Question 4: Evaluating the Extract Flashcards
All 16 cards in this deck
What is a qualified judgement?
A judgement weighed with limits, e.g. 'This is highly successful at first, but…', rather than simple praise.
What is evaluative language?
Words that judge how successfully the writer achieves the aim, such as convincingly, highly effective or less successful.
What is an alternative interpretation?
A different but reasonable reading of the same evidence, e.g. 'This could show confidence, but it could also be a front.'
What is the difference between evaluation and retelling?
Retelling says what happens. Evaluation judges how successfully the writer creates the effect in the question, and why.
Which common words have changed meaning since the 19th century?
Gay meant lively or fashionable, pathetic meant moving or pitiful, and awful could mean awe-inspiring.
Why are biblical references common in 19th-century writing?
The Bible was the text most readers knew well, so a biblical phrase carried great weight.
What was social class like in the 19th century?
Sharply divided: a wealthy upper class, a growing middle class and an often poor working class. Many writers are middle-class observers of the poor.
What was the position of women in the 19th century?
They couldn't vote in national elections and had few routes into university or the professions. Middle-class women were expected to stay at home.
What was a 19th-century governess?
An educated woman employed to teach a wealthy family's children at home, awkwardly placed between servant and family.
How did railways change 19th-century life?
From the 1840s railways spread fast, and seaside holidays, day trips and travel boomed.
How did science challenge religion in the 19th century?
Christianity shaped daily life, but new science, such as Darwin's On the Origin of Species (1859), challenged traditional beliefs.
How can the British Empire shape a 19th-century source?
Britain ruled large parts of the world, and many narrators judge other places and people by British standards.
What is Gothic fiction?
Fiction that builds fear and suspense through dark settings, mysterious events, the supernatural and characters in danger.
Why does the supernatural appear so often in 19th-century short stories?
Ghost stories were hugely popular, often published in magazines and around Christmas. Recent Edexcel Paper 1 extracts have had a supernatural turn.
What is melodrama?
Writing with heightened emotion and dramatic events: exclamations, tears, sudden reversals and extreme feelings.
What is a critical overview in Paper 1 Question 4?
A judgement of the whole extract: how its parts work together to achieve the aim, sustained through the answer.