Insert
The source that follows is:
- Source A: 19th-century prose fiction
- Cranford by Elizabeth Gaskell
An extract from a work first published in 1853.
This extract is taken from Elizabeth Gaskell’s Cranford and shows the narrator observing a cosy gathering at Miss Barker’s; the ladies maintain gentility amid cards, supper, and cherry-brandy, before news of a titled guest prompts excitement and exposes the community’s concern with status and appearances.
Source A
1 “It is very gratifying to me,” whispered Miss Barker at the card-table to her three opponents, whom, notwithstanding her ignorance of the game, she was “basting” most unmercifully—“very gratifying indeed, to see how completely Mrs Jamieson feels at home in my poor little dwelling; she could not have paid me a greater compliment.”
6 Miss Barker provided me with some literature in the shape of three or four handsomely-bound fashion-books ten or twelve years old, observing, as she put a little table and a candle for my especial benefit, that she knew young people liked to look at pictures. Carlo lay and snorted, and started at his
11 mistress’s feet. He, too, was quite at home. The card-table was an animated scene to watch; four ladies’ heads, with niddle-noddling caps, all nearly meeting over the middle of the table in their eagerness to whisper quick enough and loud enough: and every now and then came
16 Miss Barker’s “Hush, ladies! if you please, hush! Mrs Jamieson is asleep.” It was very difficult to steer clear between Mrs Forrester’s deafness and Mrs Jamieson’s sleepiness. But Miss Barker managed her arduous task well. She repeated the whisper to Mrs Forrester, distorting her face considerably, in
21 order to show, by the motions of her lips, what was said; and then she smiled kindly all round at us, and murmured to herself, “Very gratifying, indeed; I wish my poor sister had been alive to see this day.” Presently the door was thrown wide open; Carlo started to his feet, with a
26 loud snapping bark, and Mrs Jamieson awoke: or, perhaps, she had not been asleep—as she said almost directly, the room had been so light she had been glad to keep her eyes shut, but had been listening with great interest to all our amusing and agreeable conversation. Peggy came in once more, red with importance. Another tray! “Oh, gentility!” thought I, “can you endure this
31 last shock?” For Miss Barker had ordered (nay, I doubt not, prepared, although she did say, “Why, Peggy, what have you brought us?” and looked pleasantly surprised at the unexpected pleasure) all sorts of good things for supper—scalloped oysters, potted lobsters, jelly, a dish called “little Cupids” (which was in great favour with the Cranford ladies, although too
36 expensive to be given, except on solemn and state occasions—macaroons sopped in brandy, I should have called it, if I had not known its more refined and classical name). In short, we were evidently to be feasted with all that was sweetest and best; and we thought it better to submit graciously, even at the cost of our gentility—which never ate suppers in general, but which, like most
41 non-supper-eaters, was particularly hungry on all special occasions. Miss Barker, in her former sphere, had, I daresay, been made acquainted with the beverage they call cherry-brandy. We none of us had ever seen such a thing, and rather shrank back when she proffered it us—“just a little, leetle
46 glass, ladies; after the oysters and lobsters, you know. Shell-fish are sometimes thought not very wholesome.” We all shook our heads like female mandarins; but, at last, Mrs Jamieson suffered herself to be persuaded, and we followed her lead. It was not exactly unpalatable, though so hot and so strong that we thought ourselves bound to give evidence that we were not
51 accustomed to such things by coughing terribly—almost as strangely as Miss Barker had done, before we were admitted by Peggy. “It’s very strong,” said Miss Pole, as she put down her empty glass; “I do believe there’s spirit in it.”
56 “Only a little drop—just necessary to make it keep,” said Miss Barker. “You know we put brandy-pepper over our preserves to make them keep. I often feel tipsy myself from eating damson tart.”
61 I question whether damson tart would have opened Mrs Jamieson’s heart as the cherry-brandy did; but she told us of a coming event, respecting which she had been quite silent till that moment. “My sister-in-law, Lady Glenmire, is coming to stay with me.”
66 There was a chorus of “Indeed!” and then a pause. Each one rapidly reviewed her wardrobe, as to its fitness to appear in the presence of a baron’s widow; for, of course, a series of small festivals were always held in Cranford on the arrival of a visitor at any of our friends’ houses. We felt very
71 pleasantly excited on the present occasion. Not long after this the maids and the lanterns were announced. Mrs Jamieson had the sedan-chair, which had squeezed itself into Miss Barker’s narrow lobby with some difficulty, and most literally “stopped the way.” It required some
76 skilful manoeuvring on the part of the old chairmen (shoemakers by day, but when summoned to carry the sedan dressed up in a strange old livery—long great-coats, with small capes, coeval with the sedan, and similar to the dress of the class in Hogarth’s pictures) to edge, and back, and try at it again, and finally to succeed in carrying their burden out of Miss Barker’s front
81 door. Then we heard their quick pit-a-pat along the quiet little street as we put on our calashes and pinned up our gowns; Miss Barker hovering about us with offers of help, which, if she had not remembered her former occupation, and wished us to forget it, would have been much more pressing.
Questions
Instructions
- Answer all questions.
- Use black ink or black ball point pen.
- Fill in the boxes on this page.
- You must answer the questions in the spaces provided.
- Do not write outside the box around each page or on blank pages.
- Do all rough work in this book. Cross through any work you do not want to be marked.
- You must refer to the insert booklet provided.
- You must not use a dictionary.
Information
- The marks for questions are shown in brackets.
- Time allowed: 1 hour 45 minutes
- The maximum mark for this paper is 80.
- There are 40 marks for Section A and 40 marks for Section B.
- You are reminded of the need for good English and clear presentation in your answers.
- You will be assessed on the quality of your reading in Section A.
- You will be assessed on the quality of your writing in Section B.
Advice
- You are advised to spend about 15 minutes reading through the source and all five questions you have to answer.
- You should make sure you leave sufficient time to check your answers.
Section A: Reading
Answer all questions in this section. You are advised to spend about 45 minutes on this section.
Question 1
Read again the first part of the source, from lines 1 to 5.
Answer all parts of this question.
Choose one answer for each question.
1.1 Who whispered at the card-table?
- Miss Barker
- Mrs Jamieson
- the three opponents
[1 mark]
1.2 What is stated about the whisperer’s knowledge of the game?
- ignorance of the game
- mastery of the game
- dislike of the game
[1 mark]
1.3 Who is said to feel at home in the dwelling?
- Mrs Jamieson
- Miss Barker
- the three opponents
[1 mark]
1.4 What reason does Miss Barker give for feeling pleased during the card game?
- Mrs Jamieson is completely comfortable in Miss Barker's home.
- Miss Barker is winning the game despite not knowing the rules.
- Mrs Jamieson compliments Miss Barker on Miss Barker's card-playing.
[1 mark]
Question 2
Look in detail at this extract, from lines 26 to 45 of the source:
26 loud snapping bark, and Mrs Jamieson awoke: or, perhaps, she had not been asleep—as she said almost directly, the room had been so light she had been glad to keep her eyes shut, but had been listening with great interest to all our amusing and agreeable conversation. Peggy came in once more, red with importance. Another tray! “Oh, gentility!” thought I, “can you endure this
31 last shock?” For Miss Barker had ordered (nay, I doubt not, prepared, although she did say, “Why, Peggy, what have you brought us?” and looked pleasantly surprised at the unexpected pleasure) all sorts of good things for supper—scalloped oysters, potted lobsters, jelly, a dish called “little Cupids” (which was in great favour with the Cranford ladies, although too
36 expensive to be given, except on solemn and state occasions—macaroons sopped in brandy, I should have called it, if I had not known its more refined and classical name). In short, we were evidently to be feasted with all that was sweetest and best; and we thought it better to submit graciously, even at the cost of our gentility—which never ate suppers in general, but which, like most
41 non-supper-eaters, was particularly hungry on all special occasions. Miss Barker, in her former sphere, had, I daresay, been made acquainted with the beverage they call cherry-brandy. We none of us had ever seen such a thing, and rather shrank back when she proffered it us—“just a little, leetle
How does the writer use language here to present Miss Barker’s hospitality and the narrator’s feelings about it? You could include the writer’s choice of:
- words and phrases
- language features and techniques
- sentence forms.
[8 marks]
Question 3
You now need to think about the structure of the source as a whole. This text is from the middle of a novel.
How has the writer structured the text to create a sense of warmth?
You could write about:
- how warmth deepens throughout the source
- how the writer uses structure to create an effect
- the writer's use of any other structural features, such as changes in mood, tone or perspective.
[8 marks]
Question 4
For this question focus on the second part of the source, from line 41 to the end.
In this part of the source, where the sedan-chair gets stuck in the narrow lobby, it feels more awkward and silly than grand. The writer suggests that the formal, high-class ways of Mrs Jamieson don't really fit in Miss Barker's small home.
To what extent do you agree and/or disagree with this statement?
In your response, you could:
- consider your impressions of the sedan-chair in Miss Barker's lobby
- comment on the methods the writer uses to suggest the social incompatibility
- support your response with references to the text.
[20 marks]
Question 5
A new digital arts magazine is collecting creative writing for its first online issue.
Choose one of the options below for your entry.
-
Option A: Describe a gaming cafe from your imagination. You may choose to use the picture provided for ideas:
-
Option B: Write the opening of a story about an online rivalry that becomes real.
(24 marks for content and organisation, 16 marks for technical accuracy)
[40 marks]