GCSE (9-1) English Literature - Pearson qualifications
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
GCSE (9-1)
English
Literature
Paper 1: Section B Post-1914 Literature
Text: The Empress
Exemplar Scripts and
Commentaries
Pearson Edexcel Level 1/Level 2 GCSE (9–1) in English Literature – The Empress exemplars 1
– Issue 1 – March 2021 – Author and Approver: GQ Product Management – DCL1 © Pearson Education Limited 2021
© artwork: Mark Bolitho | Origami photography Pearson Education Ltd/Naki Kouyioumtzis
Contents
Page
Section B Question from SAMs……………………….. 2
Script 1 ............................................................... 3
Script 1 Commentary .......................................... 4
Script 2 ............................................................... 5
Script 2 Commentary.......................................... 6
Script 3 ............................................................... 7
Script 3 Commentary.......................................... 8
Pearson Edexcel Level 1/Level 2 GCSE (9–1) in English Literature – The Empress exemplars 2
– Issue 1 – March 2021 – Author and Approver: GQ Product Management – DCL1 © Pearson Education Limited 2021
This booklet contains three scripts responding to the following
question from the Sample Assessment Materials (SAMs).
Lascar Sally: If it wasn't for me, you'd have to sleep in the streets. No one else
will put you lot up.
How is Lascar Sally important in the play?
You must refer to the context of the play in your answer.
(Total for Question 15 = 40 marks (includes 8 marks for the range of appropriate
vocabulary and sentence structures, and accurate use of spelling and punctuation)
The SAMs can be accessed through the following link:
https://qualifications.pearson.com/content/dam/pdf/GCSE/English%
20Literature/2015/specification-and-sample-assesment/GCSE%20English%
20Literature%20SAMs%20Booklet_web.pdf
Pearson Edexcel Level 1/Level 2 GCSE (9–1) in English Literature – The Empress exemplars 3
– Issue 1 – March 2021 – Author and Approver: GQ Product Management – DCL1 © Pearson Education Limited 2021Script 1
Lascar Sally is an important character in the play as she owns a bording house at the docks
in London ‘a rowdy place’ where lots of sailors go to drink, which shows she is a business
woman and makes a lot of money from the sailors. This is unusual as women in Victorian
times were in poorly paid jobs like servants or worked in factories as men held the
important jobs. Sally is not a typical women for the time period.
She is also a very colourful character as she has prostitutes working in her bar, which was
illegal at that time. She doesn’t seem to worry about it being illegal. It was a difficult time
for women as they could get pregnant and end up with an iligitimate baby to look after, like
Rani.
Lascar Sally is important because she is able to speak more than one language. When she is
in her bar she speaks to the sailors in Hindi, ‘fluent in Hindi’, which shows how she is
educated and able to speak other languages not like most women at the time. She is also
very rude and loses her temper and swears at the customers who are usualy drunk,
‘Bastard!’. She is pretty cool when she talks and bullys the sailors to get out if they are
mouthy. They all seem to like her ‘you know we adore you’.
Lascar Sally is important because she looks after Rani when she has nowhere else to go
when Mr and Mrs Matthews sack her from her job, ‘poor darlin, she’s just a child’. Hari asks
Sally for help and Sally gives Rani and Hari a room for the night. She gives Rani advice and
warns her that men cant be trusted and only want one thing. It was very difficult for a
woman in Victorian times as they had no rights and could be taken advantage of by men
who may not marry them.
Lascar Sally is important in the novel as she helps Rani again when Rani has had a baby,
‘Asha’ and is about to leave her on the docks as she has no job or no where to go. With the
help from Firoza Sally gets Rani a place to stay at the home for ayahs. The home for ayahs
was a charity place for Indian women who had been sacked when they arrived in England.
Sally also looks after all the letters Hari sends to Rani and gives them to Rani. Sally is also
important as she acts like a good friend and gets Rani and Hari back together again, ‘I found
him Rani’.
Overall Lascar Sally is important as she is a strong woman who has her own business and is
not like a woman in Victorian times. She is caring and looks out for Rani and Hari.
Pearson Edexcel Level 1/Level 2 GCSE (9–1) in English Literature – The Empress exemplars 4
– Issue 1 – March 2021 – Author and Approver: GQ Product Management – DCL1 © Pearson Education Limited 2021Script 1: 24 marks
AO1/3 – Level 3 (18 marks)
AO4 – Level 3 (6 marks)
• A well-structured and sound response that considers how Lascar Sally is important in 4
key areas of the play:
o Her position as a business woman and bar owner.
o How she is a colourful character, who is assertive but has a good relationship
with the sailors.
o The way she is educated and has learnt to speak other languages, particularly
Hindi, to engage with her customers.
o How she is a friend to Rani and Hari and helps them both when they
experience difficulties.
• All points have appropriately selected examples from the text integrated within each
paragraph, which support the points being made. Some quotations are a little long at
times and more expansion could be made to key aspects of specific words/
components. E.g. What does ‘poor darlin, she’s just a child’ reveal about her concerns
for Rani?
• The opening of each paragraph is a little repetitive. To move to a higher level the
candidate needs to use a range of discourse markers to signpost the focus of each
paragraph.
• Analysis maintains an appropriately critical style, showing a sound understanding of
the novel. Language becomes briefly informal at the end of paragraph 3, ‘pretty cool …
mouthy’, however this does not detract from the rest of the discussion.
• Contextually, the points are relevant and sound and explore the relationship between
the text and context. Some contextual comments are fairly general in style and could
be developed further – were all women in poorly paid jobs or was it particular to
certain classes?
• To develop points made, the candidate should aim to be more subjective in their
approach and include words such as ‘maybe’, ‘possibly’, ‘could’ rather than being too
assertive in their opinion.
• AO4 – although there are one or two slips in spelling: ‘bording’, ‘iligitimate’, ‘bullys’,
‘usualy’ and some sentences are rather long, overall, the quality of writing maintains
the requirements of a Level 3 mark.
Pearson Edexcel Level 1/Level 2 GCSE (9–1) in English Literature – The Empress exemplars 5
– Issue 1 – March 2021 – Author and Approver: GQ Product Management – DCL1 © Pearson Education Limited 2021Script 2
One way Lascar Sally is important in the play is in the way she is shown as a working woman.
Sally is not a stereotypical woman of the Victorian period with no legal or social rights,
instead she is able to hold a powerful position as a ‘boarding house landlady’. At the start of
the play, she is seen ‘bundling a sailor’ out of her door and is not afraid to confront her drunk
customers by demanding they get out and ‘don’t come back’. This shows she is a very strong
woman who can stand up for herself.
In addition, Sally is not polite and subservient to men, she shows how women can be as
tough and bad-mannered as them. She is not afraid to make rude jokes and even swears and
insults the customers, ‘I don’t want to see your ugly face in here again’. Although she is a
woman, the sailors respect Sally and do what she says, ‘move, move!’ and she is described as
having had four husbands and many relationships with sailors, which would have been
unacceptable behaviour for women at this time.
Lascar Sally is also important as she is a contrast to Queen Victoria and the upper-classes.
Sally is a working-class woman and her boarding house is a ‘rowdy place’ full of ‘debauchery
and poverty’, with prostitutes. In contrast Queen Victoria is introduced in Windsor Castle,
eating an egg from ‘a golden egg cup’ with servants to serve her. In my opinion they are both
strong women but this is shown in different ways because of the class they are in and the
jobs they have.
A further way Lascar Sally is important is in the way she is educated. Even though she runs a
boarding house for sailors, she can speak more than one language and switches to Hindi
when she needs to speak to the foreign sailors, ‘Bechari ko’. During the Victorian era, Tilbury
docks was a very busy port, with boats arriving from around the world. Many of the lascars
were from Asia, especially India and did not always speak English. Lascar Sally has learnt to
speak Hindi so she can speak to the sailors and make them feel at home.
Finally, Lascar Sally is important because she helps Rani when she is in trouble and stranded
at the docks. When Rani is dismissed by Mrs Matthews Sally offers her a bed for the night
and some ‘broth’ to eat. Even though Sally is a tough woman who swears and tells rude jokes
she is also caring and looks out for Rani. She protects her from the lascars, ‘stop crowding
round the poor girl’. At the end of the play Sally helps to get Hari and Rani together again, ‘I
found him Rani’ and encourages them to renew their friendship, which leads to their
marriage.
Pearson Edexcel Level 1/Level 2 GCSE (9–1) in English Literature – The Empress exemplars 6
– Issue 1 – March 2021 – Author and Approver: GQ Product Management – DCL1 © Pearson Education Limited 2021Script 2: 33 marks
AO1/3 – Level 4 (25 marks)
AO4 – Level 3 (8 marks)
• Five key points are covered effectively, showing a sustained understanding of Lascar
Sally’s importance in the play. Comments are sustained throughout with some
thorough engagement:
o The opening of the response explores Sally’s presentation as a working
woman, who goes against the stereotype of the time period.
o The second point develops the idea in paragraph one by discussing how Sally
is a strong woman who is not subservient to men but is very outspoken.
o The third paragraph makes an interesting point about social representations
through the characters of Queen Victoria and Lascar Sally, exploring how
despite being from different social backgrounds, they are both strong
women.
o The discussion of Sally’s ability to speak other languages is effectively
explored, although the contextual point is rather concentrated at the end,
rather than being interspersed throughout the paragraph.
o The final point discusses Sally’s support of Rani but does lack contextual
discussion.
• Each paragraph broadly follows a PEEC (point, evidence, explanation, context) format,
with appropriately chosen examples to support points made. The structure is
particularly effective in paragraph 1 where the evidence is concise and well-chosen
and the context is integrated within the body of the paragraph, rather than being
bolted-on at the end, which would be more consistent with a Level 2 or 3.
• Although integrating context into each paragraph is not always essential to meet the
demands of the question, it was felt that the last paragraph, whilst sustained, missed
the opportunity for contextual links to the role of ayah’s and how many were treated
by their employees on arrival in England.
• The format of each paragraph is sustained with varied markers at the start of each
paragraph to indicate the new topic being discussed: ‘In addition,’, ‘A further way’,
‘Finally,’.
• AO4 – the response meets the requirements of a Level 3 as spelling, grammar and
punctuation are consistent and the one or two lengthy sentences do not detract from
the overall meaning.
Pearson Edexcel Level 1/Level 2 GCSE (9–1) in English Literature – The Empress exemplars 7
– Issue 1 – March 2021 – Author and Approver: GQ Product Management – DCL1 © Pearson Education Limited 2021Script 3
In the play 'The Empress', Tanika Gupta uses the character of Lascar Sally to challenge the role of
women during the Victoria era. Despite the restrictions placed on many women, due to their lack of
legal rights and social opportunities, Lascar Sally is presented as a confident and assertive woman
who runs her own business. She is also importnat in showing how tough life was in some areas of
Victoria London, particularly Tilbury docks, where she successfully runs her 'boarding house' and
tavern.
The opening stage directions establishes the type of place Sally runs and how it is 'rowdy' with
drunken sailors and women who are 'prostitutes'. This description is important as it presents Sally as
a woman who is used to living and working in a tough environment and is able to deal with trouble.
She is immediately introduced 'cussing a sailor' and using aggressive and vulgar language to control
her drunk customers, 'get your sorry arse out of here!' The docklands of London were the largest in
the world during the 19th and early 20th centuries and were a magnet for a migrant workers,
particularly lascars from Asia who worked on the merchant ships or came to England hoping to find
work. Sally's boarding house acts as a safe refuge for the men to relax, drink and stay whilst they are
on shore.
Despite her aggressive nature, Sally is also shown to have a more sensitive side and is a popular
landlady, valued by her customers who affectionately call her Lascar Sally and 'respect and adore'
her. Her close friend Firoza describes Sally as having a 'very big heart'. Sally seems to know all of her
customers' names and shows an interest in their travels. She is fluent in Hindi and this is important
as it shows that although she is working class, she is educated and knows how to speak other
languages. She has had 'four husbands' and it is suggested that she has had many relationships with
other sailors 'I love my Ganesh'. Her relaxed attitude to relationships contrasts with the normal
image of Victorian women who were supposed to be chaste wives and not take lovers.
Another important aspect of Sally's character is her wish to help other people, particularly Rani and
Hari. Despite Sally's tough image, she recognises the vulnerability of Rani and how she is 'trembling
like a leaf' after being abandoned by the Matthews family. Sally promises to 'look after' Rani because
she can see that she is frightened. It is possible that Sally understands what Rani has gone through,
perhaps she was also abandoned at a young age and has struggled to become successful. Sally also
plays an important role in helping Rani again when she is left homeless, jobless and with a child to
support. Together with Firoza, Sally helps Rani to avoid ending up in a workhouse or becoming a
prostitute, typical outcomes for unmarried mothers, by getting her a room at the Home for Ayahs.
Sally's importance is seen at the end of the play when she arranges for Hari and Rani to meet again
after they have been apart for thirteen years. Sally previously acts as a messenger for Hari, passing
his letters to Rani but once he has returned to London and started up a 'small business' making
furniture. Sally ensures that the two are reunited, 'I found him for you Rani' and encourages their
eventual marriage.
Overall, Lascar Sally plays an important role in the play as a strong and successful business woman
who is not afriad to challenge the stereotypical position of women in Victorian Britain.
Pearson Edexcel Level 1/Level 2 GCSE (9–1) in English Literature – The Empress exemplars 8
– Issue 1 – March 2021 – Author and Approver: GQ Product Management – DCL1 © Pearson Education Limited 2021Script 3: 40 marks
AO1/3 – Level 5 (32 marks)
AO4 – Level 3 (8 marks)
• An excellent response, which comprehensively explores the importance of Lascar
Sally in the play and the reasons for her inclusion.
• The response meets all the requirements for a mark at the top of a Level 5. It is an
assured response that shows a high level of engagement with the text and covers
several key conceptual areas with maturity:
o The presentation of Sally as a successful business woman.
o Sally’s ability to succeed within a male dominated society.
o Gupta’s depiction of life around the London docks in the Victorian era.
o The multiple aspects of Sally’s character.
o Sally’s relationship with others, including Rani and Hari.
• Exemplification is discerning, sharply focused and concise with succinct quotations
neatly embedded within the body of each paragraph, thereby enabling the discussion
to flow.
• The critical style is mature with phrases making understanding clear. The integration
of personal opinion is particularly effective: ‘perhaps she (Sally) was also abandoned
at a young age and has struggled to become successful’.
• Contextual discussion is perceptive and effectively integrated throughout the
response. The candidate confidently explores Gupta’s presentation of life within the
multicultural Victorian society of London.
• AO4 – spelling and punctuation is consistently accurate. Sentence structure is
sophisticated and helps to carry convincing interpretations.
Pearson Edexcel Level 1/Level 2 GCSE (9–1) in English Literature – The Empress exemplars 9
– Issue 1 – March 2021 – Author and Approver: GQ Product Management – DCL1 © Pearson Education Limited 2021You can also read
