Insert
The source that follows is:
- Source A: 19th-century prose fiction
- The Lady with the Dog by Anton Chekhov
An extract from a work first published in 1899.
This extract is taken from a scene in which Kovrin soothes Tanya after a quarrel with her father; later, at dusk in the garden, he meets the mysterious black monk, blurring the boundaries between imagination and reality.
Source A
1 I ... only said that, and he shouted and ... said ... a lot of horrible insulting things to me. What for?" "There, there," said Kovrin, smoothing her hair. "You've quarrelled with each
6 other, you've cried, and that's enough. You must not be angry for long--that's wrong ... all the more as he loves you beyond everything." "He has ... has spoiled my whole life," Tanya went on, sobbing. "I hear
11 nothing but abuse and ... insults. He thinks I am of no use in the house. Well! He is right. I shall go away to-morrow; I shall become a telegraph clerk.... I don't care...."
16 "Come, come, come.... You mustn't cry, Tanya. You mustn't, dear.... You are both hot-tempered and irritable, and you are both to blame. Come along; I will
21 reconcile you." Kovrin talked affectionately and persuasively, while she went on crying, twitching her shoulders and wringing her hands, as though some terrible misfortune had really befallen her. He felt all the sorrier for her
26 because her grief was not a serious one, yet she suffered extremely. What trivialities were enough to make this little creature miserable for a whole day, perhaps for her whole life! Comforting Tanya, Kovrin
31 thought that, apart from this girl and her father, he might hunt the world over and would not find people who would love him as one of themselves, as one of their kindred. If it had
36 not been for those two he might very likely, having lost his father and mother in early childhood, never to the day of his death have known what was meant by genuine
41 affection and that naïve, uncritical love which is only lavished on very close blood relations; and he felt that the nerves of this weeping, shaking girl responded to his half-sick, overstrained nerves like iron to a
46 magnet. He never could have loved a healthy, strong, rosy-cheeked woman, but pale, weak, unhappy Tanya attracted him. And he liked stroking her hair and her shoulders, pressing her hand and wiping away her tears.... At last she
51 left off crying. She went on for a long time complaining of her father and her hard, insufferable life in that house, entreating Kovrin to put himself in her place; then she
56 began, little by little, smiling, and sighing that God had given her such a bad temper. At last, laughing aloud, she called herself a fool, and ran out of the room. When a little later Kovrin went into the
61 garden, Yegor Semyonitch and Tanya were walking side by side along an avenue as though nothing had happened, and both were eating rye bread with salt on it, as both were
66 hungry. V Glad that he had been so successful in the part of peacemaker, Kovrin went into the park. Sitting on a garden seat, thinking, he heard the
71 rattle of a carriage and a feminine laugh--visitors were arriving. When the shades of evening began falling on the garden, the sounds of the violin and singing
76 voices reached him indistinctly, and that reminded him of the black monk. Where, in what land or in what planet, was that optical absurdity moving now? Hardly had he recalled the legend and pictured in his imagination the
81 dark apparition he had seen in the rye-field, when, from behind a pine-tree exactly opposite, there came out noiselessly, without the slightest rustle, a man of
86 medium height with uncovered grey head, all in black, and barefooted like a beggar, and his black eyebrows stood out conspicuously on his pale, death-like face. Nodding his head graciously,
91 this beggar or pilgrim came noiselessly to the seat and sat down, and Kovrin recognised him as the black monk. For a minute they looked at one another, Kovrin with amazement, and the monk with
96 friendliness, and, just as before, a little slyness, as though he were thinking something to himself. "But you are a mirage," said Kovrin. "Why are you here and sitting still? That does not fit in with the legend."
101 "That does not matter," the monk answered in a low voice, not immediately turning his face towards him. "The legend, the mirage, and I are all the
106 products of your excited imagination. I am a phantom." "Then you don't exist?" said Kovrin.
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 How did Kovrin talk?
- affectionately and persuasively
- sternly and impatiently
- loudly and playfully
[1 mark]
1.2 What was Tanya doing with her shoulders?
- twitching them
- rolling them
- holding them steady
[1 mark]
1.3 Why did Kovrin feel sorrier for Tanya?
- because her grief was not a serious one, yet she suffered extremely
- because her father had left the house without a word
- because her illness had returned after many months
[1 mark]
1.4 As though what had really befallen Tanya?
- some terrible misfortune
- an unexpected celebration
- a sudden change of weather
[1 mark]
Question 2
Look in detail at this extract, from lines 76 to 108 of the source:
76 voices reached him indistinctly, and that reminded him of the black monk. Where, in what land or in what planet, was that optical absurdity moving now? Hardly had he recalled the legend and pictured in his imagination the
81 dark apparition he had seen in the rye-field, when, from behind a pine-tree exactly opposite, there came out noiselessly, without the slightest rustle, a man of
86 medium height with uncovered grey head, all in black, and barefooted like a beggar, and his black eyebrows stood out conspicuously on his pale, death-like face. Nodding his head graciously,
91 this beggar or pilgrim came noiselessly to the seat and sat down, and Kovrin recognised him as the black monk. For a minute they looked at one another, Kovrin with amazement, and the monk with
96 friendliness, and, just as before, a little slyness, as though he were thinking something to himself. "But you are a mirage," said Kovrin. "Why are you here and sitting still? That does not fit in with the legend."
101 "That does not matter," the monk answered in a low voice, not immediately turning his face towards him. "The legend, the mirage, and I are all the
106 products of your excited imagination. I am a phantom." "Then you don't exist?" said Kovrin.
How does the writer use language here to present the black monk’s appearance and manner? 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 story.
How has the writer structured the text to create a sense of ambiguity?
You could write about:
- how ambiguity intensifies by the end of 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 16 to the end.
In this part of the source, the description of the black monk's 'death-like face' makes him sound very frightening. The writer suggests that because the monk is actually calm and friendly, the scene becomes more strange and unsettling.
To what extent do you agree and/or disagree with this statement?
In your response, you could:
- consider your impressions of the black monk
- comment on the methods the writer uses to portray the black monk
- support your response with references to the text.
[20 marks]
Question 5
A town archive is creating a display about local working lives and wants creative submissions.
Choose one of the options below for your entry.
-
Option A: Describe an old cinema projection room from your imagination. You may choose to use the picture provided for ideas:
-
Option B: Write the opening of a story about saying goodbye to a workplace.
(24 marks for content and organisation, 16 marks for technical accuracy)
[40 marks]