Essay questions
It is always a good idea to plan your answer carefully before you begin writing your essay. Planning will save you time as you will have a clear idea of what to write and it means you will make your points in a logical manner. You must always refer to the assessment objectives to ensure you have met the criteria.
Here is a plan you could use for your answer to both the higher and foundation tier questions.
Higher tier
How does Harper Lee create tension in this extract?
Foundation tier
How do we know there is a lot of tension in this extract?
- Introduction – what is happening in this scene? Give a brief overview.
- Comment on the way the men behave.
- Comment on the way the men talk.
- Comment on the way Atticus responds.
- Comment on the behaviour of Scout, Jem and Dill.
- Conclusion - here you should provide a general summing up of your points.
Higher tier sample answers
Here are two sample answers that refer to point three of the essay plan.
Sample answer one
From the beginning of the extract the men talk in a way that is abrupt and rude. It is obvious that they intend to take Tom Robinson from his jail cell in order to punish him themselves and they do not care if they have to harm Atticus in order to do this. This is made obvious when one of the mob says, Get aside from the door, Mr Finch.
Here, we sense that the men in the mob are getting angrier and cannot wait much longer to begin punishing Tom Robinson for his supposed crime. When one of the men says to Atticus, The hell he is,
it becomes obvious that Atticus is on his own, Heck Tate is nowhere near the jail and this adds to the tension.
Feedback comments – good, but improvements need to be made
This answer shows understanding of the way the men talk but it does not link this to the way tension is created. Answers should always refer to the question.
Technical terms such as imperatives should be commented on as they provide an answer with depth.
Higher marks are awarded for using more sophisticated language.
Commenting on the way the men talk and the fact that the roughness of their language increases the tension in the extract would also ensure higher marks were awarded for this answer.
Sample answer two
In this extract Harper Lee allows the reader to see how the way in which the members of the lynch mob talk to Atticus increases the tension. One member begins by asking, He in there, Mr Finch?
This immediately creates tension as the man is making it obvious that he and the other men have arrived at the jail for one thing only; to take Tom Robinson. They do not even bother calling Tom by name but simply use the pronoun he
. The tension begins to rise when Harper Lee continues, You know what we want,
another man said. Get aside from the door, Mr Finch.
The fact that it is not made obvious who all these voices belong to adds even more tension to the scene as does the fact that an imperative is now used. Get aside from the door,
is a rough command and the reader senses that the men are beginning to grow more aggressive. The same could be said when another of the mob responds to Atticus’ comment about Heck Tate being around somewhere with The hell he is.
This implies a certain amount of aggression is beginning to surface and this again adds tension to the scene.
Feedback comments – this is a much improved answer
This answer immediately links to the title which is exactly what the examiner wants to see.
This answer approaches the extract in a chronological order. This means there is a logical approach to the response which makes it ordered and easier to read and make sense of.
Use of technical language such as ‘pronouns’ and ‘imperatives’ adds depth and helps fulfil the assessment objectives.
The answer also focuses on how the aggressive nature of what the men say adds to the growing tension in the scene.
Words such as ‘implies’ are effective and this answer could benefit from more use of such linking language, such as ‘suggestive of...’ in order to show how language creates tension.
You should now try to read over the assessment objectives again before attempting your own answer to this essay title. You should try to complete it in timed conditions. Remember to keep in mind how important planning is and use everything you have learned in this section to write your own answer.
