequent productions; the critical interpretation

of the play as a significant contribution to the genre of absurdism.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Waiting for Godot

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• use of clothing and physical attributes to comic effect; techniques drawn from

vaudeville theatre

• ways in which Vladimir and Estragon are distinct and separate characters but

also similar and interchangeable. Beckett’s use of pairs in the play and links to

comedy duos in theatre and film

• Beckett’s use of slapstick and complex physical comedy

• ways they pass the time, e.g. the comic business with passing the hats

• repetition as a comic device, e.g. greeting each other at the start of the day in

each act in the style of a grand reunion; the business of Vladimir rummaging in

his pockets for food

• absurd presentation of Pozzo and Lucky which gives rise to uncomfortable

feelings both in Vladimir and Estragon and the audience: are they funny or

threatening?

• contextual factors of relevance might include Beckett’s interest in existentialism

and absurdism and the comic devices of bathos, excessive repetition and

misprision; convention of the comedy duo in silent film, such as Laurel and Hardy

as an influence; the critical reception of the play on its first performance and on

subsequent productions; the critical interpretation of the play as a significant

contribution to the genre of absurdism.

50 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO3 = bullet

point 3, 4

AO5 = bullet

point 5

No rewardable material.

Level 1

1 – 5

Descriptive

• Makes little reference to texts with limited organisation of ideas. Limited

use of appropriate concepts and terminology with frequent errors and

lapses of expression.

• Uses a narrative or descriptive approach that shows limited knowledge of

texts and how meanings are shaped in texts. Shows a lack of

understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Shows limited awareness of contextual factors.

• Shows limited awareness of links between texts and contexts.

• Shows limited awareness of different interpretations and alternative

readings of texts. Limited linking of different interpretations to own

response.

Level 2

6–10

General understanding/exploration

• Makes general points, identifying some literary techniques with general

explanation of effects. Aware of some appropriate concepts and

terminology. Organises and expresses ideas with clarity, although still

has errors and lapses.

• Gives surface readings of texts relating to how meanings are shaped in

texts. Shows general understanding by commenting on straightforward

elements of the writer’s craft.

• Has general awareness of the significance and influence of contextual

factors.

• Makes general links between texts and contexts.

• Offers straightforward explanations of different interpretations and

alternative readings of texts. Some support of own ideas given with

reference to generic different interpretations.

Level 3

11–15

Clear relevant application/exploration

• Offers a clear response using relevant textual examples. Relevant use of

terminology and concepts. Creates a logical, clear structure with few

errors and lapses in expression.

• Demonstrates knowledge of how meanings are shaped in texts with

consistent analysis. Shows clear understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Demonstrates a clear exploration of the significance and influence of

contextual factors.

• Develops relevant links between texts and contexts.

• Offers clear understanding of different interpretations and alternative

readings of texts. Explores different interpretations in support or contrast

to own argument.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO3 = bullet

point 3, 4

AO5 = bullet

point 5

Level 4

16–20

Discriminating controlled application/exploration

• Constructs a controlled argument with fluently embedded examples.

Discriminating use of concepts and terminology. Controls structures with

precise cohesive transitions and carefully chosen language.

• Demonstrates discriminating understanding of how meanings are shaped

in texts. Analyses, in a controlled way, the nuances and subtleties of the

writer’s craft.

• Provides a discriminating analysis of the significance and influence of

contextual factors.

• Makes detailed links between texts and contexts.

• Produces a developed exploration of different interpretations and

alternative readings of texts. Discussion is controlled and offers

integrated exploration of different interpretations in development of own

critical position.

Level 5

21–25

Critical and evaluative

• Presents a critical evaluative argument with sustained textual examples.

Evaluates the effects of literary features with sophisticated use of

concepts and terminology. Uses sophisticated structure and expression.

• Exhibits a critical evaluation of the ways meanings are shaped in texts.

Displays a sophisticated understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Presents a sophisticated evaluation and appreciation of the significance

and influence of contextual factors.

• Makes sophisticated links between texts and contexts.

• Applies a sustained evaluation of different interpretations and alternative

readings of texts. This is supported by sophisticated use of application of

alternative interpretations to illuminate own critical position.

You must have:

Source booklet (enclosed)

Prescribed texts (clean copies)

Instructions

• Use black ink or ball-point pen.

• Fill in the boxes at the top of this page with your name,

centre number and candidate number.

• Answer one question from Section A and one question from Section B

• Answer the questions in the spaces provided

– there may be more space than you need.

Information

• The total mark for this paper is 50.

• The marks for each question are shown in brackets

– use this as a guide as to how much time to spend on each question.

Advice

• Read each question carefully before you start to answer it.

• Check your answers if you have time at the end.

English Literature

International Advanced Level

Unit 3: Poetry and Prose

Centre Number Candidate Number

Write your name here

Surname Other names

Total Marks

WET03/01

Paper Reference

Sample Assessment Material for first teaching

September 2015

Time: 2 hours

S49778A

1/1/1/1/1

*S49778A0109* Turn over

Pearson Edexcel

International

Advanced Level

52 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

You must have:

Source booklet (enclosed)

Prescribed texts (clean copies)

Instructions

• Use black ink or ball-point pen.

• Fill in the boxes at the top of this page with your name,

centre number and candidate number.

• Answer one question from Section A and one question from Section B

• Answer the questions in the spaces provided

– there may be more space than you need.

Information

• The total mark for this paper is 50.

• The marks for each question are shown in brackets

– use this as a guide as to how much time to spend on each question.

Advice

• Read each question carefully before you start to answer it.

• Check your answers if you have time at the end.

English Literature

International Advanced Level

Unit 3: Poetry and Prose

Centre Number Candidate Number

Write your name here

Surname Other names

Total Marks

WET03/01

Paper Reference

Sample Assessment Material for first teaching

September 2015

Time: 2 hours

S49778A

1/1/1/1/1

*S49778A0109* Turn over

Pearson Edexcel

International

Advanced Level

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49778A0209*

SECTION A: Post-1900 Unseen Poetry

Read the poem on page 2 of the Source Booklet.

Write your answer in the space provided.

1 Write a commentary on the poem The Burning Truck by Les Murray on page 2 of the

Source Booklet.

In your answer, you should consider:

· the poet’s development of themes

· the poet’s use of language and imagery

· the use of other poetic techniques.

(20)

*S49778A0309* Turn over

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

(Total for Question 1 = 20 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION A = 20 MARKS

54 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49778A0209*

SECTION A: Post-1900 Unseen Poetry

Read the poem on page 2 of the Source Booklet.

Write your answer in the space provided.

1 Write a commentary on the poem The Burning Truck by Les Murray on page 2 of the

Source Booklet.

In your answer, you should consider:

· the poet’s development of themes

· the poet’s use of language and imagery

· the use of other poetic techniques.

(20)

*S49778A0309* Turn over

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

(Total for Question 1 = 20 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION A = 20 MARKS

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49778A0409*

SECTION B: Prose

Answer ONE question on the texts you have studied.

Write your answer in the space provided.

Growing Up

Set texts:

What Maisie Knew – Henry James

Great Expectations – Charles Dickens

The Color Purple – Alice Walker

2 Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts present the

discovery of truth.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 2 = 30 marks)

3 Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts use narrative point

of view.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 3 = 30 marks)

*S49778A0509* Turn over

Colonisation and After

Set texts:

Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad

The Lonely Londoners – Sam Selvon

A Passage to India – E M Forster

4 Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts make use of

different voices.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 4 = 30 marks)

5 Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts present illusion.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 5 = 30 marks)

56 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49778A0409*

SECTION B: Prose

Answer ONE question on the texts you have studied.

Write your answer in the space provided.

Growing Up

Set texts:

What Maisie Knew – Henry James

Great Expectations – Charles Dickens

The Color Purple – Alice Walker

2 Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts present the

discovery of truth.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 2 = 30 marks)

3 Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts use narrative point

of view.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 3 = 30 marks)

*S49778A0509* Turn over

Colonisation and After

Set texts:

Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad

The Lonely Londoners – Sam Selvon

A Passage to India – E M Forster

4 Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts make use of

different voices.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 4 = 30 marks)

5 Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts present illusion.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 5 = 30 marks)

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49778A0609*

Science and Society

Set texts:

Never Let Me Go – Kazuo Ishiguro

The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood

Frankenstein – Mary Shelley

6 Compare the ways the writers of your two chosen texts present the dangers of the

misuse of science.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 6 = 30 marks)

7 Compare the ways the writers of your two chosen texts attempt to make their stories

believable.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 7 = 30 marks)

*S49778A0709* Turn over

Women and Society

Set texts:

Wuthering Heights – Emily Brontë

Mrs Dalloway – Virginia Woolf

Beloved – Toni Morrison

8 Compare the ways the writers of your two chosen texts present women who are

constrained by their environments.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 8 = 30 marks)

9 Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts portray men’s

relationships with women.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 9 = 30 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION B = 30 MARKS

58 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49778A0609*

Science and Society

Set texts:

Never Let Me Go – Kazuo Ishiguro

The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood

Frankenstein – Mary Shelley

6 Compare the ways the writers of your two chosen texts present the dangers of the

misuse of science.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 6 = 30 marks)

7 Compare the ways the writers of your two chosen texts attempt to make their stories

believable.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 7 = 30 marks)

*S49778A0709* Turn over

Women and Society

Set texts:

Wuthering Heights – Emily Brontë

Mrs Dalloway – Virginia Woolf

Beloved – Toni Morrison

8 Compare the ways the writers of your two chosen texts present women who are

constrained by their environments.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 8 = 30 marks)

9 Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts portray men’s

relationships with women.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 9 = 30 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION B = 30 MARKS

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49778A0809*

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in a box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 2 Question 3 Question 4

Question 5 Question 6 Question 7

Question 8 Question 9

*S49776A0909* 9

[The live question paper will contain twelve more pages of answer lines.]

60 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49778A0809*

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in a box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 2 Question 3 Question 4

Question 5 Question 6 Question 7

Question 8 Question 9

*S49776A0909* 9

[The live question paper will contain twelve more pages of answer lines.]

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Do not return this Source Booklet with the question paper.

Paper Reference

Pearson Edexcel

International Advanced Level

Turn over

*S49778A*

S49778A

1/1/1/1/1

WET03/01

Sample Assessment Material for first teaching

September 2015

Source Booklet

English Literature

International Advanced Level

Unit 3: Poetry and Prose

62 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Do not return this Source Booklet with the question paper.

Paper Reference

Pearson Edexcel

International Advanced Level

Turn over

*S49778A*

S49778A

1/1/1/1/1

WET03/01

Sample Assessment Material for first teaching

September 2015

Source Booklet

English Literature

International Advanced Level

Unit 3: Poetry and Prose

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

2S49778A

Section A: Post-1900 Unseen Poetry

Question 1

The Burning Truck

It began at dawn with fighter planes:

they came in off the sea and didn’t rise,

they leaped the sandbar one and one and one

coming so fast the crockery they shook down

off my kitchen shelves was spinning in the air

when they were gone.

They came in off the sea and drew a wave

of lagging cannon-shells across our roofs.

Windows spat glass, a truck took sudden fire,

out leaped the driver, but the truck ran on,

growing enormous, shambling by our street-doors,

coming and coming …

By every right in town, by every average

we knew of in the world, it had to stop,

fetched up against a building, fall to rubble

from pure force of burning, for its whole

body and substance were consumed with heat

but it would not stop.

And all of us who knew our place and prayers

clutched our verandah-rails and window-sills,

begging that truck between our teeth to halt,

keep going, vanish, strike … but set us free.

And then we saw the wild boys of the street

go running after it.

And as they followed, cheering, on it crept,

windshield melting now, canopy-frame a cage

torn by gorillas of flame, and it kept on

over the tramlines, past the church, on past

the last lit windows, and then out of the world

with its disciples.

Les Murray

Taken from: New Selected Poems, Les Murray, Carcanet Press Ltd, 2012

64 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

2S49778A

Section A: Post-1900 Unseen Poetry

Question 1

The Burning Truck

It began at dawn with fighter planes:

they came in off the sea and didn’t rise,

they leaped the sandbar one and one and one

coming so fast the crockery they shook down

off my kitchen shelves was spinning in the air

when they were gone.

They came in off the sea and drew a wave

of lagging cannon-shells across our roofs.

Windows spat glass, a truck took sudden fire,

out leaped the driver, but the truck ran on,

growing enormous, shambling by our street-doors,

coming and coming …

By every right in town, by every average

we knew of in the world, it had to stop,

fetched up against a building, fall to rubble

from pure force of burning, for its whole

body and substance were consumed with heat

but it would not stop.

And all of us who knew our place and prayers

clutched our verandah-rails and window-sills,

begging that truck between our teeth to halt,

keep going, vanish, strike … but set us free.

And then we saw the wild boys of the street

go running after it.

And as they followed, cheering, on it crept,

windshield melting now, canopy-frame a cage

torn by gorillas of flame, and it kept on

over the tramlines, past the church, on past

the last lit windows, and then out of the world

with its disciples.

Les Murray

Taken from: New Selected Poems, Les Murray, Carcanet Press Ltd, 2012

Unit 3: Poetry and Prose – Mark Scheme

Section A: Post-1900 Unseen Poetry

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Burning Truck by Les Murray

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• the basic narrative movement: the bombing raid, the effect on the persona’s

house, the explosion and career of the truck, the emergence of the ‘wild boys’,

the disappearance of the truck

• the evocation of the power and chaos of war and violence, e.g. through the

crockery, the consumption of the truck by fire, the apparently unstoppable

progress of the truck through the town

• the identity of the ‘wild boys’ and the implicit contrast between them and the

persona, e.g. the significance of ‘disciples’

• interpretations of the thematic significance of the disappearance of the truck at

the end of the poem

• the ways in which the regular stanzaic structure sustains and develops the

narrative momentum of the action

• the use of verbs for various purposes, e.g. to embody continuous action

(‘growing…shambling…coming’); to indicate the desperation of the residents

(‘clutched…begging’)

• the use of repetition (‘one and one and one’, ‘past…past’) to give inevitability and

coherence to the action

• the implications of metaphor (‘a cage/torn by gorillas of flame’); the extended

metaphor of the truck itself

• the use of concrete everyday details, e.g. ‘verandah-rails…window-

sills…tramlines…church…lit windows’.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet point 1, 2

AO2 = bullet point 3, 4

No rewardable material.

Level 1

1–4

Descriptive

• Makes little reference to texts with limited organisation of ideas.

• Limited use of appropriate concepts and terminology with frequent errors

and lapses of expression.

• Uses a narrative or descriptive approach that shows limited knowledge of

texts and how meanings are shaped in texts.

• Shows a lack of understanding of the writer’s craft.

Level 2

5– 8

General understanding/exploration

• Makes general points, identifying some literary techniques with general

explanation of effects.

• Aware of some appropriate concepts and terminology. Organises and

expresses ideas with clarity, although still has errors and lapses.

• Gives surface readings of texts relating to how meanings are shaped in

texts.

• Shows general understanding by commenting on straightforward

elements of the writer’s craft.

Level 3

9–12

Clear relevant application/exploration

• Offers a clear response using relevant textual examples.

• Relevant use of terminology and concepts. Creates a logical, clear

structure with few errors and lapses in expression.

• Demonstrates knowledge of how meanings are shaped in texts with

consistent analysis.

• Shows clear understanding of the writer’s craft.

Level 4

13–16

Discriminating controlled application/exploration

• Constructs a controlled argument with fluently embedded examples.

• Discriminating use of concepts and terminology. Controls structures with

precise cohesive transitions and carefully chosen language.

• Demonstrates discriminating understanding of how meanings are shaped

in texts.

• Analyses, in a controlled way, the nuances and subtleties of the writer’s

craft.

Level 5

17–20

Critical and evaluative

• Presents a critical evaluative argument with sustained textual examples.

• Evaluates the effects of literary features with sophisticated use of

concepts and terminology. Uses sophisticated structure and expression.

• Exhibits a critical evaluation of the ways meanings are shaped in texts.

• Displays a sophisticated understanding of the writer’s craft.

66 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Section B: Prose

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Growing Up

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• how writers present discovering truth as a central part of growing up, e.g. Pip,

Celie and Maisie all develop as a result of the discovery of truth

• how writers explore secrecy and lies as aspects of the adult world, e.g. all of the

writers show how the subterfuge of adults is part of a morally corrupt society

• comparison of the narrative methods writers use to present moments when a

truth is discovered, e.g. Dickens’ presentation of Pip’s realisation of who his

benefactor is through the voice of the older Pip; James’ use of free indirect style

to show moments when Maisie realises that Sir Claude is not telling her the truth;

Walker’s use of epistolary narrative to present Nettie’s discovery that Olivia and

Adam are Celie’s children

• comparison of how writers use discovery of truth to create drama, e.g. the

episode when Shug and Celie find Nettie’s letters; the return of Magwitch and his

revelation; it could be argued that Maisie’s realisations are more important for

their psychological insights than for dramatic effect

• how writers present the effects on characters of the discovery of a truth, e.g.

discoveries by Nettie, Celie and Pip tend to have sudden and drastic effects while

with Maisie the effects are a more gradual process of maturity

• how writers link the discovered truths to their social contexts, e.g. James’

treatment of divorce and adultery in a society where the appearance of

respectability was so important; Dickens’ treatment of social class through the

revelation of Estella’s origins; Walker’s use of discovered truths to highlight

racism and abusive patriarchy.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Growing Up

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• comparison of how writers use point of view to gain readers’ sympathy, e.g. for

Celie, Nettie, Maisie and Pip

• use of a dual point of view, e.g. James’ merging of his worldly narrator with

Maisie’s point of view; Dickens’ use of the adult Pip reflecting on his younger self;

Walker’s use of Celie’s and Nettie’s narratives to widen the scope of the novel

• writers’ use of point of view to present characters, e.g. James’ presentation of the

adults through a mixture of Maisie’s view and the omniscient narrator compared

with Dickens’ and Walker’s presentation of the subjective views of their character-

narrators

• writers’ use of point of view to trace the development of the central characters,

e.g. Dickens and Walker adopt a bildungsroman approach with Pip and Celie

where we can see significant change as they grow from child to adult; Maisie’s

increasing maturity through her developing understanding of the adults

• use of point of view to describe moments of drama, e.g. Celie’s reunion with

Nettie, Pip’s account of the chase and fight on the river; Maisie’s choice

• comparison of how writers use point of view to convey social themes, e.g.

Maisie’s innocence is used to highlight the damage done by adultery and divorce;

Pip’s subjective narrative portrays a class-ridden society; Walker uses Celie and

Nettie to expose sexual abuse and racism.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Colonisation and After

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• comparison of how writers use voices to convey difference, e.g. of race and class:

Selvon’s narrator and characters speak in non-standard English and their

separate identity is rooted partly in their slang; Forster uses direct speech to

create distinctions between the voices of the Indian characters and the British;

Conrad creates difference between the narrative voice of Marlow and the voices

of the company agents

• comparison of how writers use voices to create memorable characters, e.g.

Conrad’s creation of Kurtz’s voice, Forster’s Mrs Moore, Selvon’s Moses

• comparison of how writers use different voices to comment on characters, e.g.

Aziz on Mrs Moore, the Russian trader on Kurtz, Galahad on white women

• the use of different voices to create variety and contrast, e.g. the agents who

contrast with Marlow’s narrative voice; the range of British and Indian voices

created by Forster; the distinctions Selvon makes between the voices of Galahad

and Bart

• the effects of colonisation on language, e.g. Selvon’s use of a non-standard

English that gives the immigrants their group identity yet separates them from

white society; the effect on Kurtz seen in his ‘exterminate the brutes’ and ‘the

horror’; the gulf Forster shows between the Indian and British characters despite

a common language

• how writers’ use of voices is related to context, e.g. Selvon’s use of voice to

express his characters’ response to discrimination; Conrad’s use of the voices of

the company agents and of Kurtz to show the colonists’ contempt for the

colonised; Forster’s use of the British voices to demonstrate the distance between

those who attempt to understand India and those who do not.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Colonisation and After

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• comparison of the illusions presented in these texts, e.g. Forster’s opening

description of Chandrapore; the illusion of London given to Selvon’s West Indian

characters; Conrad’s presentation of the illusion that European colonisation will

bring progress to Africa

• how the writers present disillusionment, e.g. of the West Indian immigrants, of

Marlow and Kurtz, of Mrs Moore, Aziz, Ronny Heaslop

• comparison of the ways in which writers present illusions, e.g. Selvon’s use of

London place names to evoke a sense of romantic history; Conrad’s use of the

river journey to reveal the extent of corruption; the ambiguities of Forster’s

Marabar caves

• illusion used to develop character, e.g. Mrs Moore’s realisation that her notion of

one India was an illusion; Moses’ increasing compassion towards his fellow

migrants as his disillusionment with England grows; Marlow’s piecing together of

Kurtz’s story taking us into the darkness of Kurtz’s character

• how illusions are used to create significant moments in the stories, e.g. the

Marabar caves episode; the encounters of Bart and Galahad with white women;

Marlow’s encounter with Kurtz’s intended, and the lie Marlow tells her to maintain

her illusion

• how illusion is linked to context, e.g. 19th century imperialism in Heart of

Darkness; the British Raj in A Passage to India; the Windrush generation of

immigrants in The Lonely Londoners.

68 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Science and Society

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• comparison of the ways artificial life is created in Frankenstein; how readers learn

about the clones in Never Let Me Go; the use of computer networks for social

control in The Handmaid’s Tale

• how the writers develop their central characters (the monster, the Candidates at

Hailsham, Offred) and the effects of this on readings of the texts

• the narrative methods chosen to reveal the dangers of the misuse of science:

epistolary narrative in Frankenstein; Offred’s first-person narrative and use of

flashback; the gradual revelation of the truth in Kathy’s narrative in Never Let Me

• comparison of the ways in which the chosen novels end, e.g. ‘Historical Notes’ in

The Handmaid’s Tale, Walton’s framing letters in Frankenstein, Kathy’s final

words in Never Let Me Go; comment on what the texts say about the nature of

being human

• comparison of the ways the writers reveal aspects of the scientific background to

their stories, e.g. the ‘donations’ in Never Let Me Go, the genetic problems

affecting Gilead in The Handmaid’s Tale

• how these scientific aspects relate to the contexts, e.g. anxieties about science in

Frankenstein; the abuse of technology for social control and environmental

pollution in The Handmaid’s Tale; cloning and social control in Never Let Me Go.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Science and Society

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• writers’ uses of narrators, including how reliable they are, e.g. the effect of the

different voices for the epistolary narrative in Frankenstein; the first-person

narratives in The Handmaid’s Tale and Never Let Me Go

• aspects of narration, e.g. the use of flashback in The Handmaid’s Tale; the

narrator’s tone and addresses to the reader in Never Let Me Go

• the use of devices such as Atwood’s ‘Historical Notes’ in The Handmaid’s Tale

and Walton’s framing narrative in Frankenstein

• the ways the writers include details of daily life, e.g. of Hailsham School in Never

Let Me Go; the practical details of the Handmaids’ lives; the details of

Frankenstein’s travels

• writers’ attempts to make scientific aspects of their stories credible, e.g. the

explanation of the events leading to the creation of Gilead in The Handmaid’s

Tale; the consequences of donations in Never Let Me Go; references to

galvanism and scientific study in Frankenstein

• what the texts reveal about context, e.g. environmental concerns in The

Handmaid’s Tale; cloning and biological engineering in Never Let Me Go;

anxieties about scientific experimentation and the sources of life in Frankenstein;

candidates may also reflect on the reactions of 21st century readers to these

concerns.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Women and Society

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• the narrative methods used by the writers, e.g. Woolf’s use of the free indirect

style; Brontë’s multiple narrators; Morrison’s use of shifting narrative viewpoints

• comparison of the ways the societies described in the novels could be said to

constrain women, e.g. expectations of how the older Catherine should behave in

Wuthering Heights; Clarissa’s expected role as hostess, mother, wife in Mrs

Dalloway; the treatment of Afro-American women in Beloved

• writers’ use of settings to convey constraint, e.g. the use of boundaries to restrict

movement in Wuthering Heights; the farm Sweet Home where slaves are trapped

in Beloved

• comparison of how far expectations are accepted by the characters and the

consequent tensions created, e.g. the older Catherine’s initial compliance with

social convention in Wuthering Heights; Sally Seton’s initial rebelliousness in Mrs

Dalloway

• relevant contextual aspects of the time of writing, e.g. expectations of women in

Brontë’s time; impact of the First World War in Mrs Dalloway; Morrison writing

about 19th century slavery

• the ways in which the authors convey significant details of the social background

to the novels, e.g. the worlds of Wuthering Heights and Thrushcross Grange; the

different social circles in which Clarissa and Lucrezia Smith move in Mrs

Dalloway; relations between black and white, slave and free in Beloved.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Women and Society

Candidates may include the following in their answers:

• writers’ use of narrative styles to present relationships, e.g. how Nelly relates

Heathcliff’s and Edgar’s relationships with the two Catherines in Wuthering

Heights; how Peter’s and Richard’s relationships with Clarissa are presented in

Mrs Dalloway

• comparison of Heathcliff’s attitudes to both Catherines in Wuthering Heights with

Paul’s to Sethe in Beloved

• comparison of how authors may use men to reinforce or contrast attitudes to

women, e.g. Hareton and Joseph in Wuthering Heights; Peter Walsh in Mrs

Dalloway; schoolteacher and Paul D in Beloved

• the effects men’s attitudes and behaviour have on women in the novels, e.g.

Heathcliff’s treatment of Isabella and the older Catherine; the effect of Peter

Walsh’s return on Clarissa Dalloway

• how far other women in the novels may reinforce men’s attitudes to women, e.g.

Nelly Dean in Wuthering Heights; Lucrezia Smith in Mrs Dalloway

• how the writers portray contextual aspects, e.g. the treatment of married women

in Wuthering Heights; male expectations of females in Beloved.

70 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO3 = bullet

point 3, 4

AO4 = bullet

point 5, 6

No rewardable material.

Level 1

1–6

Descriptive

• Makes little reference to texts with limited organisation of ideas. Limited

use of appropriate concepts and terminology with frequent errors and

lapses of expression.

• Uses a narrative or descriptive approach that shows limited knowledge of

texts and how meanings are shaped in texts. Shows a lack of

understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Shows limited awareness of contextual factors.

• Shows limited awareness of links between texts and contexts.

• Demonstrates limited awareness of connections between texts.

• Describes the texts as separate entities.

Level 2

7–12

General understanding/exploration

• Makes general points, identifying some literary techniques with general

explanation of effects. Aware of some appropriate concepts and

terminology. Organises and expresses ideas with clarity, although still

has errors and lapses.

• Gives surface readings of texts relating to how meanings are shaped in

texts. Shows general understanding by commenting on straightforward

elements of the writer’s craft.

• Has general awareness of the significance and influence of contextual

factors.

• Makes general links between texts and contexts.

• Identifies general connections between texts.

• Makes general cross-references between texts.

Level 3

13–18

Clear relevant application/exploration

• Offers a clear response using relevant textual examples. Relevant use of

terminology and concepts. Creates a logical, clear structure with few

errors and lapses in expression.

• Demonstrates knowledge of how meanings are shaped in texts with

consistent analysis. Shows clear understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Demonstrates a clear exploration of the significance and influence of

contextual factors.

• Develops relevant links between texts and contexts.

• Makes relevant connections between texts.

• Develops an integrated approach with clear examples.

Level 4

19–24

Discriminating controlled application/exploration

• Constructs a controlled argument with fluently embedded examples.

Discriminating use of concepts and terminology. Controls structures with

precise cohesive transitions and carefully chosen language.

• Demonstrates discriminating understanding of how meanings are shaped

in texts. Analyses, in a controlled way, the nuances and subtleties of the

writer’s craft.

• Provides a discriminating analysis of the significance and influence of

contextual factors.

• Makes detailed links between texts and contexts.

• Analyses connections between texts.

• Takes a controlled discriminating approach to integration with detailed

examples.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO3 = bullet

point 3, 4

AO4 = bullet

point 5, 6

Level 5

25–30

Critical and evaluative

• Presents a critical evaluative argument with sustained textual examples.

Evaluates the effects of literary features with sophisticated use of

concepts and terminology. Uses sophisticated structure and expression.

• Exhibits a critical evaluation of the ways meanings are shaped in texts.

Displays a sophisticated understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Presents a sophisticated evaluation and appreciation of the significance

and influence of contextual factors.

• Makes sophisticated links between texts and contexts.

• Evaluates connections between texts.

• Exhibits a sophisticated connective approach with sophisticated use of

examples.

Centre Number Candidate Number

Write your name here

Surname Other names

Total Marks

Paper Reference

*S49779A0110*

S49779A

1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1

Instructions

• Use black ink or ball-point pen.

• Fill in the boxes at the top of this page with your name,

centre number and candidate number.

• Answer one question from Section A and one question from Section B.

• Answer the questions in the spaces provided

– there may be more space than you need.

Information

• The total mark for this paper is 50.

• The marks for each question are shown in brackets

– use this as a guide as to how much time to spend on each question.

Advice

• Read each question carefully before you start to answer it.

• Check your answers if you have time at the end.

You must have:

Source Booklet (enclosed)

Prescribed texts (clean copies)

WET04/01

Sample Assessment Material for first teaching

September 2015

Time: 2 hours

English Literature

International Advanced Level

Unit 4: Shakespeare and Pre-1900 Poetry

Pearson Edexcel

International

Advanced Level

Turn over

72 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Centre Number Candidate Number

Write your name here

Surname Other names

Total Marks

Paper Reference

*S49779A0110*

S49779A

1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1

Instructions

• Use black ink or ball-point pen.

• Fill in the boxes at the top of this page with your name,

centre number and candidate number.

• Answer one question from Section A and one question from Section B.

• Answer the questions in the spaces provided

– there may be more space than you need.

Information

• The total mark for this paper is 50.

• The marks for each question are shown in brackets

– use this as a guide as to how much time to spend on each question.

Advice

• Read each question carefully before you start to answer it.

• Check your answers if you have time at the end.

You must have:

Source Booklet (enclosed)

Prescribed texts (clean copies)

WET04/01

Sample Assessment Material for first teaching

September 2015

Time: 2 hours

English Literature

International Advanced Level

Unit 4: Shakespeare and Pre-1900 Poetry

Pearson Edexcel

International

Advanced Level

Turn over

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49779A0210*

SECTION A

Shakespeare

Answer ONE question from this section.

Write your answers in the space provided.

Measure for Measure

EITHER

1 ‘In Measure for Measure, more or less virtuous people watch their secret natures rise to

the surface.’

In the light of this comment, explore how Shakespeare presents virtue in Measure for

Measure.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 1 = 25 marks)

2 ‘This is a play where subplot is as important as the main plot.’

In the light of this comment, explore how Shakespeare uses subplots in Measure for

Measure.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 2 = 25 marks)

*S49779A0310* Turn over

The Taming of the Shrew

EITHER

3 ‘The Taming of the Shrew is a play that is very much concerned with theatre itself.’

In the light of this comment, explore how Shakespeare makes use of plays and

performance in The Taming of the Shrew.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 3 = 25 marks)

4 ‘It is not Kate, but Bianca, who is the real shrew.’

In the light of this comment, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of Bianca in The

Taming of the Shrew.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 4 = 25 marks)

74 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49779A0210*

SECTION A

Shakespeare

Answer ONE question from this section.

Write your answers in the space provided.

Measure for Measure

EITHER

1 ‘In Measure for Measure, more or less virtuous people watch their secret natures rise to

the surface.’

In the light of this comment, explore how Shakespeare presents virtue in Measure for

Measure.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 1 = 25 marks)

2 ‘This is a play where subplot is as important as the main plot.’

In the light of this comment, explore how Shakespeare uses subplots in Measure for

Measure.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 2 = 25 marks)

*S49779A0310* Turn over

The Taming of the Shrew

EITHER

3 ‘The Taming of the Shrew is a play that is very much concerned with theatre itself.’

In the light of this comment, explore how Shakespeare makes use of plays and

performance in The Taming of the Shrew.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 3 = 25 marks)

4 ‘It is not Kate, but Bianca, who is the real shrew.’

In the light of this comment, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of Bianca in The

Taming of the Shrew.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 4 = 25 marks)

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49779A0410*

Hamlet

EITHER

5 ‘Deception is what leads to the downfall of Hamlet.’

In the light of this comment, explore Shakespeare’s use of deception in Hamlet.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 5 = 25 marks)

6 ‘An understanding of madness is the key that unlocks the play for the audience.’

In the light of this comment, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of madness in

Hamlet.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 6 = 25 marks)

*S49779A0510* Turn over

King Lear

EITHER

7 ‘Betrayals and the motivations behind them are at the heart of King Lear.’

In the light of this comment, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of betrayal in King

Lear.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 7 = 25 marks)

8 ‘Not seeing is the downfall of the “good” characters in King Lear.’

In the light of this comment, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of sight and

blindness in King Lear.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 8 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION A = 25 MARKS

76 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49779A0410*

Hamlet

EITHER

5 ‘Deception is what leads to the downfall of Hamlet.’

In the light of this comment, explore Shakespeare’s use of deception in Hamlet.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 5 = 25 marks)

6 ‘An understanding of madness is the key that unlocks the play for the audience.’

In the light of this comment, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of madness in

Hamlet.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 6 = 25 marks)

*S49779A0510* Turn over

King Lear

EITHER

7 ‘Betrayals and the motivations behind them are at the heart of King Lear.’

In the light of this comment, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of betrayal in King

Lear.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 7 = 25 marks)

8 ‘Not seeing is the downfall of the “good” characters in King Lear.’

In the light of this comment, explore Shakespeare’s presentation of sight and

blindness in King Lear.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 8 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION A = 25 MARKS

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49779A0610*

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in the box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 1 Question 2 Question 3

Question 4 Question 5 Question 6

Question 7 Question 8

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

*S49779A0710* Turn over

SECTION B

Pre-1900 Poetry

Answer ONE question on your chosen text.

You must select your second poem from the prescribed list for your studied collection.

The poems are listed in the Source Booklet on pages 3 to 5.

Write your answer in the space provided.

Prescribed text: Metaphysical Poetry, editor Colin Burrow

EITHER

9 Read the poem A Letter to her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment by Anne

Bradstreet on page 6 of the Source Booklet.

Explore the ways in which love is presented in this poem and one other poem from

your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 9 = 25 marks)

10 Read the poem To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell on page 7 of the Source

Booklet.

Explore the ways in which time is presented in this poem and one other poem from

your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 10 = 25 marks)

78 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49779A0610*

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in the box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 1 Question 2 Question 3

Question 4 Question 5 Question 6

Question 7 Question 8

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

*S49779A0710* Turn over

SECTION B

Pre-1900 Poetry

Answer ONE question on your chosen text.

You must select your second poem from the prescribed list for your studied collection.

The poems are listed in the Source Booklet on pages 3 to 5.

Write your answer in the space provided.

Prescribed text: Metaphysical Poetry, editor Colin Burrow

EITHER

9 Read the poem A Letter to her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment by Anne

Bradstreet on page 6 of the Source Booklet.

Explore the ways in which love is presented in this poem and one other poem from

your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 9 = 25 marks)

10 Read the poem To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell on page 7 of the Source

Booklet.

Explore the ways in which time is presented in this poem and one other poem from

your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 10 = 25 marks)

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49779A0810*

Prescribed text: English Romantic Verse, editor David Wright

EITHER

11 Read the poem Songs of Experience: London by William Blake on page 8 of the Source

Booklet.

Explore the ways in which a sense of place is presented in this poem and one other

poem from your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 11 = 25 marks)

12 Read the poem Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats on page 9 of the Source Booklet.

Explore the ways in which search for meaning is presented in this poem and one other

poem from your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 12 = 25 marks)

*S49779A0910* Turn over

Prescribed text: The New Oxford Book of Victorian Verse, editor Christopher Ricks

EITHER

13 Read the poem Drummer Hodge by Thomas Hardy on page 11 of the Source Booklet.

Explore the ways in which death is presented in this poem and one other poem from

your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 13 = 25 marks)

14 Read the poem My Last Duchess by Robert Browning on page 12 of the Source

Booklet.

Explore the ways in which women are presented in this poem and one other poem

from your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 14 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION B = 25 MARKS

80 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49779A0810*

Prescribed text: English Romantic Verse, editor David Wright

EITHER

11 Read the poem Songs of Experience: London by William Blake on page 8 of the Source

Booklet.

Explore the ways in which a sense of place is presented in this poem and one other

poem from your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 11 = 25 marks)

12 Read the poem Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats on page 9 of the Source Booklet.

Explore the ways in which search for meaning is presented in this poem and one other

poem from your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 12 = 25 marks)

*S49779A0910* Turn over

Prescribed text: The New Oxford Book of Victorian Verse, editor Christopher Ricks

EITHER

13 Read the poem Drummer Hodge by Thomas Hardy on page 11 of the Source Booklet.

Explore the ways in which death is presented in this poem and one other poem from

your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 13 = 25 marks)

14 Read the poem My Last Duchess by Robert Browning on page 12 of the Source

Booklet.

Explore the ways in which women are presented in this poem and one other poem

from your prescribed list.

In your answer, you must consider relevant contextual factors.

(Total for Question 14 = 25 marks)

TOTAL FOR SECTION B = 25 MARKS

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49779A01010*

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in the box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 9 Question 10 Question 11

Question 12 Question 13 Question 14

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

Paper Reference

Pearson Edexcel

International Advanced Level

Do not return this Source Booklet with the question paper.

WET04/01

Sample assessment materials for first teaching

September 2015

Source Booklet

English Literature

International Advanced Level

Unit 4: Shakespeare and Pre-1900 Poetry

*S49779A*

S49779A

1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1

Turn over

82 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

*S49779A01010*

Indicate which question you are answering by marking a cross in the box . If you change your

mind, put a line through the box and then indicate your new question with a cross .

Chosen question number: Question 9 Question 10 Question 11

Question 12 Question 13 Question 14

[The live question paper will contain ten more pages of answer lines.]

Paper Reference

Pearson Edexcel

International Advanced Level

Do not return this Source Booklet with the question paper.

WET04/01

Sample assessment materials for first teaching

September 2015

Source Booklet

English Literature

International Advanced Level

Unit 4: Shakespeare and Pre-1900 Poetry

*S49779A*

S49779A

1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1/1

Turn over

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

2S49779A

Contents Page

Prescribed poetry

Metaphysical Poetry 3

Prescribed poetry

English Romantic Verse 4

Prescribed poetry

The New Oxford Book of Victorian Verse 5

Question 9

A Letter to her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment by Anne Bradstreet 6

Question 10

To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell 7

Question 11

Songs of Experience: London by William Blake 8

Question 12

Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats 9

Question 13

Drummer Hodge by Thomas 11

Question 14

My Last Duchess by Robert Browning 12

S49779A

Turn over

Prescribed poetry

Metaphysical Poetry, editor Colin Burrow (Penguin, 2006)

ISBN 9780140424447

Poem title Poet Page number

The Flea

John Donne

The Good Morrow 5

Song (‘Go and catch a falling star’) 6

Woman’s Constancy 7

The Sun Rising 8

A Valediction of Weeping 19

A Nocturnal Upon St Lucy’s Day, Being the

Shortest Day 21

The Apparition 22

Elegy: To his Mistress Going to Bed 29

‘At the Round Earth’s Imagined Corners’ 31

‘Death be not Proud’ 32

‘Batter My Heart’ 33

A Hymn to God the Father 36

Redemption

George Herbert

The Collar 78

The Pulley 79

Love III 87

To My Mistress Sitting by a River’s Side: An Eddy

Thomas Carew

To a Lady that Desired I Would Love Her 95

A Song (‘Ask me no more where Jove bestows’) 98

A Letter to her Husband, Absent upon Public

Engagement Anne Bradstreet 135

Song: To Lucasta, Going to the Wars Richard Lovelace 182

The Nymph Complaining for the Death of her

Fawn Andrew Marvell

195

To His Coy Mistress 198

The Definition of Love 201

Unprofitableness Henry Vaughan 219

The World 220

To My Excellent Lucasia, on Our Friendship

Katherine Philips

240

A Dialogue of Friendship Multiplied 241

Orinda to Lucasia 242

84 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

2S49779A

Contents Page

Prescribed poetry

Metaphysical Poetry 3

Prescribed poetry

English Romantic Verse 4

Prescribed poetry

The New Oxford Book of Victorian Verse 5

Question 9

A Letter to her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment by Anne Bradstreet 6

Question 10

To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell 7

Question 11

Songs of Experience: London by William Blake 8

Question 12

Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats 9

Question 13

Drummer Hodge by Thomas 11

Question 14

My Last Duchess by Robert Browning 12

S49779A

Turn over

Prescribed poetry

Metaphysical Poetry, editor Colin Burrow (Penguin, 2006)

ISBN 9780140424447

Poem title Poet Page number

The Flea

John Donne

The Good Morrow 5

Song (‘Go and catch a falling star’) 6

Woman’s Constancy 7

The Sun Rising 8

A Valediction of Weeping 19

A Nocturnal Upon St Lucy’s Day, Being the

Shortest Day 21

The Apparition 22

Elegy: To his Mistress Going to Bed 29

‘At the Round Earth’s Imagined Corners’ 31

‘Death be not Proud’ 32

‘Batter My Heart’ 33

A Hymn to God the Father 36

Redemption

George Herbert

The Collar 78

The Pulley 79

Love III 87

To My Mistress Sitting by a River’s Side: An Eddy

Thomas Carew

To a Lady that Desired I Would Love Her 95

A Song (‘Ask me no more where Jove bestows’) 98

A Letter to her Husband, Absent upon Public

Engagement Anne Bradstreet 135

Song: To Lucasta, Going to the Wars Richard Lovelace 182

The Nymph Complaining for the Death of her

Fawn Andrew Marvell

195

To His Coy Mistress 198

The Definition of Love 201

Unprofitableness Henry Vaughan 219

The World 220

To My Excellent Lucasia, on Our Friendship

Katherine Philips

240

A Dialogue of Friendship Multiplied 241

Orinda to Lucasia 242

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

4S49779A

Prescribed poetry

English Romantic Verse, editor David Wright (Penguin Classics, 1973)

ISBN 9780140421026

Poem title Poet Page number

Songs of Innocence: Holy Thursday

William Blake

Songs of Experience: Holy Thursday 73

Songs of Experience: The Sick Rose 73

Songs of Experience: The Tyger 74

Songs of Experience: London 75

Lines Written in Early Spring William

Wordsworth

108

Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey 109

Ode: Intimations of Immortality 133

Lines Inscribed upon a Cup Formed from a Skull George Gordon,

Lord Byron

211

So We’ll Go no more A Roving 213

On This Day I Complete My Thirty-Sixth Year 232

‘The cold earth slept below’

Percy Bysshe

Shelley

242

Stanzas Written in Dejection, near Naples 243

Ode to the West Wind 246

The Question 249

Ode to a Nightingale

John Keats

276

Ode on a Grecian Urn 279

Ode on Melancholy 283

Sonnet on the Sea 287

S49779A

Turn over

Prescribed poetry

The New Oxford Book of Victorian Verse, editor Christopher Ricks (OUP, 2008)

ISBN 9780199556311

Poem title Poet Page number

From In Memoriam: VII ‘Dark house, by which once

more I stand’

Alfred Tennyson

From In Memoriam: XCV ‘By night we linger’d on

the lawn’ 28

From Maud: I.xi ‘O let the solid ground’ 37

From Maud: I.xviii ‘I have led her home, my love,

my only friend’ 38

From Maud: I.xxii ‘Come into the garden, Maud’ 40

From Maud: II.iv ‘O that ’twere possible’ 43

The Visionary Emily Brontë and

Charlotte Brontë 61

Grief

Elizabeth Barrett

Browning

101

From Sonnets from the Portuguese XXIV ‘Let the

world’s sharpness, like a closing knife’ 102

The Best Thing in the World 115

‘Died…’ 116

My Last Duchess

Robert Browning

117

Home-Thoughts, from Abroad 124

Meeting at Night 125

Love in a Life 134

‘The Autumn day its course has run–the Autumn

evening falls’

Charlotte Brontë

213

‘The house was still–the room was still’ 214

‘I now had only to retrace’ 214

‘The Nurse believed the sick man slept’ 215

Stanzas – [‘Often rebuked, yet always back

returning’]

Charlotte Brontë

(perhaps by Emily

Brontë

215

Remember

Christina Rossetti

278

Echo 278

May 280

A Birthday 280

Somewhere or Other 297

At an Inn

Thomas Hardy

465

‘I Look into My Glass’ 466

Drummer Hodge 467

A Wife in London 467

The Darkling Thrush 468

86 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

4S49779A

Prescribed poetry

English Romantic Verse, editor David Wright (Penguin Classics, 1973)

ISBN 9780140421026

Poem title Poet Page number

Songs of Innocence: Holy Thursday

William Blake

Songs of Experience: Holy Thursday 73

Songs of Experience: The Sick Rose 73

Songs of Experience: The Tyger 74

Songs of Experience: London 75

Lines Written in Early Spring William

Wordsworth

108

Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey 109

Ode: Intimations of Immortality 133

Lines Inscribed upon a Cup Formed from a Skull George Gordon,

Lord Byron

211

So We’ll Go no more A Roving 213

On This Day I Complete My Thirty-Sixth Year 232

‘The cold earth slept below’

Percy Bysshe

Shelley

242

Stanzas Written in Dejection, near Naples 243

Ode to the West Wind 246

The Question 249

Ode to a Nightingale

John Keats

276

Ode on a Grecian Urn 279

Ode on Melancholy 283

Sonnet on the Sea 287

S49779A

Turn over

Prescribed poetry

The New Oxford Book of Victorian Verse, editor Christopher Ricks (OUP, 2008)

ISBN 9780199556311

Poem title Poet Page number

From In Memoriam: VII ‘Dark house, by which once

more I stand’

Alfred Tennyson

From In Memoriam: XCV ‘By night we linger’d on

the lawn’ 28

From Maud: I.xi ‘O let the solid ground’ 37

From Maud: I.xviii ‘I have led her home, my love,

my only friend’ 38

From Maud: I.xxii ‘Come into the garden, Maud’ 40

From Maud: II.iv ‘O that ’twere possible’ 43

The Visionary Emily Brontë and

Charlotte Brontë 61

Grief

Elizabeth Barrett

Browning

101

From Sonnets from the Portuguese XXIV ‘Let the

world’s sharpness, like a closing knife’ 102

The Best Thing in the World 115

‘Died…’ 116

My Last Duchess

Robert Browning

117

Home-Thoughts, from Abroad 124

Meeting at Night 125

Love in a Life 134

‘The Autumn day its course has run–the Autumn

evening falls’

Charlotte Brontë

213

‘The house was still–the room was still’ 214

‘I now had only to retrace’ 214

‘The Nurse believed the sick man slept’ 215

Stanzas – [‘Often rebuked, yet always back

returning’]

Charlotte Brontë

(perhaps by Emily

Brontë

215

Remember

Christina Rossetti

278

Echo 278

May 280

A Birthday 280

Somewhere or Other 297

At an Inn

Thomas Hardy

465

‘I Look into My Glass’ 466

Drummer Hodge 467

A Wife in London 467

The Darkling Thrush 468

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

6S49779A

Prescribed text: Metaphysical Poetry, editor Colin Burrow

Question 9

A Letter to her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment by Anne Bradstreet

My head, my heart, mine Eyes, my life, nay more,

My joy, my magazine of earthly store,

If two be one, as surely thou and I,

How stayest thou there, whilst I at Ipswich lie?

So many steps, head from the heart to sever

If but a neck, soon should we be together:

I like the earth this season, mourn in black,

My Sun is gone so far in’s zodiac,

Whom whilst I ’joy’d, nor storms, nor frosts I felt,

His warmth such frigid colds did cause to melt.

My chillèd limbs now numbèd lie forlorn;

Return, return sweet Sol from Capricorn.

In this dead time, alas, what can I more

Then view those fruits which through thy heat I bore?

Which sweet contentment yield me for a space,

True living pictures of their father’s face.

O strange effect now thou art southward gone,

I weary grow, the tedious day so long;

But when thou northward to me shalt return,

I wish my sun may never set, but burn

Within the Cancer of my glowing breast,

The welcome house of him my dearest guest.

Where ever, ever stay, and go not thence,

Till nature’s sad decree shall call thee hence;

Flesh of thy flesh, bone of thy bone,

I here, thou there, yet both but one.

S49779A

Turn over

Prescribed text: Metaphysical Poetry, editor Colin Burrow

Question 10

To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell

Had we but world enough, and time,

This coyness, lady, were no crime.

We would sit down and think which way

To walk, and pass our long love’s day;

Thou by the Indian Ganges’ side

Shouldst rubies find; I by the tide

Of Humber would complain. I would

Love you ten years before the Flood;

And you should, if you please, refuse

Till the conversion of the Jews.

My vegetable love should grow

Vaster than empires, and more slow.

An hundred years should go to praise

Thine eyes, and on thy forehead gaze;

Two hundred to adore each breast,

But thirty thousand to the rest;

An age at least to every part,

And the last age should show your heart.

For, lady, you deserve this state,

Nor would I love at lower rate.

But at my back I always hear

Time’s winged chariot hurrying near;

And yonder all before us lie

Deserts of vast eternity.

Thy beauty shall no more be found,

Nor, in thy marble vault, shall sound

My echoing song; then worms shall try

That long preserved virginity,

And your quaint honour turn to dust,

And into ashes all my lust.

The grave’s a fine and private place,

But none I think do there embrace.

Now therefore, while the youthful hue

Sits on thy skin like morning dew,

And while thy willing soul transpires

At every pore with instant fires,

Now let us sport us while we may;

And now, like am’rous birds of prey,

Rather at once our time devour,

Than languish in his slow-chapped power.

Let us roll all our strength, and all

Our sweetness, up into one ball;

And tear our pleasures with rough strife

Thorough the iron gates of life.

Thus, though we cannot make our sun

Stand still, yet we will make him run.

88 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

6S49779A

Prescribed text: Metaphysical Poetry, editor Colin Burrow

Question 9

A Letter to her Husband, Absent upon Public Employment by Anne Bradstreet

My head, my heart, mine Eyes, my life, nay more,

My joy, my magazine of earthly store,

If two be one, as surely thou and I,

How stayest thou there, whilst I at Ipswich lie?

So many steps, head from the heart to sever

If but a neck, soon should we be together:

I like the earth this season, mourn in black,

My Sun is gone so far in’s zodiac,

Whom whilst I ’joy’d, nor storms, nor frosts I felt,

His warmth such frigid colds did cause to melt.

My chillèd limbs now numbèd lie forlorn;

Return, return sweet Sol from Capricorn.

In this dead time, alas, what can I more

Then view those fruits which through thy heat I bore?

Which sweet contentment yield me for a space,

True living pictures of their father’s face.

O strange effect now thou art southward gone,

I weary grow, the tedious day so long;

But when thou northward to me shalt return,

I wish my sun may never set, but burn

Within the Cancer of my glowing breast,

The welcome house of him my dearest guest.

Where ever, ever stay, and go not thence,

Till nature’s sad decree shall call thee hence;

Flesh of thy flesh, bone of thy bone,

I here, thou there, yet both but one.

S49779A

Turn over

Prescribed text: Metaphysical Poetry, editor Colin Burrow

Question 10

To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell

Had we but world enough, and time,

This coyness, lady, were no crime.

We would sit down and think which way

To walk, and pass our long love’s day;

Thou by the Indian Ganges’ side

Shouldst rubies find; I by the tide

Of Humber would complain. I would

Love you ten years before the Flood;

And you should, if you please, refuse

Till the conversion of the Jews.

My vegetable love should grow

Vaster than empires, and more slow.

An hundred years should go to praise

Thine eyes, and on thy forehead gaze;

Two hundred to adore each breast,

But thirty thousand to the rest;

An age at least to every part,

And the last age should show your heart.

For, lady, you deserve this state,

Nor would I love at lower rate.

But at my back I always hear

Time’s winged chariot hurrying near;

And yonder all before us lie

Deserts of vast eternity.

Thy beauty shall no more be found,

Nor, in thy marble vault, shall sound

My echoing song; then worms shall try

That long preserved virginity,

And your quaint honour turn to dust,

And into ashes all my lust.

The grave’s a fine and private place,

But none I think do there embrace.

Now therefore, while the youthful hue

Sits on thy skin like morning dew,

And while thy willing soul transpires

At every pore with instant fires,

Now let us sport us while we may;

And now, like am’rous birds of prey,

Rather at once our time devour,

Than languish in his slow-chapped power.

Let us roll all our strength, and all

Our sweetness, up into one ball;

And tear our pleasures with rough strife

Thorough the iron gates of life.

Thus, though we cannot make our sun

Stand still, yet we will make him run.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

8S49779A

Prescribed text: English Romantic Verse, editor David Wright

Question 11

Songs of Experience: London by William Blake

I wander thro’ each charter’d street,

Near where the charter’d Thames does flow.

And mark in every face I meet

Marks of weakness, marks of woe.

In every cry of every Man,

In every Infants cry of fear,

In every voice: in every ban,

The mind-forg’d manacles I hear.

How the Chimney-sweepers cry

Every black’ning Church appalls,

And the hapless Soldiers sigh

Runs in blood down Palace walls.

But most thro’ midnight streets I hear

How the youthful Harlot’s curse

Blasts the new-born Infants tear

And blights with plagues the Marriage hearse.

S49779A

Turn over

Prescribed text: English Romantic Verse, editor David Wright

Question 12

Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats

Thou still unravish’d bride of quietness,

Thou foster-child of silence and slow time,

Sylvan historian, who canst thus express

A flowery tale more sweetly than our rhyme:

What leaf-fring’d legend haunts about thy shape

Of deities or mortals, or of both,

In Tempe or the dales of Arcady?

What men or gods are these? What maidens loth?

What mad pursuit? What struggle to escape?

What pipes and timbrels? What wild ecstasy?

Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard

Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on;

Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear’d,

Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone:

Fair youth, beneath the trees, thou canst not leave

Thy song, nor ever can those trees be bare;

Bold Lover, never, never canst thou kiss,

Though winning near the goal – yet, do not grieve;

She cannot fade, though thou hast not thy bliss,

For ever wilt thou love, and she be fair!

Ah, happy, happy boughs! that cannot shed

Your leaves, nor ever bid the Spring adieu;

And, happy melodist, unwearied,

For ever piping songs for ever new;

More happy love! more happy, happy love!

For ever warm and still to be enjoy’d,

For ever panting, and for ever young;

All breathing human passion far above,

That leaves a heart high-sorrowful and cloy’d,

A burning forehead, and a parching tongue.

Who are these coming to the sacrifice?

To what green altar, O mysterious priest,

Lead’st thou that heifer lowing at the skies,

And all her silken flanks with garlands drest?

What little town by river or sea shore,

Or mountain-built with peaceful citadel,

Is emptied of this folk, this pious morn?

And, little town, thy streets for evermore

Will silent be; and not a soul to tell

Why thou art desolate, can e’er return.

O Attic shape! Fair attitude! with brede

Of marble men and maidens overwrought,

With forest branches and the trodden weed;

Thou, silent form, dost tease us out of thought

90 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

8S49779A

Prescribed text: English Romantic Verse, editor David Wright

Question 11

Songs of Experience: London by William Blake

I wander thro’ each charter’d street,

Near where the charter’d Thames does flow.

And mark in every face I meet

Marks of weakness, marks of woe.

In every cry of every Man,

In every Infants cry of fear,

In every voice: in every ban,

The mind-forg’d manacles I hear.

How the Chimney-sweepers cry

Every black’ning Church appalls,

And the hapless Soldiers sigh

Runs in blood down Palace walls.

But most thro’ midnight streets I hear

How the youthful Harlot’s curse

Blasts the new-born Infants tear

And blights with plagues the Marriage hearse.

S49779A

Turn over

Prescribed text: English Romantic Verse, editor David Wright

Question 12

Ode on a Grecian Urn by John Keats

Thou still unravish’d bride of quietness,

Thou foster-child of silence and slow time,

Sylvan historian, who canst thus express

A flowery tale more sweetly than our rhyme:

What leaf-fring’d legend haunts about thy shape

Of deities or mortals, or of both,

In Tempe or the dales of Arcady?

What men or gods are these? What maidens loth?

What mad pursuit? What struggle to escape?

What pipes and timbrels? What wild ecstasy?

Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard

Are sweeter; therefore, ye soft pipes, play on;

Not to the sensual ear, but, more endear’d,

Pipe to the spirit ditties of no tone:

Fair youth, beneath the trees, thou canst not leave

Thy song, nor ever can those trees be bare;

Bold Lover, never, never canst thou kiss,

Though winning near the goal – yet, do not grieve;

She cannot fade, though thou hast not thy bliss,

For ever wilt thou love, and she be fair!

Ah, happy, happy boughs! that cannot shed

Your leaves, nor ever bid the Spring adieu;

And, happy melodist, unwearied,

For ever piping songs for ever new;

More happy love! more happy, happy love!

For ever warm and still to be enjoy’d,

For ever panting, and for ever young;

All breathing human passion far above,

That leaves a heart high-sorrowful and cloy’d,

A burning forehead, and a parching tongue.

Who are these coming to the sacrifice?

To what green altar, O mysterious priest,

Lead’st thou that heifer lowing at the skies,

And all her silken flanks with garlands drest?

What little town by river or sea shore,

Or mountain-built with peaceful citadel,

Is emptied of this folk, this pious morn?

And, little town, thy streets for evermore

Will silent be; and not a soul to tell

Why thou art desolate, can e’er return.

O Attic shape! Fair attitude! with brede

Of marble men and maidens overwrought,

With forest branches and the trodden weed;

Thou, silent form, dost tease us out of thought

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

10 S49779A

As doth eternity: Cold Pastoral!

When old age shall this generation waste,

Thou shalt remain, in midst of other woe

Than ours, a friend to man, to whom thou say’st,

‘Beauty is truth, truth beauty’,—that is all

Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.

S49779A

Turn over

Prescribed text: The New Oxford Book of Victorian Verse, editor Christopher Ricks

Question 13

Drummer Hodge by Thomas Hardy

They throw in Drummer Hodge, to rest

Uncoffined – just as found:

His landmark is a kopje-crest

That breaks the veldt around:

And foreign constellations west

Each night above his mound.

Young Hodge the drummer never knew –

Fresh from his Wessex home –

The meaning of the broad Karoo,

The Bush, the dusty loam,

And why uprose to nightly view

Strange stars amid the gloam.

III

Yet portion of that unknown plain

Will Hodge for ever be;

His homely Northern breast and brain

Grow to some Southern tree,

And strange-eyed constellations reign

His stars eternally.

92 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

10 S49779A

As doth eternity: Cold Pastoral!

When old age shall this generation waste,

Thou shalt remain, in midst of other woe

Than ours, a friend to man, to whom thou say’st,

‘Beauty is truth, truth beauty’,—that is all

Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.

S49779A

Turn over

Prescribed text: The New Oxford Book of Victorian Verse, editor Christopher Ricks

Question 13

Drummer Hodge by Thomas Hardy

They throw in Drummer Hodge, to rest

Uncoffined – just as found:

His landmark is a kopje-crest

That breaks the veldt around:

And foreign constellations west

Each night above his mound.

Young Hodge the drummer never knew –

Fresh from his Wessex home –

The meaning of the broad Karoo,

The Bush, the dusty loam,

And why uprose to nightly view

Strange stars amid the gloam.

III

Yet portion of that unknown plain

Will Hodge for ever be;

His homely Northern breast and brain

Grow to some Southern tree,

And strange-eyed constellations reign

His stars eternally.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

12 S49779A

Prescribed text: The New Oxford Book of Victorian Verse, editor Christopher Ricks

Question 14

My Last Duchess by Robert Browning

FERRARA

That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall,

Looking as if she were alive. I call

That piece a wonder, now; Fra Pandolf’s hands

Worked busily a day, and there she stands.

Will’t please you sit and look at her? I said

‘Fra Pandolf’ by design, for never read

Strangers like you that pictured countenance,

The depth and passion of its earnest glance,

But to myself they turned (since none puts by

The curtain I have drawn for you, but I)

And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst,

How such a glance came there; so, not the first

Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, ’twas not

Her husband’s presence only, called that spot

Of joy into the Duchess’ cheek; perhaps

Fra Pandolf chanced to say, ‘Her mantle laps

Over my lady’s wrist too much,’ or ‘Paint

Must never hope to reproduce the faint

Half-flush that dies along her throat.’ Such stuff

Was courtesy, she thought, and cause enough

For calling up that spot of joy. She had

A heart—how shall I say?— too soon made glad,

Too easily impressed; she liked whate’er

She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.

Sir, ’twas all one! My favour at her breast,

The dropping of the daylight in the West,

The bough of cherries some officious fool

Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule

She rode with round the terrace—all and each

Would draw from her alike the approving speech,

Or blush, at least. She thanked men—good! but thanked

Somehow—I know not how—as if she ranked

My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name

With anybody’s gift. Who’d stoop to blame

This sort of trifling? Even had you skill

In speech—which I have not—to make your will

Quite clear to such an one, and say, ‘Just this

Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss,

Or there exceed the mark’—and if she let

Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set

Her wits to yours, forsooth, and made excuse—

E’en then would be some stooping; and I choose

Never to stoop. Oh, sir, she smiled, no doubt,

Whene’er I passed her; but who passed without

Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands;

S49779A

Then all smiles stopped together. There she stands

As if alive. Will’t please you rise? We’ll meet

The company below, then. I repeat,

The Count your master’s known munificence

Is ample warrant that no just pretence

Of mine for dowry will be disallowed;

Though his fair daughter’s self, as I avowed

At starting, is my object. Nay, we’ll go

Together down, sir. Notice Neptune, though,

Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity,

Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!

94 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

12 S49779A

Prescribed text: The New Oxford Book of Victorian Verse, editor Christopher Ricks

Question 14

My Last Duchess by Robert Browning

FERRARA

That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall,

Looking as if she were alive. I call

That piece a wonder, now; Fra Pandolf’s hands

Worked busily a day, and there she stands.

Will’t please you sit and look at her? I said

‘Fra Pandolf’ by design, for never read

Strangers like you that pictured countenance,

The depth and passion of its earnest glance,

But to myself they turned (since none puts by

The curtain I have drawn for you, but I)

And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst,

How such a glance came there; so, not the first

Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, ’twas not

Her husband’s presence only, called that spot

Of joy into the Duchess’ cheek; perhaps

Fra Pandolf chanced to say, ‘Her mantle laps

Over my lady’s wrist too much,’ or ‘Paint

Must never hope to reproduce the faint

Half-flush that dies along her throat.’ Such stuff

Was courtesy, she thought, and cause enough

For calling up that spot of joy. She had

A heart—how shall I say?— too soon made glad,

Too easily impressed; she liked whate’er

She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.

Sir, ’twas all one! My favour at her breast,

The dropping of the daylight in the West,

The bough of cherries some officious fool

Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule

She rode with round the terrace—all and each

Would draw from her alike the approving speech,

Or blush, at least. She thanked men—good! but thanked

Somehow—I know not how—as if she ranked

My gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name

With anybody’s gift. Who’d stoop to blame

This sort of trifling? Even had you skill

In speech—which I have not—to make your will

Quite clear to such an one, and say, ‘Just this

Or that in you disgusts me; here you miss,

Or there exceed the mark’—and if she let

Herself be lessoned so, nor plainly set

Her wits to yours, forsooth, and made excuse—

E’en then would be some stooping; and I choose

Never to stoop. Oh, sir, she smiled, no doubt,

Whene’er I passed her; but who passed without

Much the same smile? This grew; I gave commands;

S49779A

Then all smiles stopped together. There she stands

As if alive. Will’t please you rise? We’ll meet

The company below, then. I repeat,

The Count your master’s known munificence

Is ample warrant that no just pretence

Of mine for dowry will be disallowed;

Though his fair daughter’s self, as I avowed

At starting, is my object. Nay, we’ll go

Together down, sir. Notice Neptune, though,

Taming a sea-horse, thought a rarity,

Which Claus of Innsbruck cast in bronze for me!

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Unit 4: Shakespeare and Pre-1900 Poetry – Mark Scheme

Section A: Shakespeare

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Measure for Measure

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• the central plot premise - Isabella's desire to maintain her virtue and the

conflict between her religious devotion and her love for her brother

• how Shakespeare depicts a range of approaches to virtue, e.g. the

extreme virtuousness of Isabella compared with the more liberal

characters like Mistress Overdone and Pompey

• the complex characterisation of Angelo and his attitudes to virtue, e.g.

his draconian enforcement of moral codes alongside his own sexual

misconduct

• argument that Shakespeare uses the various compromises of characters

to suggest that virtue cannot be achieved through inflexible laws: ‘They

say, best men are moulded out of faults.’

• reactions of a modern audience to the ethical dilemmas in the play

• changing power relationships between men and women, in the play and

over time

• debate over the moral compromises the Duke makes in order to achieve

virtue, e.g. his use of disguise, spying, lying

• debate the extent to which the comic subplot reinforces the theme that a

genuine moral compass is a far more virtuous attribute than the

unyielding adherence to a given moral code, e.g. Escalus’s tempered

judgement on Pompey and Froth: ‘Some rise by sin, and some by virtue

fall.’

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Measure for Measure

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• use of subplot scenes to comment on the major action, e.g. Act 1,

Scene 2

• the use of comic scenes interspersed with potentially tragic scenes to

alleviate a more serious tone, e.g. Pompey and Mistress Overdone

scenes

• a subplot which mocks the main action, e.g. juxtaposition of Angelo’s

judgment on Claudio with Elbow’s attempt to charge Froth and Pompey

with promiscuity

• the use of the subplot to anticipate themes, e.g. Pompey is offered the

chance to repent as Angelo will be

• the way the subplot indicates what the life of the lower orders in society

must be like – the world of prostitutes, pimps, and an ineffectual policing

system

• the disturbing effect of the low comedy scenes which are at once sordid,

funny and – because they reflect on the main plot – touch on society’s

serious moral issues as well

• explore and debate the extent to which Lucio is simply as a comic

device, e.g. garish dress; butt of jokes

• explore different ways the Duke’s behaviour might be interpreted; use of

the omnipresent Duke as a device to control the plot/offer audience

perspective.

96 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Unit 4: Shakespeare and Pre-1900 Poetry – Mark Scheme

Section A: Shakespeare

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Measure for Measure

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• the central plot premise - Isabella's desire to maintain her virtue and the

conflict between her religious devotion and her love for her brother

• how Shakespeare depicts a range of approaches to virtue, e.g. the

extreme virtuousness of Isabella compared with the more liberal

characters like Mistress Overdone and Pompey

• the complex characterisation of Angelo and his attitudes to virtue, e.g.

his draconian enforcement of moral codes alongside his own sexual

misconduct

• argument that Shakespeare uses the various compromises of characters

to suggest that virtue cannot be achieved through inflexible laws: ‘They

say, best men are moulded out of faults.’

• reactions of a modern audience to the ethical dilemmas in the play

• changing power relationships between men and women, in the play and

over time

• debate over the moral compromises the Duke makes in order to achieve

virtue, e.g. his use of disguise, spying, lying

• debate the extent to which the comic subplot reinforces the theme that a

genuine moral compass is a far more virtuous attribute than the

unyielding adherence to a given moral code, e.g. Escalus’s tempered

judgement on Pompey and Froth: ‘Some rise by sin, and some by virtue

fall.’

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Measure for Measure

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• use of subplot scenes to comment on the major action, e.g. Act 1,

Scene 2

• the use of comic scenes interspersed with potentially tragic scenes to

alleviate a more serious tone, e.g. Pompey and Mistress Overdone

scenes

• a subplot which mocks the main action, e.g. juxtaposition of Angelo’s

judgment on Claudio with Elbow’s attempt to charge Froth and Pompey

with promiscuity

• the use of the subplot to anticipate themes, e.g. Pompey is offered the

chance to repent as Angelo will be

• the way the subplot indicates what the life of the lower orders in society

must be like – the world of prostitutes, pimps, and an ineffectual policing

system

• the disturbing effect of the low comedy scenes which are at once sordid,

funny and – because they reflect on the main plot – touch on society’s

serious moral issues as well

• explore and debate the extent to which Lucio is simply as a comic

device, e.g. garish dress; butt of jokes

• explore different ways the Duke’s behaviour might be interpreted; use of

the omnipresent Duke as a device to control the plot/offer audience

perspective.

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Taming of the Shrew

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• use of the framing device (central plot is a play within a play,

performed for Christopher Sly) and its effect

• many characters who dress up and pretend to be people they are not –

Lucentio, Tranio, Hortensio, the merchant

• the presentation of Petruchio as a performer, e.g. he pretends to be

mad and find fault with Katherine’s food and clothing; consideration as

to whether Katherine is playing a role in being the obedient wife – or

has ‘assumed’ the role of the shrew

• the importance of clothing and appearance throughout the play, e.g.

the symbolism of Petruchio’s wedding outfit

• the hierarchy of authority in Elizabethan households and wider society

• conventions of comedy, impact on different audiences over time

• how the reversal of social roles - servants dressing up as noblemen

and noblemen acting like servants - might be interpreted as just

theatrical playfulness or conveying more serious themes

• the power of language use, debating how Katherine’s final speech

might be interpreted.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Taming of the Shrew

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Bianca’s presentation early in the play as a contemporary ideal of

womanhood – “But in the other’s silence I do see / Maid’s mild

behaviour and sobriety.”

• the ways in which Shakespeare reveals another side to Bianca’s

character, e.g. flirting with her tutors ("Good masters, take it not

unkindly, pray, That I have been thus pleasant with you both.");

taunting Katherine

• Bianca’s treatment as a commodity by her father, e.g. “…and he of

both / That can assure my daughter greatest dower / Shall have my

Bianca’s love.”

• Bianca’s character as a source of comedy, e.g. central to the wooing-

game subplot; the knockabout battles with her sister

• the relative situations of men and women in Elizabethan England

• the stock figure of the ‘shrew’ in Elizabethan drama

• exploring different ways of interpreting the play’s attitude towards

marriage. Bianca’s marriage to Lucentio as a possible counterpoint to

that between Katherine and Petruchio, e.g. “We three are married, but

you two are sped.”

• awareness of different interpretations of tone: the irony in Bianca’s

final refusal to obey her husband – "The more fool you for laying on my

duty".

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Hamlet

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Hamlet’s enacted madness; double deception of Hamlet’s deception to

others and his self-deception, e.g. his reluctance to kill Claudius

• soliloquies in the play in relation to deception and particularly Hamlet’s

self-deception

• how Hamlet reveals his deception to Horatio, e.g. Act 1, Scene 5,

Act 3, Scene 2

• Hamlet changing his name when he discovers Rosencrantz and

Guildenstern have a warrant for his death and the implications of that

act

• conventions of tragedy in the early 17th century plays

• the way Shakespeare presents a world of double dealing and

Machiavellian intrigue, perhaps mirroring the political complexities of

his own time

• different ways of judging Hamlet’s treatment of his mother, e.g. his

deception of her in Act 3, Scene 2

• exploring how their use of deception might change our view of other

characters.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Hamlet

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Claudius’s murder of his brother as the first act of madness in the

sense that it is an act against nature; Hamlet’s acted madness to prove

this fact

• Hamlet acting out madness and living that madness as the play

progresses

• is Hamlet mad? Is it temporary or permanent; feigned or actual?

• Ophelia’s madness and possible causes, e.g. Hamlet lying to her,

Laertes forbidding her to see him, Laertes’ murder; how it is seen in

her character, e.g. lack of femininity, childishness

• the self-questioning via soliloquy – early modern ideas of the self

• impact on different audiences with differing views of madness

• the appearance of the ghost: interpretations of whether it is actually

there or not (does the ghost actually appear in Gertrude’s closet?)

• do we believe Gertrude’s account of Ophelia’s accidental death, or is it

deliberate suicide? Which interpretation best fits with the idea of her

insanity?

98 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Taming of the Shrew

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• use of the framing device (central plot is a play within a play,

performed for Christopher Sly) and its effect

• many characters who dress up and pretend to be people they are not –

Lucentio, Tranio, Hortensio, the merchant

• the presentation of Petruchio as a performer, e.g. he pretends to be

mad and find fault with Katherine’s food and clothing; consideration as

to whether Katherine is playing a role in being the obedient wife – or

has ‘assumed’ the role of the shrew

• the importance of clothing and appearance throughout the play, e.g.

the symbolism of Petruchio’s wedding outfit

• the hierarchy of authority in Elizabethan households and wider society

• conventions of comedy, impact on different audiences over time

• how the reversal of social roles - servants dressing up as noblemen

and noblemen acting like servants - might be interpreted as just

theatrical playfulness or conveying more serious themes

• the power of language use, debating how Katherine’s final speech

might be interpreted.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Taming of the Shrew

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Bianca’s presentation early in the play as a contemporary ideal of

womanhood – “But in the other’s silence I do see / Maid’s mild

behaviour and sobriety.”

• the ways in which Shakespeare reveals another side to Bianca’s

character, e.g. flirting with her tutors ("Good masters, take it not

unkindly, pray, That I have been thus pleasant with you both.");

taunting Katherine

• Bianca’s treatment as a commodity by her father, e.g. “…and he of

both / That can assure my daughter greatest dower / Shall have my

Bianca’s love.”

• Bianca’s character as a source of comedy, e.g. central to the wooing-

game subplot; the knockabout battles with her sister

• the relative situations of men and women in Elizabethan England

• the stock figure of the ‘shrew’ in Elizabethan drama

• exploring different ways of interpreting the play’s attitude towards

marriage. Bianca’s marriage to Lucentio as a possible counterpoint to

that between Katherine and Petruchio, e.g. “We three are married, but

you two are sped.”

• awareness of different interpretations of tone: the irony in Bianca’s

final refusal to obey her husband – "The more fool you for laying on my

duty".

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Hamlet

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Hamlet’s enacted madness; double deception of Hamlet’s deception to

others and his self-deception, e.g. his reluctance to kill Claudius

• soliloquies in the play in relation to deception and particularly Hamlet’s

self-deception

• how Hamlet reveals his deception to Horatio, e.g. Act 1, Scene 5,

Act 3, Scene 2

• Hamlet changing his name when he discovers Rosencrantz and

Guildenstern have a warrant for his death and the implications of that

act

• conventions of tragedy in the early 17th century plays

• the way Shakespeare presents a world of double dealing and

Machiavellian intrigue, perhaps mirroring the political complexities of

his own time

• different ways of judging Hamlet’s treatment of his mother, e.g. his

deception of her in Act 3, Scene 2

• exploring how their use of deception might change our view of other

characters.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

Hamlet

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• Claudius’s murder of his brother as the first act of madness in the

sense that it is an act against nature; Hamlet’s acted madness to prove

this fact

• Hamlet acting out madness and living that madness as the play

progresses

• is Hamlet mad? Is it temporary or permanent; feigned or actual?

• Ophelia’s madness and possible causes, e.g. Hamlet lying to her,

Laertes forbidding her to see him, Laertes’ murder; how it is seen in

her character, e.g. lack of femininity, childishness

• the self-questioning via soliloquy – early modern ideas of the self

• impact on different audiences with differing views of madness

• the appearance of the ghost: interpretations of whether it is actually

there or not (does the ghost actually appear in Gertrude’s closet?)

• do we believe Gertrude’s account of Ophelia’s accidental death, or is it

deliberate suicide? Which interpretation best fits with the idea of her

insanity?

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

King Lear

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• the betrayal of Lear in doubting Cordelia in the first instance; this being

the initiator of all other betrayals

• the betrayal of Lear by Goneril and Regan; the betrayal of Gloucester

and Edgar by Edmund and the values that lie behind betrayal in each

instance; how the main plot and the subplot reflect this theme

• how betrayers eventually turn on each other as betrayal is essentially

for selfish motives

• betrayal and forgiveness – Cordelia and Edgar forgive their fathers;

Goneril and Regan are not forgiven

• ideas about order and disorder; the breakdown of an ordered society

through betrayal

• the concept of Kingship; authority in families and wider society in

Jacobean England

• debate about which of the many betrayals in the play might be seen as

the worst, and why

• different ways audiences might interpret the degree of sincerity in

language: Cordelia’s speech to Lear at the beginning of the play, which

he interprets as a betrayal of love.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

King Lear

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• blindness in its wider context; both not being able to see literally and a

‘mental blindness’ that stops the characters from seeing

• mental blindness and bad decisions; Lear and Gloucester

• blindness in seeing the true nature of one’s children; loyalty and

obedience; the vulnerability of the parent-child relationship

• Lear’s madness making him able to see; seeing/understanding and

self-awareness

• blindness to the issues of unfairness in society, e.g. Lear’s realisation

he was blind to the suffering of ‘poor naked wretches’

• the significance and effect of ‘blindness’ as a symbol on audiences

through the ages

• the extent to which the blindness of characters – because they are old

and easily deceived for example – is excusable

• debate around the use of the word “good” in the assertion; how far is

their downfall their own fault?

Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking

grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO3 = bullet

point 3, 4

AO5 = bullet

point 5, 6

No rewardable material.

Level 1

1–5

Descriptive

• Makes little reference to texts with limited organisation of ideas.

Limited use of appropriate concepts and terminology with

frequent errors and lapses of expression.

• Uses a narrative or descriptive approach that shows limited

knowledge of texts and how meanings are shaped in texts.

Shows a lack of understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Shows limited awareness of contextual factors.

• Shows limited awareness of links between texts and contexts.

• Shows limited awareness of different interpretations and

alternative readings of texts.

• Limited linking of different interpretations to own response.

Level 2

6–10

General understanding/exploration

• Makes general points, identifying some literary techniques with

general explanation of effects. Aware of some appropriate

concepts and terminology. Organises and expresses ideas with

clarity, although still has errors and lapses.

• Gives surface readings of texts relating to how meanings are

shaped in texts. Shows general understanding by commenting

on straightforward elements of the writer’s craft.

• Has general awareness of the significance and influence of

contextual factors.

• Makes general links between texts and contexts.

• Offers straightforward explanations of different interpretations

and alternative readings of texts.

• Some support of own ideas given with reference to generic

different interpretations.

Level 3

11–15

Clear relevant application/exploration

• Offers a clear response using relevant textual examples.

Relevant use of terminology and concepts. Creates a logical,

clear structure with few errors and lapses in expression.

• Demonstrates knowledge of how meanings are shaped in texts

with consistent analysis. Shows clear understanding of the

writer’s craft.

• Demonstrates a clear exploration of the significance and

influence of contextual factors.

• Develops relevant links between texts and contexts.

• Offers clear understanding of different interpretations and

alternative readings of texts.

• Explores different interpretations in support or contrast to own

argument.

100 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Question

Number

Indicative Content

King Lear

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• the betrayal of Lear in doubting Cordelia in the first instance; this being

the initiator of all other betrayals

• the betrayal of Lear by Goneril and Regan; the betrayal of Gloucester

and Edgar by Edmund and the values that lie behind betrayal in each

instance; how the main plot and the subplot reflect this theme

• how betrayers eventually turn on each other as betrayal is essentially

for selfish motives

• betrayal and forgiveness – Cordelia and Edgar forgive their fathers;

Goneril and Regan are not forgiven

• ideas about order and disorder; the breakdown of an ordered society

through betrayal

• the concept of Kingship; authority in families and wider society in

Jacobean England

• debate about which of the many betrayals in the play might be seen as

the worst, and why

• different ways audiences might interpret the degree of sincerity in

language: Cordelia’s speech to Lear at the beginning of the play, which

he interprets as a betrayal of love.

Question

Number

Indicative Content

King Lear

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• blindness in its wider context; both not being able to see literally and a

‘mental blindness’ that stops the characters from seeing

• mental blindness and bad decisions; Lear and Gloucester

• blindness in seeing the true nature of one’s children; loyalty and

obedience; the vulnerability of the parent-child relationship

• Lear’s madness making him able to see; seeing/understanding and

self-awareness

• blindness to the issues of unfairness in society, e.g. Lear’s realisation

he was blind to the suffering of ‘poor naked wretches’

• the significance and effect of ‘blindness’ as a symbol on audiences

through the ages

• the extent to which the blindness of characters – because they are old

and easily deceived for example – is excusable

• debate around the use of the word “good” in the assertion; how far is

their downfall their own fault?

Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking

grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO3 = bullet

point 3, 4

AO5 = bullet

point 5, 6

No rewardable material.

Level 1

1–5

Descriptive

• Makes little reference to texts with limited organisation of ideas.

Limited use of appropriate concepts and terminology with

frequent errors and lapses of expression.

• Uses a narrative or descriptive approach that shows limited

knowledge of texts and how meanings are shaped in texts.

Shows a lack of understanding of the writer’s craft.

• Shows limited awareness of contextual factors.

• Shows limited awareness of links between texts and contexts.

• Shows limited awareness of different interpretations and

alternative readings of texts.

• Limited linking of different interpretations to own response.

Level 2

6–10

General understanding/exploration

• Makes general points, identifying some literary techniques with

general explanation of effects. Aware of some appropriate

concepts and terminology. Organises and expresses ideas with

clarity, although still has errors and lapses.

• Gives surface readings of texts relating to how meanings are

shaped in texts. Shows general understanding by commenting

on straightforward elements of the writer’s craft.

• Has general awareness of the significance and influence of

contextual factors.

• Makes general links between texts and contexts.

• Offers straightforward explanations of different interpretations

and alternative readings of texts.

• Some support of own ideas given with reference to generic

different interpretations.

Level 3

11–15

Clear relevant application/exploration

• Offers a clear response using relevant textual examples.

Relevant use of terminology and concepts. Creates a logical,

clear structure with few errors and lapses in expression.

• Demonstrates knowledge of how meanings are shaped in texts

with consistent analysis. Shows clear understanding of the

writer’s craft.

• Demonstrates a clear exploration of the significance and

influence of contextual factors.

• Develops relevant links between texts and contexts.

• Offers clear understanding of different interpretations and

alternative readings of texts.

• Explores different interpretations in support or contrast to own

argument.

101

Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021

Please refer to the specific marking guidance on page 3 when applying this marking

grid.

Level

Mark

AO1 = bullet

point 1

AO2 = bullet

point 2

AO3 = bullet

point 3, 4

AO5 = bullet

point 5, 6

Level 4

16–20

Discriminating controlled application/exploration

• Constructs a controlled argument with fluently embedded

examples. Discriminating use of concepts and terminology.

Controls structures with precise cohesive transitions and

carefully chosen language.

• Demonstrates discriminating understanding of how meanings

are shaped in texts. Analyses, in a controlled way, the nuances

and subtleties of the writer’s craft.

• Provides a discriminating analysis of the significance and

influence of contextual factors.

• Makes detailed links between texts and contexts.

• Produces a developed exploration of different interpretations

and alternative readings of texts.

• Discussion is controlled and offers integrated exploration of

different interpretations in development of own critical position.

Level 5

21–25

Critical and evaluative

• Presents a critical evaluative argument with sustained textual

examples. Evaluates the effects of literary features with

sophisticated use of concepts and terminology. Uses

sophisticated structure and expression.

• Exhibits a critical evaluation of the ways meanings are shaped in

texts. Displays a sophisticated understanding of the writer’s

craft.

• Presents a sophisticated evaluation and appreciation of the

significance and influence of contextual factors.

• Makes sophisticated links between texts and contexts.

• Applies a sustained evaluation of different interpretations and

alternative readings of texts.

• Evaluation is supported by sophisticated use of application of

alternative interpretations to illuminate own critical position.

Section B: Pre-1900 Poetry

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Metaphysical Poets

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• appropriate selection of poem to accompany A Letter to her Husband,

Absent upon Public Employment (e.g. Marvell’s Definition of Love or

Lovelace’s Song: To Lucasta, Going to the Wars), illustrating a range of

ways in which the poets deal with love

• separation – Bradstreet’s longing for her husband’s return yet arguing

that they are ‘both but one’ even so; Lovelace’s argument that ‘I could

not love thee, dear, so much / Loved I not honour more’

• structure – Lovelace begins with an instruction to his lover (‘Tell me

not...’) and develops his argument by a concession in stanza 2 (‘True...’)

answered by a counter-argument in stanza 3 (‘Yet’...), concluding with

the apparent paradox of the final two lines; Bradstreet is more practical,

referring to ‘my magazine of earthly store’ and to their children, ‘those

fruits which through thy heat I bore’; Marvell developing a carefully

crafted logical argument (‘and yet... For... And therefore... Unless,’ etc.)

• the poets use imagery to express their love: the ‘Nunnerie’ of Lucasta’s

‘chaste breast’; Bradstreet describes her husband as ‘my magazine of

earthly store.’

• contextual aspects – Bradstreet as an immigrant in America making

specific references to place and to the seasons and the Bible, Lovelace as

a Cavalier poet, concerned with concepts such as ‘honour’, symbolised

by ‘a sword, a horse, a shield’

• the context of the writer’s perspective – Bradstreet as one of the few

women in the anthology, making reference to her children as evidence of

physical love; Lovelace, like several other male poets, addressing a

silent and apparently idealised ‘Lucasta’ (whose name means ‘pure

light’), with her ‘chaste breast and quiet mind’, who is assumed to

‘adore’ the ‘inconstancy’ of his pursuit of this ‘new mistress’ ‘honour’

through combat

• debate about gender roles: what conclusions might we reach when

Bradstreet calls her husband her ‘heart, eyes and more than life’ or

Lovelace tells Lucasta that he ‘loves honour more’?

Question

Number

Indicative Content

The Metaphysical Poets

Candidates may refer to the following in their answers:

• appropriate selection of poem to accompany To His Coy Mistress (e.g.

Vaughan’s The World or Donne’s The Sun Rising), illustrating a range of

ways in which the poets deal with time

• presentation of the quantity of time, e.g. Marvell playfully and

hyperbolically presents the notion of plentiful time; Vaughan contrasts

eternity with worldly time; presentation of the reality of time passing,

e.g. Marvell’s sinister notions ‘Deserts of vast eternity’, ‘worms shall try’,

and Vaughan’s list of worldly activity

• use of poetic form, e.g. Marvell uses the dramatic monologue to offer a

discourse on time whose argument is in three distinct sections: the

hypothesis, the reality, the proposition: ‘Had we’… ‘But’… ‘Therefore…’.

Donne also uses dramatic monologue to construct argument

102 Pearson Edexcel International Advanced Level in English Literature

Sample Assessment Materials – Issue 4 – August 2021 © Pearson Education Limited 2021