AQA GCSE English Language Paper 2: Writers' viewpoints and perspectives overview quiz quiz

One unseen literature fiction extract from a novel

A single extract taken from a Shakespeare play

Two unseen non-fiction texts from different time periods

One poem from the anthology and one unseen poem to compare

AO1

AO2

AO4

AO3

Combine ideas from both texts to summarise their differences

Analyse one writer's use of language and structure in close detail

Write your own viewpoint on the shared topic

List true statements from a named part of one text

Writing about one text in full and then writing about the other text completely separately afterwards

Integrating the comparison, moving between both texts within paragraphs around shared ideas

Only comparing the writers' viewpoints, while ignoring their methods entirely

Avoiding all comparative connectives throughout the whole answer

A descriptive or narrative piece of creative writing based on a given image prompt

A detailed comparison of the methods used in the two source texts

A non-fiction piece presenting a viewpoint in a named form for a named audience

A concise summary of the differences between the two source texts

Length, time and date

Tone, rhyme and rhythm

Plot, character and setting

Form, audience and purpose

Strictly against the named lines of the named text

Against your own general background knowledge of the topic

By directly comparing the two source texts

By inferring the writer's underlying attitude

The true-or-false retrieval question

The comparison question

The synthesis question

The language analysis question

Stage directions, soliloquy and other dramatic stagecraft

Rhyme scheme, metre and stanza form

Rhetorical and persuasive devices, tone and word choice

Unexpected plot twists and cliffhanger endings

2 hours 15 minutes, 60%

1 hour 30 minutes, 40%

2 hours, 50%

1 hour 45 minutes, 50%

Whereas, by contrast and however

Therefore, thus and as a result

Firstly, secondly and finally

For example, such as and including

It simply saves a great deal of time in the exam, leaving more room to write a longer answer overall

Moving between both texts within paragraphs around shared ideas is what AO3 specifically rewards

It removes any need to support your points with quoted evidence

It is one of the strict requirements for the AO6 accuracy marks