English Advanced Question Thread

[hanaacdr]

HI guys
would anyone know what technique this is?
"elegant female"
or
"delicacy of her sex"
these are from Fay Weldon's Letters to Alice

thank you

[elysepopplewell]

HI guys
would anyone know what technique this is?
"elegant female"
or
"delicacy of her sex"
these are from Fay Weldon's Letters to Alice

thank you

Hey hanaacdr
I wonder what the context of these snippets are? For the first one, elegant is an adjective. You can talk about the choice of adjective and the connotations of elegant...pertaining to class, movement, femininity.. etc. Word choice is a technique in itself, the author choice "elegant" with a purpose. With delicacy of her sex...more difficult because I don't know the context. Sex as in gender? Or sex as in intercourse? In the case of sex as in, female, I wonder if it is metonymy for her entire being. The delicacy of her emotions, her social status, her relationships, and everything else that's tied with her gendered existence? I don't know the texts well at all I'm sorry, so if you can provide a little context I might be able to be more helpful!

[elysepopplewell]

Hello
I need help writing a thesis statement for this question
Not a very clear question...

Question:
The stimulus conveys the idea that human beings possess a natural proclivity to make distinctions based on conceived biases and prejudices. This sense of distinction initiates conflict, impinging upon the creation of equality and equity through an absence of positive and familiar interactions.
To what extent do the ideas contained in this stimulus text hold true in relation to the issues presented in your prescribed texts of study: To Kill a Mockingbird and Ruby Bridges.
(In your response you should focus closely on your prescribed texts’ contexts, perspectives, attitudes and values while drawing connections to ideas presented in the stimulus texts)

Thanks!

Hey Mel...this question is crazy! It's worth knowing that the HSC question would never, ever be this complicated for discovery. In your thesis statement, you should be responding to the notion presented: Humans have a natural tendency to make distinctions/opinions/perspectives based on pre-conceived ideas. Do you think this is true in your texts? The next part to address, is what this distinction causes? Conflict? Questioning? I'd approach these two ideas first, and then as a later argument, or a part of your introduction (but not the opening sentence) I'd identify the equality or equity the question specifies, and the interactions. This is an extremely complicated question, so I'd make my thesis about the first two notions, and leave the product of the notion until later, rather than privileging it as the main idea.

Does this maybe give you a bit of direction?

[dradford]

]
Hey dradford! It's been a long time since I've read Poe's work. If you go to this link here I have written up a small paragraph on this text with some links to resources (in the Short Stories spoiler tag). I can propose some ideas for you, but I can't verify that they'd slide in perfectly with the text because I'm going off a vague recollection. So...
Perhaps the explored insanity, but also very calculated, meticulously, observation, of the protagonist can be a reflection of self in the world. The self is inwardly tortured and mad, but outwardly, composed and civil. The world expects him to be civil and composed, but he knows himself he is mental. The idea of truth is paramount to discovery, I believe. So what is truth to the self? And then what is truth to the world? How is there a discrepancy between these two? How do they align? How does self and world have differing values? How does the reader discover this?

Am I on the right track, does this prompt anything? I'm sorry if I'm not much help, if it's just not helping I can re-read the text and give my thoughts if you're really stuck

Hey Elyse,

Thank you!! This helps a lot but I was wondering do you think I would be able to use it in conjunction with The Tempest where I am exploring Prospero's personal growth and how he learns to forgive Antonio (etc.) through discovering Miranda and Ferdinands love and Ariel - I'm not really sure how to link the ideas you have suggested to those I'm using for the Tempest?

[MEL7401]

Hey Mel...this question is crazy! It's worth knowing that the HSC question would never, ever be this complicated for discovery. In your thesis statement, you should be responding to the notion presented: Humans have a natural tendency to make distinctions/opinions/perspectives based on pre-conceived ideas. Do you think this is true in your texts? The next part to address, is what this distinction causes? Conflict? Questioning? I'd approach these two ideas first, and then as a later argument, or a part of your introduction (but not the opening sentence) I'd identify the equality or equity the question specifies, and the interactions. This is an extremely complicated question, so I'd make my thesis about the first two notions, and leave the product of the notion until later, rather than privileging it as the main idea.

Does this maybe give you a bit of direction?

Thanks so much Elyse!!
Definitely helps
Would it make sense if I said something like this:

Thesis Statement: As social creatures we possess a natural tendency to create opinions and stereotypical perspectives based on preconceived biases and prejudices.
Amplify: This expected proclivity creates a distinction that causes the formation of a predetermined schema, giving rise to conflicts between characters and impacting those with prejudice and victims of prejudice. These issues are evident to a significant extent in Harper Lee’s, To Kill a Mockingbird and Euzhan Palcy’s, Ruby Bridges.
List Arguments: Formation of Prejudices, Conflict that arises from prejudices, Impact of prejudices on people

I'm not sure whether the thesis statement is explained very well...

Our Module A topic is Comparative Study of Texts and Contexts

Thanks again 

[fr123_]

I am struggling to find good belonging AOS related texts. Any suggestions?

[Sukakadonkadonk]

I am struggling to find good belonging AOS related texts. Any suggestions?

I really enjoyed Edward Scissorhands I did back in stage 5, it has big ideas on exploring the perspective of being an outcast I recall. Also I am doing the poem Ulysses by Alfred, Lord Tennyson which you can really talk about discovery or belonging.

Are you doing "Belonging" for Area of Study? I thought everyone was doing discovery this year?

[Arisa_90]

Hi I was wondering if I could have some help with anecdotes.
I have trouble identifying them in text. Are there key things that can help in identifying them?
Can I also have help with finding the definitions of these things?

•Stylistic detail
•Voice
•Figurative language
•Passage and text structure

[elysepopplewell]

Thanks so much Elyse!!
Definitely helps
Would it make sense if I said something like this:

Thesis Statement: As social creatures we possess a natural tendency to create opinions and stereotypical perspectives based on preconceived biases and prejudices.
Amplify: This expected proclivity creates a distinction that causes the formation of a predetermined schema, giving rise to conflicts between characters and impacting those with prejudice and victims of prejudice. These issues are evident to a significant extent in Harper Lee’s, To Kill a Mockingbird and Euzhan Palcy’s, Ruby Bridges.
List Arguments: Formation of Prejudices, Conflict that arises from prejudices, Impact of prejudices on people

I'm not sure whether the thesis statement is explained very well...

Our Module A topic is Comparative Study of Texts and Contexts

Thanks again 

Good effort Mel! I'd personally swap the "we" for "humans" in the first one. I can't flaw this at all, I think you've tamed the wild beast! That was an insanely demanding question but I think you responded to it beautifully!

[jamonwindeyer]

Hi I was wondering if I could have some help with anecdotes.
I have trouble identifying them in text. Are there key things that can help in identifying them?
Can I also have help with finding the definitions of these things?

•Stylistic detail
•Voice
•Figurative language
•Passage and text structure

Finding an anecdote is sort of like trying to find your glasses when they are already on your head. Like this one time, I spent 20 minutes looking for my sunglasses at the beach before I realised they were on my head. Turns out my girlfriend had just been laughing at me behind my back the whole time. Just like my sunnies, anecdotes are normally pretty easy to see, if you just remember what they are

Anecdote: A short, often amusing/comedic personal story that is used to add meaning to a situation. See what I did up there? ^

Look for words that try to draw analogies between a current situation and a past one. Any time a character goes off track and starts telling old stories from their life, it is probably an anecdote

Stylistic Detail: Broad term, encompasses the various typical compositional details associated with a style. For example, the fact that novels associated with romanticism typically have lots of natural imagery and verbose word choice.

Voice: Sort of like what the reader hears in their head when the text is read or said. It's to do with tone, language choice, all sorts of stuff, but its the general demeanour/approach the author takes to the text.

Figurative Language: Saying something is or is like something that it isn't - Similes, metaphors, personification etc

Text Structure: Could be Start, Middle, End. Could be Orientation, Complication, Climax, Resolution, etc. Just the way that a text moves from one section into the next - It can be defined in many ways.

Hope that helps

[Arisa_90]

Finding an anecdote is sort of like trying to find your glasses when they are already on your head. Like this one time, I spent 20 minutes looking for my sunglasses at the beach before I realised they were on my head. Turns out my girlfriend had just been laughing at me behind my back the whole time. Just like my sunnies, anecdotes are normally pretty easy to see, if you just remember what they are

Would this all be an anecdote?
Thank you for your help 

[MEL7401]

Good effort Mel! I'd personally swap the "we" for "humans" in the first one. I can't flaw this at all, I think you've tamed the wild beast! That was an insanely demanding question but I think you responded to it beautifully!

Thanks to you!!
I might post my completed speech on for marking....

[elysepopplewell]

Would this all be an anecdote?
Thank you for your help 

Absolutely!

Thanks to you!!
I might post my completed speech on for marking....

Absolutely, we're happy to help out with that!

[grace.estelle]

Hi, I have an in-class essay coming up for AOS discovery and all I've been told is that it will be on speculation/role of speculation in the discovery process. Could someone suggest some ways for tackling possible questions related to 'speculate about future possibilities'? My prescribed text is Shakespeare's The Tempest and I've chosen J.K. Rowling's The Fringe Benefit's of Failure and the Importance of Imagination (speech) as a related.

[sudodds]

Hi, I have an in-class essay coming up for AOS discovery and all I've been told is that it will be on speculation/role of speculation in the discovery process. Could someone suggest some ways for tackling possible questions related to 'speculate about future possibilities'? My prescribed text is Shakespeare's The Tempest and I've chosen J.K. Rowling's The Fringe Benefit's of Failure and the Importance of Imagination (speech) as a related.

Hey! Some things that you could maybe discuss (in relation to the Tempest - I'm not familiar with your related text ) include:

- Prospero's inability to look towards the future for the majority of the play, only focusing on the past (the wrongs done to him by Alonso and Antonio). He is able to speculate on future possibilities only when he forgives his transgessors, and relinquishes this intense desire for retribution. This takes the form of planning to retake his dukedom, and fulfill his ducal responsibilities.

- Miranda is constantly speculating on future possibilities throughout the play as the more inquisitive character - particularly her future with Ferdinand.

- Ariel constantly thinking about and anticipating his future freedom from servitude.

- Alonso and Antonio, when confronted by Ariel's mirage during the Banquet scene, speculate on their past wrong doings, and how these wrongdoings will be avenged in the future.

Hope this helps! It's not too detailed and obviously some points are more important than others, but hopefully it gives you a good place to start