Instructional Page_________________

SIR JOHN WILSON SCHOOL

Write your name here Date

Sample Question: Explain how the writer presents his impressions of New York. You should support your answer with close
reference to the passage, including brief quotations.
AO2 understand and analyse how writers use linguistic and structural devices to achieve their effects (Q 3 and Q 6)
AO3 explore links and connections between writers’ ideas and perspectives, as well as how these are conveyed (Q 7)
What are you required to do in your answer?
Comment, Quote, discuss Effects. You will comment on the ❶Content, *❷Language/Style, and the ❸Structure of the passage.
You will quote words/phrases/clauses/sentence to support your comment and discuss the effects.
[See page 110-111 of the Student Book.]
How will you organise your points/findings coherently in your answer?

The next point is how you will write the answer. Will you just use the following components of the checklist and comment on various
parts of the passage /text randomly? No, you should not.
Solution: Make Genre, Audience and *Purpose of the text/passage the goal or main focus of your discussion/answer. In other
words, discuss how the writer has used some of the following components to adopt a Form (Genre), address the Audience, and
achieve the Purpose. The word ‘how’ includes ideas or content points, form and the use of language/style – and language or style
involves almost everything of English.

To comment, what will you look for in the passage? Here is your CHECKLIST with its various components:
■ Genre, Audience, Purpose
(Genre or some non-fiction texts: Biography or Autobiography, Obituaries, Speeches, Newspaper or Magazine Articles, Travel
Writing, Diaries or Letters, Reviews, …etc.) [See page 58 of the Student Book.]
(Purpose: to entertain/ inform/ create awareness/ persuade/ thrill/ excite/ protest/ remember/ pay tribute/ clarify/ advertise/
advocate…etc) [See page 87 of the Student Book.]
[See page 89 of the Student Book for Effects. Also see page 100 -101]
■ Theme or subject matter: something universal, something local, geographical, social, environmental, psychological, about science
and technology, about the sports world,…etc
■ Content: Fact, Opinion, Examples, Sufficient/Insufficient, Data, Relevant/Irrelevant, subject matter…etc.
■ Setting of Place/Time, Tense, Sequence of events
■ Voice, Point of view or Perspective, Tone (apathetic, affectionate, apologetic, blunt, ambivalent, cynical, disdainful, humorous,
impartial, grave, optimistic, patronizing, sympathizing,…etc)
■ What does a reader or a character of the text feel? Some words expressing different feelings:
Afraid, Agitated, Alarmed, Amazed, Amused, Annoyed, Anxious, Appreciative, Ashamed, Awkward, Baffled, Bored, Confused,
Contented, Demoralized, Displeased, Dispassionate, Dissatisfied, Distressed, Disturbed, Embarrassed, Enraged, Enthusiastic,
Frantic, Friendly, Frightened, Frustrated, Grateful, Hateful, Helpful, Hesitant, Hopeless, Humble, Humiliated, Impatient, Insecure,
Nervous, Offended, Oppressed, Optimistic, Overwhelmed, Proud, Regretful, Relieved, Resentful, Shocked, Suspicious, Terrified,
Threatened, Thrilled, Uncertain, Uncomfortable , …etc
■ Figures of Speech: Alliteration, Simile, Metaphor, Oxymoron, Pun, Hyperbole, Analogy, Paradox, Irony, Onomatopoeia,
Personification, Climax,…etc [See page 63 of the Student Book.]
■ Image/ Imagery (Which words/phrases/techniques are building it up?)
■ Words or Parts of Speech: Examine how some Nouns/ Pronouns/ Adjectives/ Verbs/ Adverbs/ Conjunctions/ Prepositions /
Interjection/ Determiners are functioning.
■ Sentence types: Simple, Complex, Compound, Affirmative, Negative, Imperative, Interrogative, Rhetorical Question, Exclamatory,
Short, Long, Lucid, …etc. [See page 89 of the Student Book.]
■ Sentence Purpose: Sentences can convey explanation, understanding, discussion, information, advice, opinions, guidance,
instruction, suggestions, entertainment, amusement, inspiration, hope, praise, pleading, bargaining, opinions, persuasion, warning,
terror, etc. [See page 40 of the Student Book.]
■ Types of the writing: descriptive, narrative, persuasive, discursive, argumentative, …
[Description: involves place, adjectives, adverbs, direction, dimensions, number, sensory words, concrete or abstract things,
condition of things, temperature, feelings,…etc. So, these are few components of descriptive language.
Narration: involves passage of TIME, events/actions, voice, tone, perspective, rise of action, climax, characters, plot,…]
■ Direct speech (Has it been used? What is the effect? In what way?)
■ Language: formal, informal, emotive, chatty, colloquial …
■ Structure: Title/ Subtitle, Heading/ Subheading, Paragraphing, Beginning/Introduction, Middle/ Developing paragraphs,
End/Conclusion, Repetition, Small/Big, Length of something…
■ Use of Positive/ Negative language ■ Why a particular information is used
What will you write about the EFFECTS?

Repetition in threes or lists of points: adds detail to the text, makes the text more persuasive by using a technique often used in
speeches and advertising, makes the subject seem more complex or interesting
Alliteration: catches the reader’s interest visually and aurally, makes the text more like poetry or advertising, makes the text more
memorable
Emotive vocabulary: makes the subject more emotional, provokes a response in the reader (makes us agree/disagree /happy/
unhappy)
Formal or informal vocabulary – eg “did not” v “didn’t”: Formal: makes the text feel more authoritative/powerful / convincing
Informal: makes the text appeal to us because it’s speaking to us, on our level, conversational
Hyperbole (overstatement):makes the point more powerful, helps us to visualise and remember the idea
Metaphor/simile: makes the subject more vivid, helps us to visualise the idea, uses a technique often used in advertising and
storytelling
Pun (wordplay): makes the text memorable/amusing / quirky/noticeable, appeals to the reader by making us think we are clever for
noticing the pun
Addressing the reader directly (“you”): makes the reader feel involved, gets the reader to empathise with the writer or someone
in the text, encourages our emotional reaction, makes the text more memorable
Adjectives and adverbs: adds detail to the text which helps us to visualise what is being described, uses the senses to make the text
more vivid, paints a picture in our minds which will help us to remember the text
Short/long sentences: creates rhythm in the text which makes it more interesting to read, short sentences give clarity and authority,
long sentences may make it more formal or more conversational, overall effect will be to hold our interest better
Use of statements/commands/questions: adds interest to the text by not using one tone of voice, this will keep us reading and
help us to remember the text, commands may provoke a response from us (“Stop talking and listen”) and
establish a link between writer and reader, questions (“Why should you visit Ibiza?”) draw us into the text
Use of dialogue: helps bring the text to life by adding human voices, grabs our interest by personalizing the subject, adds visual
interest on the page by being different from ordinary paragraphs [See page 89,103, of the Student Book.]

What kind of language can you use to QUOTE or to give EVIDENCE?

The evidence that supports this is...This is evident when...This is illustrated by...This is demonstrated by...

What language can you use to introduce EXPLANATION?

This suggests that...This infers that...This implies that...This insinuates (suggests indirectly) that...This shows that...

What language can you use to discuss the EFFECTS?

The use of descriptive language creates a sense of…// Repetition of … creates a sense of …// The use of typical …
language/behavior/attitude/… makes the reader/article/writing …// The writer is surprised/shocked/moved/amused/… by the… and this
is expressed by “ … … …”.// At the start of the extract, the writer uses ….. to ….// For example, it says ‘…’. This makes th e audience
think/feel/imagine…// The writer uses… which creates the effect of … on the reader…

What are the Main Points of Comparison in the answer of Question 7:

:: the audience for each text :: the purpose of each text and how the writers achieve this :: the subject or theme of each text and
how this is presented – but the response should not focus only on the content :: the techniques the writers have used, for example
vocabulary, imagery, rhetorical devices, sentence length and complexity, paragraph length, structuring or organization of ideas :: the
writer’s ideas and perspectives or point of views:: which text is more effective (unless asked, this is not a must-do)

Advice:
 While reading for details and scanning, you must underline/tick your findings (words/phrases/clauses/…). You may write small
comments beside them. It will help you in many ways.
 Do not summarize the passage or just repeat its content points in your language. Your task wants you to COMMENT.
 Do not write disconnected points or in note form. Make it a coherent writing and use Sentence Linkers to give it the quality of a
continuous writing.
 Better to use Simple Present and Present Perfect Tenses in situations like these:
“In Text 1, the tone is….” “The writer has used many adjectives to…. He/ She has demonstrated this in ….”
 Your quotations need to be small (words/phrases). Do not quote a big sentence; instead, use dots in the middle.
 Do not write everything in one paragraph only.