# data[].attributes.body
Common/Recurring Ideas in Paper 2 Questions:

1. communication & breakdown of communication

2. regret, past

3. love, passion, relationships

4. coming of age

5. form/structure

6. minor characters

7. justice

8. symbols/motifs

9. setting

10. conflict, conflict & theme

11. women/gender/minorities

12. leadership

13. prejudice, injustice, inequality

# data[].attributes.body
Group the questions below under the different ideas shared:

1.             Discuss the concept of home in two of the works you  have studied.

2.             Compare the role of violence in at least two works studied in class.

3.             Compare the ways in which at least two works you have studied portray individual weakness.

4.             Is it possible to free ourselves from prejudice? Discuss with reference to the literary texts you have studied?

5.             Discuss how two of the works you have studied explore change and transformation?

6.             Show how changes in setting or time are important in the literary works you have studied.

7.             With reference to your study of literary texts, discuss the appeal of nostalgia, or a return to a more appealing time in the past.

8.             A common saying is “power corrupts”. With reference to the literary texts you have studied, to what extent is this saying correct?

9.             Compare the ways in which two or more of the literary works you have studied deal with the theme of revenge.

10.          How is setting of the city important in two or more of the literary works you have studied?

11.          In what ways may a work’s stylistic features (the writer’s use of language, literary conventions, devices, etc.) add to or detract from its popularity over time? Discuss with reference to at least two works you have studied.

12.          In what ways do the families depicted in at least two works you have studied help you to understand cultural similarities and differences?

13.          Compare the theme of a young person growing up in two or more literary works you have studied.

14.          To what extent could at least two works you have studied be considered works of protest?

15.          Irony can be used for either humorous or tragic effect. To what purpose has irony been employed in at least two works you have studied?

16.          Discuss the significance of particular times, places or events from real life, either mentioned or implied, in at least two of the works you have studied.

17.          How do at least two of the writers you have studied foreshadow events or ideas to come later in their works, and what is the effect of such foreshadowing?

18.          Discuss the pursuit of happiness in at least two works you have studied.

19.          Discuss whether or not the endings/conclusions of at least two of the works you have studied are satisfactory.

20.          Appearances can be deceptive. Discuss the relevance of this statement in regard to at least two of the works you have studied.

21.          Pride can lead to failure and self-destruction or to accomplishment and self-fulfillment. Discuss the presentation of pride and its consequences in at least two of the works you have studied.

22.          How have writers explored a social or intellectual concern in at least two works you have studied?

23.          Discuss the impact of the form of a literary work on the reader.

24.          To what effect is contrast and/or juxtaposition used in at least two of the works you have studied?

25.          How do two of the works you have studied portray the struggle to be understood?

# data[].attributes.body
Now, create an outline for each question picked by you for the following idea:

1. communication & breakdown of communication

2. This refers to how characters express ideas, emotions, or truths and when communication fails.
You analyze:

Misunderstandings between characters

Silence, secrets, or repression

Language as power or control

Example focus: how lack of communication creates tragedy or conflict.

# data[].attributes.body
This explores how past events affect characters’ present lives.
You may discuss:

Memory and trauma

Guilt about past actions

Characters trying to confront or escape the past

# data[].attributes.body
This theme examines human emotional bonds:

Romantic love

Family relationships

Obsession or destructive passion

You analyse how authors portray relationships and their consequences.

# data[].attributes.body
This refers to a character’s psychological or moral growth.
Focus areas:

Loss of innocence

Transition from childhood to adulthood

Development of identity or maturity

# data[].attributes.body
Here the question focuses on how the text is organized, not just what it says.
Examples include:

Non-linear narrative

Flashbacks

Acts and scenes in drama

Narrative perspective

You analyze how structure shapes meaning.

# data[].attributes.body
These are secondary characters who support the main narrative.
In Paper 2 you may analyse:

Their influence on the protagonist

How they reveal themes

Whether they act as contrasts or foils.

# data[].attributes.body
This theme looks at fairness, morality, and consequences.
Questions may explore:

Whether justice is achieved

Social or legal injustice

Moral dilemmas faced by characters.

# data[].attributes.body
These are repeated images, objects, or ideas that carry deeper meaning.

Symbol: object representing something abstract

Motif: repeated element reinforcing a theme

Example: a recurring object representing guilt or freedom.

# data[].attributes.body
Setting refers to time, place, and social environment.
You analyse:

Historical context

Cultural atmosphere

How setting shapes characters and events.

# data[].attributes.body
Conflict is the struggle that drives the story.

Types:

Character vs character

Character vs society

Character vs self

In Paper 2 you explain how conflict reveals the central themes of the work.

# data[].attributes.body
11. Women / Gender / Minorities

This examines representation and power dynamics:

Gender roles

Marginalised voices

Social oppression or resistance.

# data[].attributes.body
Questions may analyse:

Who holds power

Good vs corrupt leadership

How leaders influence others.

# data[].attributes.body
This focuses on social discrimination and power imbalance:

Racism, class inequality, and gender bias

Social systems that marginalise individuals.

# data[].attributes.headline
Question 6: Show how changes in setting or time are important in the literary works you have studied.

# data[].attributes.subject
Question 6: Show how changes in setting or time are important in the literary works you have studied.

# data[].attributes.body
Death and the Maiden

In a post-dictatorship world, essential to the plot, political unrest is a major contributor to conflict within the play.

The play’s mise en scene: the Diagetic sound of Schubert’s quarter is an essential motif that is representative of Paulina's trauma as well as the reclamation of her identity

The play’s mise en scene: Props- The props “gun” she uses a gun to ensure the power dynamic remains stronger towards her. Gerardo's attempt to take away her gun can be a parallel to how justice systems often try to take away power from victims by taking away their voices and suppressing the truth. She also reclaims her femininity by using pantyhose, a generally feminine piece of clothing, to capture her alleged perpetrator.

The play moves chronologically, following a linear structure, ensuring simplicity while also showing the long-standing impacts of trauma.

Harvest

The play is set in the future, revealing the author's intent to highlight capitalistic failings and the potential for neocolonial exploitation through the commodification of the human body and oppression of third-world nations

The setting is essential as it ironically improves as the lives of the protagonists deteriorate; it goes from being a chawl (slum) in Mumbai to an apartment containing all the amenities required by the protagonists to live a peaceful life. This improvement in living conditions, however, attempts to mask the loss of agency, privacy and autonomy that the characters go through.

The futuristic setting further allows the author to emphasise the character's loss of agency as technology further develops. Ma’s video couch being a means to control her agency, the monitoring devices and Ginny/Virgil's constant intrusions as a result of developed technology being a form of surveillance, and the advancement of surgery that allows for the donation of bodies and organs further the loss of autonomy as a result of the commodification of the human body.

Human Acts

Setting is essential as it differs from chapter to chapter and within segments of chapters, moving from a land controlled by martial law to a post-dictatorship world. This allows the author to not only discuss the horrors of the Gwangju uprisal, but also the aftermath and lives of the victims, navigating life after experiencing such atrocities

The Timeline is often non-linear, moving from the present to flashbacks. This is done to create slow and deliberate connections within the audience's brain to create a deeper understanding while allowing the author to subtly hint at the causes of certain behaviours. For instance, in the chapter “Factory Girl”, the present is delved into, where she is unable to speak her truth due to her avoidant behaviour. The chapter quickly flashes to flashbacks of her time, as she was tortured and brutally sexually assaulted, as the author attempts to explain her avoidant behaviour. Similar instances are scattered throughout the text

Setting is essential in some cases to display the brutality of situations, for instance, the school gymnasium being turned into a mortuary displays the despair and despondent state of the situation

# data[].attributes.body
5. Discuss how two of the works you have studied explore change and transformation.

Define change and transformation

Introduce the context of the two texts being used.

Connect the change of transformation to the main idea (4. Coming of Age)

Make a thesis statement. Ideas could be: Transition of Control (Family to Interplanta) (Dictatorian control to Democracy, Paulina’s insistence to conduct her own trial (blurs the line between memory and truth)), Development of Identity/maturity (Paulina’s experience shaped her regular thinking and her identity after the abuse) (Jaya’s resistance to Virgil showed character growth as she stood up for herself, Identity of the interplanata services was also defined at the end of the play: Virgil/Ginni, revealing harsh realities), Loss of innocence and freedom (Paulina was stripped from her happiness after the abuse, even after so many years, she couldn't move on and life life regularly.) (Om’s objectification due to his desperation to sustain his family, stripped him of his freedom. Ma’s loss of identity was reflected in her addiction to new expensive technology)

Evidence:

Death and the maiden:

Paulina repeatedly relives the sounds of Schubert’s Death and the Maiden, which was played during her torture.

Paulina holds Roberto at gunpoint and conducts her own trial.

Paulina demands Roberto confess in detail.

Harvest:

Initial comparison of the door (where the men were taken to after they were selected for the process by Interplanat) to Heaven

Dehumanisation: Eg, asking all the people to remove their clothing before they went ahead, checking them for any diseases, as they wanted the best ones to be selected.

Interplanta started controlling their everyday lives, with constant surveillance, monitoring of their food intake, health and movement in and out of their house.

# data[].attributes.body
Chosen texts: Human acts, Death and the maiden

13. Compare the theme of a young person growing up in two or more literary works you have studied.

Themes : Coming of age

Thesis:Both works portray coming of age as a painful awakening to violence, injustice, and moral complexity rather than a traditional journey to maturity, through the use of characterisation, conflict, and fragmented or psychological narrative structures that reflect the impact of trauma on personal growth.

14. To what extent could at least two works you have studied be considered works of protest?

Themes: Prejudice, injustice, inequality

Thesis: Both works can strongly be considered protest literature as they challenge injustice, expose state violence, and question systems of power, through the use of symbolism, characterisation of marginalised voices, and conflict-driven narratives that highlight the failures of authority and justice systems, though they do so in different ways.