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Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1
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Pre-Leaving Certiϐicate Examination, 2023

English – Higher Level – Paper 1

(Option A)
Total Marks: 200

Time: 2 hours 50 minutes

• This paper is divided into two sections,

Section I COMPREHENDING and Section II COMPOSING.
• The paper contains three texts on the general theme of WRITING INSPIRING
WORDS.
• Candidates should familiarise themselves with each of the texts before beginning
their answers.
• Both sections of this paper (COMPREHENDING and COMPOSING) must be
attempted.
• Each section carries 100 marks.

SECTION I – COMPREHENDING
• Two Questions, A and B, follow each text.
• Candidates must answer a Question A on one text and a Question B on a different
text. Candidates must answer only one Question A and only one Question B.

N.B. Candidates may NOT answer a Question A and a Question B on the same text.

SECTION II – COMPOSING
• Candidates must write on one of the compositions 1 – 7.
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

SECTION I COMPREHENDING (100 marks)

TEXT 1 ͵ PHENOMENAL WOMEN ͵ Michelle Obama and Maya Angelou
This text contains extracts from a number of sources describing the power of the poet Maya
Angelou’s inspiraƟonal words. It includes an extract from Michelle Obama’s speech where she
salutes Maya Angelou’s example to all women through both her acƟons and her words.

Extract 1
Maya Angelou’s powerful poem, SƟll I Rise,
con nues to be used to illustrate the power of
resilience.

“You may write me down in history

With your bi er, twisted lies,
You may tread me in the very dirt
But s ll, like dust, I’ll rise.”

For Maya herself, having faced a trauma c

childhood event, she spent years in silence
before eventually finding her voice again and
using her words to inspire others. Angelou
was a favourite of the Obamas. In 2011,
Barack Obama awarded her the Presiden al
Medal of Freedom, quo ng her as he did so:
“History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be
unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be
lived again.” Delighted when he was elected
president, she declared: “We are growing up
beyond the idiocies of racism and sexism.” As a child, my first doll was Malibu Barbie —
that was the standard for perfec on. That was
Extract 2 what the world told me to aspire to. But then I
It is such a profound honour — truly a proud discovered Maya Angelou, and her words li ed
honour — to be here today on behalf of myself me right out of my own li le head. Her message
and my husband as we celebrate one of the was very simple: she told us that our worth had
greatest spirits our world has ever known, our nothing to do with what the world might say.
dear friend Dr Maya Angelou. She taught us Instead she said: “Each of us comes from the
that we are each wonderfully made, intricately creator trailing wisps of glory.” She reminded us
woven and put on this Earth for a purpose far that we must each find our own voice, decide
greater than we could ever imagine. our own value, and then announce it to the
world with all the pride and joy that is our birth
When I think of Maya Angelou, I think of the right as members of the human race.
affirming power of her words. The first me
I read Phenomenal Woman, I was struck by Dr Angelou’s words sustained me on every step
how she celebrated black women’s beauty like of my journey. Through lonely moments in ivy-
no one had ever dared to before. Our curves, covered classrooms and colourless skyscrapers.
our stride, our strength, our grace. Her words Through blissful moments mothering two
were clever and sassy. They were powerful and splendid baby girls. Through long years on
sexual and boas ul. And in that one singular the campaign trail, where at mes my very
poem, Maya Angelou spoke to the essence of womanhood was dissected and ques oned.
black women but she also graced us with an For me, that was the power of Maya Angelou’s
Robertanthem for -all
Atkinson women,College
Oatlands a call for all of us- to
- 60050E words — words so powerful -that
robert.atkinson@oatlands.net 1 they carried a
embrace our God-given beauty. And oh, how li le girl from the South Side of Chicago all the
desperately black girls needed that message. way to the White House.
As a young woman, I needed that message.

2
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

And today as First Lady, whenever the term to myself, “Maya Angelou knows who I am! And
‘authen c’ is used to describe me, I take it as she is roo ng for me! So now, I’m good. I can do
a tremendous compliment because I know this. I can do this.”
that I am following in the footsteps of great
women like Maya Angelou. But really, I am just And that’s really true for us all. Because in so
a beginner. I am baby authen c. many ways, Maya Angelou knew us. She knew
our hope, our pain, our ambi on, our fear, our
Maya Angelou, now she was the original. She was anger, our shame. And she assured us that in
the master. For at a me when there were such spite of it all — in fact, because of it all — we
s fling constraints on how black women could were good. And in doing so, she paved the way
exist in the world, she serenely disregarded all for me and Oprah and so many others just to be
the rules with fiercely passionate, unapologe c our good ol’ black women selves. She showed
self. She was comfortable in every inch of her us that, eventually, if we stayed true to who we
gloriously brown skin. are, then the world would embrace us.

But for Dr Angelou, her own transi on was And she did this not just for black women but
never enough. You see, she didn’t just want to for all women. For all human beings. She taught
be phenomenal herself. She wanted us all to us all that it is okay to be your regular old self,
be phenomenal right alongside her. So that’s whatever that is. Your poor self, your broken
what she did throughout her life me. She self, your brilliant, bold, phenomenal self. That
gathered so many of us under her wing. I wish was Maya Angelou’s reach.
I was her daughter. But I was right under that
wing — sharing her wisdom, her genius and her She touched me, she touched you, she touched
boundless love. all of you, she touched people all across the
globe — including a young white woman from
She made me feel like I owned the place, too. Kansas who named her daughter a er Maya
She made me feel like I had been born on that and raised her son to be the first black president
stage right next to her. And I remember thinking of the United States.
This text has been adapted, for the purpose of assessment, without the author’s prior consent.

N.B. Candidates may NOT answer QuesƟon A and QuesƟon B on the same text.

QUESTION A – 50 Marks
(i) Based on your reading of TEXT 1, what is your impression of Maya Angelou?
Support your answer with detailed reference to the text. (15)

(ii) In TEXT 1, Michelle Obama credits Angelou’s words as being “so powerful that they carried
a li le girl from the South Side of Chicago all the way to the White House”. Discuss the extent
to which you think words we hear have power to influence the type of person we aspire to
be. (15)

(iii) With reference to both content and style, iden fy how Michelle Obama convinces readers
of the key role Dr Angelou played in her life. Support your answer with reference to
the extract. (20)

QUESTION B – 50 Marks
Maya Angelou passed away, but she lives on in her books and poetry. Choose a figure from the past
thatAtkinson
Robert you find-interes ng. College
Oatlands Write the- 60050E
text of a -talk they might give to young people
robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1 today explaining
how they feel about their legacy, what they think of modern lifestyle and what advice they might
offer to young people with similar interests today.

3
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

TEXT 2 – “You can’t wait unƟl life isn’t hard any more before you
decide to be happy.”
This text contains a number of extracts from the personal essays published on the blog of
Nightbirde, a singer who captured the aƩenƟon of the audience of America’s Got Talent with
her talent and her posiƟvity in the face of her cancer diagnosis with the words: “You can’t wait
unƟl life isn’t hard anymore before you decide to be happy”.

A journalism professor in a long grey sweater

taught me the difference between a story
worth wri ng and a public rela ons stunt. A
real story s ll has meaning, even if nobody ever
hears it; a PR stunt only ma ers if people are
watching. And that became a new item on the
list of promises to myself: that I would never let
my life become a PR stunt. My life would have
meaning, even if nobody ever knew it. I wanted
to write a story I was proud of, even if nobody
read it.

Most people never think about breathing, but I

think about it a lot. There was a me when there
were too many tumours in my lungs for the
doctors to count. Knowing the number wouldn’t
have changed the outcome — I was running out
of room for air. Even as the tumours shrunk, I
found myself breathing shallow, and some mes
not breathing at all. The tumours were ge ng
smaller, but the grief was sprawling out.
It was a pilgrimage, this trip. A symbol of my
I’ve been to the desert only a few mes in my willingness to walk the long road of healing
life, but every me it changed me. It’s hard to with my own two feet, get my hands dirty, and
explain the desert to someone who has never maybe even let God breathe for me. It was my
been, but I can tell you that the silence lasts for solemn ‘yes’, to go through, instead of trying to
miles. The desert never interrupts. The desert go over or under or around. It was a resolu on
never rushes. that I wouldn’t cheat the system any more. I
shook hands with pain and agreed to play fair.
A er a mental collapse that le me on the I would walk the path. I would see it through.
bathroom floor for months, I drove from Ohio
to Los Angeles with my brother. I had traveled What I wanted more than anything was a
from East to West Coast several mes, but different past, but my face was telling stories
always by plane. I love that planes let you skipthat I could not erase. My body would not lie.
over me and space. I can close my eyes in one There was an ache that I couldn’t shake off, no
place and open them in another. But this me I ma er how much I bullied myself. I spent a long
took the long way. me believing that if I wanted it badly enough,
I could be scar-free; that if I made myself tall
We set out from the Midwest, where the shadows enough, I could in midate the pain into turning
stretch as far as they want to because there is away. But my soul wouldn’t rest un l I finally
plenty of room for it. We came through the snow admi ed I was wrong.
globe world of the Rockies, then through Utah’s
purple skies and powder blue mountains, where I was a universe of swollen ques ons, slouching
the loose amber sand stained the bo om of in the passenger seat. I stared out the window
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1
my shoes. We came through New Mexico and through the flatlands, and the tunnels under
Arizona, where crispy desert flowers close their mountains, through the snow and the hills and
eyes and lean towards the sun. the rain and the heat. I let it all pass through

4
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

me. Grief can take so many forms. When we I breathed deep. Breathing is holy for me. My
were almost to the end, we pulled off onto a hands were dirty, and God’s too. I closed my
dirt road in Arizona to have a funeral for my eyes and leaned into the sun, this me with a
marriage. li le more room for air.

We found an ice scraper under the seat and A line from my favourite poem says this:
dug a grave in the sand. I crouched down and 2
pulled my marriage cer ficate out of a clear “There’ll be days like this, my mama said,
plas c sleeve. It was as cool and smooth as the When you open your hands to catch,
day it was handed to me. I saw my signature in And wind up with only blisters and bruises. . .
blue ink, a broken oath in my own handwri ng. When your boots fill with rain,
His signature was there too, and I didn’t fight it and you’ll be up to your knees in
when I felt sen mental. When he signed it, he disappointment.
really believed that he loved me. I knew that. And those are the very days you have all the
The complicated truth sagged in my gut. more reason to say thank you.
Because there’s nothing more beauƟful than
I put the two wedding bands and the papers in the way the ocean refuses to stop kissing the
the sand, and lit a corner. Fire and wind pulled shoreline, no maƩer how many Ɵmes it is sent
it all apart, one fleck of feathery ash at a me. I away.”
pressed my lips together and hummed quietly.
It was the melody that played when I wore the I see mercy in the dusty sunlight that outlines
white dress and made the promise. I wanted to the trees, in my mother’s crooked hands, in the
end it the same way it started—with sincerity blanket my friend le for me, in the harmony of
and finality and a song. the wind chimes. It’s not the mercy that I asked
for, but it is mercy nonetheless. And I learn a
I pushed the sand back over the ashes and set a new prayer: thank you. It’s a prayer I don’t
smooth white stone on top. My brother le for mean yet, but will repeat un l I do.
the car, and I stood silently with the cac .
This text has been adapted, for the purpose of assessment, without the author’s prior consent.

N.B. Candidates may NOT answer QuesƟon A and QuesƟon B on the same text.

QUESTION A – 50 Marks

(i) Based on your reading of TEXT 2, what is your impression of the author, Nightbirde? (15)

(ii) Nightbirde’s status was bolstered by what the judges on America’s Got Talent referred to
as her “authen city”. Discuss the extent to which you think that authen c talent is
overshadowed by talentless ‘fame seekers’, due to the widespread availability of social
media pla orms. (15)

(iii) Iden fy four elements of Nightbirde’s wri ng style, evident in TEXT 2, and discuss how
effec vely these stylis c elements are employed to cra a lyrically beau ful and engaging
piece of personal wri ng. Support your answer with reference to TEXT 2. (20)

QUESTION B – 50 Marks
Nightbirde’s song It’s okay was described as “the words we all needed to hear in 2021”. Write the
text of the blog post you would write, including a quote you believe are the words we, as a society,
Robert
needAtkinson
to hear -inOatlands College
2023. In your blog -post
60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net
you should reflect on the power of posi -vity,
1 discuss some
of the challenges faced by people in 2023, and share your thoughts and feelings on what keeps you
inspired during life’s challenges.

5
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

TEXT 3 – ON EARTH WE’RE BRIEFLY GORGEOUS

In this edited extract from a novel composed as a young Vietnamese man’s leƩer to his
mother, who cannot read, On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous is an authenƟc portrait of love,
idenƟty, forgiveness and finding yourself through words.

What I am about to tell you, you will never know.

But so be it. I am wri ng to reach you – even
if each word I put down is one word further
from where you are. I am wri ng to go back to
the me, at the rest stop in Virginia, when you
stared, horror-struck, at the taxidermy buck
hung over the soda machine by the restrooms,
its antlers shadowing your face. In the car, you
kept shaking your head. “I don’t understand
why they would do that. Can’t they see it’s a
corpse? A corpse should go away, not get stuck
forever like that.”
I think now of that buck, how you stared into
its black glass eyes and saw your reflec on,
your whole body, warped in that lifeless mirror.
How it was not the grotesque moun ng of a
from September to November, they will move,
decapitated animal that shook you – but that
one wing beat at a me, from southern Canada
the taxidermy embodied a death that won’t
and the United States to por ons of central
finish, a death that keeps dying as we walk past
Mexico, where they will spend the winter. They
it to relieve ourselves.
perch among us, on windowsills and chain-
There is so much I want to tell you, Ma. I was link fences, clotheslines s ll blurred from the
once foolish enough to believe knowledge just-hung weight of clothes, windowsills, the
would clarify, but some things are so gauzed hood of a faded-blue Chevy, their wings folding
behind layers of syntax and seman cs, behind slowly, as if being put away, before snapping
days and hours, names forgo en, salvaged and once, into flight. It only takes a single night of
shed, that simply knowing the wound exists frost to kill off a genera on. To live, then, is a
does nothing to reveal it. I don’t know what I’m ma er of me, of ming.
saying. I guess what I mean is that some mes I
That me when I was five or six and, playing
don’t know what or who we are. Days I feel like
a prank, leapt out at you from behind the
a human being, while other days I feel more like
hallway door, shou ng, “Boom!” You screamed,
a sound. I touch the world not as myself but as
face raked and twisted, then burst into sobs,
an echo of who I was. Can you hear me yet? Can
clutched your chest as you leaned against the
you read me?
door, gasping. I stood bewildered, my toy army
My doubt is everywhere, Ma. Even when I helmet lted on my head. I was an American
know something to be true as bone I fear the boy parro ng what I saw on TV. I didn’t know
knowledge will dissolve, will not, despite my that the war was s ll inside you, that there was
wri ng it, stay real. I’m breaking us apart again so a war to begin with, that once it enters you it
that I might carry us somewhere else — where, never leaves – but merely echoes, a sound
exactly, I’m not sure. Just as I don’t know what forming the face of your own son. Boom.
to call you — White, Asian, orphan, American,
That me, in third grade, with the help of Mrs
mother? I am wri ng because I wasn’t trying to
Callahan, my ESL teacher, I read the first book
make a sentence – I was trying to break free.
that I loved, a children’s book called Thunder
Because freedom, I am told, is nothing but the
Cake, by Patricia Polacco. In the story, when a
distance between the hunter and its prey.
girl and her grandmother spot a storm brewing
Autumn. Somewhere over Michigan, a colony on the green horizon, instead- 1of shu ering the
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net
of monarch bu erflies, numbering more than windows or nailing boards on the doors, they
fi een thousand, are beginning their yearly set out to bake a cake. I was unmoored by this
migra on south. In the span of two months, act, its precarious yet bold refusal of common

6
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

sense. As Mrs Callahan stood behind me, her
mouth at my ear, I was pulled deeper into the
current of language. The story unfurled, its
storm rolled in as she spoke, then rolled in once
more as I repeated the words.
To bake a cake in the eye of a storm; to feed
yourself sugar on the cusp of danger. Because I
am your son, this made perfect sense. The first
me you hit me, I must have been four. A hand,
a flash, a reckoning. My mouth a blaze of touch.
The me I tried to teach you to read the way Mrs
Callahan taught me, my lips to your ear, my hand
on yours, the words moving underneath the
shadows we made. But that act (a son teaching
his mother) reversed our hierarchies, and with it
our iden es, which, in this country, were already
tenuous and tethered. A er the stu ers and false
starts, the sentences warped or locked in your
throat, a er the embarrassment of failure, you
slammed the book shut. “I don’t need to read,”
you said, your expression crunched, and pushed
away from the table. “I can see – it’s go en me
this far, hasn’t it?”
Migra on can be triggered by the angle
of sunlight, indica ng a change in season,
temperature, plant life, and food supply.
This text has been adapted, for the purpose of assessment, without the author’s prior consent.
Female monarchs lay eggs along the route.
Every history has more than one thread, each
thread a story of division. The journey takes four
thousand eight hundred and thirty miles, more
than the length of this country. The monarchs
that fly south will not make it back north. Each
departure, then, is final. Only their children
return; only the future revisits the past. To be
or not to be. That is the ques on.
When you were a girl in Vietnam, the
neighborhood kids would take a spoon to your
arms, shou ng, “Get the white off her, get the
white off her!” Eventually you learned to swim.
Wading deep into the muddy river, where no
one could reach you, no one could scrape you
away. You made yourself an island for hours at
a me. Coming home, your jaw would cla er
from cold, your arms pruned and blistered —
but s ll white.
When asked how he iden fies his roots,
Tiger Woods called himself “Cablinasian,” a
portmanteau he invented to contain his ethnic
makeup of Chinese, Thai, Black, Dutch, and
Na ve American. To be or not to be. That is the
ques on. A ques on, yes, but not a choice.

N.B. Candidates may NOT answer QuesƟon A and QuesƟon B on the same text.

QUESTION A – 50 Marks

(i) Based on your reading of TEXT 3, outline three interes ng insights you gained into the
rela onship between the narrator and his mother. (15)

(ii) In TEXT 3, Vuong describes the lingering impact of the past war on his family’s present life.
Discuss the significance of understanding the influence of historical events on our sense of
individual or cultural iden ty. (15)

(iii) The author of this extract is also a renowned poet. Do you think this is evident in the manner
that Vuong describes people, events and situa ons? Iden fy four features to support your
claim. Support your response with reference to the wri ng in the extract. (20)

QUESTION B – 50 Marks

“As Mrs Callahan stood behind me, her mouth at my ear, I was pulled deeper into the current of
language. The story unfurled…”
Write a leƩer to a person who influenced your love of language – spoken or wri en word. This might
Robert
be Atkinson
a favourite- author,
Oatlands College
singer - 60050E
or poet, - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net
a teacher, or someone who introduced you- to
1 a new language.
In your le er, refer to the moment you realised your love of language was developing, how you’ve
benefited from it, and then encourage others who may not enjoy your chosen language.

7
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1
*p4FC*

SECTION II COMPOSING (100 marks)

Write a composi on on any one of the assignments that appear in bold print below.

Each composi on carries 100 marks.

The composi on assignments are intended to reflect language study in the areas of informa on,
argument, persuasion, narra on, and the aesthe c use of language.

1. TEXT 2 highlights how Nightbirde’s a tude to “see it through” carried her through her
difficult experiences.

Write a discursive essay about the importance of determinaƟon in the face of obstacles
and challenges.

2. TEXT 1 includes an image of Maya Angelou and some of her most inspiring quotes.

Write a personal essay in which you reflect on the relevance of at least one of those quotes
to your life.

3. In TEXT 3, we learn about how the monarch bu erfly represents the passing of culture,
knowledge and tradi ons from genera on to genera on.

Write a feature arƟcle for a magazine where you discuss the diluƟon of naƟonal culture(s)
associated with freedom of travel, the rise in migraƟon and the impact of social media.

4. In TEXT 2, we learn Nightbirde was selected as a finalist in America’s Got Talent.

Write a short story which includes a character reaching a pivotal moment in their life.

5. In TEXT 3, we see how the author uses monarch bu erflies as a metaphor for his family’s
story of migra on.

Write a short story where an animal plays a central role.

6. In TEXT 3, the author’s mother is shocked at the display of a taxidermy buck hung over the
soda machine.

Write a speech to be delivered to a World Youth Conference outlining your views on the
relaƟonship between humans and animals.

7. In TEXT 2, Nightbirde graphically describes her journey to the desert.

Write a descripƟve essay describing in detail an important journey to a significant place.

1

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

8
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1
*p5FC*

Pre-Leaving Certiϐicate Examination, 2023

English – Higher Level – Paper 2

(Option A)
Total Marks: 200

Time: 3 hours 20 minutes

Candidates must attempt the following:

• ONE question from SECTION I – The Single Text
• ONE question from SECTION II – The Comparative Study
• ONE question on the Unseen Poem from SECTION III – Poetry
• ONE question on Prescribed Poetry from SECTION III – Poetry

N.B. Candidates must answer on Shakespearean Drama.

They may do so in SECTION I The Single Text (Macbeth) or in SECTION II, The
Comparative Study (Macbeth, Othello).

INDEX OF SINGLE TEXTS

All the Light We Cannot See Page - 2

A Doll’s House Page - 2

Macbeth Page - 3

Frankenstein Page - 3

The Picture of Dorian Gray Page - 3

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

SECTION I THE SINGLE TEXT (60 marks)

Candidates must answer one ques on from this sec on (A – E).

A ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE – Anthony Doerr

(i) “All the Light We Cannot See is about the power of human connec on.”

Based on your reading of the novel, to what extent do you agree or disagree with the
above statement? Explain your answer, giving reasons for your response. Develop your
answer with reference to Doerr’s novel, All the Light We Cannot See.

OR

(ii) Iden fy and discuss the various ways in which Doerr’s narra ve style added to your
engagement with the novel. Develop your response with reference to the text.

B A DOLL’S HOUSE – Henrik Ibsen

(i) “Ibsen uses a variety of techniques to create a world of decep on in the play A Doll’s
House”.

Discuss this statement with detailed reference to the text.

OR

(ii) “Both Torvald and Nora display a variety of character traits and values that contribute to
the drama c and tragic outcome of the play.”

To what extent would you agree or disagree with this view? Support your answer with
reference to the play, A Doll’s House.

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

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Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

C MACBETH – William Shakespeare

(i) “Shakespeare uses a variety of techniques to create a world of decep on in the play
Macbeth”.

Discuss this statement with detailed reference to the text.

OR 9

(ii) “Both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth display a variety of character traits and values that
contribute to the drama c and tragic outcome of the play.”

To what extent would you agree or disagree with this view? Support your answer with
reference to the play, Macbeth.

D FRANKENSTEIN – Mary Shelley

(i) “Frankenstein is a novel that showcases how the desire for revenge develops in response
to unmet human needs.”

Based on your reading of the novel, to what extent do you agree or disagree with the
above statement? Explain your answer, giving reasons for your response. Develop your
answer with reference to Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein.

OR

(iii) Iden fy and discuss the various ways in which Shelley’s narra ve style added to your
engagement with the novel, Frankenstein. Develop your response with reference to the
text.

E THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY – Oscar Wilde

(i) “The Picture of Dorian Gray is about Dorian’s moral degenera on.”

Based on your reading of the text, to what extent do you agree or disagree with this
statement in rela on to Dorian Gray in The Picture of Dorian Gray? Develop your response
with reference to the text.

OR

(ii) Iden fy and discuss the various ways in which Wilde’s narra ve style added to your
engagement
Robert Atkinson with the
- Oatlands novel,- The
College Picture
60050E of Dorian Gray. Develop your response
- robert.atkinson@oatlands.net -1 with
reference to the text.

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Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

SECTION II THE COMPARATIVE STUDY (70 marks)

Candidates must answer one ques on from either A – Theme or Issue or B – Literary Genre, or C
– General Vision and Viewpoint.

Candidates who answer a ques on in SECTION I – The Single Text, may not refer to the same text
in answer to ques ons in this sec on.

All texts used in this sec on must be prescribed for compara ve study for this year’s examina on.
Candidates may refer to only one film in the course of their answers.

Please note:
• Ques ons in this sec on use the word text to refer to all the different kinds of texts available
for study on this course.
• When used, the word reader includes viewers of films and theatre audiences.
• When used, the term technique is taken to include techniques employed by all writers and
directors of films.
• When used, the word author is taken to include all writers and directors of films.
• When used, the word character is understood to refer to both real people and fic onal
characters in texts.

A THEME OR ISSUE
1. “There are many reasons why the explora on of the same theme or issue can be more
cap va ng in some texts than in others.”

Compare the reasons why you found the explora on of the same theme or issue more
cap va ng in some texts than in others. Support your answer with reference to at least
two texts on your compara ve course. (70)

OR

2. “Studying a theme or issue in a text can enable us to contemplate and evaluate aspects of
the human condi on.”

(a) In rela on to one text on your compara ve course, discuss the extent to which your
chosen theme or issue is relevant to the evalua on of the human condi on. Support
your answer with reference to the text. (30)

(b) In rela on to two other texts on your compara ve course, compare the extent to
which your chosen theme or issue is relevant to the human condi on. (40)

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

4
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

B LITERARY GENRE
1. “Authors use various literary techniques to make the final moments of texts meaningful
and compelling.”

Compare the extent to which the above statement is valid in rela on to your
understanding of the literary genre in at least two texts on your compara ve course.
Develop your answers with reference to your chosen texts. (70)

OR

2. “No two texts are exactly the same in the manner in which they tell their stories.”

(a) Discuss how the story is told in one text you have studied as part of your
compara ve course and how that managed to capture your interest in the story
being told. (30)

(b) With reference to two other texts on your compara ve course, compare how the
stories were told and how that did or did not manage to capture your interest in the
story being told. Support the comparisons you make by reference to the texts. (40)

In response to 2(b), you may refer to the same or different ways the stories are told
as those referred to in 2(a) above and how that did or did not manage to capture your
interest in the story.

C GENERAL VISION AND VIEWPOINT

1. “The general vision and viewpoint of a text can change greatly from the opening scenes to
the conclusion of the text.”

Compare how the general vision and viewpoint changed or remained the same from the
opening to the concluding scenes of at least two texts you have studied as part of your
compara ve course. (70)

OR

2. (a) Discuss the extent to which a character’s values in one text on your compara ve
course influenced your sense of the general vision and viewpoint of this text.
Develop your response with reference to your chosen text. (30)

(b) In rela on to two other texts on your compara ve course, compare the extent to
which a character’s values influenced your sense of the general vision and viewpoint
of each of these texts. Develop your response with reference to your chosen texts.
(40)

In response to 2(b), you may refer to the same or different ways a character’s values
infl
Robert Atkinson uenced your sense
- Oatlands of the
College general vision
- 60050E and viewpoint as those referred
- robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1 to in 2(a)
above.

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 SECTION III POETRY (70 marks)
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

Candidates must answer A – Unseen Poem and B – Prescribed Poetry.

A UNSEEN POEM (20 marks)

Read the following poem by Mary Nagy. Answer either Ques on 1 or Ques on 2 which follow.

I Wish I Knew
I wish I knew, from the very start,
that self-esteem is a home grown virtue.
And that you should never plant those precious seeds,
in someone else’s garden.

I wish I knew, at every step,

that all those seeds really require,
in order to bloom,
is approval, from yourself.

Yes I wish I knew, way back then,

that self-approval is their sunlight,
peace their soil
and love is their rain.

And all the other things can come and go

like the seasons and the wind,

I wish I knew, all along,

that those seeds can grow so tall, so strong
and so fierce,
like the most beau ful sunflowers,
if the condi ons are right.

Or they can wither away to weed and husk,

If neglected.

I wish I knew, that no ma er how much of the world I scoured,

I would not find a be er garden,
than the one I could grow myself,
if only I knew how.

And I wish for you,

to know,
this too,
so you,
can grow,
and water,
you. Mary Nagy

Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

This poem has been used without the author’s prior consent.

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Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

1. (a) How accurately do you think the poet describes the analogy of self-esteem as a seed
in the poem above? Support your response with reference to the poem. (10)
3
(b) Iden fy two images from the poem that make an impact on you and give reasons for
your choice. (10)
OR

2. Discuss the appeal of this poem with reference to the theme, the poet’s use of language and
the tone. Support your answer with detailed reference to the poem. (20)

B PRESCRIBED POETRY (50 marks)

Candidates must answer one of the following ques ons (1 – 5).

1. Emily Dickinson

Discuss how successfully, in your opinion, Emily Dickinson employs a range of stylis c
features in an innova ve way in order to convey both overwhelming wonder and
unse ling interest in her work. Develop your response with reference to the poems by
Emily Dickinson on your Leaving Cer ficate English course.

2. John Donne

“Donne makes masterful use of startling imagery and wit to communicate the drama c
situa ons and intense experiences that lie at the heart of his poetry.”

To what extent do you agree or disagree with the above statement? Develop your
response with reference to the poems by Donne on your Leaving Cer ficate English course.

3. Derek Mahon

“Derek Mahon transforms the familiar and mundane through his own dis nc ve style.”

Discuss the above statement, developing your response with reference to your experience
of the poems by Derek Mahon on your Leaving Cer ficate English course.

4. Paula Meehan

From your study of the poetry of Paula Meehan on your course, select the poems that, in
your opinion, best illustrate how Meehan’s accessible and appealing language allows rich
insights into her personal reflec ons and public commentary.
Jus fy your selec on by illustra ng how Meehan’s accessible and appealing language
allows rich insights into her personal reflec ons and public commentary.

5. W.B Yeats

“While Yeats’ wri ng style is challenging as he moves between realism and symbolism in
his poetry, his themes are accessible to all.”
Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1
Discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the above statement. Develop your
response with reference to the themes and language evident in the poems by W.B. Yeats
on your course.
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Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1
*p5FC*

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Robert Atkinson - Oatlands College - 60050E - robert.atkinson@oatlands.net - 1

 23
ACCESS SAMPLE SECOND EXAM SCHEDULE EXAMS AFTER
PAPERS ONLINE FROM PAPER IN 8 LEAVING JAN 23RD TO YOUR
MID-NOVEMBER CERT SUBJECTS SCHOOL’S TIMETABLE

Mock Exam Papers 2023

Higher quality and faster NEW JUNIOR CYCLE

turnaround of corrections
ONLINE CORRECTIONS

Dear Mock Exam Secretary,

Firstly, thank you for your support over previous mock
examination cycles and hope that you will put your trust in
us again in 2023.
While schools are generally happy with our correction service,
two areas for further improvement have been highlighted:
• Consistency of quality.
• A faster turnaround time.

With a totally paper-based system, and given the turnaround expectations of schools, it is very difficult to introduce paper-based
process innovations which would make a meaningful difference to either of these areas.
For this reason, we have decided to implement an online corrections system for the Junior Cycle papers for the coming mock
examination cycle which will address your concerns in the following ways:

1. Quality 2. Speedy Turnaround

We are implementing system checks Once the papers are scanned by our team, they
to ensure that all correctors are will be immediately queued for correction, which
marking scripts to an agreed standard means no posting of scripts, no missing boxes
as set out by senior correctors. and no long waits for results for students.

Online corrections is a significant investment for Examcraft and it is
designed to ensure that your students can have greater reliability on
the marks that they receive.
In planning this innovation, we are ensuring that schools, teachers
and mock examination secretaries will have very little additional work.
There is a brief outline of the changes on page 3, but we will explain
them in more detail closer to the beginning of the mock cycle.
Thank you again for continuing to place your trust in
Examcraft; the Examcraft team look forward to working
with you in 2023.
Philip O' Callaghan
Managing Director of the Examcraft Group
 What will online corrections at Junior
Cycle mean for your school?
The main benefits that online corrections will bring to your school are greater consistency in the quality of corrections and
a faster script turnaround time.
In order for this to happen, we will be asking for your co-operation as follows:

After ordering the papers, and if you opt to have the scripts corrected, you will be asked to register
the students and their teachers according to the instructions we will provide.

Other than that, there will be no change for you. There will, however, be a change in how these
scripts are returned to the teachers and students.

Once an envelope is corrected, the teacher will be notified by email that the corrected scripts are
available to view online. Instructions will be provided to teachers on how they can be accessed.

The teacher will review the scripts and then release them online to the students. The students will
then get an email advising them on how they can view their individual scripts.

We are excited about this innovation, as we believe it will lead to enhanced quality and efficiency of the corrections service.
While it is our plan to implement this for all exams in 2024, implementing it at Junior Cycle ensures that individual schools
and the Examcraft organisation can embed any learnings before we roll it out for the highest-stake exams in 2024.
I trust that you will support us as we embark on this journey of digital transformation which is designed to ensure you,
your school and your students will have a better mock examination experience in the years to come.

STEP 01 STEP 03
Register students STEP 02 Exam papers are STEP 04
and their teacher Students sit returned to Examcraft Once papers are corrected,
for corrections. their exams as normal. teachers are notified by email
as normal. and can review the scripts
online and release to students.

89F Lagan Road, Dublin Industrial Estate, Glasnevin, Dublin 11

T: 01 808 1494 | E: info@examcraft.ie | www.examcraft.ie
 THE
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