Skip to main content
O-LevelLiterature in EnglishProseMay/June 2023Paper 1 Q1325 Marks

HENRY JAMES: Washington Square Remember to support your ideas with details from the writing. Either 13 Read this passage, and then answer the question that follows it: Morris Townsend came again, some five days afterwards; but Dr Sloper was not called, as he was absent from home at the time. Catherine was with her aunt when the young man's name was brought in, and Mrs Penniman, effacing herself and protesting, made a great point of her niece's going into the drawing-room alone. 'This time it's for you – for you only,' she said. 'Before, when he talked to me, it was only preliminary – it was to gain my confidence. Literally, my dear, I should not have the courage to show myself to-day.' And this was perfectly true. Mrs Penniman was not a brave woman, and Morris Townsend had struck her as a young man of great force of character, and of remarkable powers of satire; a keen, resolute, brilliant nature, with which one must exercise a great deal of tact. She said to herself that he was 'imperious', and she liked the word and the idea. She was not the least jealous of her niece, and she had been perfectly happy with Mr Penniman, but in the bottom of her heart she permitted herself the observation: 'That's the sort of husband I should have had!' He was certainly much more imperious – she ended by calling it imperial – than Mr Penniman. So Catherine saw Mr Townsend alone, and her aunt did not come in even at the end of the visit. The visit was a long one; he sat there in the front parlour, in the biggest arm-chair – for more than an hour. He seemed more at home this time more familiar; lounging a little in the chair, slapping a cushion that was near him with his stick, and looking round the room a good deal, and at the objects it contained, as well as at Catherine; whom, however, he also contemplated freely. There was a smile of respectful devotion in his handsome eyes which seemed to Catherine almost solemnly beautiful; it made her think of a young knight in a poem. His talk, however, was not particularly knightly; it was light and easy and friendly; it took a practical turn, and he asked a number of questions about herself - what were her tastes - if she liked this and that - what were her habits. He said to her, with his charming smile, 'Tell me about yourself; give me a little sketch.' Catherine had very little to tell, and she had no talent for sketching; but before he went she had confided to him that she had a secret passion for the theatre, which had been but scantily gratified, and a taste for operatic music – that of Bellini and Donizetti, in especial (it must be remembered in extenuation of this primitive young woman that she held these opinions in an age of general darkness) – which she rarely had an occasion to hear, except on the hand-organ. She confessed that she was not particularly fond of literature. Morris Townsend agreed with her that books were tiresome things; only, as he said, you had to read a good many before you found it out. He had been to places that people had written books about, and they were not a bit like the descriptions. To see for yourself – that was the great thing; he always tried to see for himself. He had seen all the principal actors – he had been to all the best theatres in London and Paris. But the actors were always like the authors they always exaggerated. He liked everything to be natural. Suddenly he stopped, looking at Catherine with his smile. 'That's what I like you for; you are so natural! Excuse me,' he added; 'you see I am natural myself!' (from Chapter 6)

✓ Correct Answer

The correct answer is . This question tests the candidate's understanding of prose within the Literature in Englishsyllabus. The examiner's mark scheme requires...

📋 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...

🔒

Unlock the Examiner's Answer

Sign up for free to reveal the correct answer, the official mark scheme breakdown, and the examiner trap analysis for this question.

Sign Up Free to Unlock →

Join thousands of Cambridge students already using Oracle Prep

About This O-Level Literature in English Question

This structured question appeared in the Cambridge O-Level Literature in English (2010) May/June 2023 examination, Paper 1 Variant 2. It tests the topic of Prose and is worth 25 marks.

Oracle Prep provides AI-powered practice for all Cambridge O-Level and A-Level subjects. Our platform includes topic predictions with 87.7% accuracy, AI essay grading, and a comprehensive question bank spanning 25 years of past papers.

© 2026 Oracle Prep — The AI-Powered Cambridge Exam Engine