Form, Audience and Purpose Flashcards
All 10 cards in this deck
What do form, audience and purpose mean in a Question 5 task?
Form: the type of text (article, letter, speech, essay). Audience: who will read or hear it. Purpose: what it must do (argue, explain, persuade, advise). The task tells you all three; underline them.
What is register?
The level of formality in your writing. Matching register to audience and purpose is part of AO5's "tone, style and register".
How do you decide how formal your Question 5 writing should be?
Think about who the reader is and your relationship to them. Councillors, a head teacher or a newspaper editor need formal Standard English; a school magazine for students can be lively and conversational, but still Standard English.
Can you use slang when writing for a teenage audience in Question 5?
Avoid it. Contractions, direct address and humour are enough to sound friendly. Slang loses AO5 marks for register and AO6 marks for Standard English.
How is writing to advise different from writing to argue?
Advice is helpful and reassuring, using softer modal verbs ("you could", "try") and practical steps. Argument presses a case with reasons and rebuttals.
What is tone, and why does it matter in Question 5?
Tone is the attitude your voice conveys: passionate, wry, urgent, measured. Examiners say the best answers rarely sound neutral; a confident, sustained tone makes writing convincing.
A task says: "Write a letter to your head teacher…". What do form, audience and purpose suggest about your writing?
A formal letter to one adult in authority: respectful, firm and reasoned, with proposals the head could act on rather than complaints.
A speech to the local council opens "Hey guys, so basically…". What's wrong, and how would you fix it?
The register is far too informal for councillors, which loses AO5 marks for tone and register. Try "Good evening, councillors." followed by a clear statement of why you are speaking.
Who is the audience implied by "a broadsheet newspaper"?
Educated adult readers of all ages, who expect a reasoned argument, a wider context and a fairly formal register, though wit is welcome.
Why should you think about what your audience already believes?
If you can anticipate their views (e.g. parents worried about cost), you can address them directly, which makes your argument far more convincing for that reader.