GRADE 10

TERM 1

The Writer’s Effect

Phrases and Expressions

This question asks you to look at the effect of the writer’s word choices. This simply
means what they help the reader to understand about a person, place or event. The
question wants you to find powerful or unusual words that seem to have been
chosen deliberately by the writer. Do not choose ordinary words therefore! Always try
to quote an image and show that you understand what it is for example a metaphor,
simile or personification. Remember to focus on what the writer is trying to achieve.

How to express yourself-use words that WOW the examiner.

 Epitomises (verb)- the best possible example of something

o Eg- the writer’s use of imagery epitomises the character’s selflessness
 Evokes (verb)- to bring an idea ,or a feeling ,or a picture into someone’s mind
o Eg- the writer’s use of the striking metaphor evokes a sense of the
character’s mindset
 Engenders (verb)-to cause to exist or develop
o Eg- the writer’s use of the powerful word/ phrase engenders feeling of
sympathy
 Employs (verb)- synonym for the verb “ to use”
o Eg- the writer employs a number of techniques to create an image of
character’s desperation
 Palpable ( adjective) - (feeling or atmosphere) so intense it seems real
o Eg- the writer’s use of language creates a palpable sense of fear
 Pathos (noun)- a rhetorical technique used to evoke sympathy or pity
o Eg- the writer’s use of pathos helps us to see the character’s
vulnerability
 Undertones (noun)- denotes n implied or suggested meaning
o Eg- the writer creates a sinister undertone through the description of
the airy house
 Connotes (verb)- to explore words, feelings or ideas that we associate with a
particular word.
o Eg- the description of the setting connotes a sense of warmth and
comfort
  Perpetual (adjective)- never ending or changing
o Eg- the writer creates a sense of the character being kept in a
perpetual fear due to her phobia.

More expressions to use

 This word implies/ suggests ..........

 Verbs such as ................ imply................
 The personification of ............... has the effect of.............
 The phrase.......... is effective because it suggests.......
 The use of the word/phrase ............... creates an atmosphere/creates the
impression of..................
 The writer uses this word/phrase to exaggerate.....
 The intention of the writer is to emphasise..............
 This is a deliberate contrast to words such as “...” and “...” which
emphasises.....

Don’t use:

 It draws the reader in

 It makes the reader want to read on
 This means..........

Don’t paraphrase, that is explain what the phrase means but using different words.
Remember – the focus must be on the effect, feeling, image that the writer is trying
to create, not the meaning. Also, the 2 paragraphs have been chosen because they
include effective/powerful language and imagery.

You have identified the following in a paragraph:

The writer has created the overall image of movement, space and time by describing
the kite’s flight. (overall image)

 “Swirl” and “arrow”: suggest the kite’s rapid movements and how it changes
speed and direction unexpectedly.
 “Lifting higher and higher” implies the kite is almost disappearing from view
into the air. The writer is suggesting it represents the children’s enjoyment
which increases as the kite rises.
 “distant red kite” is an image which links back to the kite Mandy saw in
childhood. It reminds her of being a child again, but this time she is not in
charge of the kite. Its colour is bright, suggesting that it’s reminding her of
something.
 “Rhythmic tug” is effective because it makes the reader think the kite from
childhood was like music, perhaps a symbol or metaphor of a heartbeat.
Now putting one image together: a better response

The writer has created the overall image of movement, space and time by describing
the kite’s flight. The first image the writer creates is using the verbs “swirl” and then
“arrow” to suggest the unpredictability of the kites, through their rapidly changing
movement which makes the reader think this may be a metaphor for life itself. “Stony
ground” is very powerful imagery as it implies dreams breaking in hard everyday
reality. But the writer suggests that dreams do succeed sometimes as the
“possibilities of flight” seems to be a metaphor for the future – the potential for
happiness.

A not so good response (actually not good at all)

Swirl and arrow explains how the kite moves. “Lifting higher and higher” means that
it goes up in the sky. The writer says that the kite reminds Mandy of her childhood.
The words are interesting and make the reader want to read on. Rhythmic tug
means that the kite is pulling on its string. Words like rhythmic draw the reader in
because they are interesting and imaginative.