The following text is the opening of the novel A Fine Balance, by Rohinton Mistry. The novel is set in India in the 1970s. Dina Dalal seldom indulged in looking back at her life Content removed due to copyright restrictions. Enlisting him would have ruined any chance of changing her husband's mind.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (Feb/Mar 2016). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [15] Band 1 (13-15 marks) - Knowledge and Understanding: Shows perceptive appreciation of content and ideas. Fluidly relates content to structure, form, audience, purpose, genre, style. Shows keen awareness of intentions of passage. Analysis of language effects: Analyses text with sensitive and discriminating awareness of how language creates effects. Moves with ease between part and whole in discussing specific examples of language use and the effect of the whole passage. Organisation: Strong structure; may be concise; quotation is used fluently, 'embedded' in the argument.
2. [10] Band 8-10 marks: A perceptive recognition of context, audience, form, and purpose supported by a good range of appropriate vocabulary and expression suitable for the task. Responses at the top of this band will be persuasive and confident, supported by a consistent, and at best personal, engagement with context and purpose, using fluent and accurate expression accompanied by a strong sense of audience.