> GCE English Literature H472/02: Comparative and contextual study Advanced GCE Mark Scheme for Autumn 2021

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Mark Scheme June 2020 Level 2: 6–10 marks AO3 (50%) • Limited understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which literary texts are written, as appropriate to the questi... on. • Limited understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which literary texts are received, as appropriate to the question. AO4 (25%) • Limited attempt to develop comparative discussion of relationships between texts. AO1 (12.5%) • Limited understanding of text and partial attempt at question; limited attempt to structure discussion; tendency to lose track of argument; inconsistent writing, frequent instances of technical error, limited use of appropriate register; limited use of critical concepts and terminology. AO5 (12.5%) • Limited awareness of different interpretations of the text. Level 1: 1–5 marks AO3 (50%) • Very little reference (and likely to be irrelevant) or no understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which literary texts are written, as appropriate to the question. • Very little reference (and likely to be irrelevant) or no understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which literary texts are received, as appropriate to the question. AO4 (25%) • Very little or no relevant comparative discussion of relationships between texts. AO1 (12.5%) • Very little or no connection with text, question disregarded; undeveloped, very fragmentary discussion; persistent serious writing errors inhibit communication of meaning; very little or no use of appropriate register; persistently inaccurate or no use of critical concepts and terminology. AO5 (12.5%) • Very little or no awareness of different interpretations of the text. 0 marks = No response, or no response worthy of credit.H472/02 Mark Scheme October 2021 Question Guidance Marks 1 Write a critical appreciation of the passage, relating your discussion to your reading of American Literature1880–1940. For the close reading questions, the dominant assessment objective is: AO2. AO2, Analyse ways in which meanings are shaped in literary texts. Answers will also be assessed for AO1, Articulate informed, personal and creative responses to literary texts, using associated concepts and terminology, and coherent, accurate written expression; and AO3, Demonstrate understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which literary texts are written and received. Answers to this question are likely to note that the passage is written in the third person throughout. They may comment on the dry and sometimes elevated tone of the narrative (‘Obedient to more anticipatory bars…’), which contrasts with the simple entertainment being offered. They may show how the writer evokes a noisy, lively scene (‘swift rattling measures…rollicking refrain…glasses pounded rhythmically’), and note the humorous touch where the men are looking under the dancer’s skirts at her legs whereas Maggie is looking at the skirts themselves and working out their cost. Contextual discussion may include mention of social class, and the way the poor Bowery public are being sold a fantasy of upper-class theatre-going ‘at reduced rates’. Candidates may find some poignancy in Maggie, with her innocent belief that the ventriloquist’s dummies can really talk, especially in view of the novel’s title which dubs her ‘a Girl of the Streets’. Answers are likely to comment on the blackface act, and may point out that, although such a performance would now be considered racist, it was found acceptable in late nineteenth-century New York. They may discern that the ‘sorrowful lay’ is a sentimental piece, once again appealing to simple tastes. Candidates may notice the concluding irony in which the voices raised in patriotic song are mostly from those ‘of foreign birth’, and offer contextual comment on the importance of immigration to American culture at this time. Links may be made to issues of social class and respectability in novels such as Sister Carrie. This guidance should be used in conjunction with the Level Descriptors: Critical appreciation of an unseen passage (close reading). [Show More]

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