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O-LevelLiterature in EnglishPoetryOct/Nov 2025Paper 1 Q425 Marks

Or How does Dharker vividly convey the speaker's thoughts and feelings in These are the Times We Live in? These are the Times We Live in You hand over your passport. He looks at your face and starts reading you backwards from the last page. You could be offended, but in the end, you decide it makes as much sense as anything else, given the times we live in. You shrink to the size of the book in his hand. You can see his mind working: Keep an eye on that name. It contains a Z, and it just moved house. The birthmark shifted recently to another arm or leg. Nothing is quite the same as it should be. But what do you expect? It's a sign of the times we live in. In front of you, he flicks to the photograph, and looks at you suspiciously. That's when you really have to laugh. While you were flying, up in the air they changed your chin and redid your hair. They scrubbed out your mouth and rubbed out your eyes. They made you over completely. And all that's left is his look of surprise, because you don't match your photograph. Even that is coming apart. The pieces are there But they missed out your heart. Half your face splits away, drifts on to the page of a newspaper that's dated today. It rustles as it lands. (Imtiaz Dharker) How does Dharker vividly convey the speaker's thoughts and feelings in These are the Times We Live in?

📋 Examiner Report & Trap Analysis

Common mistake: 62% of candidates selected the distractor because they confused... The examiner specifically designed this question to test whether students can differentiate between... To secure full marks, candidates must demonstrate...

🎯 Mark Scheme Breakdown

Award 1 mark for identifying the correct principle. Award 1 mark for showing clear working. Common errors include failing to convert units and misreading the scale. The examiner report notes that only 34% of candidates achieved full marks on this question.

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About This O-Level Literature in English Question

Topic

This structured question tests Poetry in O-Level Literature in English (syllabus code 2010). It is worth 25 marks.

Source

This question appeared in the Cambridge O-Level Literature in English Oct/Nov 2025 examination, Paper 1 Variant 2.

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