Contents Introduction
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- Navigate this page:
- Analysis and Evaluation - Language and its Impact
- Word Choice Imagery Sentence Structure Tone
- Three types of connotation POSITIVE
- Positive Neutral Negative
- Look out for jargon (language that is quite specialized)
- Formula Locate
- QUOTE EXPLAIN AND
- Tasks
| Part of the attraction is the sense of control The X Factor gives us: the sense that we can put right wider social wrongs by voting for our favourite contestants and that although our lives are being shaped by forces beyond our control—such as government cutbacks, widespread job losses or social deprivation—the ability to have a say in what happens to others in reality TV shows gives us back a much-needed sense of power.
Q: Explain fully why the sentence “Yet it seems that 21st-century viewers are looking for more than just simple entertainment” works well as a link at this point in the passage. (2) Analysis and Evaluation - Language and its Impact In this next section of the booklet we will focus on Analysis and Evaluation questions, which relate to how, and how well, writers use language to promote their ideas. When you are asked to comment on aspects of language you can choose any of the following to write about: 
Word Choice Imagery Sentence Structure Tone Questions on the Effectiveness of language - Word Choice These questions are really asking you to consider what particular words contribute to meaning (what the writer is trying to say). You should consider not just the denotation (the literal meaning) of the word/s but also its connotations (the ideas or feelings that the word invokes beyond its literal meaning). Three types of connotation POSITIVE – a good thing NEGATIVE – a bad thing NEUTRAL - neither good nor bad, but indifferent, used when the writer does not want to show strong emotions either way Example:
Look out for jargon (language that is quite specialized)
Which of these words would you choose if you were describing the plight of children in a refugee camp? Give a reason for your answer. Working out a writer’s stance on a particular topic can be quite challenging. However, one way is to look closely at the words used.
In the past few years, most of us – even instinctive technophobes like me – have become practised in the dark art of surveillance. When I’m going to meet a stranger at dinner, I’ll routinely feed her name to Google and LexisNexis to find out who she is and what she’s been up to lately. If you know the person’s street address, you can spy on her house with Google Earth, and inspect the state of her roof and how she keeps her garden. A slight tilt of the camera angle, and you’d be able to see into her sock drawer and monitor the bottles in her liquor cabinet. Q: How does the writer’s word choice suggest his disapproval of aspects of the Internet? (2) Sample Answer: The words “dark art” are literally associated with witch-craft (1); hence, there are connotations of evil doing. Here, the writer uses them to suggest that there is something sinister about the way Google can be used to find out information about people. We can conclude from this that he does not approve. (1) Formula Locate the relevant word/s in the passage Write down its literal meaning (where appropriate) Think about how the writer uses it (what is his/her purpose?) Explain its connotative meaning (its emotional impact) Task: Re-read the extract above and then try these.
Formula 
Use a pen to highlight or underline key words QUOTE EXPLAIN AND Task: Read the extract below and answer the questions that follow using the formula provided. Magazines are full of stories of cellulite and the many imaginative and expensive cures available. The question we have to ask ourselves is what is cellulite and which cures work? Reputable scientific research seems to suggest that such miraculous claims are characteristic of quackery, one of the biggest parasitic industries on the planet, ranking with politics, recreational drugs and bad-faith litigation. The word “cellulite” was coined to exploit rich innocents. It has no clear definition, which is why quacks say so little about it. Cellulite amounts to subcutaneous fat tissue that has accumulated to the point where it bulges between strands of connective tissue, forming as untidy grid like mud oozing through a duckboard. It is found mainly in people who are beyond their first youth, and getting rid of cellulite is just getting rid of fat. What makes cellulite so notorious is that it forms most offensively where the body is at least inclined to consume fat deposits, so reducing it takes persistent good dietary sense. No fancy exercise machine, flashy cream or black box changes that. For sound information about a large range of such subjects there are useful, factual, websites which perform an invaluable public service. Use these websites and you will have an antidote to scare stories and a defence against medical fads and scams. Quacks and faddists hate, hate, hate them. Q 1: Identify six words that suggest the writer thinks that the business of curing cellulite is immoral. Q 2: Explain how the connotations of those six words are intended to influence you. Remember to check the mark allocation. If the question is worth 4 marks, you can gain up to 3 marks for quoting and providing one detailed and relevant answer, and an additional 1 mark for a less well developed answer. Alternatively, you might gain 2 marks for providing reasonably two good answers. Tasks: Read the extracts and attempt the questions that follow. Extract 1: (from a speech made in parliament: “Social Networking: A Threat to Young Minds”) At the same time, this constant reassurance – that you are listened to, recognised, and important – is coupled with a distancing from the stress of face-to-face, real-life conversation. Real-life conversations are, after all, far more perilous than those in the cyber world. They occur in real time, with no opportunity to think up clever or witty responses, and they require a sensitivity to voice tone and body language. Moreover, according to the context, and indeed, the person with whom we are conversing, our own delivery will need to adapt. None of these skills are required when chatting on a social networking site. Q. Explain how the writer’s choice of words in the paragraph above makes clear the difference between the two types of communication (real life and cyber world). (4) Extract 2: (from a passage about aircraft pollution: ‘A Doomsday Scenario’) I am desperate for some good news about aviation and its environmental impact. Please someone say that they got the figures wrong. I have always loved the freedom and access that flying brings – who doesn’t? – but in recent years I have descended into near-permanent depression with how to square this urge with at least trying to be a responsible citizen of the planet. Flying is one of life’s pleasures, but is my future – and, more importantly, that of my two young daughters - really going to be one of abstinence from flying, or at best flying by quota, as many environmentalists are now calling for? Directory: 2014 2014 -> For want of a nail 2014 -> The Global Warming that Wasn’t 2014 -> Assembly, No. 3901 state of new jersey 216th legislature 2014 -> Stop Militarizing Law Enforcement Act of 2014 2014 -> Ihbb asian Championships 2014 middle school bowl Round 4 First Quarter 2014 -> Unit: Automotive and Auto Body 2014 -> Ihbb european Championships 2014 Bowl Round 4 First Quarter 2014 -> International History Bee and Bowl 2013-14 Asian Division Question Set Bowl Round Six 2014 -> United states patent and trademark office 2014 -> Walnut creek, ca branch executive committee meeting minutes Download 1.05 Mb. Share with your friends:
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