Paper 1 — Area of Study

1050

2015 HIGHER SCHOOL CERTIFICATEEXAMINATION

English (Standard) and English (Advanced)Paper 1 — Area of Study

General Instructions

• Readingtime–10minutes

• Workingtime–2hours

• Writeusingblackpen

Total marks – 45

Section I Pages2–7

15 marks

• AttemptQuestion1

• Allowabout40minutesforthissection

Section II Pages8–9

15 marks



Section III Pages10–11

15 marks



– 2–

Section I

15 marksAttempt Question 1Allow about 40 minutes for this section

Answerthequestiononpages2−7ofthePaper1WritingBooklet.Extrawritingbookletsareavailable.

Youranswerswillbeassessedonhowwellyou:

n demonstrate understanding of the way perceptions of discovery are shaped in andthroughtexts

n describe,explainandanalysetherelationshipbetweenlanguage,textandcontext

Question 1(15marks)

ExamineTexts 1,2,3and4carefullyandthenanswerthequestionsonpage7.

Text 1 — Short story extract

FRIDAYMORNING.GREENWICHVILLAGE.

The industrial dumbwaiter*, jam‑packed with a two‑day accumulation of tenants’ rubbish,madethreetripsfromthebasementoftheelegantapartmentblocktothestreet.

A teamof janitors removedapileofdarkplastic rubbishbags to a cornerwall of a raisedgardenbedthatranalongthenorthfaceofthebuildingandshapedamoundfromthemthere.Theplasticglintedinthepalewintersun.

On the fourth trip, adifferent typeof rubbish: abatteredwoodenwardrobe tiedaround themiddlewiththickyellowstring,astroller,achild’scarseat,awoodenchestofdrawerscoveredwithplaitedwhiteplasticand toppedwithabright‑blue lid,onedoubleand twosinglebedbases,asinglemattress,threecrochetedcushionsinperfectcondition...

Minutesaftertherubbishwasplacedonthestreet,ayoungcouplewhohadbeenwalkingbylungedatit.Whattreasuresmighttheyfindhere?Howmuchofitmightbeworthselling?

‘Oh,man,lookatthis!’

‘Don’ttakethosetrunks,’thewomancalledtohim.‘Leavethem.’

Hetriedtoarguewithher,butshewasresolute,sohefilledhisarmswithbooks.Whenhecouldholdnomore,heplacedtheminpilesonthefootpath.Helookedaround.Howtocarryallthis?...

Frenzied,hedumpedthebooksintodrawers,thenmovedtoexaminethenexttrunk.

Text 1 continues on page 3

– 3–

Text1(continued)

In themeantime, his girlfriendkicked andprodded, then rummaged through the fabric‑tiedbags.

‘Bookshere!’shecriedout.

‘Whoa!Lookatthis,’shewhoopedasshedisplayedavoluminouspairofwhiterayonbloomersagainstherchest.Hewastoopreoccupiedtolookupbutthatdidn’tdampenherdelight.

Next,shefoundamulticolouredraffiabeachbagwithlongredleatherstraps.

‘This!’Shewavedthebagincircles,lasso‑style,highintheair.

Into the beach bag she stuffed a many‑coloured skirt, a pair of shoes, two rayon singlets(dressesforher), twoscarves,morebloomers.Discardedclothes layscatteredwherevershethrewthem,theircoloursgaudyagainstthedarkrubbishbags...

Nowthecoupleapproachedthewardrobe.Unabletobreaktheyellowstring,theycarriedthewardrobe–fromtheeasewithwhichtheyhoistedit,itseemedempty–tothefootpath,stoodituprightandrolleddownthestring.Asthedoorswungopen,ahibachi**tumbledout.Itlookednew.Hewenttoclaimit.

‘No,’sheshouted.‘No!Idon’twantthat.Idon’twantanyjunkintheapartment.’

Hehesitated,butonlyforaninstant;defiant,heclaimedit.

Therewasabonusfor thecouple: thechestofdrawerswasfurnishedwithasetofwheels.Thatwouldtakesomeweightoff.Sheclosedthebook‑filleddrawers;hesecuredthemwiththeyellowstring.Theystackedbagsfilledwithclothesandbooksontopofthechest.Eachslunga bag over one shoulder, hoisted another under their arms, clutched others in their fingers.Packedtothegills,theydepartedbriskly,thesoundofmetalwheelsonconcreteclackingintheirwake.

TwoEnglishtourists,whohadbeenwatching,disgusted,turnedtoeachother.

‘Whatdoyouthinktheydowithit?’

‘Ican’timagine.’

He shuddered, offered his companion his arm and they walked off in the direction of 5thAvenue,headsshakinginwonderatthelikesofwhatgoesoninNewYork.

Onthestreet,thepileofdarkplasticbagsglintedinthepalewintersun.

Sandra Goldbloom Zurbo Adaptedfrom‘ScenefromaWindow’

nwin. Her short stories and poems, several of which can be found online, have been published in literary journals and anthologies

* dumbwaiter lift, elevator**hibachi small Japanese cooking stove

End of Text 1

Sandra Goldbloom Zurbo is a Melbourne author, editor and proofreader. Her novel, The Book of Rachel, was published by Allen & U

–4–

Text 2 — Image

PaintingofAlbertusSebabyJacobHoubraken,1730

– 5–

Text 3 — Poem

Butterfly

Myfather,ninetyyearsago,attheageof–myguess–ten,walkedthreemilesthroughtheforestonhiswaytoschool

alongthesedgywetfootshoreofthebrimmingeel‑filledrush‑fringedpeat‑brownriver,leavingatrailofjitteringblackflies,hishandsalreadybroadanddeftattheendsofhisfrayingsleeves.

Alongthispathhenoticedeverything:mushroomandscat,wildbloom,snailandiris,clubmoss,fernandcone.

Itmusthavebeenanendlessbreathingin:betweenthewishtoknowandtheneedtopraisetherewasnoseam.

Onedayhesawadrenchedlogfloatingheavilydownstream,andonitabutterfly,blueaseyes.Thiswasthemoment(Ilaterheard)thatshothimoffonhistangent

intotheabstruse*worldofmicroscopesandnumbers,lapelpins,cars,andwanderings,

awayfromthetensquaremilesoflogged‑outbushlotshenevernamedaspoverty,andthebrownmeanderingriverhewasalwaysinsomewayafterthattryinginvaintogetbackto.

marGaret atwood

* abstruse hard to understand, obscure

From THE DOOR, by Margaret Atwood, Virago Press, 2007. Copyright © Margaret Atwood 2007. Used with permission of the author.

– 6–

Text 4 — Nonfiction extract

Firstcameherstorieslikewebsacrosstheworld.TheycrisscrossedtheAtlanticonsteamersandtheRockiesbytrain.Theymadetheirwaydowndirttrackswherethescrubmetoverhead.TheyflewfromBenLomondintheTasmanianHighlands,whichwecouldseefromherverandah,toWelshfarmhousesofdarkstone.Theairwouldshiverslightlyeachtimeshebegan.

Once upon a time, when pigs were swine and monkeys chewed tobacco, there was a little girl who lived at the foot of the mountains in the centre of the universe at the bottom of the world ...

Thestory‑tellerwasmygrandmotherandthechildwasme.Wecametoherforstories...Herstorieswerevividandshapelyandweheardthemagainandagain.Inthenightunderthepinetrees,herhousecreakedandherstoriesinvadedourdreams.LaterIwouldcatchsomethingoftheirrhythmsandwordplayinballadsandsagasandknowwhatatalentedstory‑tellershewas.Thenwetookherforgranted...

Shewasborn in1894, abelovedonlychild ina familywitha littlemoneyor themythofmoney from her great‑great‑grandfather, a clergyman, who had invested during the earlynineteenthcentury,surelysomewhatdubiously,inWelshcoalmines.FamilyportraitssurviveandhanginaTasmaniandining‑room.

Iknow I shouldcheck the facts.There is evidence tobeweighed, archives tobe searched,familymembersstillalivewhoknewherdifferently.Therewillbeshippinglistsandparishrecords,deedsandwillslodgedinthreecountries.ThemenIwillfindeasily,labelledbytheirworkandtheirbankbalances,thebuyingandsellingofland,andofhousesreturnedtoatnight.Thewomenwillhaveleftlessclearamarkontherecordbutmoreofamarkonme,perhaps,andonallthechildreninbetween.Therearesomefamilypapers,recipes,photographsandasamplerinblackcross‑stitchdone,mygrandmothertoldme,byachild,mygreat‑great‑great‑great‑grandmother,duringtheNapoleonicwarswhenchildrenwereforbiddentousecolouredsilks.Orsoshesaid.

Therewerestoriesofunfeelingtrusteesandmoneywithheldandunsuitablemarriageswhengood‑looking rogues took advantage of well‑to‑do widows – one of whom was my great‑grandmother.SheseemstohavemarriedanAmericantwentyyearsherjunioraftermygreat‑grandfatherdied.ThisyoungmanwentintothecityofLondoneverymorningattenbut never told his wife what he did there.Perhapssheneverasked.Whenitwasdiscoveredthathe’dbeenthroughallhermoney,hereturnedtoAmerica,nevertobeseenagain.Orsothestorygoes...

Thehistorianat thebackofmybrainsaysIshoulddiscoverwhat is trueandwhat is false,makeaproperlyconsideredaccountbeforeit’stoolate.Therestofme,thepartthatwasshapedbythesenseofmyselfat the centre of the universe at the bottom of the world,stillsees,asifthroughcertaincloudformationsabovepaddockspalewithtussocks,theshapesandshadowsofotherplacesshemademyown.

Iwanttoleaveherandherstoriesbe.

Hilary mcPHee AdaptedfromOther People’s Words

Other’s People’s Words by Hilary McPhee (Picador 2001)www.hilarymcphee.com

–7–

Question1(continued)

Text 1 — Short story extract

(a) Inwhatways isdialogueused tocapture theyoungcouple’s reactions to theitemstheyfind?

2

Text 2 — Image

(b) Howdoestheimagerepresentanindividualwhovaluesdiscoveredobjects? 2

Text 3 — Poem

(c) Explain how the poem conveys the personal response of the father to hisdiscoveries.

3

Text 4 — Nonfiction extract

(d) Analysehowthetextportraysthedifficultiesofdiscovering‘whatistrueandwhatisfalse’.

3

Text 1, Text 2, Text 3 and Text 4 — Short story extract,Image,PoemandNonfiction extract

(e) ComparehowTWOof the texts represent thesignificanceofcuriosity in theprocessofdiscovering.

5

End of Question 1

–8–

Section II


Answerthequestiononpages8–15ofthePaper1WritingBooklet.Extrawritingbookletsareavailable.

Youranswerwillbeassessedonhowwellyou:

n expressunderstandingofdiscoveryinthecontextofyourstudies

n organise,developandexpressideasusinglanguageappropriatetoaudience,purposeandcontext

Question 2 (15marks)

Composeapieceofimaginativewritingwhichexplorestheunexpectedimpactofdiscovery.

UseONEoftheimagesonthenextpageasthecentralelementofyourwriting.

Question 2 continues on page 9

– 9–

Question2(continued)

End of Question 2

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– 10–

Section III


Answerthequestiononpages16−24ofthePaper1WritingBooklet.Extrawritingbookletsareavailable.

Youranswerwillbeassessedonhowwellyou:

n demonstrateunderstandingoftheconceptofdiscoveryinthecontextofyourstudy

n analyse,explainandassessthewaysdiscoveryisrepresentedinavarietyoftexts

n organise,developandexpressideasusinglanguageappropriatetoaudience,purposeandcontext

Question 3 (15marks)

Theprocessofdiscoveryinvolvesuncoveringwhatishiddenandreconsideringwhatisknown.

HowisthisperspectiveondiscoveryexploredinyourprescribedtextandONEotherrelatedtextofyourownchoosing?

Theprescribedtextsarelistedonthenextpage.

Question 3 continues on page 11

– 11 –

Question 3 (continued)

The prescribed texts are:

• Prose Fiction – James Bradley, Wrack

– Kate Chopin, The Awakening

– Tara June Winch, Swallow the Air

• Nonfiction – Bill Bryson, A Short History of Nearly Everything

– Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara, The Motorcycle Diaries

• Drama – Michael Gow, Away

– Jane Harrison, Rainbow’s End from Vivienne Cleven et al., Contemporary Indigenous Plays

• Shakespearean – William Shakespeare, The TempestDrama

• Film – Ang Lee, Life of Pi

• Poetry – Rosemary Dobson, Rosemary Dobson Collected The prescribed poems are: * Young Girl at a Window * Wonder * Painter of Antwerp * Traveller’s Tale * The Tiger * Cock Crow * Ghost Town: New England

– Robert Frost, The Poetry of Robert Frost The prescribed poems are: * The Tuft of Flowers * Mending Wall * Home Burial * After Apple-Picking * Fire and Ice * Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

– Robert Gray, Coast Road The prescribed poems are: * Journey: the North Coast * The Meatworks * North Coast Town * Late Ferry * Flames and Dangling Wire * Diptych

• Media – Simon Nasht, Frank Hurley – The Man Who Made History

– Ivan O’Mahoney

* Go Back to Where You Came From – Series 1: Episodes 1, 2 and 3

and * The Response

End of paper

BLANK PAGE

–12–©2015BoardofStudies,TeachingandEducationalStandardsNSW

Documents

Paper 1 — Area of Study