Insert
The source that follows is:
- Source A: 19th-century prose fiction
- The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe
An extract from a work first published in 1846.
This extract is taken from The Cask of Amontillado, as Montresor lures Fortunato through the catacombs during carnival, using the promise of a rare wine to flatter and manipulate him, while the setting and hints build tension and foreshadow dark intentions.
Source A
1 We had now been about ten minutes upon the top of Helseggen, to which we had ascended from the interior of Lofoden, so that we had caught no glimpse of the sea until it had burst upon us from
6 the summit. As the old man spoke, I became aware of a loud and gradually increasing sound, like the moaning of a vast herd of buffaloes upon an American prairie;
11 and at the same moment I perceived that what seamen term the chopping character of the ocean beneath us, was rapidly changing into a current which set
16 to the eastward. Even while I gazed, this current acquired a monstrous velocity. Each moment added to its speed—to its headlong impetuosity. In five minutes the whole sea, as far as Vurrgh, was lashed
21 into ungovernable fury; but it was between Moskoe and the coast that the main uproar held its sway. Here the vast bed of the waters, seamed and scarred into a thousand
26 conflicting channels, burst suddenly into phrensied convulsion—heaving, boiling, hissing—gyrating in gigantic and innumerable vortices, and all whirling and plunging on to the eastward
31 with a rapidity which water never elsewhere assumes except in precipitous descents. In a few minutes more, there came over the scene another radical
36 alteration. The general surface grew somewhat more smooth, and the whirlpools, one by one, disappeared, while prodigious streaks of foam became apparent where none had been seen before. These
41 streaks, at length, spreading out to a great distance, and entering into combination, took unto themselves the gyratory motion of the subsided
46 vortices, and seemed to form the germ of another more vast. Suddenly—very suddenly—this assumed a distinct and definite existence, in a circle of more than a mile in
51 diameter. The edge of the whirl was represented by a broad belt of gleaming spray; but no particle of this slipped into the mouth of the terrific funnel, whose interior, as far as
56 the eye could fathom it, was a smooth, shining, and jet-black wall of water, inclined to the horizon at an angle of some forty-five degrees, speeding dizzily round and round with a swaying and sweltering
61 motion, and sending forth to the winds an appalling voice, half shriek, half roar, such as not even the mighty cataract of Niagara ever lifts up in
66 its agony to Heaven. The mountain trembled to its very base, and the rock rocked. I threw myself upon my face, and clung to the scant herbage in an
71 excess of nervous agitation. “This,” said I at length, to the old man—“this can be nothing else
76 than the great whirlpool of the Maelström.” “So it is sometimes termed,” said he. “We Norwegians call it the Moskoe- ström, from the island of Moskoe in the midway.”
81 The ordinary accounts of this vortex had by no means prepared me for what I saw. That of Jonas Ramus, which is perhaps the most circumstantial of any, cannot impart the faintest conception
86 either of the magnificence, or of the horror of the scene—or of the wild bewildering sense of the novel which confounds the beholder. I am not
91 sure from what point of view the writer in question surveyed it, nor at what time; but it could neither have been from the summit of Helseggen, nor during a storm. There are
96 some passages of his description, nevertheless, which may be quoted for their details, although their effect is exceedingly feeble in conveying an impression of the
101 spectacle. “Between Lofoden and Moskoe,” he says, “the depth of the water is between thirty-six and forty fathoms; but on the other side, toward Ver
106 (Vurrgh) this depth decreases so as not to afford a convenient passage for a vessel, without the risk of splitting on the rocks, which happens even in the calmest weather. When it is
111 flood, the stream runs up the country between Lofoden and Moskoe with a boisterous rapidity; but the roar of its impetuous ebb to the sea is scarce equalled by the loudest
116 and most dreadful cataracts; the noise being heard several leagues off, and the vortices or pits are of such an extent and depth, that if a ship comes within its attraction, it is inevitably absorbed and
121 carried down to the bottom, and there beat to pieces against the rocks; and when the water relaxes, the fragments thereof are thrown up again. But these
126 intervals of tranquility are only at the turn of the ebb and flood, and in calm weather, and last but a quarter of an hour, its violence gradually returning. When the
131 stream is most boisterous, and its fury heightened by a storm, it is dangerous to come within a Norway mile of it.”
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 Where had the narrator been for about ten minutes?
- the top of Helseggen
- the sea
- the interior of Lofoden
[1 mark]
1.2 As the old man spoke, what did the narrator become aware of?
- A loud, gradually increasing sound
- A faint, steadily fading hum
- The distant tolling of bells
[1 mark]
1.3 For approximately how long had the narrator and the old man been at the top of Helseggen?
- About ten minutes
- About five minutes
- About twenty minutes
[1 mark]
1.4 Who is speaking when the narrator first becomes aware of the loud, gradually increasing sound?
- The old man
- The narrator
- A guide
[1 mark]
Question 2
Look in detail at this extract, from lines 1 to 40 of the source:
1 We had now been about ten minutes upon the top of Helseggen, to which we had ascended from the interior of Lofoden, so that we had caught no glimpse of the sea until it had burst upon us from
6 the summit. As the old man spoke, I became aware of a loud and gradually increasing sound, like the moaning of a vast herd of buffaloes upon an American prairie;
11 and at the same moment I perceived that what seamen term the chopping character of the ocean beneath us, was rapidly changing into a current which set
16 to the eastward. Even while I gazed, this current acquired a monstrous velocity. Each moment added to its speed—to its headlong impetuosity. In five minutes the whole sea, as far as Vurrgh, was lashed
21 into ungovernable fury; but it was between Moskoe and the coast that the main uproar held its sway. Here the vast bed of the waters, seamed and scarred into a thousand
26 conflicting channels, burst suddenly into phrensied convulsion—heaving, boiling, hissing—gyrating in gigantic and innumerable vortices, and all whirling and plunging on to the eastward
31 with a rapidity which water never elsewhere assumes except in precipitous descents. In a few minutes more, there came over the scene another radical
36 alteration. The general surface grew somewhat more smooth, and the whirlpools, one by one, disappeared, while prodigious streaks of foam became apparent where none had been seen before. These
How does the writer use language here to show the sea changing and the noise building? 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 start of a story.
How has the writer structured the text to create a sense of disorientation?
You could write about:
- how disorientation intensifies throughout 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 whirlpool having a voice makes it seem like a living creature. The writer suggests that some forces of nature are like terrifying monsters that are beyond human control.
To what extent do you agree and/or disagree with this statement?
In your response, you could:
- consider your impressions of how the hyena behaves
- comment on the methods the writer uses to present the hyena
- support your response with references to the text.
[20 marks]
Question 5
A local environmental group is publishing a newsletter and has invited creative writing entries from young people.
Choose one of the options below for your entry.
-
Option A: Describe people planting trees together from your imagination. You may choose to use the picture provided for ideas:
-
Option B: Write the opening of a story about making a positive change.
(24 marks for content and organisation, 16 marks for technical accuracy)
[40 marks]