English Language Non-Fiction Anthologies

Question 1

The Danger of a Single Story, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Answer 1

P - inform/persuade, A - live audience, F - speech, Perspective - positional point of view: from her personal experiences, thoughts and feelings: single stories of things are very dangerous, main techniques: anecdotes, emotive language, self-deprecates herself, uses colloquial tone, repetition + personal pronouns.

Question 2

A Passage to Africa, George Alagiah

Answer 2

P - inform, A - western audience , F - memoir, Perspective - positional point of view: journalist + his personal experiences, thoughts and feelings: people are really suffering, suffering + poverty are shocking, war is horrible, but humanity is still there, main techniques: emotive language, repetition, semantic field of journalism + juxtaposition.

Question 3

The Explorer’s Daugther, Kari Herbert

Answer 3

P - inform + entertain , A - western audience or urban city people, F - memoir, Perspective - positional point of view: onlooker + from her personal experiences, thoughts and feelings: nature is beautiful, peaceful + still, narwhals are intelligent, hunts have tension + suspense in them, she doesn’t know which side to pick (narwhals or hunters), she is powerless in outcome of hunt, main techniques: facts, light imagery, contrast, semantic field of waiting, distance + stillness.

Question 4

Explorers or boys messing about? Either way, taxpayer gets rescue bill, Steven Morris

Answer 4

P - inform, A - domestic audience, F - newspaper article, Perspective - positional point of view: from his personal opinions, thoughts and feelings: rich men are messing about + they’re wasting time of armed forces, main techniques: humour + facts.

Question 5

Between a Rock and a Hard Place, Aron Ralston

Answer 5

P - inform/entertain, A - people who are interested in climbing + extreme sports, F - memoir, Perspective - positional point of view: experienced climber + then he was one in event, thoughts and feelings: tension + suspense, danger, unfamiliarity, main techniques: vernacular of climbing, hyperbole, alliteration + sense of disconnection between his body + mind.

Question 6

Young and dyslexic? You’ve got it going on, Benjamin Zephaniah

Answer 6

P - inform/advise/persuade, A - dyslexic people + non-dyslexic people, F - opinion newspaper article, Perspective - positional point of view: dyslexic person, thoughts and feelings: dyslexic people can do things, dyslexic people are more accepted + understood now, main techniques: anecdotes, opinion as fact, repetition, semantic field of empowerment + positivity, personal pronouns + emotive language.

Question 7

A Game of Polo with a Headless Goat, Emma Levine

Answer 7

P - inform, A - western audience, F - memoir, Perspective - positional point of view: from her personal experiences, thoughts and feelings: race takes long time to start, everything was very loud, danger, Pakistan is very different to where she came from, chaotic, exhilaration and exciting, Yaqoob was very skilful young + inexperienced driver, main techniques: hyperboles, opinion as fact, parentheses, comedy, onomatopoeia, semantic field of chaos and confusion + contrast.

Question 8

Beyond the Sky and the Earth: A Journey into Bhutan, Jamie Zeppa

Answer 8

P - inform, A - western audience, F - memoir, Perspective - positional point of view: from her personal experiences + journalist, thoughts and feelings: unfamiliarity, nature is wonderful, Bhutan is amazing, people are great, not fully remote as parts of other cultures have infiltrated into Bhutanese culture, special and different from other Asian countries, main techniques: semantic field of nature and beauty, facts, opinion as fact, contrast, comedy + sense of distance.