Exam (elaborations)
A bank of essay questions on A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE A LEVEL ENGLISH LITERATURE
- Module
- LITERATURE
- Institution
- WJEC
A bank of essay questions on A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE English Literature
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Section A: Post-1900 drama Section A is based on the study ofone post-1900 drama text from the list below:
Tennessee Williams: A Streetcar Named Desire (Penguin Modern Classics)
Candidates are required to answer one question from a choice of two. Each question will be presented
in two parts:
part (i) is extract-based and focuses on close language study;
part (ii) requires an extended response relating to the rest of the text. Candidates must use appropriate
literary and linguistic methods of analysis, adopting accurate and precise use of related terminology to:
analyse closely the language of the extract
use integrated linguistic and literary approaches
analyse how meanings are shaped in their set text
show knowledge and understanding of relevant language levels
use accurately a range of linguistic and literary terminology
demonstrate an understanding of the significance and influence of the contexts in which texts are
produced and received
organise responses in a clear and effective academic style and register with coherent written
expression.
A Streetcar Named Desire, Tennessee Williams
Blanche DuBois, a schoolteacher from Laurel, Mississippi, arrives at the New Orleans apartment of her
sister, Stella Kowalski. Despite the fact that Blanche seems to have fallen out of close contact with
Stella, she intends to stay at Stella’s apartment for an unspecified but lengthy period of time, given
the amount of luggage that she has arrived with. Blanche tells Stella that she lost Belle Reve, their
ancestral home, following the death of their remaining relatives. She also mentions that she has been
given a leave of absence from her teaching position due to bad nerves…….
, 13 Refer to Scene 10, beginning ‘Operator, operator! Give me long distance, please…’ and ending
‘We’ve had this date with each other from the beginning!’. This interaction occurs near the end of the
scene. Blanche is on her own after her party when Stella goes into labour. Stanley returns from the
hospital. Referring to these lines and other parts of the play, examine how and why Williams presents
characters’ loss of control at different points in the play. [45 marks]
Question 13 This was the most popular question.
The passage provided was mostly used well by students to explore different aspects of the question
focus.
More successful responses:
• explored the interplay of control in this passage – Stanley’s measured assertion of control and
dominance whilst Blanche visibly slips out of control
• explored some of the different ways that Blanche’s loss of control is presented in the passage:
language use, a strong marker of her identity as an English teacher and refined southern lady; reality,
sinking into fantasy and illusion; bodily control – resorting to threats of violence and finally her ‘inert
body’
• considered Stanley’s loss of control over his animalistic and sexual impulses
• selected relevantly from the rest of the play to consider different aspects of the question focus:
(i) Blanche’s loss of control over Stella and Mitch at different points of the play;
(ii) Blanche’s loss of self-control when she kisses the young man;
(iii) Blanche’s loss of control at the end of the play when she is taken away;
(iv) Stanley’s loss of physical control;
(v) Mitch’s loss of control in scene 9
• considered Williams’ crafting of proxemics, kinesics and haptics, as well as sound and light symbolism
• considered Williams’ placement of the incident with the prostitute in the given passage to highlight
Blanche’s situation and predicament
• explored Williams’ crafting and language choices from selected wider points of the play
• applied a range of linguistic levels to explore Blanche and Stanley’s language use in both the given
passage and at wider points within the play considered face theory to explore the tensions between
Blanche and Stanley in the given passage
• explored aspects of tragedy and melodrama
• considered factors affecting text production, such as roles of women
• considered use of off-stage action for the presentation of brutal and shocking events for the audience.
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