PAPER ONE PRELIM HSC ADVICE

Short Answers are all about comprehension skills. You will be required to read the
texts, find the relevant information, and answer questions about them which will include
the information you collected. Here are some tips for you for this section of the exam:

1. Read all the texts all the way through. It can be helpful to read the questions
first, so that you know what evidence you are looking for.
2. Use writing time to underline key parts of the question and places in the
text where your answers are. This will save time when you’re answering the
questions.
3. Attempt all questions. Even a single sentence or two can score you one mark.
Empty answers always get a zero.
4. questions

Textual advice
The types of text you may be presented with in this section include:

● Excerpt of a fiction text

○ Short story
○ Novel
● Excerpt of a non-fiction text
○ Feature article
○ Memoir
● Poem or song lyrics
● Website or blog page
● Photograph
● Artwork or illustration
● Advertisement
● Cartoon or comic
● Speech
● Excerpt of a drama script, or screenplay
 PAPER ONE PRELIM HSC ADVICE

Here is a breakdown of each of these texts, the key techniques, and features to focus
on.

Type of text Main Techniques Features to Focus On

Excerpt of a fiction text - Language: Metaphor / Who? What? Where? Why?

- Short Story Simile / Personification
- Novel - Characterisation Identify who is telling the
- Setting story, the main conflict, and
why that conflict is occuring.

Excerpt of a non-fiction text - Laguage: anecdote / What?

- Feature article dialogue / metaphor
- memoir - Evidence Identify what the subject
- Hyperbole matter is, and their point of
view on that subject matter.

Poem or song lyrics - Language: assonance / Looks, Feels, Sounds

rhyme / alliteration
- Stanzas Identify the images, the
- Symbolism emotions, and the sounds to
get the overall meaning.

Website or blog page - Language: hyperlinks / What and where?

headings / images
- Layout Identify what is on the page
- Information and where it is encouraging
the audience to go.

Photograph - Language: foreground / What can you see?

background / body
language Identify what is being taken a
- Salience photo of, where, and what
- Vectors might be left out of the photo.

Artwork or illustration - Language: colour / layout What is being represented?

/ vectors
- Symbolism Identify what the image might
- Framing be representing.

Advertisement - Language: hyperbole / How and Why?

modality / directives
Identify what you are being
positioned to think about/do.

Cartoon or comic - Language: irony / satire / Obvious and Invisible

caricature
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- Images What message is obvious?

- Text What message is being
hidden?

Speech - Language: anecdote / Who and Why?

simile / personification
- Ethos Identify the character of the
- Pathos person who is delivering the
- Logos speech and the reason they
are giving it.

Excerpt of a drama script, or - Language: interjection / Who and What?

screenplay exclamation / rhetorical
question Identify the characters
- Screen directions involved and what the action
- Monologue is taking place.