Questions:
1) Ensure you carry out the task accurately. Underline the main elements of the task and the lines involved. No analysis. It’s only a list. And focus on the question. No drifting.
2) The ‘how’ is key. Track your response using at least 5/6 quotations and ensure that you go through the printed extract. It is easier to have an ‘umbrella’ idea to begin with so all the quotations support your idea and are clearly relevant. For example, The writer describes the Tyrannosaurus in terms of its monstrousness and power. This is communicated vividly by the first word of the passage, the pronoun ‘it’ which is repeated to stress the inhumanity and fearfulness of the creature whose monumental size is emphasised by the verb ‘towered’ which is used alliteratively with the reference to ‘thirty feet’ revealing how imposing the creature is and how the indestructible it seems as it scrutinises the world. The unnerving personification of the creature as ‘a great evil god’ underlines the malignity of this monster whose powers seem like that of a deranged deity and whose predatory nature is metaphorically evoked through ‘ a fence of teeth like daggers’ which highlights the terrifying murderous of the predator.
3) The structure question is often made more difficult than it needs to be. The structure is like the spine of any text. Think about the way the text is organised from paragraph to paragraph and how this moves the story on.
So look at the beginning and ask yourself what am I being made aware of? Then see how this attention is shifted and to what end.
So, the extract of the narrative begins with a reference to ‘pterodactyls’ which clearly establishes we have time travelled back to a prehistoric world which has been extraordinarily invaded by human hunters whose dialogue emphasises their arrogant quest to destroy the ultimate predator, the Tyrannosaurus Rex. This setting and quest are sharply destabilised by the Volta ‘suddenly’ which changes the expectations of the narrative as the supposed hunters become the ‘victims’ of the predator which is emphasised by the fraught dialogue resulting in the imperative ‘get me out of here’ ….
4) This question should never be rushed. Check your timing. Remember to adjust the time you spend on each question according to the mark scheme.
This 20-mark question encourages you to express an opinion. You have to evaluate the quotation issued at the beginning of the question and argue your case accordingly.
Just as you began question 2, make a clear statement in response to the question at the beginning. This statement should contain ‘ingredients which you can return to as you evaluate the text. Hence you might argue that: I agree that Eckel’s initial equilibrium and rationality deteriorate rapidly once he comes into the vicinity of the dinosaur. The sensory detail and use of dialogue combine to reveal Eckel’s escalating sense of panic and of horror. Initially.. later…. Finally
Always give this question a clear ending. The extract ends with the human world colliding nearly fatally with that of the dinosaur. The humans are literally ‘mirrored’ in the savage merciless eyes of the dinosaur. Hence this shows the hubristic nature of the hunters who only survive because of their modern weaponry.
Hope this helps.
Remember you can attempt a question 5 response first as it carried 40 marks. At any rate, do not rush this question as it is so valine to your overall grade.
