Practice Paper 1A

Look in detail at this extract from the source:

Then he touched a spring in the wall and slowly the panelling slid open, and behind it were the steel safes, five, no, six of them, all of burnished steel. He twisted a key; unlocked one; then another. Each was lined with a pad of deep crimson velvet; in each lay jewels— bracelets, necklaces, rings, tiaras, ducal coronets; loose stones in glass shells; rubies, emeralds, pearls, diamonds. All safe, shining, cool, yet burning, eternally, with their own compressed light.

How does the writer use language here to convey Oliver Bacon’s views on jewels and the value of precious stones?You could include the writer’s choice of:

• words and phrases
• language features and techniques
• sentence forms.

You now need to think about the whole of the source.This text is from the beginning of a short story.How has the writer structured the text to interest you as a reader?You could write about:

• what the writer focuses your attention on at the beginning of the source
• how and why the writer changes this focus as the source develops
• any other structural features that interest you.

Focus this part of your answer on the second part of the source, from the line ‘“Her Grace!” he announced’, to the end.A student said, ‘This part of the story, where Oliver Bacon greets the Duchess, shows that Oliver doesn’t like his wealthy customers. I think they’re as bad as each other.’To what extent do you agree? In your response, you could:

• consider your own impressions of the Duchess
• evaluate how the writer conveys Oliver Bacon’s reactions to the Duchess
• support your response with references to the text.

A magazine has asked for contributions for their creative writing section.Either Describe a busy shopping environment, as suggested by this picture:

OR Write a story about two people who dislike each other.