In Section B you are required to focus on the plot, setting(s), character(s), theme(s) of the novel you have studied. For your response, you need to determine which parts of the novel you will refer to in your answer. AO1 requires you to develop an informed personal response while maintaining a critical style throughout. Well selected references should be an integral part of your response.
When approaching Section B, it is important to consider the quotation that you have been given at the beginning of the question. The intention of the quotation is to prompt your thinking and to give you a starting point for your answer. Below is an example of this from the novel Animal Farm:
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“Mr Jones, although a hard master, had been a capable farmer, but of late he had fallen on evil days.”
Explore how humans are presented in the novel.
We will now explore some comments that you might make about this novel, focusing on the following part of the quotation: “Mr Jones… had fallen on evil days.”
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Quotation Prompt
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Supporting quote(s)
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Interpretations (AO1)
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“Mr Jones… had fallen on evil days”
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“He seldom fed them, and let their coats grown thin for lack of attention”
“Mr Jones… had locked the hen-houses for the night, but was too drunk to remember to shut the pop-holes”
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Mr Jones represents the oppressive human regime that the animals overthrow in their pursuit of freedom and equality. Orwell portrays him as a cruel and neglectful master, who mistreats the animals and exploits their labour. Mr Jones is immediately characterised as irresponsible and self-indulgent and “too drunk to remember to shut the pop-holes”. Further, his fondness of alcohol also signifies his weakness, which ultimately enables the animals to drive him off his farm. Jones is the cause of the revolution and his neglect and brutality towards his animals is portrayed as unpardonable.
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When approaching AO1, you need to ensure your response keeps a clear focus on the question. Your textual references should be accurate and discerning and fully support the points you make. Any quotations you choose to use should always be directly relevant to the focus of the question, but you don’t always need to use quotations to score highly for AO1: referring to plot points can be just as successful. Below is an example of how you might use both direct quotations and textual references to support a wider argument, again using the novel Animal Farm.
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“Snowball was a more vivacious pig than Napoleon, quicker in speech and more inventive, but was not considered to have the same depth of character.“
How is Snowball important in Animal Farm?
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AO1: Interpretations of the novel
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Orwell presents Snowball as an important character in Animal Farm as he follows the tenets and thinking of Old Major and devotes himself to developing the animals’ intellectual, physical and moral lives. Snowball is depicted as the animal most in agreement with Old Major’s philosophy. He makes many attempts to use his knowledge to the other animals’ advantage, for example: “Snowball read it aloud for the benefit of the others.” Snowball is an important character as Orwell depicts him as an articulate orator who is skilled at putting his ideas across to the animals. As a character, he is a much more eloquent communicator than Napoleon, as evidenced through the quote: “a more vivacious pig than Napoleon, quicker in speech and more inventive”. The inventiveness of his imagination is evident in both his long-term vision of a golden age and in practical details such as building a windmill, which indicate that he is inspirational and forward-thinking. It is Snowball who suggests the building of the windmill to help aid food production, run machinery, produce electricity and to give the animals more leisure time.
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The examiner is looking for you to present a personal judgement on your novel, and this needs to be evidenced by references to the novel. Throughout your response you should aim to adopt a critical and mature style so that you demonstrate a perceptive understanding of your text. You should also aim to add your own interpretations and ensure that all of your points are fully developed. Below is an example of how you can extend your point to add your own interpretations and judgements:
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AO1: Interpretations of the novel
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Snowball is also an important character within the novel as Napoleon uses him as a scapegoat, blaming him for anything that goes wrong on the farm: “Snowball had… introduced poison into Napoleon’s food”. Further, the events of The Battle of the Cowshed are rewritten and Snowball’s legacy is almost entirely forgotten. Napoleon convinces the animals that Snowball was never brave during the battle and was actually on Mr Jones's side. Napoleon ensures that Snowball’s ideas become misappropriated and his character denigrated. While Orwell presents Snowball positively, he is not an idealised character and he has his own flaws. He exploits the other animals for his own gain when he fails to say anything about taking the milk and apples for the pigs. However, his importance as a character lies in the fact that he is still intended to be presented as a better alternative to Napoleon.
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