Insert
The source that follows is:
- Source A: 19th-century prose fiction
- The Island of Dr. Moreau by H. G. Wells
An extract from a work first published in 1896.
This extract is from H. G. Wells’s The Island of Dr. Moreau (1896), in which narrator Prendick, groggy after a draught, hears human sounds from the enclosure and, when he opens the door, is forced back by Moreau, intensifying the mystery, dread, and moral unease.
Source A
1 Montgomery came round behind me and put his hand on my shoulder. “Look here, Prendick,” he said, “I had no business to let you drift out into this silly island of ours. But it’s not so bad as you feel, man. Your nerves are worked to rags. Let me give you something that will make you sleep. That—will keep on for hours yet. You must simply get to sleep, or I won’t answer for it.”
6 I did not reply. I bowed forward, and covered my face with my hands. Presently he returned with a small measure containing a dark liquid. This he gave me. I took it unresistingly, and he helped me into the hammock.
11 When I awoke, it was broad day. For a little while I lay flat, staring at the roof above me. The rafters, I observed, were made out of the timbers of a ship. Then I turned my head, and saw a meal prepared for me on the table. I perceived that I was hungry, and prepared to clamber out of the hammock, which, very politely anticipating my intention, twisted round and deposited me
16 upon all-fours on the floor. I got up and sat down before the food. I had a heavy feeling in my head, and only the vaguest memory at first of the things that had happened over night. The morning breeze blew very pleasantly through the unglazed window, and that
21 and the food contributed to the sense of animal comfort which I experienced. Presently the door behind me—the door inward towards the yard of the enclosure—opened. I turned and saw Montgomery’s face. “All right,” said he. “I’m frightfully busy.” And he shut the door.
26 Afterwards I discovered that he forgot to re-lock it. Then I recalled the expression of his face the previous night, and with that the memory of all I had experienced reconstructed itself before me. Even as that fear came back to me came a cry from within; but this time it was not the cry of a puma. I put
31 down the mouthful that hesitated upon my lips, and listened. Silence, save for the whisper of the morning breeze. I began to think my ears had deceived me. After a long pause I resumed my meal, but with my ears still vigilant. Presently I heard something else, very faint and low. I sat as if frozen in my
36 attitude. Though it was faint and low, it moved me more profoundly than all that I had hitherto heard of the abominations behind the wall. There was no mistake this time in the quality of the dim, broken sounds; no doubt at all of their source. For it was groaning, broken by sobs and gasps of anguish. It was no brute this time; it was a human being in torment!
41 As I realised this I rose, and in three steps had crossed the room, seized the handle of the door into the yard, and flung it open before me. “Prendick, man! Stop!” cried Montgomery, intervening.
46 A startled deerhound yelped and snarled. There was blood, I saw, in the sink,—brown, and some scarlet—and I smelt the peculiar smell of carbolic acid. Then through an open doorway beyond, in the dim light of the shadow, I saw something bound painfully upon a framework, scarred, red, and bandaged; and
51 then blotting this out appeared the face of old Moreau, white and terrible. In a moment he had gripped me by the shoulder with a hand that was smeared red, had twisted me off my feet, and flung me headlong back into my own room. He lifted me as though I was a little child. I fell at full length upon the floor, and the door slammed and shut out the passionate intensity of his face.
56 Then I heard the key turn in the lock, and Montgomery’s voice in expostulation. “Ruin the work of a lifetime,” I heard Moreau say.
61 “He does not understand,” said Montgomery. and other things that were inaudible. “I can’t spare the time yet,” said Moreau.
66 The rest I did not hear. I picked myself up and stood trembling, my mind a chaos of the most horrible misgivings. Could it be possible, I thought, that such a thing as the vivisection of men was carried on here? The question shot like lightning across a tumultuous sky; and suddenly the clouded horror of my mind condensed into a vivid realisation of my own danger.
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 From which direction does the speaker come round?
- from behind the narrator
- from in front of the narrator
- from beside the narrator
[1 mark]
1.2 Where does the speaker put a hand?
- on the narrator's shoulder
- on the narrator's arm
- on the narrator's back
[1 mark]
1.3 What does the speaker say he had no business to do?
- let the narrator drift out into this island
- make the narrator sleep for hours yet
- work the narrator's nerves to rags
[1 mark]
1.4 What does Montgomery offer to give Prendick?
- Something to help Prendick sleep
- A stimulant to keep Prendick awake
- Medicine for Prendick's seasickness
[1 mark]
Question 2
Look in detail at this extract, from lines 6 to 15 of the source:
6 I did not reply. I bowed forward, and covered my face with my hands. Presently he returned with a small measure containing a dark liquid. This he gave me. I took it unresistingly, and he helped me into the hammock.
11 When I awoke, it was broad day. For a little while I lay flat, staring at the roof above me. The rafters, I observed, were made out of the timbers of a ship. Then I turned my head, and saw a meal prepared for me on the table. I perceived that I was hungry, and prepared to clamber out of the hammock, which, very politely anticipating my intention, twisted round and deposited me
How does the writer use language here to describe the narrator’s waking and the room around him? 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 chaos?
You could write about:
- how chaos intensifies from beginning to end
- 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 16 to the end.
In this part of the source, when Moreau easily throws Prendick back into his room, it is a surprising show of strength. The writer suggests that Moreau's physical power is a sign of his total control over the island.
To what extent do you agree and/or disagree with this statement?
In your response, you could:
- consider your impressions of Moreau's surprising show of strength
- comment on the methods the writer uses to suggest Moreau's total control
- support your response with references to the text.
[20 marks]
Question 5
A regional food blog is running a creative writing page and wants lively pieces about places to eat.
Choose one of the options below for your entry.
-
Option A: Write a description of a seaside fish and chip shop on a busy Friday from your imagination. You may choose to use the picture provided for ideas:
-
Option B: Write the opening of a story about a meal that brings strangers together.
(24 marks for content and organisation, 16 marks for technical accuracy)
[40 marks]