Enhancing Reading Comprehension and Analysis Skills

Higher RUAE

Reading for Understanding,

Analysis and Evaluation

The Exam

•

Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes

•

Total marks: 30

•

2 passages

–

1

st

 passage + analysis questions = 25 marks

–

Compare 1

st

 and 2

nd

 passage (areas of

agreements and/or disagreements) = 5

marks

•

Use your checklist!

Revision Techniques

•

Put every term and definition onto a

flashcard AS YOU GO

•

Read broadsheet newspaper articles and

annotate them

•

Use old past papers wisely

•

Speak to me if you are unsure about any

technique

•

Use your checklist to reflect on

progress

And Remember…

•

All techniques found in RUAE can be

applied to your own writing.

•

The more you use a linking sentence or try

to think of relevant word choice, the more

you will be able to identify and analyse

these techniques.

•

The more comfortable you are in analysing

the imagery of a poem for critical reading,

the more confident you will be in analysing

unseen metaphors in RUAE

Understanding

•

Most mistakes made here

•

Practise is key!

•

Hence –

–

Term 1 – to show understanding of main ideas of

each writer; to highlight any unknown vocabulary

and to highlight as many techniques as possible

–

Term 2 – to show understanding of ideas and to

analyse techniques that have been learned in RUAE

or through analysis of class texts

–

Term 3 – to show understanding of all techniques,

including tone created and how tone is created. To

also compare ideas from different writers on same

subject.

Show Understanding

•

Own words

•

Bullet points

•

One point per mark

•

Includes:

–

Summarise points made

–

Show understanding of word from context

–

Show how sentence performs linking

function

Example:

Thinking of Grandpa now, I recall the

clouds of pungent smoke that he puffed

from his favourite briar, his small shrewd

eyes, still very blue, and the gleaming

dome rising from fleecy tufts of white

hair

•

Question – What three characteristics

of Grandpa does the author remember?

3 marks

Answer and Explanation

•

She remembers her grandfather smoked a strong-

smelling pipe. He also had intelligent blue eyes and a

bald head with a little fluffy white hair.

•

Explanation / Method

•

Understanding of ‘briar’ – shown by using the word

‘pipe’

•

Metaphor ‘gleaming dome’ – simplified to bald head

•

Understanding of ‘shrewd’ – shown by using the

word ‘intelligent’

•

‘Grandpa’ is colloquial – more formal term

‘Grandfather’ is used

•

‘Eyes’ is a common word, no obvious alternatives

Understanding Question

Read lines 1 – 7

Explain in your own words why the writer seems

surprised that there is so much coverage of the

“countryside debate”.

2 marks

Rural Mania

The “countryside debate” has rarely been out of the news in Britain in recent years.

Reading the newspapers, watching television, listening to the radio, entering a

bookshop, one could be forgiven for thinking that we still live in small peasant

communities dependent upon the minutest shift in agricultural policy. Sometimes it

has seemed almost as if we were still in the early nineteenth century when we relied

on the countryside to survive, so extensive have been the debates, so fierce the

passions aroused.

Answer

“one could be forgiven for thinking that we still live in small peasant communities

dependent upon the minutest shift in agricultural policy.”



Idea that we are still a rural society (1) affected by

farming laws (1)

“it has seemed almost as if we were still in the early nineteenth century when we

relied on the countryside to survive”



Idea that we are still living in the past (1) when we

were more rurally dependent (1)

Understanding Question

Read lines 21 – 29

Referring to lines 25 – 29, explain in your own words what the

writer believes to be a ‘particularly worrying aspect of the new

rural mania’ (line 23).

It might be thought—indeed, it is widely assumed—that it must be good for the

countryside to be returned to the central position it enjoyed in British life long ago.

Yet there is a particularly worrying aspect of the new rural mania that suggests it

might finally do the countryside more harm than good.

This is the identification, in the current clamour, of the countryside in general

and the landscape in particular with the past—the insistence on the part of those who

claim to have the best intentions of ruralism at heart that their aim is to protect what

they glibly refer to as “our heritage”. This wildly over-used term is seriously

misleading, not least because nobody appears ever to have asked what it means.

Answer



Any of the following ideas:



That rural features are the only way of understanding

our history



Desire to preserve what is perceived as “our heritage”



Difficulty in defining what is meant by the term “our

heritage”

Now complete practice questions in 

Higher English

Language Skills

Remember…

•

You don’t have to translate the text – if

words are already very simple you shouldn’t

have to change them.

•

Read the passage as a whole – what is it

about? Do you get the jist?

•

How many marks is this question worth?

This should give you a clue as to how much

information is necessary.

•

Finally, never repeat phrases or

complicated words – these are the aspects

of the passage you are being tested on!

Understanding – context

questions

•

In “Context” questions, you will be asked to

•

explain the meaning of a word or phrase,

•

show how you deduced the meaning from

its position in the text by quoting clues in

the sentences surrounding the word. You

must explain how they help to confirm the

meaning.

•

It is usually possible and advisable to quote

two pieces of evidence.

Example

•

The rumour that Douglas was a prisoner was

The rumour that Douglas was a prisoner was

still 

still 

unsubstantiated.

unsubstantiated.

  There had been no

  There had been no

witnesses to his bailing out of the plane, and

witnesses to his bailing out of the plane, and

no solid information could be expected from

no solid information could be expected from

beyond enemy lines for weeks, perhaps even

beyond enemy lines for weeks, perhaps even

months.

months.

•

Show how the context helped you arrive at

the meaning of the word unsubstantiated.

Answer

•

The word “unsubstantiated” means

unconfirmed. The context conveys this:

“no witnesses” who could say for sure

the news was true, and the phrase “no

solid information” also repeats the idea

of there being no firm proof.

Example

•

Glasgow’s constant proclamation of its present success story is

justified on the basis that it benefits the city: confidence will

breed confidence, tourists will visit, businesses will relocate and

students will enrol. But, despite the gains this approach has

brought for Glasgow and cities like it, there are signs that the

wind is starting to come out of the sails. What felt radical when

Dublin, Barcelona and Glasgow embarked on the city makeover

path in the late 1980s and early 1990s, now feels derivative and

is delivering diminishing returns. When every city has

commissioned a celebrity architect and pedestrianised a cultural

quarter, distinctiveness is reduced to a formula.

•

 What does the writer mean by the words “radical” (line 13) and

“derivative” (line 14) in his discussion of city development?

Answer

•

Radical – this means original, drastic, different.

•

This is clear because the writer mentions cities

employing popular architects “celebrity architects”

and referring to the idea of the entire city being

made different “City makeover”.

•

Derivative – unoriginal, imitative, copied.

•

This is clear as the writer uses a list of other cities

who have used a similar approach to highlight the

extent that this has been done before.

Now complete the examples in the language skills

textbook.

Linking Sentence

•

Show how once sentence provides a ‘link’ in

the argument.

•

Quote the part of the sentence which

refers back to the earlier topic

•

Explain what this topic is

•

Quote the part of the sentence which

looks forward to the next topic

•

Explain what this topic is

And when I hear politicians—most of them comfortably off—trying to deny

enlightenment and pleasure to “working class” people, I reach for my

megaphone. Maybe Tommy Tattoo and his mates do use cheap flights to the

sunshine as an extension of their binge-drinking opportunities, but for

thousands of people whose parents would never have ventured beyond

Blackpool or Rothesay, air travel has been a social revelation.

So, before we all give the eco-lobby’s anti-flying agenda the

unconditional benefit of the doubt, can we just review their strategy as a

whole?

Remember, it is not just air travel that the green tax lobby is trying

to control: it is a restriction on any mobility. Clamping down on one form of

movement, as the glib reformers have discovered, simply creates intolerable

pressure on the others. Londoners, for example, had just become accustomed

to the idea that they would have to pay an £8 congestion charge to drive into

their own city when they discovered that the fares on commuter rail and

underground services had been hiked up with the intention of driving away

customers from the public transport system—now grossly overcrowded as a

result of people having been forced off the roads by the congestion charge.

Referring to specific words and/or phrases,

show how the sentence “So, before … as a

whole?” (lines 13-14) performs a linking

function in the writer’s argument.

Question

Answer

•

Four elements are required:

•

1 “eco-lobby’s anti-flying agenda” …

•

2 … refers back to the restrictive air

travel proposals discussed in the opening

two paragraphs;

•

3 “their strategy as a whole”/“can we just

review”

•

4 … leads into the discussion of the eco-

lobby’s proposed restrictions on travel as a

whole/on energy use in general

Example

•

William Shakespeare is easily the best-known

of our English writers.  Virtually every man in

the street can name some of his plays and his

characters, and many people can also recite

lines of his poetry by heart.  

However, despite

our familiarity with his work, we know

relatively little of the man himself

.  We do

not know when or why he became an actor, we

know nothing of his life in London, and almost

nothing of his personal concerns.

•

Question

•

Show how the third sentence acts as a link in

the argument.

Answer

•

The conjunction “however” which begins the

sentence suggests a contrasting idea to follow.

•

The phrase “our familiarity with his work” looks

back at the topic 

of how widely know

Shakespeare’s work is.

•

The second part of the sentence, “we know

relatively little of the man himself”, introduces

the new topic, 

namely the things that are not

known about Shakespeare, and a list of these

follows this “link” sentence

•

Now complete questions in language skills book.

Revision

•

Read the comments/opinion sections of

broadsheet newspapers

•

Pick out two paragraphs from each and

summarise the main points made by the

writer

•

Highlight a linking sentence and explain

how it performs a linking function

•

Find a word you don’t understand and

attempt to figure it out from the context

– then look it up to check that you were

right.

Figures of Speech

Figures of Speech

•

Imagery (simile, metaphor, personification

Imagery (simile, metaphor, personification

) sight

) sight

•

Alliteration

Alliteration

•

Onomatopoeia

Onomatopoeia

•

Pun

Pun

•

Hyperbole

Hyperbole

•

Litotes (understatement)

Litotes (understatement)

•

Circumlocution

Circumlocution

•

Euphemism

Euphemism

•

Paradox

Paradox

•

Oxymoron

Oxymoron

•

Juxtaposition

Juxtaposition

•

Neologism

Neologism

•

Archaism

Archaism

•

Cliché

Cliché

sound

Overstating

understating

talking in circles

Contrasts, opposites, contradictions

New, old and overused

Imagery

•

An imagery questions will require you to

focus on analysing metaphor, simile or

personification.

•

There are different styles of answering

this question, however we will focus on

using the ‘just as, so it is, this is

effective because’ method.

When I was 18 I travelled to Indonesia.  When

I returned home I held the inevitable slideshow

for long-suffering friends.

There was a shot of an old farmer.  He

was as sinewy as a Balinese carving.  He stands,

unsmiling, holding onto some willowy branches,

as if he has indeed been hewn from the tree.

“Don’t you mind taking pictures of people?”

asked a friend.  I thought it a strange question.

There was a perfect picture opportunity and I

made the most of it.

Just as

 a

“Balinese carving” features lots

of thin intricate lines,

so it is in the

passage

 that the farmer is slim with

sinews in his body that form lots of

intricate and patterned lines.  

This is

effective because

it highlights what an

attractive subject the farmer is for a

photograph as he looks like a work of art.

Given that writer is questioned about why

he takes such photographs, it strengthens

his argument that it was indeed a

“perfect picture opportunity”.

Near Bombay there are historic caves

which are a popular day-trip destination.

Climbing several hundred steps, you are

assaulted by trinket-sellers, café owners,

monkeys and, most bizarre of all, village

women with empty water-pots on their

heads.  They run ahead of you to pose

stiffly and insist that you take a picture.

Then they ask for money.  These women

know what tourists want: an “authentic”

look.  No plastic water containers, please.

Just as

 an “assault” involves attacking

someone

forcefully and perhaps

unexpectedly,

so it is in the passage

 that the

various village people unexpectedly surround

the writer, almost attacking him as they

approach and offer themselves as possible

subjects for a photograph.  

This is effective

because

it highlights how keen these people

are to have their photograph taken and also

gives a sense of how many there are.  The

negative connotations of “assault” underline

the writer’s point that this is not an

altogether pleasant experience.

I am inclined to see the shape of British

post-war history as having been not unlike

that of a gigantic wave.  It was a wave

which began to gather in the mid-Fifties,

as the world finally began to emerge from

the shadows cast by the Second World

War – a wave of expectation, of nervous

excitement, born of the growing sense

that somehow Britain, the West and

mankind were moving forward into a new

era, of a kind never known before.

•

Just as a ‘gigantic wave’ is a large, fast, overpowering

and frightening force that can destroy everything in

its path and change the landscape forever; so it is in

the passage that British post-war history is a period

of time when a lot of things changed forever, at a

frightening speed and with a powerful force that

moved into the next century. This is effective

because the comparison allows us to look back over

history and appreciate the sheer scale and speed in

which everything changed.

Above all in the late Sixties there were the

first signs of a growing weariness with the

relentless battering of change.  Around

1967, we suddenly began to hear a new set

of words – “conservation”, “the environment”,

“pollution”, “ecology” – expressing a growing

sense of horror at what our wonderful,

runaway technology was doing to our cities,

to our countryside and rivers and seas, to

other species, to the whole balance of

nature on the planet.  Somehow, the feeling

ran, things seemed to have got out of hand.

Having invented the modern city, 19th

century Britain promptly reeled back in

horror at what it had done. To the

Victorians exploring the cholera-ridden

back alleys of London’s East End, the city

was a hideous tumour sucking the life out

of the countryside and creating in its place

a vast polluted landscape of squalor,

disease and crime. In their eyes, the city

was a place to be feared, controlled and, if

possible, eliminated.

Figures of Speech - Sound

Figures of Speech - Sound

•

Alliteration: 

A series of words in which the same letter is

repeated, usually at the beginning of two or more words 

in order

to create a particular effect

.

•

He carried a box of books up to the storeroom on the top floor

of the building.

•

There are three words beginning with “b” here but all of them are

simple nouns and there does not appear to be any particular

literary effect intended. However, when the travel writer Patrick

Leigh-Fermor, describing a town in Holland, talks about the

•

clip-clop of clogs on the cobblestones

•

the alliteration is clearly deliberate: you can almost hear the

rhythmical sound of the wooden shoes on the street.

Figures of Speech - Sound

Figures of Speech - Sound

•

Onomatopoeia 

is a name given to words which imitate the sound

they are describing. Often used in conjunction with alliteration. As

in the above quotation, alliteration helps to create an onomatopoeic

effect. This is how D.H. Lawrence describes a snake drinking from

a water trough in his poem 

Snake:

He sipped with his straight mouth,

Softly drank through his straight gums, into his slack long body,

Silently.

•

The alliteration of the letter “s” (also known as 

sibilance

) creates a

“hissing” effect appropriate to a description of a snake.

Figures of Speech - Sound

Figures of Speech - Sound

•

Pun:

 a play on words involving words which sound similar but have

different meanings. Usually the intended effect is humour

“Waiter!”

“Yes sir?”

“What’s this supposed to be?”

“It’s 

bean

 soup, sir.”

“I don’t care what it’s 

been

. What is it now?”

Figures of Speech

Figures of Speech

overstating, understating, talking in circles

overstating, understating, talking in circles

•

Hyperbole 

is a deliberate exaggeration in order to emphasise the

point being made – often for a humorous effect. The television

presenter Clive James often uses this technique with great skill.

He describes Marlon Brando as “Hollywood’s number one broody

outcast” and says that:

•

He could order a cheeseburger with fries and make it sound like

a challenge to the Establishment.

•

Extract from 

Fame in the Twentieth Century 

by Clive James

Figures of Speech

Figures of Speech

overstating, understating, talking in circles

overstating, understating, talking in circles

•

Litotes 

is the opposite of hyperbole: deliberate understatement. In

My Family and Other Animals

, Gerald Durrell writes of his mother:

On Monday morning I found her in the garage being pursued round

and round by an irate pelican which she was trying to feed with

sardines from a tin.

“I’m glad you’ve come dear,” she panted, “this pelican is a little

difficult to handle.”

•

As with so many other figures of speech, hyperbole and litotes are not

confined to writing but are often used in everyday conversation:

Isn’t there anything to drink? I’m dying of thirst! (Hyperbole)

The teacher wasn’t exactly overjoyed when I told her that I’d left

my work at home. (Litotes)

Figures of Speech

Figures of Speech

overstating, understating, talking in circles

overstating, understating, talking in circles

•

Euphemism: 

a way of making an unwelcome truth seem less harsh

or unpleasant by dressing it up in inoffensive language. Many

euphemisms are connected with the subject of death, e.g. saying

“passed away” 

rather than “died”.

•

Euphemisms are equally plentiful in the world of politics. One of

the most famous examples came from the 1950s Prime Minister,

Sir Anthony Eden, who once said 

“We are not at war with Egypt.

We are in a state of armed conflict.”

Figures of Speech 

Figures of Speech 

contrasts, opposites and contradictions

•

Paradox: 

a statement which appears to be a contradiction but

which, on closer examination, does contain a truth.

For example, 

to preserve the peace, prepare for war

•

This seems to be a contradiction, but it is based on the “deterrent”

idea that if one side builds up its military strength then the enemy

will not dare to attack, and thus peace will be maintained.

•

The oft-quoted comment by Oscar Wilde is an example of paradox:

“Nowadays people know the price of everything, and the value

of nothing.”

Figures of Speech 

Figures of Speech 

contrasts, opposites and contradictions

•

Oxymoron: 

a condensed form of paradox, in which two opposites

are place side by side to heighten the effect of contrast.

•

Edwin Muir’s poem 

The Horses

 ends with horses coming to a group

of human survivors of a nuclear war and voluntarily allowing

themselves to be used to plough the land: the poet describes their

action as:

•

 “free servitude”.

Figures of Speech 

Figures of Speech 

contrasts, opposites and contradictions

•

Juxtaposition 

simply means placing side by side. In the example of

oxymoron, it could be said that the two opposites are placed in

juxtaposition. A writer might deliberately place two sentences

beside each other to highlight the contrast between them.

Dustin Hoffman became famous in the sixties in 

The Graduate

playing a nervous young man who suspected that life in America

was stacked against him. In the seventies he became more

famous still as an even more nervous, slightly less young man,

who 

knew

 that life in America was stacked against him.

Figures of Speech 

Figures of Speech 

new, old and overused

•

Neologism: c

oining of a new word, usually to describe a recent

development or invention for which an appropriate term does not exist.

microwave oven, filofax, sky plus, video-conferencing

•

Archaism: 

denotes a word from the past which is no longer in current

use, the opposite of neologism.

Arm thyself lightly, mount to horse, keep thy land, aid thy men, hurtle

into the press. Thou needest not to strike another, neither to be

smitten down.

•

A writer may deliberately try to write in an archaic style in an attempt

to recapture the feel of a historical period.

•

Cliché: 

an expression which at one time might have been original but has

now become overused,

•

 “in this day and age” 

or 

“as white as snow” 

are clichés and should be

“

avoided like the plague”

A wee test

•

Next week there will be a wee class quiz

to test your knowledge of all the

language techniques you have learned so

far

•

If you do not know any, you will be

required to write out their definitions

five times each.

Word Choice

•

Once you feel confident in answering

questions relating to word choice, you

may find that this is one of the easiest

ways to pick up marks.

•

Main thing to always focus on –

CONNOTATIONS AND EFFECTS

Look out for…

•

Verbs

•

Adverbs

•

Adjectives

•

“Stress” words

–

will, should, have to, might, can’t, won’t

–

never, always, often, sometimes, maybe

Layout of answer

How does it make clear the change in

attitude to “living together outside

marriage”?

In the past, living together outside

marriage was seen by liberals as a

definite choice, as a rebellious stance,

whereas now it is usually seen as mere

laziness, as a pale imitation of the real

thing.

•

“rebellious”

•

Connotations: rule breaking, going against

authority

•

Makes clear the change in attitude by

suggesting that then people who didn’t get

married were breaking society’s rules of what

a couple should do.

The word “imitations” 

has connotations of

something being fake and not as good as the

real thing.  

This 

makes clear the change in

attitude

 by suggesting that people who don’t

get married now are seen as merely engaging

in a poor copy of marriage that is not as good

as the real thing.

How does it convey his strength of

feelings about what he had done?

When I think about it now, I cringe.  How

could I feel I had the right to control

someone, just to get a photo?  But it’s

something you see everywhere: the

abuse of the power of the camera.

•

“Quotation of word”

•

Connotations

•

How it conveys the strength of feelings

about what he had done

or

The word “_____”

has connotations of…

This conveys the strength of feelings

about what he had done by suggesting…

•

“cringe”

•

Connotations: embarrassment, shrinking away,

avoidance

•

Conveys the strength of feelings about what he had

done as he is clearly embarrassed about it and

therefore wouldn’t do it again.

or

The word “abuse”

has connotations of misuse or

hurting something.  

This conveys the strength of

feelings about what he had done by suggesting that

he has misused the power that a camera has over

others.  The strongly negative connotations of abuse

show that he feels very badly about his actions.

How does it convey his attitude to

photographers?

For photographers, the story of the

interaction with their subjects has a

different ending, and they scuttle away

clutching little plastic containers from

which to recreate a few frozen

moments in the easy comfort of First

World sitting rooms.  After the rounds

of polite congratulation, the bundle of

memories is then stuffed into a drawer

often never to be looked at again.

•

“Scuttle”

•

Has connotations of an unpleasant

creature running away quickly in a

sneaky, skitterish manner

•

Coveys attitude to photographers by

suggesting that what they do is

disgusting, unpleasant, sneaky and

cowardly.

How is it used effectively to emphasise her point of view

that speaking “properly” should be encouraged?

Good speaking is a powerful force for social

mobility.  Children from articulate families who

talk together over meals have a huge advantage

from the start; the others, who rarely converse

with adults and are bored by school, either

communicate in grunts or adopt the comparative

richness of street slang, rap and patois.  You

may be communicating beautifully with your

friends, but you are excluded from all the best

chances if you can’t command your own language

to serve you properly.  And even if you do haul

yourself into a decent job you will never be

confident, never joyfully articulate.  Owning a

fine language should be a source of pride, not

shame.

Using the word choice sheet

•

You will be given a sheet with some word

choice examples

•

Complete this on your own and then

swap with a partner.

•

Discuss your answers, change if

necessary and then hand in.

Revision

•

Read a passage from either a past paper

or a newspaper.

•

Find and analyse both imagery and word

choice.

Sentence Structure

Commenting on sentence

structure

•

A very broad area of RUAE

•

You need to learn all sentence structure

techniques – no getting around them!

•

You need to be able to explain what

effect is created by these techniques

Answering a sentence

structure question

•

Sentence structure refers to how a

sentence is put together. This is often one

of the most difficult questions as there

are so many options.

•

Identify a feature of sentence structure

•

Quote the example

•

Comment on the effect.

–

Remember that the effect will depend on the

context of the passage!

What not to do

•

Don’t just identify a technique such as

parenthesis.

•

Explain what information is in the

parenthesis

•

Explain the effect putting this

information into parenthesis has

Sentence Structure

Sentence Types

Sentence Types

•

Command

Command

•

Question (and rhetorical questions –

Question (and rhetorical questions –

persuasion)

persuasion)

•

Exclamation

Exclamation

•

Statement

Statement

•

 minor sentence (no verb: creates impact and

 minor sentence (no verb: creates impact and

informality)

informality)

Paragraphing

•

When a writer wishes his writing

to have instant impact, or to be

particularly easy to understand, he

uses very short paragraphs.

•

A single sentence paragraph may

throw emphasis onto a statement

or idea. It may be used to slow the

action and create suspense.

revision

•

How do you answer a context question?

•

How do you answer a link question?

•

Can you remember the different types

of sentences?

•

What significance does a one-sentence

paragraph have?

Punctuation

•

Inverted commas

–

To indicate a title

–

For spoken words

–

For quotations

–

To mark off a foreign word from a sentence

–

To mark off a word or a phrase from a

sentence to show that the writer is distancing

himself from it

•

Colon

–

Introduces a quotation, a list, an explanation or

an expansion of the previous statement

punctuation

•

Semi-colon

–

To separate clauses in a list

–

To balance two similar or opposing ideas in a sentence

•

Dash

–

To add on an extra piece of information

–

To add an after-thought

–

To indicate the breaking off in a sentence

–

A series of dashes could be used informally to convey an

outpouring of ideas or emotions

•

Two dashes

–

Can mark off an extra, non-essential piece of information in

the middle of a sentence – a technique known as parenthesis.

This information can either be factual or the writer’s opinion.

Sentence patterns

•

List

•

Inversion

•

Repetition

•

Climax

•

Anti-climax

•

Antithesis

Parenthesis and listing

•

Parenthesis has been used by the writer to

include extra information/his opinion

about… This makes the reader think of...

•

The writer has listed all the ….. To show

that … This creates a …… (effect might be

cumulative e.g. to show that there is more

than what is there or to give the

impression of an endless amount of blah

blah blah)

inversion

•

The basic order for a sentence is subject verb

object

–

I love English

–

I ate the cake

•

The subject will come first, followed by the

words that tell us more about the subject (the

predicate)

–

He climbed higher and higher

•

However, occasionally the predicate comes

before the subject

–

Higher and higher he climbed

•

This technique, where the subject is delayed,

is known as inversion and can be used to alter

the emphasis in a sentence.

repetition

•

A writer may decide to repeat certain

words in order to achieve a particular

purpose. This purpose will depend on the

context of the passage.

Climax and anti-climax

•

Climax refers to placing a number of

items in ascending order, with the most

important being kept to the last

•

Anti-climax refers to when the author

builds up to something which does not in

fact come.

antithesis

•

Another way of arranging ideas within a

sentence is to balance opposites together

to create a contrast – this is called

antithesis.

•

E.g “My fellow Americans, ask not what

your country can do for you; ask what you

can do for your country.”

•

Antithesis can be used to state a point in a

memorable way; or it can be used to create

a humorous effect.

Long and Short Sentences

Long and Short Sentences

•

Long sentences: often formal, can build

Long sentences: often formal, can build

tension or build up an argument

tension or build up an argument

•

Short sentences: informal, used to

Short sentences: informal, used to

create drama or impact

create drama or impact

Revision Quiz

•

You will now be given a revision quiz that

will test your knowledge of all sentence

structure techniques – if you get any of

these wrong you will have to write out

their definitions five times.

Sentence Structure Steps

Sentence Structure Steps

•

Step One:  identify the aspect of

Step One:  identify the aspect of

sentence structure or punctuation

sentence structure or punctuation

•

Step Two: explain why it has been used,

Step Two: explain why it has been used,

linking this to the 

linking this to the 

content

content

 of the

 of the

passage

passage

•

Step Three: relate back to the question

Step Three: relate back to the question

Where most critics allege a dumbing down, I

see a progressive story: popular culture

steadily, but almost imperceptibly, making our

brains sharper as we soak in entertainment

usually dismissed as so much lowbrow fluff. I

hope to persuade you that increasingly the

non-literary popular culture is honing different

mental skills that are just as important as the

ones exercised by reading books.

Question:

Show how the writer’s use of language in lines 9-14

(“Where … books.”) emphasises the contrast between

his positive view of “other forms of culture” and the

negative view held by “most critics”.

•

The writer uses a colon in “I see a

progressive story:”

•

This is used to introduce a fuller

development of his argument of the

‘progressive story’

•

This emphasises his positive tone when

writing about other forms of culture.

•

The writer uses a balanced sentence

structure of “Where most critics allege a

dumbing down, I see a progressive story”

•

This contrast emphasises how positive he

views the idea of  ‘other forms of culture’

and how negative the critics view it.

•

This also makes the writer seem more sure

of his idea, and the critics less certain –

meaning that the reader will probably

agree with the writer’s argument.

Example Questions

Yet if you sweep away the apoplectic froth and the self-interested

posturing and look at the reality, the “threat to the countryside”

recedes dramatically. Yes, we do occupy a crowded little island. But

what makes it seem crowded is that 98 per cent of us live on 7 per

cent of the land. Britain is still overwhelmingly green. Just 11 per

cent of our nation is classified as urban.

Show how the writer’s sentence structure emphasises his view that

the threat to the countryside is much less serious than the English

middle classes suggest.

Answer

1. The writer positions “Yet” at the start of the opening sentence which

suggests a turning point in the argument

2. The writer uses contrast in the opening sentence of “sweep away”/“look at”.

This moves

argument forward.

3. The writer positions the conjunction “But” at start of 3rd sentence which

suggests a contradiction to 2nd sentence

4. The writer uses repetition of “seem crowded” following “crowded” to

emphasise 3

rd

 sentence’s contradiction

5. The writer uses short sentences at the end to drive home his point.

6. The writer positions “Just” at start of final sentence to emphasise how small

the statistic is.

Sentence Structure Question

Sentence Structure Question

Identify an aspect of sentence structure and

Identify an aspect of sentence structure and

explain what the writer achieves by using it

explain what the writer achieves by using it

•

Let every nation know, whether it

Let every nation know, whether it

wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay

wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay

any price, bear any burden, meet any

any price, bear any burden, meet any

hardship, support any friend, oppose any

hardship, support any friend, oppose any

foe to assure the survival and success

foe to assure the survival and success

of liberty.

of liberty.

Sentence Structure Answer

Sentence Structure Answer

•

Repetition of the expressions used in a list

Repetition of the expressions used in a list

format. The word ‘any is always preceded by a

format. The word ‘any is always preceded by a

verb and followed by noun. This adds

verb and followed by noun. This adds

momentum to the speech and helps it to sound

momentum to the speech and helps it to sound

convincing.

convincing.

•

A climax is used as the statements are placed

A climax is used as the statements are placed

in ascending order building to the most

in ascending order building to the most

important point about defending the rights of

important point about defending the rights of

the individuals in the country.

the individuals in the country.

•

Antithesis is used relating to the statements

Antithesis is used relating to the statements

of ‘support’ and ‘oppose’, and ‘friend’ and ‘foe’

of ‘support’ and ‘oppose’, and ‘friend’ and ‘foe’

to indicate how dedicated to the cause the

to indicate how dedicated to the cause the

speaker is.

speaker is.

Sentence Structure Question

Sentence Structure Question

Identify an aspect of sentence structure and

Identify an aspect of sentence structure and

explain what the writer achieves by using it

explain what the writer achieves by using it

•

The second and the third day passed,

The second and the third day passed,

and still my tormentor came not.  Once

and still my tormentor came not.  Once

again I breathed as a free man.  The

again I breathed as a free man.  The

monster, in terror, had fled the

monster, in terror, had fled the

premises for ever!  I should behold it no

premises for ever!  I should behold it no

more!  My happiness was supreme!

more!  My happiness was supreme!

Sentence Structure Answer

Sentence Structure Answer

•

Series of exclamations, aiming to show the

Series of exclamations, aiming to show the

relief that the speaker is feeling at having been

relief that the speaker is feeling at having been

left alone

left alone

•

Inversion is used to delay the revelation that

Inversion is used to delay the revelation that

the tormentor had not been back: ‘tormentor

the tormentor had not been back: ‘tormentor

came not’, thus emphasising the relief.

came not’, thus emphasising the relief.

•

Parenthesis is used ‘in terror’ showing that

Parenthesis is used ‘in terror’ showing that

actually the creature itself had left in a state

actually the creature itself had left in a state

that shows it would be unlikely for it to return.

that shows it would be unlikely for it to return.

Varieties of language

Jargon

•

A type of formal language which

includes technical terms relating to a

particular subject or occupation.

Rhetorical language

•

Usually used to put across a particular

stance as part of a dignified piece of

writing

•

Often used in persuasive speeches

•

Makes use of the rhetorical question (ie

the writer assumes you already agree

with what they have to say)

Dialect and slang

•

Types of informal language

•

Dialect refers to language spoken in a

particular area

–

E.g. Glaswegian, Galloway Irish, Caithness

etc

•

Slang refers to non-standard English.

E.g. words such as ‘innit’

•

Now do the task on pages 33 - 35

Language

•

Formal and informal language

•

Jargon

•

Rhetorical language

•

Dialect and slang

•

Literal and figurative language

•

Figures of speech

•

Contrasts, opposites and contradictions

These

techniques will

help you identify

tone – we will go

over this next

week!

Emotive language

•

Emotive language refers to particular

words and phrases that are used to stir

up the emotions of a reader.

•

2 17 year old males stole a phone from a 50 year

old woman

•

2 thugs ruthlessly mugged a grandmother

•

The writer might also use hyperbole,

repetition, exclamations and rhetorical

questions to make his language emotive.

Revision

•

Revise all types of language for another

wee quiz – remember if you get any

answers wrong you will be required to

write the correct answer out five times!

Tone

•

Tone does not relate directly to

meaning but rather to 

the way in which

something is said.  

It refers to a

particular attitude or feeling conveyed

by the writer.

•

In speech, the tone of voice used would

make the speaker’s feelings clear.  In

writing, however, you must look at the

word choice to find clues to the feeling

or attitudes of the author.

Tone Varieties

•

humorous

•

flippant

•

informal

 and 

conversational

•

friendly

•

effusive

•

Irony

•

tongue-in-cheek

•

satirical

•

serious

•

formal,

•

Ponderous

•

Emotive

Humorous Tone

•

If the writer is being light-hearted, or

humorous 

in a straightforward way,

shows the author finds his subject

amusing and he hopes his reader will too.

•

A light-hearted tone will often include

informal

 and 

conversational 

language,

(colloquialisms)

Flippant Tone (linked to

humour)

•

A 

flippant 

tone is where the author is

showing an irreverent attitude to

something normally taken seriously.

•

An example is to be found in Philip

Larkin’s poem 

Church Going, 

where the

poet enters a church and describes the

altar thus: “some brass and stuff, up at

the holy end.”

•

Here the use of colloquial and informal

expressions conveys his lack of respect.

Conversational Tone

•

A 

conversational

 tone describes a particularly

chatty, friendly 

tone, as if the writer is

confiding in a friend.

•

An example is the narrative tone in the

opening chapter of 

Sunset Song 

by Lewis

Grassic Gibbon, where the writer is gossiping

to his readers about his characters:

•

“Chae…wasn’t the quarrelsome kind except

when roused, so he was well-liked, though folk

laughed at him.  But God knows, who is it they

don’t laugh at?”

Effusive or Persuasive

•

Effusive

 tones are often filled with

enthusiasm and are frequently used in

advertising.

•

A list of gushing superlatives would be

an example of this.

–

Excessive or exaggerated praise

Ironic Tone

•

Irony 

is the name given to the figure of

speech where an author says the

opposite of what he really means.

•

This could be purely for humorous

effect, but there is often a serious

purpose behind irony.  An author’s

feelings can be expressed more

forcefully for being inverted in this

way.

Tongue-in-Cheek Tone

•

A 

tongue-in-cheek 

tone is a form of

irony: the writer will 

sound 

serious, but

there will be a sense of ridicule behind

this.

•

Euphemism 

is a common feature of this

tone.  An example might be the

expression “tired and emotional” to

mean “drunk” which the satirical

magazine 

Private Eye 

uses to avoid

lawsuits from the prominent people

whom it exposes.

Satirical Tone

•

A 

satirical 

tone is an extreme form of irony,

involving a writer being funny in a savage way:

he holds a subject up to ridicule in order to

attack it.

•

This is the tone adopted by George Orwell in

Animal Farm, 

for example, where he satirised

Russian Communists by comparing them to

pigs.  The satirist’s purpose is deeply serious

although on the surface he may appear light-

hearted.

Irony, Sarcasm and Satire

•

Irony

–

Verbal Irony

•

When someone says the opposite of what they

mean, usually to convey their attitude towards

the subject that they are speaking of.

–

Satire

•

The use of irony for critical purposes

–

Sarcasm

•

Irony used to mock, criticise harshly, or ridicule

someone

Irony – Identify the ironic phrases below

•

The Circumlocution Office was (as everybody knows without being

told) the most important Department under Government.  No public

business of any kind could possibly be done at any time, without the

acquiescence of the Circumlocution Office.  If another Gunpowder

Plot had been discovered half an hour before the lighting of the

match, nobody would have been justified in saving the parliament until

there had been half a score of boards, half a bushel of minutes,

several sacks of official memoranda, and a family-vault full of

ungrammatical correspondence, on the part of the Circumlocution

Office.

•

This glorious establishment had been early in the field, when the one

sublime principle involving the difficult art of governing a country, was

first distinctly revealed to statesmen.  It had been foremost to study

that bright revelation, and to carry its shining influence through the

whole of the official proceedings.  Whatever was required to be done,

the Circumlocution Office was beforehand with all the public

departments in the art of perceiving – HOW NOT TO DO IT.

•

Through this delicate perception, through the tact with which it

invariably seized it, and through the genius with which it always acted

on it, the Circumlocution Office had risen to overtop all the public

departments…

Serious Tones

•

A 

serious 

tone is obviously used for

serious purposes, on solemn occasions: a

funeral speech, for example.

•

Look out for 

formal, or ponderous

phrases

Identify the ways the writer has used emotive language

•

Why Tonya the wicked witch is still running from her

past

•

She answers the door of her rented house like a

fugitive, her eyes nervously scanning the empty street.

Tonya Harding cannot disguise the fact that she is a

young woman on the run from a notorious past.

•

Her probation may have ended six months ago but she is

discovering that, although she recently fled her old

neighbourhood in Portland, Oregon, the scent of scandal

clings to her like cheap perfume.

•

Almost four years ago, Harding became the most

loathed and vilified sportswoman in the world when she

was implicated in the violent plot to cripple Nancy

Kerrigan, her American rival for Olympic figure skating

glory.  It was a crime motivated by monstrous greed and

an assault so cowardly that even now, with the next

Winter Olympics fast approaching, Americans turn

crimson with shame at the mention of her name.

Tonya Example Answers

•

‘wicked witch’ evokes hatred, alliteration adds

to the impact, and witch connotes a more than

human degree of evil.

•

‘like a fugitive’ , ‘nervously scanning’ and ‘on

the run’ create the impression of furtiveness

making the reader dislike Tonya. ‘Notorious

past’ hints at further wickedness.

•

‘the scent of scandal clings like cheap

perfume’ metaphor simile combination, gives

the impression that Tonya is common and low

class.

Tone Question Steps

•

Identify the tone

•

Quote words or phrases and punctuation

that helped you to identify the tone

•

Explain how these conveyed the tone

used by the author by referring to the

connotations of the words.

•

Comment on any figures of speech which

re-enforce the tone.

Tone Question 1: Identify the tone and

explain how the writer achieves this.

•

Hulk goes into action against the heavies, flinging them about in

slow motion.  Like Bionic Woman, Six Million Dollar Man and

Wonderwoman, Hulk does his action numbers at glacial speed.

Emitting slow roars of rage, Hulk runs very slowly towards the

enemy, who slowly attempt to make their escape.  But no matter

how slowly they run, Hulk runs more slowly.  Slowly he picks them

up, gradually bangs their heads together, and with a supreme burst

of lethargy throws them through the side of a building.

•

Hardly have the bricks floated to the ground before Hulk is

changing back into spindly David Banner, with a sad cello weeping on

the soundtrack.  One thinks of Frankenstein’s monster or the

Hunchback of Notre Dame.  One thinks of King Kong.  One thinks

one is being had.  Why can’t the soft twit cut the soul-searching

and just enjoy his ability to swell up and clobber the foe?  But

David is in quest of “a way to control the raging spirit that dwells

within him.”  Since the series could hardly continue if he finds it,

presumably he will be a long time on the trail.

Tone Answer 1

•

Tone is humorous throughout by mocking the

absurd techniques used in the TV show: slow

motion to represent action.

•

‘action numbers at 

glacial speed

’, ‘supreme

burst of lethargy

’ – employs a list of

oxymorons to emphasise the ridiculousness:

•

‘heavies’, ‘sad cello weeping on the sound track’,

mocking the clichés of the genre

•

‘why can’t the soft twit…’ Uses colloquialisms to

express his frustration at the silliness of the

plot

•

Contrast of his down to earth language: ‘clobber

the for’ with the pretentious programme

language: ‘in quest of the way to control the

raging spirit’

•

‘he will be a long time on trial’ - Ironic final

statement

Revision

•

Now revise all tones and their

definitions, as well as how to answer the

tone question.

•

You will be given a wee test – remember

that any incorrect answers will have to

be done again – 5 times!

The Final Question on two passages -

what will this question look like?

•

Consider the attitude displayed by each

writer. Identify 

key areas of agreement

and disagreement 

in their points of view.

–

You should support your answer by referring to

important ideas in the passages.

–

You may present your answer to this question

in continuous prose or in a series of developed

bullet points.

•

Or

 key areas of agreement

•

Or 

key areas of disagreement

Read the question properly

•

Agreement?

•

Disagreement?

•

Agreement 

and

 disagreement?

•

Agreement 

or

 disagreement?

•

5 marks

How many areas?

•

Between 4 and 5

•

You will get marks for correctly

identifying the key areas, and marks for

supporting your answers by referring to

the passage

•

Bullet point the key areas

How to get 5 marks

•

5 marks

–

identification of essential areas (4 or 5), with an intelligent use of

supporting evidence (quotations and explanations for each one)

•

4 marks

–

identification of essential areas, with sound use of supporting evidence

•

3 marks

–

identification of essential areas, with some supporting evidence

•

2 marks

–

identification of only one essential area with reasonable supporting evidence

•

1 mark

–

identification of only one essential area with minimal or no supporting

evidence

•

0 marks

–

failure to identify any essential area and/or complete misunderstanding of

the task

•

Rule of thumb: one key area of agreement and one key area of disagreement (if

the question asks you to look at both – otherwise two key areas of one or the

other) + reference to the passages = 3 marks

Example bullet point

•

One key agreement is…

For example, passage one stated that … “…”

and passage two suggested that… “…” From

these it is clear…

•

Another key agreement is…

•

However the writers disagree on … For the

writer of passage one states that …. And

this is clear when they say “…” yet the

writer of passage two disagrees and

suggests that … “…”

Look at your checklist

•

What are you confident with?

•

What are you not confident with?

Revision

•

Now you know all terms and definitions

that will be assessed in RUAE

•

Read two articles on the same subject

and FULLY annotate them (including

effects created)

•

Write down the five main ideas for each

writer

•

Explain where they agree/disagree

Give one, take one

•

Take two stickers – on one write down

what you feel good at and on the other

write down an area that you are unsure

about

•

Go around the room, find someone who is

good at the thing you are struggling with

and get them to explain it to you

•

Similarly, look for someone who is

struggling with what you are confident in

and share your knowledge

RUAE Techniques

•

You will each write down one term and

definition onto a flashcard (you will be told

which one)

•

Go around the room and ask someone else

to define that term/or steps for answering

a particular question

•

You can give them a hint, but if they still

don’t know then explain it to them

•

Once you have both shown you know what

the two terms mean – swap your cards

•

Repeat process with everyone in the class

Terms and question types

•

Context question

•

Linking question

•

Sentence structure

question

•

Imagery question

•

Tone question

•

Word choice question

•

Final question

•

Colon

•

Semi-colon

•

Dash

•

Inverted commas

•

Parenthesis

•

Inversion

•

Sentence types

•

Flippant tone

•

Irony

•

Satirical tone

•

Effusive tone

•

Jargon

•

Antithesis

•

Climax

•

Litotes

•

Pun

•

Minor sentence

•

Neologism

•

Oxymoron

•

Paradox

Class Revision notes

•

Working in pairs:

–

you will be given an area of RUAE and 1-2 A4

sheets of blank paper

–

Write down all your helpful hints and tips –

including an example from a past paper and

possibly acronyms or mind maps or anything

else you can think of

–

Be as neat as possible

–

Don’t write anything too near the margin

•

I will then take all of these pages and turn

them into a revision book for the class to

use before the exam.

Team Games tournament

•

You will need:

–

Groups of four

–

A RUAE question paper

–

A blown up version of the passages –

everyone must read this before we begin

–

A score sheet

–

Scissors (to cut out your score strip at the

end)

Close Reading Team Games

Tournament

•

Start in a team of 4 (where possible) and give yourself a

name – this is your 

home

 team.

•

Then move into new groups of four – there should be 

no

member of the same home team in a group

•

In your new groups, you will go round anti-clockwise, taking

turns to ask each other questions from the paper given to

you

•

Roles:

–

Reader – reads out a question

–

Recorder – writes down who is answering  on the score sheet

and whether they got the question right

–

Responder – answers the question

–

Rescuer  - allowed to give one clue to the responder

•

Once one question has been answered, switch roles

At the end of the tournament

•

Cut the score sheet into strips and take

back your strip to your home team

•

Count up how many questions were

answered, how many points they were

worth and how many points were won

•

Over 85% = chocolatey goodness for

the whole team

•

Less than 85% = nothing – even if one

member got every question right!