Cambridge &amp; Pearson Edexcel Past Paper Questions

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: Leonato: Which is the villain? Let me see his eyes, That when I note another man ...

Well-intentioned and honourable. Scheming and untrustworthy. Which is closer to your view of Don Pedro? Support your answer with details from Shak...

You are Hero. You have just woken on the morning of your marriage to Claudio (in Act 3, not Act 5). Write your thoughts.

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: York: Grandam, one night as we did sit at supper, My uncle Rivers talk'd how I di...

How do you think Shakespeare makes Richard such a lively and humorous character? Support your argument with details from the play.

You are Lord Hastings as you are being hurried to execution. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: Early next morning. A pale shaft of sunlight shines down the steps, but candles s...

How do you think Sherriff makes Osborne such a dramatically moving character? Support your views with details from the writing.

You are Stanhope at the beginning of Act 3. You are alone in the dugout, waiting for the Colonel. Write your thoughts.

Read these first three stanzas from Mariana, and then answer the question that follows it: With blackest moss the flower-plots Were thickly cruste...

Explore how Tennyson conveys his thoughts and feelings in the extract from Maud, Part 2 (from 'Dead, long dead' to 'Is enough to drive one mad').

In what ways does Tennyson convey his different feelings as he looks back on his friendship with Hallam in Extract XXIV (‘And was the day of my del...

Read this poem, and then answer the question that follows it: Full Moon and Little Frieda A cool small evening shrunk to a dog bark and the clank...

Which parts of Lament (by Gillian Clarke) and Report to Wordsworth (by Boey Kim Cheng) are particularly vivid for you in their portrayal of the way...

Explore how the words of one poem in this section vividly portray a single moment in time. (N.B. Do not use Full Moon and Little Frieda in answerin...

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: 'Don't you cant, Nelly,' he said. 'Nonsense! We ran from the top of the Heights t...

A wilful child who never grows up. A passionate romantic lover. Which of these descriptions of Catherine Earnshaw/Linton is closer to your own vie...

You are Nellie Dean. Heathcliff has imprisoned you at Wuthering Heights and Catherine has been taken away from you. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract from Surface Textures, and then answer the question that follows it: The neighbours lost sight of Harish. Once some children rep...

In either Scholar and Gypsy or A Devoted Son explore the ways in which Desai vividly portrays how self-centred and selfish people can be. Support y...

You are Mr Bose at the beginning of Private Tuition by Mr Bose. You are awaiting the arrival of Pritam for his tutorial. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: 'I wish to be relieved of the administration of Golema Mmidi, said Matenge. Chief...

Explore one incident in the novel which makes you particularly admire the people of Golema Mmidi. Support your answer with details from Head's writ...

You are Mma-Millipede. Makhaya has just left your house after his first visit to you. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: We went upstairs, through period bedrooms swathed in rose and lavender silk and v...

What do you think it is about Daisy that makes Gatsby so attracted to her? Support your ideas with details from Fitzgerald's writing.

You are Jordan Baker at Gatsby's lavish party. The butler has summoned you to a meeting with Jay Gatsby. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: The querulous drone ceased as I entered Frome's kitchen, and of the two women sit...

Explore two episodes in the novel which for you most vividly convey the disappointments of Ethan Frome's life. Support your views with details from...

You are Zeena. You have been married a year. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract from Secrets (by Bernard MacLaverty) and then answer the question that follows it: His aunt had been small - her head on a level...

How does the writer of either How It Happened (by Arthur Conan Doyle) or There Will Come Soft Rains (by Ray Bradbury) make the story so effective e...

You are Mrs Croft in The Third and Final Continent. You have just met Mala for the first time. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: Ben: Yes, my dear. But I've only a few minutes – Willy: No! Boys! Boys! [Young Bi...

To what extent does Miller make you feel sympathy for Biff? Support your ideas with details from the play.

You are Bernard. You have just left your father and Willy to return to Washington to appear at the Supreme Court. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: Don Pedro See, see; here comes the man we went to seek. Enter Benedick. Claudio...

To what extent does Shakespeare make the ending of the play satisfying for you? Support your answer by close reference.

You are Don John. You have just arranged to meet Claudio the night before his wedding to show him that Hero is disloyal. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: Brutus: Another general shout! I do believe that these applauses are For some new...

'The noblest Roman of them all.' How far do you agree with this description of Shakespeare's portrayal of Brutus? Support your ideas by close refer...

You are Calphurnia. Caesar has just left for the Senate House on the morning of the Ides of March. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract, and then answer the question that follows it: Osborne: The colonel came here while you were asleep. Trotter: Oh? Osborne: We've...

In what ways does Sherriff make Osborne such an admirable character? Support your ideas with details from the writing. (Do not use the passage in Q...

You are Stanhope near the beginning of the play, on your way up to the front line to relieve Hardy. Write your thoughts.

Read this extract from Ulysses, and then answer the question that follows it: It little profits that an idle king, By this still hearth, among the...

In what ways does Tennyson movingly reveal his emotions to you on the death of his friend, Hallam? Support your ideas with details from the extract...

What does Tennyson make you feel about Lancelot in The Lady of Shalott? Refer to details in the poem in your answer.

Read this poem, and then answer the question that follows it: The Flower-Fed Buffaloes The flower-fed buffaloes of the spring In the days of long...