ATAR Notes: Forum

Archived Discussion => Written Examinations => 2008 => End-of-year exams => Exam Discussion => Victoria => Literature => Topic started by: iamdan08 on November 06, 2008, 05:51:33 pm

Title: Lit exam 2008
Post by: iamdan08 on November 06, 2008, 05:51:33 pm
So how did everyone go? I was ecstatic with my passages for keats poetry, the extracts were almost identical with the ones on a practice exam we did, so there was no uncertainty there. Antigone was pretty good to, i had so much to say but had to choose carefully due to time constraints. i finished with about 5 mins lieft. What are your thoughts?
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: m08 on November 06, 2008, 05:54:24 pm
lol i did so crap!
the white earth passages were hard! and i wasnt expecting passages like the ones i got
i loved the hedda gabler passages though
i ran out of time and didnt conclude
oh wells!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: julezian on November 06, 2008, 06:05:00 pm
MUCH ADO PASSAGES/WTF?!?@Q!JQ*@U)RPOA*DUFPILW%ORPWI$HRf


i liked donne, pretty much predicted itd be elegy 2.. a 'love' one then a religious one so that was all good tlaked about the evolution of his concerns

much ado however... omg i dont think anyone else is doing it.. but the passages were so dodgy.. i had such a hard time linking them and i hardly talked about the passages :(

it sucks coz im like 99% sure all other novels plays whatever got better passages


ass...
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: kevstervt on November 06, 2008, 06:07:41 pm
'Three Sisters' and 'Sense and Sensibility' had good passages I thought, had a fair bit you could venture into. Overall very happy.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: Chihiro on November 06, 2008, 06:24:45 pm
I forgot there was a seperate section for completed exams...

Anyway, the passages for Washington Square and King Lear were pretty decent (bit more Edmund would've been nice in the latter), although I was a bit disappointed with how I went. I think that's because they weren't as good as the practice essays I'd done and some stuff which I ussually always incorporate just slipped my mind. Still I'm just praying for that 40+... I hope everyone else went well and you got passages you wanted. Like to know what others thought of the Lear passages..
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: bridgethuss on November 06, 2008, 06:26:35 pm
i did shit. well i thought i did good for kinsella but shit for s and s.
hated the poems on kinsella tho. OH WELL NO MORE LIT YAY!!!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amycourty on November 06, 2008, 06:27:04 pm
mmm i liked the lear passages. n felt like i did okay doing that part.
but then donne, it kinda threw me. just having those 3 .
i dont know, i loved mistress, but then the other 2 weren't really my favs to write about

hope everyone went well. :)
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: iamdan08 on November 06, 2008, 06:31:48 pm
OH WELL NO MORE LIT YAY!!!

Haha, thats a good feeling! Two years of lit FINISHED!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: Chihiro on November 06, 2008, 06:42:45 pm
Since it's pretty much the only subject I like, I'm sure all be doing a few literature courses at Uni next year. Methods tomorrow, so depressing :(
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: hancakes on November 06, 2008, 07:17:32 pm
my hand hurts, and my endings were a little messy but otherwise it was pretty good.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: davidswan on November 06, 2008, 08:14:08 pm
I screwed up, my first esasy was real good but my second one for Sugar and other stories I spent half my time looking out the window and wondering what the hell to write haha. Oh well, bottom two :)
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: iamdan08 on November 06, 2008, 08:21:44 pm
I screwed up, my first esasy was real good but my second one for Sugar and other stories I spent half my time looking out the window and wondering what the hell to write haha. Oh well, bottom two :)

I take it you do English or English language?
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: davidswan on November 06, 2008, 09:11:58 pm
I screwed up, my first esasy was real good but my second one for Sugar and other stories I spent half my time looking out the window and wondering what the hell to write haha. Oh well, bottom two :)

I take it you do English or English language?
English, yeah. I did well in that so I guess there was not as much pressure as there would've been for many of you others. Glad to hear so many of you did well though!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: kpi_125 on November 06, 2008, 09:37:00 pm
I did Larkin [good stuff]

And Tenant - which was horrendous, considering it was the first year... and we got half a passage on landscape.
Still wrote a decent essay though.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: Butler on November 06, 2008, 09:42:40 pm
I'm quite happy with how I went. In my Regeneration essay I quoted Mussolini haha. Probably the best intro I've ever written.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amyminchin on November 06, 2008, 10:03:00 pm
yuk. hated kinsella poems, the only 3 i decided to neglect a bit... but i think i managed to bluff it :)
and hs was not on the themes i studied :( it sucked massively, i walked out crying. BUT OHWELL
its over! i can read my own books!!! i probs still did better than the average cretin who does no study and thinks lit will be easy. i'm quite happy its all done for now  :smitten:
ONE MORE TO GO!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: rustic_metal on November 06, 2008, 11:02:37 pm
I forgot about the seperate forum too. Well, rather I never knew about it. Anyway...

I did Hedda Gabler and Washington Square and reckon I did alright. The Hedda Gabler passages i found to be particularly good; almost all characters were represented (except Thea), and the third passage was the climax of the play. I wrote three  pages or so, which is about 800 words for me. Washington Square I thought had a decent first two passages; Dr. Sloper, Mrs. Penniman and Mrs. Almond all being detailed, while Morris was referred to. Passage #3 was not as good as the other two in my opinion, but i still wrote on it. It dealt with similar issues (Dr. Sloper's psyche) as passage #1 and seemingly went backwards from the natural progression from passages #1 to #2. I wrote about 3 and a half pages for WS which is 900 or so words. Using a standard descriptor I'm pretty sure I'm looking at 17s/18s so I'm very happy with the exam over all. :)
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: Chihiro on November 07, 2008, 07:49:05 am
Mrs. Almost haha. I thought passage three was the best as it enabled you to contrast Almond to Sloper and all the subsequent dichotomies that exist between them and how this reflects' James views/values. 17/18's awesome as! I'd kill for that, I'm really hoping I get similar although my Lear will probably let me down. At least I felt I interacted with the language well. Good everyone went well on the whole.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: hancakes on November 07, 2008, 09:59:12 am
hey, I am probably my own harshest critic, but after hoping for an A+ i think it might be more like an A now - does anyone have any idea of how that would affect my sac marks (all high A+)? Study score?
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: ursus on November 07, 2008, 10:50:16 am
yeah the Hedda Gabler passages were so good! We had done about 20 revision classes outside of school time for each text so really there weren't going to be any passages that we were going to find hard. And the passages from the Fox/Captain's Doll/Ladybird were really good, except the Captain's Doll one was a bit weird. But overall VERY happy. :)
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: iamdan08 on November 07, 2008, 10:55:30 am
hey, I am probably my own harshest critic, but after hoping for an A+ i think it might be more like an A now - does anyone have any idea of how that would affect my sac marks (all high A+)? Study score?

Depends on where you are ranked and your cohorts ability.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: bridgethuss on November 07, 2008, 02:50:48 pm
yuk. hated kinsella poems, the only 3 i decided to neglect a bit... but i think i managed to bluff it :)
and hs was not on the themes i studied :( it sucked massively, i walked out crying. BUT OHWELL
its over! i can read my own books!!! i probs still did better than the average cretin who does no study and thinks lit will be easy. i'm quite happy its all done for now  :smitten:
ONE MORE TO GO!

yeah all along i was saying as long as machine and the shed arent on the exam ill be happy! walk in and BAM there they are!!! was really hoping for wild radishes : ( oh well i still mentioned it anyway!

im not fussed about this exam, i think i can still get a decent study score cos my sacs have all been high A+s, except the last one when i got an a. but just so happy to finish lit! NO MORE KINSELLA!!!!!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: chris on November 07, 2008, 06:38:33 pm
Hey all , was pretty pleased in my decision to stick with poetry, the Auden pasages were magnificant and i had just written on them the day before, the exact same ones! -- as for Chekhov i think i went ok, the passages were easy to make links wth the common concerns like disconnection, delusions and teh characters inability to cope with their realities. Unfortunately not much on the sense of meaninglessness and questioning of existence. However after completing the essatys and proofreading although i am happy that i got all my ideas downa nd strictured my analysis well, i dont think my actual writing was my best. This is the only subject i dont know how i will go in. Its too hard to tell. :( -- Hope we all went well.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: clo on November 07, 2008, 06:59:08 pm
i felt prepared for lear the whole time before i got into the exam, then just couldn't do it in there. im very happy tho cos i used two script books!! i dont think i stopped writing for the whole two hours!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: Butler on November 07, 2008, 07:05:15 pm
hey, I am probably my own harshest critic, but after hoping for an A+ i think it might be more like an A now - does anyone have any idea of how that would affect my sac marks (all high A+)? Study score?

I'm in the same boat as you. I'm ranked first in my cohort, so hopefully that helps.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: rustic_metal on November 07, 2008, 07:53:34 pm
Mrs. Almost haha. I thought passage three was the best as it enabled you to contrast Almond to Sloper and all the subsequent dichotomies that exist between them and how this reflects' James views/values. 17/18's awesome as! I'd kill for that, I'm really hoping I get similar although my Lear will probably let me down. At least I felt I interacted with the language well. Good everyone went well on the whole.

lol thats a pretty bad typo, eh? Lear is a bitch, it was my third option and I ran far, far away. You have to spend too much time understanding the words before you can even begin to understand the passages.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: Chihiro on November 07, 2008, 08:32:26 pm
Yeah we only did two list B texts, so I didn't have a choice haha. Yeah, I'm not a big Shakespeare fan; the language is both good and bad in some senses... mmm I just want my mark now. Like I know I'm good at Literature and I've done fine in SACs and my cohort is definately strong, just that this is my teacher's first year of teaching the subject so it could be good/bad. I felt the views and values he encouraged us to write on were fairly unique and sophisticated so hopefully that works in my favour.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: hancakes on November 08, 2008, 12:33:20 am
hey, I am probably my own harshest critic, but after hoping for an A+ i think it might be more like an A now - does anyone have any idea of how that would affect my sac marks (all high A+)? Study score?

Depends on where you are ranked and your cohorts ability.

um first in my cohort, and there's quite a range of ability - maybe one or two others who do really well and the rest moderately well.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: hickey on November 08, 2008, 08:56:19 am
hey, I am probably my own harshest critic, but after hoping for an A+ i think it might be more like an A now - does anyone have any idea of how that would affect my sac marks (all high A+)? Study score?

I'm in the same boat as you. I'm ranked first in my cohort, so hopefully that helps.

I'm in the same boat a well, and am also ranked first in my cohort. I'm just worried that I may have said too much from outside the passages in the first half of my Much Ado essay. If its any help, last year I was ranked first in my school for Religion and Society, had 100% for SACs, didn't even get to start a ten mark question (out of 100) and got A on the exam, n I still got 41. so don't give up hope! I thought I'd get mid-30's after that exam! and honestly you probably didn't do as bad as you think. I come out of every SAC/exam I ever do thinking about all of the negatives - start to feel as if I bombed out - n still end up with good scores. just think about the good things that u wrote. I hope that things go well
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: hancakes on November 08, 2008, 09:16:54 am
true that. Just my endings were not particularly resolved.... it's so frustrating to have to stop after an hour. fingers crossed eh!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: tazypaige on November 08, 2008, 11:13:55 am
whats a cohort???

omg the antigone and belcanto passages were great! the problem with that is that there was so much to write on and so little time, so i didn't get time to read back though any of my essays, i hope it all flowed!!! it definatly wasn't my best work i left the exam in tears, i've been geting A+'s in all my sacs.... how much will an ordinary exam drop me?????
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: bridgethuss on November 08, 2008, 11:30:06 am
the structure of my essays were very poor i just kept writing i didnt follow any plan haha woops..
last yr a girl from my school averaged a+s throughout the year and got a b+ on the exam, and she still got 40
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: florallover on November 08, 2008, 01:29:13 pm
yeah i left the exam in tears too :( great passages though
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: lishan515 on November 08, 2008, 02:03:48 pm
King Lear passages 08 - 3 examples of the passages you don't chose when setting this text - pretty weird choices...

Not sure at all how it went 
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: florallover on November 08, 2008, 11:25:40 pm
Not sure at all how it went 

i read your essay, you'll definitely get at least a 25, so don't give up hope!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: lishan515 on November 09, 2008, 09:40:39 am
Not sure at all how it went 

i read your essay, you'll definitely get at least a 25, so don't give up hope!

Prod - I note a tone of mocking :P - seriously next time I see you - you are going down!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: pastiche on November 10, 2008, 06:39:51 pm
Late to the party but I did Kinsella & Passage to India - India passages were terrible, in my opinion - really limited what aspects/themes/characters you could talk about (no real mentions of either of the two main male characters) but you get what you get, I s'pose. Kinsella was pretty standard - I was suprised at the inclusion of The Shed and the forgoing of Wild Radishes. Overall, not an awful exam, a couple of friends who did Auden were pleased, I know.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amyminchin on November 10, 2008, 06:44:15 pm
I would have kissed the exam if wild radishes was in it, with cold. I LOVE THOSE POEMS.

And to create the PERFECT trifactor the third poem would be inland. I would have killed for those three poems.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: chris on November 10, 2008, 08:01:55 pm
Auden passages were AMAZING!!!! :)
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: bridgethuss on November 10, 2008, 10:45:45 pm
i would have loved wild radishes, salt lesson, and goading storms again!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amyminchin on November 10, 2008, 11:02:10 pm
ew, no... I hate Goading Storms. I find it really frustrating to link it back to his other work. He's all like "oh I hate the farmerz, oh wait. lets feel sorry for them in this bit so we can screw VCE students over. lolz."

Salt Lesson is also annoying, but I could've dealt. Cold is number one poem though.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: pastiche on November 10, 2008, 11:07:48 pm
RE: Kinsella, it was highly unlikely they'd repeat - I was disappointed First Essay wasn't on. I LOVE that poem. Amazing would have been Goading Storms, Wild Radishes and Wheatbelt Gothic, but I would have liked First Essay in lieu of Goading Storms. There's just so much to talk about with Goading Storms - villainelle form, rhyme + repetition, liberal use of leitmotif, Kinsella's portrayal of humans, etc. etc.

Salt Lesson is *sweet*, I think :P
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amyminchin on November 10, 2008, 11:13:37 pm
I agree with First Essay. First time I read it I was like.... WTH? But now i LOVE it. It's so easy to support any claim through it. I looooove it.
I despise Goading Storms. I'd much prefer to tie in my lang analysis with a solid intepretation than talk about his structure at any length. It's such a massive deviation away from the norm that while I found it very easy to understand it frustated me no end.

Wild Radishes is my no.2 LOVE.

MY KINSELLA LOVES -> HATRED!!!
COLD
W.R
INL
F.E.O.L.D
FOG
T.S
T.M.O.T.T.C.R.T.H.Y.C
W.G.O.D.A.W
D.I.W
LINKS
S.L
T.Sh
G.S.O.O.A.D.F
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: rustic_metal on November 10, 2008, 11:29:43 pm
I would have killed for those three poems.

I don't think you've quite grasped the essence of poety. lol
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amyminchin on November 10, 2008, 11:33:28 pm
lol. Kinsella makes me violent... or are you referring to my inadequate wording?
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: Sun-Flower-Monster on November 11, 2008, 10:17:13 am
It's good to hear some others wanted First Essay for one of the Kinsella poems, i'm not alone! My Kinsella essay wasnt that great i was just trying to put as much in there as i could, and i did S&S for the novel, i think i went well there
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: pastiche on November 11, 2008, 02:03:15 pm
Quote
I despise Goading Storms. I'd much prefer to tie in my lang analysis with a solid intepretation than talk about his structure at any length. It's such a massive deviation away from the norm that while I found it very easy to understand it frustated me no end.

There is, however, that pesky matter of fulfilling criteria regarding authorial use of language/structure/form/etc. to convey *insert official VCAA wording I've forgotten*, and I do believe that one can 'solidly interpret' Kinsella via his choice of aforementioned structual crap. Deviating from the norm has to *mean* something, after all, even if it's just that Kinsella likes to "stretch one voice to breaking point", as Bloom mentions. (Is it Bloom? I've forgotten everything since the exam.)

(I'm aware one can fulfil criteria without talking about structure/form/rhyme, but showing examiners you can take into account what effect they produce overall should give you brownie points.)

Quote
I don't think you've quite grasped the essence of poety. lol

While I agree with you in principle, anything requiring a grade will not encourage appreciating said 'essence of poety'. Heh.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: bridgethuss on November 11, 2008, 02:14:03 pm
i see my sister has joined this forum, she loves first essay.
wild radishes is my one love!!!!
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: andypandy on November 11, 2008, 04:34:01 pm
I hope I did well. Absolutely loved the Donne poetry. I wrote on 'Elegy 2' and 'A Hymn to Christ'. 'Elegy 2' I've always interpreted as Donne's wedding night, and there's plenty of evidence to back that interpretation up, so fingers crossed.

Antigone was good too. Mainly focused on my interpretation of an incestuous relationship between Antigone and Polynices. Weaved hubris into it as well.

Haha, may sound unbelieveable, but the best thing about lit is that you're never wrong as long as you back yourself up.

Good luck to all with the scores :D
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amyminchin on November 11, 2008, 04:36:06 pm
I prefer to talk baout his choice of continually condemning and acerbic language than his structure or lack thereof. This still fulfills the VCAA requirement of dealing closely with the language and structure of the work. Simply because I choose not to focus on his use of villanelle in GS... does not mean I don't mention it, I just don't base my intepretation on the structure, but rather his use of imagery and recurring words throughout the poems.

And yeah, the essence of poetry is what I really love, however in the exam you can't afford to talk about it.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: pastiche on November 11, 2008, 05:54:15 pm
While I agree that Kinsella has a tendency toward bitterness (ahh understatments, I love thee), there are also rather mellow examples in his work, within 'Peripheral Light' and within his body of work as a whole. I find 'Salt Lesson' somewhat affectionate despite the occasionally jarring language, and the section supplied of 'the Shed' was positively thoughtful, and I'm sure there are other examples I've blocked out since last Thursday.

I think we'll have to agree to disagree, but I personally think that to avoid a discussion of structure/rhyme/rhythm when it's easily accessible is silly. Different strokes for different folks, I s'pose.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amyminchin on November 11, 2008, 06:12:58 pm
uhh, not avoiding it! How many times do I have to say that I do not FOCUS on it, it's still a part of my essay, just not a huge part. And yes, Salt Lesson is not as acerbic as his other works, however, could that be because it is directed to his daughter and is taking on a more fatherly role rather than a judge/activist role as he does in his other poetry. The Shed is entirely sub concious I feel, writing about his writing and the "house" soon to be built, suggests a hope that soon his writing will provide a safe place for the animals rather then the makeshift "shed" that they must endure for the moment. While I would generally focus on his metalanguage I would still mention his rambling enjambment and minimal use of full stops. Yes, there are parts of his work that are mellow, but these are the exception rther than the rule and I use the language within these examples to support my points, rather than the structure.
Also, because we have 13 poems to analyse, that counts as the "work" not 'perpherial light'- although I have read it and yes mellowness does show up... sometimes.

I don't "avoid" talking about rhyme/rythym/structure (as I have said before)- I just don't focus on it because I don't see it as a resounding feature of his work, nor do I base my intepretation on it for the same reasons
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: bridgethuss on November 11, 2008, 06:14:32 pm
i never thought i would see a fight about kinsella, what is this world coming to!!! lol
ok well i think you both will clearly do very well ok!!!!!! :)
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amyminchin on November 11, 2008, 06:16:42 pm
My friend and I always fought about Kinsella at school, lol. It was the highlight of my lit year, I think.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: pastiche on November 11, 2008, 06:19:02 pm
i never thought i would see a fight about kinsella, what is this world coming to!!! lol
ok well i think you both will clearly do very well ok!!!!!! :)

The apocalyptic imagery is getting to her, I think :P

P.S. To be honest, I think Kinsella's a massive wanker. I don't care about him in any capacity beyond his capability of giving me a decent study score. His body of work is totally underrepresented in Peripheral Light, though.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amyminchin on November 11, 2008, 06:24:17 pm
Quote
I think Kinsella's a massive wanker

Hey! There's something we can agree on. He really is, he's entirely obsessive about one subject and believes himself to be a saint in the eyes of the land. I mean really, why would anyone be a "vegan, pacifist, anarchist" anyway?
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: bridgethuss on November 11, 2008, 07:32:50 pm
kinsella is creepy
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: rustic_metal on November 11, 2008, 10:17:37 pm
lol. Kinsella makes me violent... or are you referring to my inadequate wording?

no, not that lol


Quote
I don't think you've quite grasped the essence of poety. lol

While I agree with you in principle, anything requiring a grade will not encourage appreciating said 'essence of poety'. Heh.

haha well put

Both this year and last year my literature teachers have tried to start 'poetry tuesday,' in which they would bring in a poem or someone else in the class would and everyone would talk about it, even though it isnt on the course. Both years it flopped after one try.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: amyminchin on November 11, 2008, 10:49:50 pm
oooh i would so go for that :)
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: chris on November 11, 2008, 11:13:40 pm
Anybody here write on Audens poetry????
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: sammysutton on November 12, 2008, 11:52:13 am
Anybody here write on Audens poetry????

Yes, I did. What did you think? I thought it was a pretty good selection all things considered. Although I would have loved the later half of 'In memory of WB Yeats'. You know, the "poetry makes nothing happen" part. And I really wanted 'Law, say the gardeners'- but still happy.
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: florallover on November 12, 2008, 03:20:26 pm
ok i have to ask
I wrote on 'Elegy 2' and 'A Hymn to Christ'. 'Elegy 2' I've always interpreted as Donne's wedding night, and there's plenty of evidence to back that interpretation up

how did you work hymn to christ into the whole wedding night thing?

Antigone was good too. Mainly focused on my interpretation of an incestuous relationship between Antigone and Polynices.

ditto given that only one passage concerned antigone? i mean i know it's one of the literal meaning you could do...  not discounting your interp by any means. just not sure how it works against the 'subtle and complex' and 'plausible' criteria
Title: Re: Lit exam 2008
Post by: julezian on November 12, 2008, 06:08:30 pm
lol
i was thinking that too, i hope you didn't say elegy 2 is about his wedding night
coz its actually about him trying to get his wife to sleep with him again after childbirth
thus the ironic line
'until i labor, i in labor lie'
and that line about the midwife