The Explorer's Daughter

Question 1

‘Two hours after the last of the hunters had returned and eaten, narwhals were spotted again, this time very close’

Answer 1

• Complex sentence
• Creates immeadiate tension and anticipation

Question 2

‘plumes of spray catching the light in a spectral play of colour’

Answer 2

• Hyperbolic vivid and dramatic descriptive language
• Shows how majestic and elegant the narwhals are to her

Question 3

‘The glittering kingdom’

Answer 3

• Metaphor
• Emphasises the beauty of this area, especially in her view as a westerner (which is highlighted by personal pronouns like ‘I’)

Question 4

‘butter-gold’

Answer 4

• Colourful, metaphorical imagery
• Makes the place seem idyllic which is in contrast to the harsh realities of the arctic

Question 5

‘soft billows of smoke’

Answer 5

• Sibilance
• Creates a relaxing and calm overtone in contrast to hunters and what is about to happen

Question 6

‘temperate waters’

Answer 6

• Geographical description
• Adds to the calm and idyllic atmosphere despite the violent undertones

Question 7

‘minerals and vitamins’, vegetables or fruit’, ‘vitamin c’, ‘scurvy’

Answer 7

• Semantic field of nutrition and health as part of the informative paragraph
• Shows her understanding of the area and highlights the necessity of the inuits hunting despite its cruelty

Question 8

‘The women clustered on the knoll of the lookout, binoculars pointing in every direction, each woman focusing on her husband or family member, occasionally spinning round at a small gasp or jump as one of the women saw a hunter near a narwhal’

Answer 8

• Asyndetic list
• Builds tension and anticipation for what might happen regarding these narwhals

Question 9

‘watched their progress intently, it was crucial’

Answer 9

• Adverb ‘intently’ and strong word ‘crucial’
• Shows how important it is to the wives for their survival and how high-stakes everything is, adding to the tension of the moment

Question 10

‘much-needed extra income’

Answer 10

• Pre-modifer
• Evokes sympathy for the hunters and their family and shows that they are hunting out of necessity only

Question 11

‘It was like watching a vast, waterborne game’

Answer 11

• Similie
• Adds to the excitement and anticipation, but contrasts with how high stakes their hunting is

Question 12

‘The narwhal … are intelligent creatures’

Answer 12

• Adjective ‘intelligent’
• ‘Intelligent’ makes us feel sympathetic for them

Question 13

‘hunter’ and ‘narwhal’

Answer 13

• Juxtaposition
• Makes us feel conflicted and sympathetic for both sides, also showing how the hunter relies on the narwhal

Question 14

‘he was so close and so brave’

Answer 14

• Reptition of the intensifier ‘so’
• Shows how she is conflicted and part of her is urging the hunter on

Question 15

‘to dive, to leave, to survive’

Answer 15

• Tricolon
• Emphasises her sympathy for the narwhal too, further showing her confliction