Exam (elaborations)
A Level exam questions with some indicative content "Frankenstein"
A Level exam notes with some indicative content provided for certain of the questions "Frankenstein"
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A LEVEL ENGLISH LITERATUREQuestion 1: Frankenstein
This question was concerned with the presentation of place, in particular the mountain setting of the
extract. There were many pleasing responses to this question, showing students’ understanding of how
the presentation of the mountain scenery reflects Frankenstein’s state of mind and how this changes as
the narrative in the extract progresses. However, very few answers made any reference to the poem
and how this signals a change in Frankenstein’s attitudes. Most students recognised the shift in the latter
part of the extract towards a more positive attitude, a recognition of the healing powers of nature and
the uplifting presence of the mountains. Many students commented on the use of ‘awful majesty’ but
most thought that this was an oxymoron and spent some time explaining how it illustrated
Frankenstein’s conflicted feelings about the mountain, without realising that ‘awful’ in Shelley’s
Nineteenth Century vocabulary meant ‘awe inspiring’. Many students showed an awareness of gothic
conventions and the ideas of the Romantic Movement and were able to relevantly use this in their
answers.
Successful responses:
• showed clear awareness of Victor Frankenstein’s narrative viewpoint in the extract
• explored how Frankenstein’s shifting attitude is presented
• contrasted the more sombre description of the mountain in the first half with the sense of wonder in
the second half
• explored the description of the mountain setting in detail and correctly identified language features
that helped to present if as both overbearing and awe-inspiring
• considered how the presentation of the mountain setting reflected Frankenstein’s state of mind and
supported this with clear evidence from the extract
• included perceptive and relevant comments on the philosophical concepts in the extract.
Less successful responses:
• mistakenly identified the narrative viewpoint as being the creature’s. Whilst this did perhaps reflect
some of the doppelganger links between Frankenstein and the creature, it also led to some
unconvincing and skewed interpretations
• commented on the mountain scenery as being purely symbolic of what has happened in
Frankenstein’s life and provided only broad interpretations. These were often not very convincing and
there was much over-interpretation of small details – for example, the broken trees were seen as
representing the difficulties in life or the people the creature has killed or even the Industrial Revolution
• struggled to engage with details from the extract and what these conveyed
• made vague and generalised comments on how ‘tone’ is created or how ‘tension’ is built up
• made over-stated claims for the significance of alliteration or sibilance
, • identified semantic fields but lacked more precise exploration of words, their meaning and effects and
made broad comments about them being negative or positive
• showed limited awareness of Shelley’s use of language and misunderstood ‘terrifically desolate’ and
‘awful majesty’
• allowed comments on Gothic conventions to dominate answers
ADDITIONAL NOTES on the novel in general:
Juxtaposition in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley creates a few jarring juxtapositions that serve to accentuate the
monstrosity as well as the humanity of the Creature that Victor Frankenstein brings to life. The Creature
learns to speak in part by reading Milton's Paradise Lost, and so his language is ornate and elevated, FOR
EXAMPLE by the use of the words ‘thee’, ‘thy' and ‘thou’. The juxtaposition of this elegant, formal
speech with the Creature's ugly, deformed features and terrible strength creates an uncanny, grotesque
and terrifying effect that, at the same time, increases the reader's understanding of the Creature's
tragedy, since we see his clear intelligence.
Over the course of the novel, Shelley also juxtaposes the actions of the Creature, who eventually
responds to the world's scorn with a violent urge for revenge, with those of Victor Frankenstein, whose
arrogant recklessness created the Creature in the first place and whose lack of mercy or empathy
condemned the Creature to lonely isolation. This juxtaposition begs the question: who is the real
monster?
Texts Pre-1900: Frankenstein, Mary Shelley; The War of the Worlds, H G Wells Post-1900: Never Let Me
Go, Kazuo Ishiguro; The Handmaid’s Tale, Margaret Atwood
1. Compare the ways in which the writers of your two chosen texts present characters responding
to adversity. In your answer you must consider the following:
• the writers’ methods
• links between the texts
• relevant contextual factors.
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