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AQA English Literature GCSE 2015 JUNE SUMMER *OFFICIAL THREAD* OMAM AIC

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Original post by amy4121
Does anyone have any idea for what they may ask in the 2015 June Eng Lit Exam for Modern Texts: Of Mice and Men and Inspector calls ?

Any predictions?

Oh! And also for poetry: character and voice section? if anyone does it? Thanks, hugely appreciated!!! xo


Many people think:

Inspector Calls - Mr Birling, Mr Birling and the irony surrounding him (e.g. Titanic speech), Gerald and Sheila's relationship
Of Mice and Men - Curley, and if AQA are mean then Carlson (although I doubt it)
Character and Voice poems - Give, Les Grand Seigneurs and Brendan Gallacher

Hope this helped :smile:
(edited 8 years ago)
for mice and men do we use pee paragraphs?
and to do it do we use form, structure and language?
Original post by \\\
Context is only part B of section B- OMAM.


Thank you :redface:
Does anyone know if section A is always AIC and section B is always an extract from OMAM? Or could it be the other way around? :confused:
Reply 404
Yeah I'm doing Mice of Men , Woman in Black and Conflict Poerty:mad:
For Mice of Men was have focused a lot of characters such as Curley's Wife and Crooks as they are not the main characters but they have a strong role within the book and how society worked back then. For example Curley's Wife is made to feel like she is nothing but a belonging for Curley ( Hence the name Curley's Wife). The book focuses a lot of the idea of loneliness, so try looking into each character and how the loneliness is represented.

With the poetry - I have been looking at each poem and seeing what they represent weather it be via imagery or structure. Belfast Confetti is a very strongly structured poem so if that question comes up that is the best poem I can think of to write about.
Has Slim come up before? And if so, what year did he appear?
Original post by mynameiskeith
Has Slim come up before? And if so, what year did he appear?

June 2013
Original post by albertquar
This exam for me is tomorrow morning. Does anyone have any points about Crooks?


Crooks· Hisname comes from the fact that he has a crooked back due to the fact that he waskicked by a horse. By branding Crooks with a new name could suggest a lack ofrespect and possibly a feeling of possession by the white ranch workers.· Justlike his back, society is crooked. It is bent out of shape, out of alignmentwith its original created intention. The pain suffered by Crook from his backreflects the pain and suffering he has from society.· Heis seen to be an intelligent man because of the dictionary and ‘the mauled copyof the California Code of Civil Rights’- this may imply that he wants to knowhis rights as he may perhaps wants to stand up against segregation. ‘Mauled’suggests that he has looked over it so many times; it is starting to get oldand worn out- he is concerned about is rights and how desperate he is to changethem.· Lennie'sbrief interaction with Crooks reveals the complexity of racial prejudice in the northernCalifornia ranch life. Though Crooks was born in California (not like manySouthern blacks who had migrated, he implies), he is still always made to feellike an outsider, even in his home state. Crooks is painfully aware that hisskin color is all that keeps him separate in this culture. This outsider statuscauses him to lament his loneliness, but he also delights in seeing theloneliness of others, perhaps because misery loves company. · However, at times, it appearsas though Steinbeck may also have created Crooks to illustrate to the readerhow loneliness can affect a person and how isolation from society can change aperson for the worse. The reader can see Crooks’ cynical side when Lennieenters the room- he is immediately told to get out as he is not welcome butthen, Crooks invites him in and attempts to toy with Lennie’s emotions. Crooksis fully aware of Lennie’s mental condition (his mind similar to that of achild) but yet, he still seizes any opportunity he can to use his vulnerabilityand turn it into a weapon to use against the weaker. Crooks probably does thisas he is tired of being the target for racism and wants show everyone what itfeels like to be the victim of abuse and segregation as well as to feelsuperior over white people- something which would have been nigh-on impossibleduring the 1930s. By doing this, Crooks is able to feel as if he is finally incontrol/ superior to whites and that he has power. These both allow Crooks tofeel like he has power and authority over white ranch workers as he can playtricks on Lennie’s child-like mind. Since Crooks has never met anyone or willpossibly meet anyone as vacant as Lennie, he wants to take any opportunity hecan as it is so appealing and extremely easy for Crooks to manipulate Lennieand his emotions. Even though one may see this as mean and undermining, thereis reason behind his torment. Its because he is always being put down andundermined and so, when he gets the chance to turn the tables, he doesn’t knowwhen to stop; he has no control over it which is why Lennie physically threatenshim. Perhaps, it is also because he is jealous of their relationship and wantsto show what it would feel like to be isolated all the time from society andnot have anyone you can depend or lean on if anything goes wrong.· Steinbeck cleverly uses anthropomorphismto suggest to the reader that Crooks is thought of more like an animal thathuman. The only reason they let Crooks in was to fight Smitty for entertainmentand pleasure of the other ranch workers- very similar to when animals fight fortheir owners for money. · This further implies thatCrooks is ‘owned’ by the other ranch workers and is not allowed to be free-just like animals that are kept locked up in cages away from anyone, Crooks islocked up in his room away from society. Crooks thought that he was going tojoin in and socialise with the others but instead, he got beaten for hisdisability which suggests to the reader how awful life was for people whoweren’t white and had a disability. · Additionally, even though itwas Christmas (a time for joy and celebrations) where everyone should betreated equally, this clearly isn’t the case as Crooks is still treated withdisrespect and is forced to fight- not having any option to leave which createssympathy as Crooks would feel inhumane and inadequate for being treated like hewasn’t human. · Also, Crooks’ living conditionsmake the reader the feel sympathy for him as he sleeps by himself away fromhuman contact next to horses. His medicine was also kept with the horsessuggesting that he is more animalistic and should not mix with the white ranchworkers, thus creating sympathy as he still human but the other white hands onthe ranch don’t see that which dehumanises Crooks. · “Smitty says he woulda killed the nigger…”. Firstly, the strongadjective ‘killed’ makes the reader feel as though the other ranch workers hatehim so much, they wanted to kill him. The reason why is because Crooks won inthe fight which wasn’t meant to happen- Smitty was meant to win but he was sofrustrated to losing to a black person, that he wanted to kill him so itwouldn’t happen again. · The writer is trying to highlight the embarrassment of losing to a blackperson, thus making him want to kill Crooks for his Smitty’s injuries. Thiswould make Crooks inhumane and perhaps suicidal as no one likes him or wantshim around, plus they want to kill him which is extremely unjust. Furthermore,the fact that the other white hands show no respect for Crooks by calling him a‘nigger’ highlight that he is of no worth to them by discriminating and disregardingCrooks. · In addition to this, the racist remark is repeated four times in thequote illustrating just how much they despise of a black person not onlyentering the bunkhouse but also socialising with them and then beating a whiteranch worker in a fight- because Smitty got overconfident and thought that hewas better than Crooks. Crooks would feel inadequate and worthless as he is noteven addressed by his proper name, but referred to as ‘nigger’ which the readermay think is unacceptable and so, would feel sympathy for Crooks. This reflectson life outside the ranch and the fact that so many African Americans weredehumanised because of the colour of their skin- the fact that they were sentdeath threats and referred to by racist remarks depicts the awful ordeals thatmany suffered on a daily basis. · Despite the fact that Crooks ishated by the other white ranch workers because of his skin colour, Steinbeckcreated Crooks to create sympathy for many black Americans who sufferedsegregation and loneliness. However, at times, it appears as though Steinbeckmay also have created Crooks to illustrate to the reader how loneliness canaffect a person and how isolation from society can change a person for theworse. · The reader can see Crooks’cynical side when Lennie enters the room- he is immediately told to get out ashe is not welcome but then, Crooks invites him in and attempts to toy withLennie’s emotions by saying: “S’pose George don’t come back no more… S’pose hejust ain’t coming back.” Crooks’ face lighted with pleasure in historture…”Just s’pose that… What’ll you do then?” The metaphor ‘… face lightedup with torture’ that Steinbeck uses illustrates how much pleasure Crooks getsfrom torturing Lennie into making him envisage his life-long friend andguardian whom he is dependent upon not returning. · This makes the reader dislikeCrooks’ character, as Crooks is fully aware of Lennie’s mental condition (hismind similar to that of a child) but yet, he still seizes any opportunity hecan to use his vulnerability and turn it into a weapon to use against theweaker. Crooks probably does this as he is tired of being the target for racismand wants show everyone what it feels like to be the victim of abuse andsegregation as well as to feel superior over white people- something whichwould have been nigh-on impossible during the 1930s. By doing this, Crooks isable to feel as if he is finally in control/ superior to whites and that he haspower. · However, the reader may despiseof Crooks’ actions as he his ‘torturing’ Lennie- one of only 2 white men on theranch who does not see Crooks’ skin colour as a disadvantage and does not judgehim for his race but Crooks does not recognise that as he is too busy tauntingLennie. Through the character of Crooks, Steinbeck is able to convey sympathyas it is quite pathetic that Crooks gets so much satisfaction and pleasure inmanipulating Lennie in the eyes of the modern day reader making them feelsympathy for Crooks given Lennie’s condition. · In addition to this, the readermay also dismay Crooks’ actions as he repeats the word ‘S’pose’. The repetitionof this apprehension drives Lennie to ponder upon whether George has left himwhich petrifies him, as he would not know what to do or how to cope without hisguardian who he needs to support him.· In addition, the way Crookspartners ‘S’pose’ with the rhetorical question ‘What’ll you do then?’ increasesthe pressure on Lennie and adds to the torment which Crooks is so muchentertained by. These both allow Crooks to feel like he has power and authorityover white ranch workers as he can play tricks on Lennie’s child-like mind.Since Crooks has never met anyone or will possibly meet anyone as vacant asLennie, he wants to take any opportunity he can as it is so appealing and extremelyeasy for Crooks to manipulate Lennie and his emotions.· Even though one may see this asmean and undermining, there is reason behind his torment. Its because he isalways being put down and undermined and so, when he gets the chance to turnthe tables, he doesn’t know when to stop; he has no control over it which iswhy Lennie physically threatens him. Perhaps, it is also because he is jealousof their relationship and wants to show what it would feel like to be isolatedall the time from society and not have anyone you can depend or lean on ifanything goes wrong. · Crooks is used as themouthpiece for many during the Great Depression as he represents their thoughtsand feelings- how isolation affected many black Americans and how all theywanted was to be with or near somebody. However, because of their skin colour,this would not be allowed and so, riots and protests usually took place.· For example, in 1932, for example, theDetroit police mowed down a hunger demonstration of several thousand, usingmachine guns. Forty-four demonstrators were killed and more than 60 wereinjured. Many black people struggled fighting to getpower so they could have their say about unjust society and how it was unfairfor them.· Everyone had very little sothey were extremely protective over what little they had and were sometimesjealous if others had more than them. This is possibly why we see the ‘otherside’ of Crooks- the main aim was to survive and so, people had to be cruel andcynical to survive.· This is perhaps Steinbeck’srepresentation of many black Americans who were always thought of as inferiorand how they dreamed of somehow and someday having power and superiority overwhite people.
Original post by ChelK321
Does anyone know if section A is always AIC and section B is always an extract from OMAM? Or could it be the other way around? :confused:

NO your right don't worry. :smile:
Original post by amina-jpg
NO your right don't worry. :smile:


oh right thank you :biggrin:
has any one got any predictions for the woman in black questions??
Please can someone mark this to give me an idea of what i'd get, Mr birling has never come up so I thought i'd give him a try in preperation. Thank you!!
An Inspector calls is a play crafted by J.B Priestley in1945, however it is set in 1912; the epitome of a hierarchal society and a completedivide between socialist and capitalist ideologies. The divide betweensocialism and capitalism is very much a prominent aspect of today’s society asmany left wing, socialist political parties have emerged to combat capitalism. Priestleyhas constructed each character as an archetype and a symbol of a typicalcapitalist amongst Edwardian Britain. A significant character who perpetuatesan institutional form of injustice towards lower members of society is the callousand arrogant Mr Arthur Birling, a character who is extremely absorbed withhimself and his business that he fails to think about anything or anybody –else. From the outset, Priestley describes Birling as a ‘hardheaded business man’. He is immediately labelled as a capitalist as he is veryserious about business, therefore the audience can assume he is very muchabsorbed in material wealth. ‘hard headed’ shows he is very serious aboutbusiness and he is successful, this is show a lot throughout the play as he isportrayed as both capitalist and narcissist, enjoying talking about hisachievements and successes. Birling thinks he has a high authority however thisis later contradicted. ‘hard’ headed could have connotations of the way he isharsh and hard on those who are lower on the social hierarchy, we see anexample of this in the play when he fires Eva Smith because she requestedhigher pay. Birling is also very optimistic for the future as he thinks thatstrikes won’t be a problem for his company and dismisses any fear of war asjust some ‘silly little war scares’. Priestley uses dramatic irony to make Mr Birling’soptimism seem foolish and short sighted which undermines his authoritytherefore the audience will no longer trust or listen to what he says. This isan important technique used by Priestley as he doesn’t want the audience tolisten to him as he’s a capitalist and Priestley is very much againstcapitalist ideologies. From the outset, Priestley crafts Arthur Birling as a symbolof capitalism, purposefully portraying him in a negative way as he wants toshoot down capitalism as it’s the opposition to his preferable capitalist ideology.Priestleyuses Birling’s style of speech to undermine the audience’s respect for him, andto undercut subtly the outward confidence of his ‘easy manner’. Hisspeech about the good economic climate of 1912 and how war will not happen ispeppered with dashes and hesitations. The audience is well aware, throughdramatic irony that global conflict in World War One would soon follow and thatBirling is wrong which further undermines his credibility. Here, his brokendiction through the use of caesuras suggest a lack of logic and reason, hehesitates a lot which makes his views unconvincing. The overall effect is tosuggest that Birling is intellectually weak, and blusters and brags; he ischaracterised as arrogant and inept. His stumbling manner of speaking isjuxtaposed with the confident fluency of the Inspector, who seems all the moretrustworthy in comparison.DuringBirling’s pompous speech he also remarks on the titanic being ‘unsinkable, absolutelyunsinkable’. The repetition of ‘unsinkable’ shows that Birling views hisopinion as a fact and he is very reassured by his opinions, showing that he clearlythinks highly of himself and his views are totally correct. In this instance,the ‘titanic’ could be a symbol for either the Birling family or the ideologyof capitalism itself. This is because the titanic itself embodies capitalism asit is for the wealthy only, it is described as unsinkable as the capitalistbelief was thought to be very strong as many wealthy people benefit from it.However, when coiled with the dramatic irony we are aware that the titanic wasactually sinkable, it shows how capitalist ideologies won’t last. This couldalso be used as a symbol for the Birling family as Mr Birling thinks his familyare indestructible due to their class however as the titanic sunk thereforethis could foreshadow that the Birling family will be destructed. This createstension and intrigues the audience to keep reading to discover the inevitabledecline of the Birling family, the use of dramatic devices is key to Priestley’sintentions as it is a piece of drama therefore must be entertaining in orderfor the audience to take on board his crucial messages.A key deviceused by Priestly in the characterisation of Birling is bathos. When speaking ofShiela and Gerald’s engagement he says that this is ‘one of the happiest nightsof [his] life’. Love and marriage would naturally bring joy. But within a fewlines he goes on to say how it means that the Crofts and Birlings will, becauseof the marriage, be able to work together ‘for lower costs and higher prices’.The explicit focus on the mundane matter of money is at the speech’s climax,making it clear that this is the underlying reason for Birling’s excitement, hesees his daughter’s engagement to an aristocrat as nothing more than a businessopportunity. This is a clear example of how Birling only seems to care abouthimself/his business and doesn’t even have much care towards his own daughter!This is not an endearing trait to possess which makes the reader act with eyerolling disapproval. The transition from love to money is bathetic and revealsthat lurking beneath the fine dinner and ‘easy manners’ of Birling is greed andself-interest. The pattern of bathos is repeated throughout. When MrBirling discovers that Eric has stolen money, his initial fury seemsappropriate until he reveals that the reason for his anger is how difficultit will be to ‘cover this up’. He seems at first to agree with Sheila that MrsBirling’s treatment of Eva is ‘cruel and vile’, but it turns out that he isconcerned because he fears that ‘the press might take it up’. He is shaken andangry at the end of the play, but ultimately not for moral reasons, but for hisfear for his ‘knighthood’. Priestley uses bathos to make Birling a somewhatridiculously arrogant figure who is absorbed in bourgeois pomposity and hismaterialistic business needs. Overall, MrBirling is presented as a symbol for capitalism. Priestley intentionally setshim up to be an unlikeable and foolish character as he doesn’t want theaudience to listen to him nor trust him because he strongly preaches capitalism,Priestley’s aim of this play is to move away from this ideology and make thetransition to socialism. Birling is quite clearly obsessed with materialisticneeds therefore he is blinded from societal problems such as the injustice towardslower members of society which creates a wholly negative impression of him.This teaches the audience a lesson, are we sometimes so absorbed in materialwealth that we forget about those who are in a less fortunate position to us?Hopefully, we will refrain from shelving our obligations onto those of a lowerclass as we don’t want to end up like Mr Birling.SSSSSSS���l�!
MR BIRLING COMING UP 100% TOMOZ GUYS. if he doesn't i will give you each 99p.
Anybody got any good page references for the characters in AIC??

Posted from TSR Mobile
Original post by TheTruthTeller
MR BIRLING COMING UP 100% TOMOZ GUYS. if he doesn't i will give you each 99p.


How do you know? They might want you to think that and then use a character who has already come up..
Original post by livvyclarke
for mice and men do we use pee paragraphs?
and to do it do we use form, structure and language?


The structure we were given at school is as follows....

Part a) Point, Evidence, Analyse (3 key words) x2 paragraphs
Then add in the effect on the reader and context

Part B) X2 paragraphs
Point
Evidence
Explain and link to context
Original post by kingaaran
I did the exam last year, so can help anybody, if necessary.

If you have any questions, want me to check any essays you write or would just like some advice, then feel free to ask me. :smile:

Good luck!


Posted from TSR Mobile

what questions came up last year? ty
Original post by _ariane29
I am doing my contolled assesment in two weeks, we're doing Shakespeare too.

What are you worried about regarding an inspector calls? We did it last year and I think it's quite straightforward regarding the concepts and the context of the story, it's definitely not as hard as The Crucible.


The Crucible is definitely harder, I'm doing that and TKAM haha
Original post by TheTruthTeller
MR BIRLING COMING UP 100% TOMOZ GUYS. if he doesn't i will give you each 99p.


How do you know?
Reply 419
For the AIC they may even ask to compare relationships/other themes between two characters; no one knows. I've only revisesd Mr Birling, Gerald and Sheila so far :frown:

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