2020 VCE English exam - VCAA version. PDF

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Summary

This is the 2020 english examination by VCAA for victorian students undertaking the VCE for the year of 2020....

Description

Victorian Certificate of Education 2020

ENGLISH Written examination Tuesday 10 November 2020 Reading time: 9.00 am to 9.15 am (15 minutes) Writing time: 9.15 am to 12.15 pm (3 hours)

TASK BOOK Section

Number of questions

Number of questions to be answered

A – Analytical interpretation of a text B – Comparative analysis of texts C – Argument and persuasive language

20 8 1

1 1 1

Marks

20 20 20 Total 60

• Studentsarepermittedtobringintotheexaminationroom:pens,pencils,highlighters,erasers, sharpeners,rulersandanEnglishand/orbilingualprinteddictionary. • StudentsareNOTpermittedtobringintotheexaminationroom:blanksheetsofpaperand/or correctionfluid/tape. • Nocalculatorisallowedinthisexamination. Materials supplied • Taskbookof14pages,includingassessment criteriaonpage14 • Oneanswerbook Instructions • Write your student numberonthefrontcoveroftheanswerbook. • Completeeachsectioninthecorrectpartoftheanswerbook. • IfyouchoosetowriteonamultimodaltextinSectionA,youmustnotwriteonatextpairthat includesamultimodaltextinSectionB. • Youmayaskthesupervisorforextraanswerbooks. • AllwrittenresponsesmustbeinEnglish. At the end of the examination • Placeallotherusedanswerbooksinsidethefrontcoverofthefirstanswerbook. • Youmaykeepthistaskbook. Students are NOT permitted to bring mobile phones and/or any other unauthorised electronic devices into the examination room. ©VICTORIANCURRICULUMANDASSESSMENTAUTHORITY2020

2020ENGLISHEXAM

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SECTION A – Analytical interpretation of a text Instructions for Section A SectionArequiresstudentstowriteananalyticalinterpretationofaselectedtextinresponsetoone topic (eitheri. or ii.) on onetext. Yourresponseshouldbesupportedbyclosereferencetotheselectedtext. Ifyourselectedtextisacollectionofpoetryorshortstories,youmaywriteonseveralpoemsorstories, or on at least twoinclosedetail. IfyouchoosetowriteonamultimodaltextinSectionA,youmustnotwriteonatextpairthatincludes amultimodaltextinSectionB. Intheanswerbook,indicatewhichtextyouhavechosentowriteonandwhetheryouhavechosento answeri. or ii. Yourresponsewillbeassessedaccordingtotheassessmentcriteriasetoutonpage14ofthisbook. SectionAisworthone-thirdofthetotalmarksfortheexamination.

Text list 1.

After Darkness......................................................................................................................ChristinePiper

2.

All the Light We Cannot See................................................................................................ AnthonyDoerr

3.

Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity.................. KatherineBoo

4.

Extinction............................................................................................................................. HannieRayson

5.

In Cold Blood.......................................................................................................................Truman Capote

6.

Like a House on Fire............................................................................................................. Cate Kennedy

7.

Much Ado About Nothing...........................................................................................WilliamShakespeare

8.

Nine Days...................................................................................................................................Toni Jordan

9.

Old/New World: New & Selected Poems...........................................................................PeterSkrzynecki

10. Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood................................................................................. MarjaneSatrapi 11. Pride and Prejudice...................................................................................................................Jane Austen 12. Rear Window.................................................................................................. directedbyAlfredHitchcock 13. Runaway.................................................................................................................................. AliceMunro 14. Station Eleven...........................................................................................................EmilyStJohnMandel 15. Stories We Tell........................................................................................................directedbySarahPolley 16. The Golden Age....................................................................................................................... JoanLondon 17. The Lieutenant...................................................................................................................... KateGrenville 18. The Women of Troy....................................................................................................................... Euripides 19. Things Fall Apart................................................................................................................. ChinuaAchebe 20. William Wordsworth: Poems Selected by Seamus Heaney......................................... WilliamWordsworth

SECTION A – continued



1.  

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2020ENGLISHEXAM

After Darkness by Christine Piper i. “WhycouldIneverdoanythingright?”  ‘DrIbarakinotonlyfailsothers,healsofailshimself.’  Discuss. OR ii.

 2. 

‘In After Darkness,charactersmisusetheirauthorityfortheirowngain.’  Doyouagree?

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr i. ‘All the Light We Cannot Seeshowsthatwaraffectsdifferentpeopleindifferentways.’  Discuss. OR



ii. ‘Wernereventuallyregretsthechoiceshehasmade.’  Doyouagree?

3.

Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo



i. ‘Despitetheirpoverty,Annawadianshavethetalentstobothsurviveandsucceed.’  Discuss. OR

  4. 

ii. “Hewantedtoberecognizedasbetterthanthedirtywaterinwhichhelived.”  ‘Abdul’sdeterminationtobebetterisadmirable.’  Discuss. Extinction by Hannie Rayson i. “Youdowhatyoucantokeepanendangeredanimalalive.”  IsthisthemainmessageofExtinction? OR ii.

 5. 

‘In Extinction,Andyistheonlycharactergenuinelyinterestedinconservation.’  Towhatextentdoyouagree?

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote i. ‘In In Cold Blood,Capoteconsiderswhetheramurderercanalsobeavictim.’  Discuss. OR



ii. ‘ThecitizensofKansasaremotivatedmorebyfearthanbyanythingelse.’  Doyouagree?

SECTION A – continued TURN OVER

2020ENGLISHEXAM

6.

4

Like a House on Fire by Cate Kennedy i. Towhatextentdocharactersinthesestoriesfacetheirproblemsalone? OR

 7.



ii. ‘ThestoriesinLike a House On Fireexplorechallengesencounteredatdifferentstagesoflife.’  Discuss. Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare i. ‘DespitethecomicbanterofBeatriceandBenedick,Much Ado About Nothing confronts some seriousissues.’  Discuss. OR

 8.

ii. “Menweredeceiversever”  IsthistrueofthemeninMuch Ado About Nothing? Nine Days by Toni Jordan i. TowhatextentarethelivesofthecharactersinNine Dayslimitedbysocialexpectations? OR

 9. 

ii. “Everytimeyouseesomeone,youneverknowifyou’reseeingthemforthelasttime.”  HowdoesNine Daysemphasisetheimportanceofcherishingthosewelove? Old/New World: New & Selected Poems by Peter Skrzynecki i. “We’restanding/inanemptyfield/withahillinthebackground.”  HowdoesSkrzyneckicontrastthedesolationofEuropewiththefertilityofAustralia? OR



ii. ‘Skrzynecki’spoetryexploresrelationshipsbetweenparentsandchildren.’  Discuss.

10. Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi i. HowdoMarji’sinnocentobservationsrevealthetruthsofherworld? OR ii. DiscusstheimportanceofhopesanddreamsinPersepolis: The Story of a Childhood. 11. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen i. ‘Pride and Prejudiceshowsthedangersofactingonfirstimpressions.’ 

 Discuss. OR



ii. ‘Intheirdifferentways,alltheBennetgirlsdefyconvention.’  Doyouagree?

SECTION A – continued

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2020ENGLISHEXAM

12. Rear Window directed by Alfred Hitchcock 

i. ‘ThecharactersinRear Windowcravecompanionshipandbelonging.’  Towhatextentdoyouagree? OR ii.



‘In Rear Window,Hitchcockdemonstratesthatappearancescannotbetrusted.’  Discuss.

13. Runaway by Alice Munro i. ‘ManycharactersinMunro’sstorieskeepsecrets.’   Discuss. OR 

ii. ‘ThefemalecharactersinMunro’sstorieslackconfidence.’  Towhatextentdoyouagree?

14. Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel 

i. “[…]thetruthwasthattheSymphonywastheironlyhome.”  HowimportantisasenseofhomeinStation Eleven? OR



ii. “Thiswillpass.Everythingpasses.” ‘Station Elevenoffersthehopethatcivilisationwillendure.’  Doyouagree?

15. Stories We Tell directed by Sarah Polley i. ‘In Stories We Tell,MichaelPolleyisthemostsympatheticallyportrayedcharacter.’   Doyouagree? OR



ii. ‘Theuseofoldvideofootage,interviewsandre-enactmentsmakesitdifficulttoknowwhatistrue in Stories We Tell.’  Discuss.

16. The Golden Age by Joan London i. ‘AlthoughFrankisconfinedtoahospital,hisworldexpandsinmanyways.’   Discuss. OR 

ii. ‘Poliowasaschallengingfortheparentsasitwasforthechildren.’  Doyouagree?

SECTION A – continued TURN OVER

2020ENGLISHEXAM

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17. The Lieutenant by Kate Grenville i. WhydoesDanielRookehavesuchtroubletrustingotherpeople? OR ii. 

‘In The Lieutenant,theenvironmentstronglyinfluencesthecharacters’actions.’  Discuss.

18. The Women of Troy by Euripides i. ‘In The Women of Troy,menseektocontrolthelivesofwomen.’   Discuss. OR 

ii. ‘TheactionsoftheGreeksinThe Women of Troycannotbejustified.’  Discuss.

19. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe 

i. ‘Thingsfallapart,butnotallislostinAchebe’snovel.’  Discuss. OR



ii. ‘Okonkwobecomesasuccessbecauseofhisfather’sfailures.’  Doyouagree?

20. William Wordsworth: Poems Selected by Seamus Heaney by William Wordsworth i. “LetNaturebeyourTeacher.”   WhatdothepoemsofWordsworthteachus? OR ii. HowareemotionsexploredinWordsworth’spoems?

END OF SECTION A

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2020ENGLISHEXAM

SECTION B – Comparative analysis of texts Instructions for Section B SectionBrequiresstudentstowriteacomparativeanalysisofaselectedpairoftextsinresponseto onetopic(eitheri. or ii.) on onepairoftexts. Yourresponseshouldanalysehowthetwotextspresentideasand/orissues,andshouldbesupportedby closereferencetobothtextsinthepair. IfyouchoosetowriteonamultimodaltextinSectionA,youmustnotwriteonatextpairthatincludes amultimodaltextinSectionB. Intheanswerbook,indicatewhichtextpairyouhavechosentowriteonandwhetheryouhavechosento answeri. or ii. Yourresponsewillbeassessedaccordingtotheassessmentcriteriasetoutonpage14ofthisbook. SectionBisworthone-thirdofthetotalmarksfortheexamination.

SECTION B – continued TURN OVER

2020ENGLISHEXAM

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Pair 1 Tracks by Robyn Davidson and Charlie’s Country directed by Rolf de Heer i. ComparethewaysinwhichthecharactersinTracks and Charlie’s Countrydealwiththeiranger. OR



ii. ‘RobynDavidsonwantstofindoutaboutacountrythatisunknowntoher,whereasCharlieknows hiscountryverywell.’  CompareRobynDavidson’sandCharlie’swaysofviewingtheircountry.

Pair 2 The Queen directed by Stephen Frears and Ransom by David Malouf



i. ‘Theconflictbetweenpersonalfeelingandpublicdutyalwaysleadstoadilemma.’  ComparethewaysinwhichthisconflictisshowninThe Queen and Ransom. OR

 

ii. “Thisisafamilyfuneral,MrBlair,notafairgroundattraction.”(The Queen)  “Hehadgrieved.Butsilently,neverpermittinghimselftobetraytootherswhathefelt.”(Ransom)  Comparehowthetwotextsexploreresponsestogrief.

Pair 3 Stasiland by Anna Funder and Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro

 

i. “Everyonehasissuesoftheirowntodealwith.”(Stasiland)  “[…]apartofusstayedlikethat:fearfuloftheworldaroundus[…]”(Never Let Me Go)  ComparehowStasiland and Never Let Me Godemonstratetheenduranceofthehumanspiritin timesofdespair. OR ii. ComparehowStasiland and Never Let Me Goexploretheimportanceofloveandconnection.

Pair 4 Reckoning by Magda Szubanski and The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri i. Comparethewaysinwhichthecharactersinthetwotextsstruggletofindtheirplaceintheworld. OR

 

ii. “Weweretugboatsintheriverofhistory,myfatherandI,pullinginoppositedirections.He neededtoforget.Ineedtoremember.”(Reckoning)  “Idon’twanttogo,[…]Idon’twanttoseethem.Ican’t.”(The Namesake)  Comparethewaysinwhichthetwotextsshowthatconfrontingthepastcanbedifficult.

SECTION B – continued

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2020ENGLISHEXAM

Pair 5 The Crucible by Arthur Miller and The Dressmaker by Rosalie Ham

 

i. “Proctor[…]hascometoregardhimselfasakindoffraud.”(The Crucible)  Tillysays:“[…]everyoneI’vetouchedishurt,ordead.”(The Dressmaker)  Comparehowcharactersinthetwotextsconsiderthemselvesresponsiblefortheharmcausedto others. OR ii. Comparethewaysinwhichthetwotextsshowthesufferingoftheinnocentandtheguilty.

Pair 6 Photograph 51 by Anna Ziegler and The Penelopiad: The Myth of Penelope and Odysseus by Margaret Atwood



i. ‘Deceptionalwayshasanimpactonpeople’slives.’  Comparehowthisideaisexploredinthetwotexts. OR ii. Comparethewaysinwhichpatternsareimportantinthelivesofthecharactersinthetwotexts.

Pair 7 The 7 Stages of Grieving by Wesley Enoch and Deborah Mailman and The Longest Memory by Fred D’Aguiar i. ComparehowThe 7 Stages of Grieving and The Longest Memorydepictrelationshipsbetweenthe powerfulandthepowerless. OR 

ii. ‘Storytellingisawayforasocietytokeepitsvoicealive.’  Comparethewaysinwhichthestoriesaretoldinthesetwotexts.

Pair 8 I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai with Christina Lamb, and Pride directed by Matthew Warchus i. Comparehowthetwotextsdepictpowerfulauthorities. OR ii. Comparethewaysinwhichthetwotextsexplorethenatureandconsequencesofprejudice.

END OF SECTION B TURN OVER

2020ENGLISHEXAM

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11

2020ENGLISHEXAM

SECTION C – Argument and persuasive language Instructions for Section C SectionCrequiresstudentstowriteananalysisofthewaysinwhichargumentandlanguageareused topersuadeotherstoshareapoint(s)ofview. Readthebackgroundinformationonthispageandthematerialonpages12and13,andwritean analyticalresponsetothetaskbelow. Forthepurposesofthistask,theterm‘language’referstowritten,spokenandvisuallanguage. Yourresponsewillbeassessedaccordingtotheassessmentcriteriasetoutonpage14ofthisbook. SectionCisworthone-thirdofthetotalmarksfortheexamination.

Task Writeananalysisofthewaysinwhichargumentandwrittenandvisuallanguageareusedinthematerialon pages12and13totrytopersuadeotherstosharethepointsofviewpresented.

Background information TheshireofBywaysinregionalVictoriadependsonbothfarmersandtouristsforits prosperity.Thelocalcommunityisconcernedabouttheincreasedrecreationaluseof dronesbymanyofthetouristsvisitingthearea.Thefollowingisthetranscriptofa speechmadebyyoungfarmerWarwickBandleatapublicmeetingcalledbytheByways ShireCounciltodiscussthecommunity’sconcerns.Bandleprovidedtwoimagestobe projectedonascreentoaccompanyhisspeech.

SECTION C – continued TURN OVER

2020ENGLISHEXAM

12

Goodevening,everyone. Dronesandtheirinexperiencedusersareprovingtobeacostlyproblemforusfarmers.Dronesarenot toys.Whathappenswhenadronefliesoutofrange?Whathappenswhenthebatteryrunsout?Adrone beingflownoutofcontrol,orcrashingoutofthesky,canbelethal.Justimaginethedamagethatcan bedonebyafallingdrone.Imagine,then,thesedroneusers,realisingthattheyhavelosttheirdrone, searching,crashingthroughcrops,orleavinggatesopenandlettinglivestockout.Andfinally,when theydon’tfindthedrone,it’sjustlefttorustawayinthefielduntilharvesttime,whenit’ssweptup, damagingtheharvester.

It’stimeourcouncilstartedtodefendthefarmersratherthanthetourists.Thefarmersarethebackbone ofthiscommunity,manyofushavinglivedinthisareaforgenerations.Whileweunderstandthe importancetoourtownofvisitorssupportingbusinessesand,indeed,havewelcomedthe holiday-makers,whentheystartcausinghavocwhilesearchingfortheirwaywarddronesit’stimeto say,‘Enough!’ Don’tgetmewrong!I’mnotjustanothertechnophobecomplainingabouttechnology.Asayoung farmer,havingjusttakenoverthefamilyfarm,I’mintroducingnewtechnologyonadailybasisto improveefficiency.Infact,we’reusingdrones–morecorrectlycalledunmannedaerialvehicles–on thefarm.Forfarmers,dronessavetimeandmoneyintaskssuchasdustingandsprayingcrops,or monitoringcropsforpestsandgrowth.Thereisabsolutelynowaywewanttobandrones. It’snotjustinfarmingthattheseremarkablelittleworkershavehelpedusout.Weallrememberlast yearwhenthatbushwalkerwentmissing.Thedronesflewtirelesslyoverlargeareas,includingthose difficulttoaccess.Theireyesledtothespeedyandhappyconclusionwereached.

SECTION C – continued

13

2020ENGLISHEXAM

Theissueisthatflyingadroneforfunisthelatest21st-centuryfad.Thenumbersofrecreationaldrone usersaremountingeachyear.Consequently,incidentsinvolvingdronesareincreasing.Dronesoutof control.Droneslostintrees.Dronescausingpowercuts.Droneshittingandhurtingpeople.Dronesin flightpaths...