Official June 2024 AQA A-level ENGLISH LITERATURE B 7717/2A Paper 2A Texts and genres: Elements of crime writing Merged Question Paper + Mark Scheme Ace your Mocks!!! IB/G/Jun24/G4007/E5 7717/2A Wednesday 5 June 2024 Morning Time allowed: 3 hours Materials For this paper you must have: • an AQA 12-page answer book • a copy of the set text(s) you have studied for Section B and Section C. These texts must not be annotated and must not contain additional notes or materials. Instructions • Use black ink or black ball-point pen. • Write the information required on the front of your answer book. The Paper Reference is 7717/2A. • You must answer the question in Section A, one question from Section B and one question from Section C. Over Section B and Section C you must write about three texts: one poetry text, one post-2000 prose text and one further text. • Do all rough work in your answer book. Cross through any work you do not want to be marked. Information • The marks for questions are shown in brackets. • The maximum mark for this paper is 75. • You will be marked on your ability to: – use good English – organise information clearly – use specialist vocabulary where appropriate. • In your response you need to: – analyse carefully the writers’ methods – explore the contexts of the texts you are writing about – explore connections across the texts you have studied – explore different interpretations of your texts. A-level ENGLISH LITERATURE B Paper 2A Texts and genres: Elements of crime writing 2 IB/G/Jun24/7717/2A Section A Answer the question in this section. 0 1 Explore the significance of elements of crime writing in this extract. Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed analysis of the ways the author has shaped meanings. [25 marks] This extract is from a short story, The Watercress Girl, by A.E. Coppard, published in 1925. It is near the beginning of the story. Mary McDowall is on trial in court and, as the case proceeds, she reflects back on the events that led to her crime. Frank Oppidan was her lover. While the brutal story was being recounted, the prisoner had stood with closed eyes, leaning her hands upon the rail of the dock; stood and dreamed of what she had not revealed: Of her father Fergus McDowall; his child she was, although he had never married. That much she knew, but who her mother had been he never told her, and it did not seem to matter; she guessed rather than knew that at her birth she had died, or soon afterwards, and the man had fostered her. He and she had always been together, alone, ever since she could remember, always together, always happy, he was so kind; and so splendid in the great boots that drew up to his thighs when he worked in the watercress beds, cutting bunches deftly, or cleaning the weeds from the water. And there were her beehives, her flock of hens, the young pigs, and a calf that knelt and rubbed its neck on the rich mead with a lavishing movement just as the ducks did when the grass was dewy. Save for a wildness of mood that sometimes flashed through her, Mary was content, and loved the life that she could not know was lonely with her father beside the watercress streams. He was uncommunicative, like Mary, but as he worked he hummed to himself or whistled the soft tunes that at night he played on the clarinet. Tall and strong, a handsome man. Sometimes he would put his arms around her and say, ‘Well, my dear.’ And she would kiss him. She had vowed to herself that she would never leave him, but then – Frank had come. In this mortal conflict we seek not only that pleasure may not divide us from duty, but that duty may not detach us from life. He was not the first man or youth she could or would have loved, but he was the one who had wooed her; first-love’s enlightening delight, in the long summer eves, in those enticing fields! How easily she was won! All his offers of marriage she had put off with the answer: ‘No, it would never do for me,’ or ‘I shall never marry’, but then, if he angrily swore or accused her of not loving him enough, her fire and freedom would awe him almost as much as it enchanted. And she might have married Frank if she could only have told him of her dubious origin, but whether from some vagrant modesty, loyalty to her father, or some reason whatever, she could not bring herself to do that. Often these steady refusals enraged her lover, and after such occasions he would not seek her again for weeks, but in the end he always returned, although his absences grew longer as their friendship lengthened. Ah, when the way to your lover is long, there’s but a short cut to the end. Came a time when he did not return at all and then, soon, Mary found she was going to have a child. ‘Oh, I wondered where you were, Frank, and why you were there, wherever it was, instead of where I could find you.’ But the fact was portentous enough to depose her grief at his fickleness, and after a while she took no further care or thought for Oppidan, for she feared that like her own mother she would die of her child. Soon these fears left her and 3 IB/G/Jun24/7717/2A Turn over ► she rejoiced. Certainly she need not scruple to tell him of her own origin now, he could never reproach her now. Had he come once more, had he come then, she would have married him. But although he might have been hers for the lifting of a finger, as they say, her pride kept her from calling him into the trouble, and she did not call him and he never sought her again. When her father realized her condition he merely said ‘Frank?’ and she nodded. The child was early born, and she was not prepared; it came and died. Her father took it and buried it in the garden. It was a boy, dead. No one else knew, not even Frank, but when she was recovered her pride wavered and she wrote a loving letter to him, still keeping her secret. Not until she had written three times did she hear from him, and then he only answered that he should not see her any more. He did not tell her why, but she knew. He was going to marry Elizabeth Plantney, whose parents had died and left her £500. To Mary’s mind that presented itself as a treachery to their child, the tiny body buried under a beehive in the garden. That Frank was unaware made no difference to the girl’s fierce mood; it was treachery. Maternal anger stormed in her breast, it could only be allayed by an injury, a deep admonishing injury to that treacherous man. In her sleepless nights, the little crumpled corpse seemed to plead for this much, and her own heart clamoured, just as those bees murmured against him day by day. So then she got some vitriol. Rushing past her old lover on the night of the crime she turned upon him with the lifted jar, but the sudden confrontation dazed and tormented her; in momentary hesitation she had dashed the acid, not into his faithless eyes, but at the prim creature linked to his arm. Walking away, she heard the crying of the wounded girl. After a while she had turned back to the town and given herself up to the police. To her mind, as she stood leaning against the dock rail, it was all huddled and contorted, but that was her story set in its order. The trial went droning on beside her remembered grief like a dull stream neighbouring a clear one, two parallel streams that would meet in the end, were meeting now, surely, as the judge began to speak. And at the crisis, as if in exculpation, she suffered a whisper to escape her lips, though none heard it. ‘ ’Twas him made me a parent, but he was never a man himself. He took advantage; it was mean, I love Christianity.’ She heard the judge deliver her sentence: for six calendar months she was to be locked in a gaol. ‘O Christ!’ she breathed, for it was the lovely spring; lilac, laburnum, and father wading the brooks in those boots drawn up to his thighs to rake the dark sprigs and comb out the green scum. Turn over for Section B 4 IB/G/Jun24/7717/2A Over Section B and Section C, you must write about three texts from the following list: Selected Poems: Crabbe, Browning and Wilde (pre-1900 poetry) The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (pre-1900 poetry) Atonement (post-2000 prose) When Will There Be Good News? (post-2000 prose) Oliver Twist The Murder of Roger Ackroyd Brighton Rock Hamlet Section B Answer one question in this section. Either 0 2 Selected Poems – George Crabbe, Robert Browning and Oscar Wilde ‘In these poems love is the primary motive for murder.’ To what extent do you agree with this view? Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of the poets’ authorial methods. You should refer to the work of at least two authors in your answer. [25 marks] or 0 3 The Rime of the Ancient Mariner – Samuel Taylor Coleridge ‘The Mariner’s mental suffering as a result of his crime causes him more agony than his physical suffering.’ To what extent do you agree with this view? Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of Coleridge’s authorial methods. [25 marks] 5 IB/G/Jun24/7717/2A Turn over ► or 0 4 When Will There Be Good News? – Kate Atkinson ‘Crime is presented as comic rather than horrific in the novel.’ To what extent do you agree with this view? Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of Atkinson’s authorial methods. [25 marks] or 0 5 Atonement – Ian McEwan ‘We forgive Briony for her crimes because we are able to understand her motives.’ To what extent do you agree with this view? Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of McEwan’s authorial methods. [25 marks] or 0 6 Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens ‘In the criminal world of Oliver Twist, the best means of obtaining power is through fear.’ To what extent do you agree with this view? Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of Dickens’ authorial methods. [25 marks] or 0 7 Brighton Rock – Graham Greene ‘In the world of Brighton Rock, violence is a source of pleasure.’ To what extent do you agree with this view? Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of Greene’s authorial methods. [25 marks] 6 IB/G/Jun24/7717/2A or 0 8 The Murder of Roger Ackroyd – Agatha Christie ‘Caroline is an effective and helpful sidekick for Poirot.’ To what extent do you agree with this view of Caroline’s role in the novel? Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of Christie’s authorial methods. [25 marks] or 0 9 Hamlet – William Shakespeare ‘Hamlet is merely a victim of crime.’ To what extent do you agree with this view? Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of Shakespeare’s dramatic methods. [25 marks] 7 IB/G/Jun24/7717/2A Section C Answer one question in this section. In your answer you must write about two texts that you have not used in Section B. Either 1 0 Explore the significance of suspense in two crime texts you have studied. Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of authorial methods. [25 marks] or 1 1 ‘In crime writing the criminal is also a victim.’ To what extent do you agree with this view? Remember to include in your answer relevant detailed exploration of authorial methods. [25 marks] END OF QUESTIONS 8 IB/G/Jun24/7717/2A There are no questions printed on this page Copyright information For confidentiality purposes, all acknowledgements of third-party copyright material are published in a separate booklet. This booklet is published after each live examination series and is available for free download from www.aqa.org.uk. Permission to reproduce all copyright material has been applied for. In some cases, efforts to contact copyright-holders may have been unsuccessful and AQA will be happy to rectify any omissions of acknowledgements. If you have any queries please contact the Copyright Team. Copyright © 2024 AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved. *246A7717/2A* A-level ENGLISH LITERATURE B 7717/2A Paper 2A Texts and genres: Elements of crime writing Mark scheme June 2024 Version: 1.0 Final *246A7717/2a/MS* MARK SCHEME – A-LEVEL ENGLISH LITERATURE B – 7717/2A – JUNE 2024 2 Mark schemes are prepared by the Lead Assessment Writer and considered, together with the relevant questions, by a panel of subject teachers. This mark scheme includes any amendments made at the standardisation events which all associates participate in and is the scheme which was used by them in this examination. The standardisation process ensures that the mark scheme covers the students’ responses to questions and that every associate understands and applies it in the same correct way. As preparation for standardisation each associate analyses a number of students’ scripts. Alternative answers not already covered by the mark scheme are discussed and legislated for. If, after the standardisation process, associates encounter unusual answers which have not been raised they are required to refer these to the Lead Examiner. It must be stressed that a mark scheme is a working document, in many cases further developed and expanded on the basis of students’ reactions to a particular paper. Assumptions about future mark schemes on the basis of one year’s document should be avoided; whilst the guiding principles of assessment remain constant, details will change, depending on the content of a particular examination paper. No student should be disadvantaged on the basis of their gender identity and/or how they refer to the gender identity of others in their exam responses. A consistent use of ‘they/them’ as a singular and pronouns beyond ‘she/her’ or ‘he/him’ will be credited in exam responses in line with existing mark scheme criteria. Further copies of this mark scheme are available from aqa.org.uk Copyright information AQA retains the copyright on all its publications. However, registered schools/colleges for AQA are permitted to copy material from this booklet for their own internal use, with the following important exception: AQA cannot give permission to schools/colleges to photocopy any material that is acknowledged to a third party even for internal use within the centre. Copyright © 2024 AQA and its licensors. All rights reserved. MARK SCHEME – A-LEVEL ENGLISH LITERATURE B – 7717/2A – JUNE 2024 3 Level of response marking instructions Level of response mark schemes are broken down into levels, each of which has a descriptor. The descriptor for the level shows the average performance for the level. There are marks in each level. Before you apply the mark scheme to a student’s answer read through the answer and annotate it (as instructed) to show the qualities that are being looked for. You can then apply the mark scheme. Step 1 Determine a level Start at the lowest level of the mark scheme and use it as a ladder to see whether the answer meets the descriptor for that level. The descriptor for the level indicates the different qualities that might be seen in the student’s answer for that level. If it meets the lowest level then go to the next one and decide if it meets this level, and so on, until you have a match between the level descriptor and the answer. With practice and familiarity you will find that for better answers you will be able to quickly skip through the lower levels of the mark scheme. When assigning a level you should look at the overall quality of the answer and not look to pick holes in small and specific parts of the answer where the student has not performed quite as well as the rest. If the answer covers different aspects of different levels of the mark scheme you should use a best fit approach for defining the level and then use the variability of the response to help decide the mark within the level, ie if the response is predominantly level 3 with a small amount of level 4 material it would be placed in level 3 but be awarded a mark near the top of the level because of the level 4 content. Step 2 Determine a mark Once you have assigned a level you need to decide on the mark. The descriptors on how to allocate marks can help with this. The exemplar materials used during standardisation will help. There will be an answer in the standardising materials which will correspond with each level of the mark scheme. This answer will have been awarded a mark by the Lead Examiner. You can compare the student’s answer with the example to determine if it is the same standard, better or worse than the example. You can then use this to allocate a mark for the answer based on the Lead Examiner’s mark on the example. You may well need to read back through the answer as you apply the mark scheme to clarify points and assure yourself that the level and the mark are appropriate. Indicative content in the mark scheme is provided as a guide for examiners. It is not intended to be exhaustive and you must credit other valid points. Students do not have to cover all of the points mentioned in the Indicative content to reach the highest level of the mark scheme. An answer which contains nothing of relevance to the question must be awarded no marks. MARK SCHEME – A-LEVEL ENGLISH LITERATURE B – 7717/2A – JUNE 2024 4 Information for examiners marking Elements of crime writing Paper 2: open book Welcome to this mark scheme which is designed to help you deliver fair and accurate assessment. Please read all sections carefully and ensure that you follow the requirements that they contain. The significance of open book Examiners must understand that in marking an open book exam there are examining implications. Students have their texts in front of them, and they are expected to use them to focus on specific passages for detailed discussion. They will not have had to memorise quotations so when quotations are used they should be accurate. Because students have their texts in the examination room, examiners need to be alert to possible malpractice. The texts should not be annotated but if examiners suspect that they have been or that notes from texts have been copied, they must alert the malpractice team. There are specific issues for AO2 – how meanings are shaped in texts. There is, with open book, the expectation that students can use the text to make specific and detailed reference to structural and organisational issues and to other methods where appropriate. Arriving at marks 1. All questions are framed to address all the Assessment Objectives (AOs). Answers are marked holistically. Examiners need to read the whole answer taking into account its strengths and weaknesses and then place it in the appropriate band. 2. Examiners should avoid making early snap judgements before the whole answer has been read. Some students begin tentatively but go on to make relevant points. 3. Examiners should be prepared to use the full mark range in order to discriminate and not ‘bunch’ scripts in the middle for safety. 4. Examiners should mark positively. Although the possible content of the mark scheme provides some indicators for what students are likely to write about, examiners should be willing to reward what is actually there – provided of course, that it is relevant to the question being asked. 5. Examiners should remember that there are no right answers. Students’ views which are relevant, well-argued and supported by appropriate textual evidence must receive credit whether the examiner agrees with the views or not. It is important to remain open to a student’s ideas which could be unusual or unorthodox. 6. Examiners should remember that length and quality are not synonymous. Some brief answers may be relevant and concise. Equally, long answers may be diffuse and repetitive. 7. If answers are short or incomplete, examiners can only reward what is there and assess accordingly. Some further credit can be given to answers finished in note form. MARK SCHEME – A-LEVEL ENGLISH LITERATURE B – 7717/2A – JUNE 2024 5 Using the Mark Bands 8. When placing answers in mark bands, examiners need to look closely at the descriptors and the detailed generic mark bands on page 9. The key words for the bands are important and are printed below. MARK BAND DESCRIPTORS Band 5 (21–25) perceptive/assured Band 4 (16–20) coherent/thorough Band 3 (11–15) straightforward/relevant Band 2 (6–10) simple/generalised Band 1 (1–5) largely irrelevant, largely misunderstood, largely inaccurate 9. Answers placed at the top of the band will securely address the descriptors; answers at the lower end of the band will securely address the descriptors below and begin to show the qualities of the band into which you are placing them. Careful judgements need to be made about marks in the middle of the range; here it is likely that the key descriptors will be more intermittent but still clearly evident. 10. There will be occasions when an answer addresses descriptors in different bands; in such cases, the ‘best-fit’ model applies. Here examiners will need to exercise a different kind of judgement, looking to see where the answer can be most fairly and appropriately placed in terms of its quality against the descriptors. 11. Examiners must remember that the mark bands are not equivalent to grades: grades are decided by the awarding committee at the end of each session. Advice about marking each section Section A 12. Examiners need to bear in mind the following key points when marking unseen passage questions: • does the student have an overview of the unseen passage? • has the student written about elements of crime writing? • has the student written about authorial method? • has the student quoted from the extract to support ideas? • the student’s AO1 competence. In the case of a significant omission to an answer the examiner should not give a mark higher than Band 4. MARK SCHEME – A-LEVEL ENGLISH LITERATURE B – 7717/2A – JUNE 2024 6 Section B 13. Examiners need to bear in mind the following key points when marking questions based on single texts: • has the student engaged in a relevant debate or constructed a relevant argument? • has the student referred to different parts of the text to support their views? • has the student referred to the writer’s authorial method? • the student’s AO1 competence. In the case of a significant omission to an answer the examiner should not give a mark higher than Band 4. Section C 14. Examiners need to bear in mind the following key points when marking questions connecting two texts: • has the student focused on the element of crime writing set up in the question and referred to two texts? • has the student engaged with significance in relation to the task and the two texts? • has the student considered the writers’ authorial methods in the two texts? • has the student satisfied the rubric over Sections B and C – one poetry text, one post-2000 novel and a third text? • has the student given substantial coverage of two texts? • the student’s AO1 competence. In the case of a significant omission to an answer the examiner should not give a mark higher than Band 4. Annotation 15. Examiners should remember that annotation is directed solely to senior examiners. 16. In addition to giving a mark, examiners should write a brief summative comment indicating how the mark has been arrived at. These comments are likely to mirror the appropriate mark band descriptors but comments must not be mechanical. Examiners need to describe student performance. 17. The most important annotation you will use elsewhere is the tick. This will signal positive achievement in relation to the question. Ticks should be placed in the body of an answer where apt points are made. Further ticks should be given for development of points and support. Strong answers will have more ticks than weaker responses. If points are partially made the bracketed tick can be used. 18. Apart from making a summative comment in a comment box, you could use the comment box elsewhere in your marking if you need to explain your thinking to a senior marker. However, in most cases the annotation stamps will be sufficient to explain your ticks or the absence of them.