Question 4 asks you to compare how two writers convey their perspectives on a topic. It is worth 16 marks. Compare their views and the methods they use to express them.
Identify each writer's view on the topic.
Compare the views directly in each paragraph.
Explain the methods each uses (tone, language, structure) to convey that view.
Watch out Comparing only what the writers think, with nothing on how they show it, caps your mark.
See it worked
Worked example
A Victorian writer calls the railway "a marvel of the age"; a modern writer calls a new line "a costly vanity project". Compare one perspective and method.
Views: A is admiring, B is critical.
Methods: A uses grand, celebratory language; B uses a dismissive, cost-focused label.
Link: whereas A's elevated tone celebrates progress, B's sneering phrase questions its value.
Answer A admires the railway with grand, celebratory language, whereas B mocks the new line as a "vanity project", questioning its value.
Your turn
Question 11 mark
Paper 2 Question 4 is worth how many marks?
Question 21 mark
Which sentence compares perspectives and methods?
Question 32 marks
Both writers discuss exams. A: "a fair test of effort". B: "a lottery that rewards memory". Write one comparative sentence about perspective and method.
Write your answer, then see a model answer
Infer each view.
Name a method in each (positive phrase, metaphor).
Link with a contrast word.
Answer A sees exams as fair, using the positive phrase "test of effort", whereas B's metaphor of a "lottery" presents them as random and unjust.
In past papers
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