Please note: all past questions and mark schemes for the CURRENT SYLLABUS are available on WJEC website: click below –
WJEC Exemplar and Past Questions with mark schemes: Sheers and Heaney
NB Papers labelled LT1 and LT4 are for the previous exam syllabus – the information given may be useful for an insight into the CONTENT of answers, but you need the papers and mark schemes labelled Unit 1 Prose and Drama, and Unit 2 Poetry post-1900 for the current syllabus.
It is useful to see which poems have already been used in the previous exams as they are unlikely to appear on the paper again BUT even better than that – it is also useful to see what the WJEC expect to be written/noticed about these poems for future comparing questions!
This was the Exemplar Question (pre-first examination in June 2016):
SECTION A: Mark Allocation AO1 20 marks AO2 20 marks
Either, Seamus Heaney: Field Work (Faber)
9. Re-read ‘The Guttural Muse’ on page 22. Explore the ways in which Heaney creates mood and atmosphere in this poem. [40]
Or, Owen Sheers: Skirrid Hill (Seren)
10. Re-read ‘Winter Swans’ on page 7. Explore how Sheers presents the relationship between the couple in this poem.
AO1 Informed responses will demonstrate clear understanding of the poem. We will reward creatively engaged responses for thoughtful and individual rather than mechanical/literal approaches. Understanding and application of concepts will be seen in the candidate’s awareness of the conventions of poetry writing. Accuracy and coherence will be seen in the way understanding is used as well as in the candidate’s ability to organise the response in an appropriate academic style and register. Further credit will be given for appropriate use of terminology.
Band 1 responses are likely to describe the relationship between the couple with broad and probably asserted ideas.Band 2 will be more engaged and organised and will show some grasp of concepts relating to the relationship.Band 3 responses will show a more consistently relevant focus with clearly expressed ideas.
At Bands 4 and 5 there will be evidence of secure understanding of relevant concepts combined with increasingly perceptive and fluent discussion.
AO2 Some features which candidates might choose for analysis include:
effect of long opening sentence with emphasis finally falling on ‘stopped us’ contrast of ‘silent and apart’ and ‘tipping in unison’
energy and force of the swans in verbs such as ‘rolling’, ‘righting’
use of rain and water to suggest alienation of couple but togetherness of swans e.g. ‘righting in rough weather’
in terms of structure, the contrast of the two long sentences, at start and ending, atmosphere brightens, in ‘stilling water’ and ‘afternoon light’
use of swan imagery to bring couple together, in ‘swim’, ‘folded’ and simile of the ‘wings’
ambiguity of ‘flight’, landing but also running away, now over.
Band 1 responses are likely to be descriptive/narrative in approach and might identify basic features of the relationship without further discussion.Band 2 responses will show some grasp of Sheers’ techniques with some supporting evidence.Band 3 responses will show some clear ideas about how Sheers has used form and language choices to create the couple’s relationship.
Responses at Bands 4 and 5 will show increasing evidence of effective analysis of techniques and detailed critical understanding of the ways in which Sheers has created effects and meanings.
SECTION B:
Mark Allocation AO1 – 10
AO2 – 10
AO3 – 20
AO4 – 30
AO5 – 10 = 80
Seamus Heaney: Field Work (Faber) Owen Sheers: Skirrid Hill (Seren)
Either, 19. “Poets are the record keepers and moral consciences of their times.” In response to this view, explore connections between the ways in which Heaney and Sheers write about memories. You must analyse in detail at least two poems from each of your set texts. [80]
AO1 Informed responses will demonstrate clear understanding of the poems chosen. We will reward creatively engaged responses for thoughtful and individual rather than mechanical/literal approaches. Understanding and application of concepts will be seen in the candidate’s awareness of the conventions of poetry writing. Accuracy and coherence will be seen in the way understanding is used as well as in the candidate’s ability to organise the response in an appropriate academic style and register. Further credit will be given for appropriate use of terminology. Band 1 responses are likely to describe memories with broad and probably asserted ideas. Band 2 responses will be more engaged and organised and will show some grasp of concepts relating to memories. Band 3 responses will show a more consistently relevant focus with clearly expressed ideas. At Bands 4 and 5 there will be evidence of secure understanding of relevant concepts combined with increasingly perceptive and fluent discussion.
AO2 Some features which candidates might choose for analysis include the following. In relation to Heaney:
memories of friends and family, elegies that re-imagine the persons and the nature of their deaths
in The Strand at Lough Beg, creates a dramatic narrative, contrasting what might have happened to Colum in all its fear and danger and its political context with his slow farming life expressed in language that appeals to all the senses, and concluding with the moving and gentle ritual of cleaning the body, ‘I dab you clean with moss Fine as the drizzle out of a low cloud’
the ‘Troubles’ are the context for many of these poems but the individuality of the person, the memories of them, are always the overwhelming focus memories of the person are usually built up by immersion in their physical contexts, familiar objects, as with Sean Armstrong in Postcard from North Antrim, and the listing of ‘Old Bushmills, Soda farls, strong tea, New rope, rock salt, kale plants, Potato’bread and Woodbine…’
particularly strong on recording the physical life of the person remembered, as with Sean O’Riada, fisherman and musician, described in the final lines of the poem as ‘O gannet smacking through scales! Minnow of light. Wader of assonance.’
also remembers his poet friend Lowell, celebrates his courage,in terse, tight quatrains that echo some of the qualities of Lowell’s own verse, and also makes use of an abundance of sea/water/fishing imagery, as in ‘You were our night ferry thudding in a big sea’ and ends with ‘the fish-dart of your eyes’
wider social and political issues are remembered in In Memoriam Francis Ledwidge which packs in WW1 and WW2, mentions the Dardanelles, Ypres, the Balkans, in a family history that raises the difficult political issue of an Irishman fighting ‘in your Tommy’s uniform’.
In relation to Sheers:
memories of outdoor childhood activities in Border Country and Hedge School, the latter exploring a developing moral conscience
memory/record of dead friend in Border Country, set in context of their play and details of natural world, ‘buzzards above us striking their cries against a flint sky’, ‘dock leaves and nettles’ hints of death also in Hedge School as the red of the black berries on his hands suggests blood expressed in the farming images of ‘as bloodied as a butcher’s or a farmer’s at lambing’
other memories connected with death in poems that remember WW1 and WW2, the young Welsh dead in Mametz Wood, the D-Day dead in Happy Accidents and the drowned American soldiers training in Wales in Liable to Flood
Mametz Wood built around the story of farmers digging up bones, Happy Accidents around the story of Robert Capa’s photographs
memories of social changes in Wales, such as closing of Ebbw Vale steelworks, using contrast of present ‘deserted’ and ‘becalmed’ and the active productive past, conveyed in verbs of effort such as ‘pressing’, ‘rolling’, ‘pumping’
memories of countryside activities, like castrating the sheep with his grandfather in Late Spring, with its close attention to the practical details and tactile language, or feeding the chickens in The Equation, equally tactile ‘one egg, warm and bald in his brown palm’ remembering those on the margin of society who also make a contribution, for example The Singing Men. Band 1 responses are like to be descriptive/narrative in approach and might identify basic features of memories without further discussion. Band 2 responses will show some grasp of the poets’s techniques with some supporting evidence. Band 3 responses will show some clear ideas about how Heaney and Sheers have used form and language choices to write about memories. Responses at Bands 4 and 5 will show increasing evidence of effective analysis of techniques and detailed critical understanding of the ways in which Heaney and Sheers have created effects and meanings. AO3
Candidates are likely to consider the following contextual influences:
Heaney: his experience living in the cottage at Glanmore and then in Dublin in the 1970s the influence of other poets and artists, especially Yeats, Lowell, Dante
his response to political events, especially ‘The Troubles’ in Northern Ireland his responses to the deaths of friends and family
his relationship to the Irish landscape and history.
Sheers: his childhood growing up near Abergavenny on the Welsh border
the landscape of the Skirrid and related country activities such as farming his interest in Welsh history and society
travels in Zambia and the USA
literary influences such as RS Thomas, Eliot, Heaney and Larkin.
At lower bands, candidates will show some awareness of contexts in a general and descriptive way. At Band 3 contexts will be clearly linked to texts and the question. At Bands 4 and 5 candidates will show an increasingly confident discussion and analysis of ways in which relevant contexts influence how Heaney and Sheers write about memories.
AO4 Candidates are likely to consider some of the following connections:
both poets write about WW1, both aware of their own nationalities, might compare Mametz Wood with In Memoriam Francis Ledwidge
Heaney more aware of political issues and national history
both show how political events affect the individuals whose lives they have recorded
more emphasis in Sheers on childhood activities and memories, he is much younger
memories of particular farming practices in Sheers contrast with the rich physical contexts in Heaney
Heaney’s focus is often close up, his language densely textured; Sheers is more detached, more narrative based with a walk or journey shaping the poem
At lower bands connections are likely to be described or asserted. At Band 3 connections will be relevant to the question and clearly supported by the texts. At Bands 4 and 5 candidates will support connections by detailed critical reference to the ways in which the poets write about memories.
AO5 Candidates must engage with the view stated in the question. Candidates may approach ‘informed by different interpretations’ in three ways:
by exploring ambiguities in the texts;
by adopting a theory based approach, such as feminism;
by referring to the interpretations of particular critics.
Band 1 interpretations will tend to be asserted or described. At Band 2 candidates will show awareness of plural readings. Band 3 readings will be clearly relevant to the candidate’s argument and the question. At Bands 4 and 5 there will increasing confidence and expertise in the ways different readings are used to contribute to the candidate’s arguments and understanding of the texts.
Or, 20. How far do you agree that Heaney and Sheers are alike in the way their poetry “‘immerses the reader in a rich physical experience of the world”? You must analyse in detail at least two poems from each of your set texts. [80]
AO1 Informed responses will demonstrate clear understanding of the poems chosen. We will reward creatively engaged responses for thoughtful and individual rather than mechanical/literal approaches. Understanding and application of concepts will be seen in the candidate’s awareness of the conventions of poetry writing. Accuracy and coherence will be seen in the way understanding is used as well as in the candidate’s ability to organise the response in an appropriate academic style and register. Further credit will be given for appropriate use of terminology. Band 1 responses are likely to describe experiences of the physical world with broad and probably asserted ideas. Band 2 responses will be more engaged and organised and will show some grasp of concepts relating physical experiences of the world. Band 3 responses will show a more consistently relevant focus with clearly expressed ideas. At Bands 4 and 5 there will be evidence of secure understanding of relevant concepts combined with increasingly perceptive and fluent discussion and clear engagement with the statement in the question.
AO2 Some features which candidates might choose for analysis include the following. In relation to Heaney:
poems tend to begin immediately with physical experience setting the nature of the poem, so ‘My tongue moved, a swung relaxing hinge’, ‘On Devenish I heard a snipe’ – from early poems in the collection
Oysters good example, begins with sound and eating, ‘Our shells clacked on the plates’, with close up of taste and mouth, but then moves out to wider physical context, the geology, ‘driving through limestone’, brings in history of Romans and oysters drenched in language of taste ‘frond-lipped, brine-stung Glut of privilege’
even speaks of poetry in terms of eating, ‘I ate the day deliberately, that its tang might quicken me all into verb, pure verb.’ (Oysters) or in terms of touch, ‘Words entering almost the sense of touch’ (Glanmore Sonnets ii), and usually deeply linked to the earth itself, as in ‘Vowels ploughed into other, opened ground, Each verse returning like the plough turned round.’ (Glanmore Sonnets ii)
recreates farming experience in his elegy for Colum, (The Strand at Lough Beg), showing him fetching the cows in rich tactile language, ‘feelers round Haycocks and hindquarters’ and links him to the land, in life, ‘work our way through squeaking sedge Drowning in dew’, and in death ‘With rushes that shoot green again, I plait Green scapulars to wear over your shroud.’
many examples of characters active and ‘immersed’ in their very personal contexts (‘the proper haunt’) for example ‘Sean…swinging alone…your houseboat Ethnically furnished, Redolent of grass?’ and ‘naturally swimming towards the lure Of lit-up places, The blurred mesh and murmur Drifting among glasses In the gregarious smoke’ (Casualty)
use of rhyme in some poems linking person and nature, as in ‘..what you knew’ and ‘soft treeline of yew’, ‘low cloud’ and ‘your shroud’ (The Strand..), ‘..should come a sound…along the ground’ (Glanmore Sonnets)
personal experiences, contained within the pressure of these dense sonnets written while living at Glanmore, open up memories/links (‘my ghosts come striding’) to childhood, history, literature, love, enriching the physical, as in ‘Boortree is bower tree where I played ‘touching tongues” and explores the effects of the place on his marriage, ‘The empty briar is swishing When I come down, and beyond, your face Haunts like a new moon glimpsed through tangled glass’
uses experience of animal world to express love, as in The Otter and The Skunk, the animals’ physical qualities used to bring body of loved one alive, for example ‘ Your bead-down, tail-up hunt in a bottom drawer For the black plunge-line night dress’.
In relation to Sheers: writes about very physical farming activities like shoeing a horse and castrating sheep
emphasis on hands and touch, in Farrier words like ‘pinches’, ‘runs his hand’, ‘cups’ and ‘slap’
also in another farming poem, Late Spring, with ‘picking’, ‘stretching’, ‘spreading’, ‘clenched fist open’
immerses reader in detailed descriptions of these activities enriched by romantic comparisons, such as ‘a romantic lead dropping to the lips of his lover’
childhood memory of picking blackberries also focuses on hands and touch, ‘Piling in the palm until I cupped a coiled black pearled necklace’ (Hedge School) where the language of touch is enriched by alliteration and assonance and imagery, a density of devices taste also never far away as part of physical experience of the world
love poems also use physical language as in Keyways, built on the extended key image and focusing on the process, the activity of loving, ‘ I held the bow of your hip….my stomach, the small of your back, my knees in the hollows of yours, a master key fit’.
Band 1 responses are likely to be descriptive/narrative in approach and might identify basic features of physical experiences without further discussion. Band 2 responses will show some grasp of the poets’ techniques with some supporting evidence. Band 3 responses will show some clear ideas about how Heaney and Sheers have used form and language choices to write about physical experiences. Responses at Bands 4 and 5 will show increasing evidence of effective analysis of techniques and detailed critical understanding of the ways in which Heaney and Sheers have created effects and meanings.
AO3 Candidates are likely to consider the following contextual influences in relation to physical experiences:
Heaney: his experience living in the cottage at Glanmore and then in Dublin in the 1970s the influence of other poets and artists, especially Yeats, Lowell, Dante his response to political events, especially ‘The Troubles’ in Northern Ireland
his responses to the deaths of friends and family his relationship to the Irish landscape and history.
Sheers: his childhood growing up near Abergavenny on the Welsh border
the landscape of the Skirrid and related country activities such as farming his interest in Welsh history and society
travels in Zambia and the USA
literary influences such as RS Thomas, Eliot, Heaney and Larkin.
At lower bands, candidates will show some awareness of contexts in a general and descriptive way. At Band 3 contexts will be clearly linked to texts and the question. At Bands 4 and 5 candidates will show an increasingly confident discussion and analysis of ways in which relevant contexts influence how Heaney and Sheers write about physical experiences.
AO4 Candidates are likely to consider the following connections:
both write love poems using rich tactile language for example The Skunk and Keyway or extended metaphors as in Song (the magpies) and The Otter
both link characters closely to their natural environments, in language and images which appeal to the senses, for example The Strand at Lough Beg, The Equation
there is often a particular focus on touch, on things done with the hands to bring out the individuality of a person, for example Harvest Bow and The Farrier
physical experiences often linked to familiar and loved places
the physical experience of the world perhaps narrower in range in Sheers; Heaney often moves into historical, literary, political connections, as in Oysters
although Sheers does link language to experience of the landscape, as in Skirrid Fawr, (‘ the sentence of her slope’) it’s in a more general way than in Heaney with his interest in the rich, guttural vocabulary of his countryside
both poets are observant, but there’s a remarkable degree of detail in Heaney, his knowledge of changes in the weather, the seasons, his precise references to particular plants and features of the land.
At lower bands connections will be asserted or described. At Band 3 connections will be relevant to the question and clearly supported by the texts. At Bands 4 and 5 candidates will support connections by detailed critical reference to the ways in which the poets write about physical experiences.
AO5 Candidates must engage with the view stated in the question. Candidates may approach ‘informed by different interpretations’ in three ways:
by exploring ambiguities in the texts;
by adopting a theory based approach, such as feminism;
by referring to the interpretations of particular critics.
Band 1 interpretations will tend to be asserted or described.At Band 2 candidates will show awareness of plural readings. Band 3 readings will be clearly relevant to the candidate’s argument and the question. At Bands 4 and 5 there will be increasing confidence and expertise in the ways different readings are used to contribute to the candidate’s arguments and understanding of the texts.
English Literature Reigns ! 