Power & Conflict (AQA GCSE English Literature): Exam Questions

Exam code: 8702

13 hours286 questions
1
1 mark

Where is the photographer at the start of the poem?

  • in a war-torn street developing film on site

  • in a makeshift camp near the battlefield

  • in his darkroom developing spools of film

  • in a helicopter returning from conflict

2
1 mark

Which set of places is listed in the poem?

  • Belfast, Beirut, Phnom Penh

  • Belfast, Basra, Phnom Penh

  • Berlin, Beirut, Phnom Penh

  • Belfast, Beirut, Paris

3
1 mark

Which short line signals how temporary life is?

  • “Dust to dust”

  • “Time devours all”

  • “All souls fade”

  • “All flesh is grass”

4
1 mark

As an image develops, what appears before the photographer’s eyes?

  • “a blur of light”

  • “a fading soldier”

  • “a half-formed ghost”

  • “a shadow of hope”

5
1 mark

What contrast is drawn between England and war zones?

  • England’s “summer skies” versus soldiers in “winter cold”

  • England’s “ordinary pain” versus children in “nightmare heat”

  • England’s “gentle rain” versus villages in “dust storms”

  • England’s “daily cares” versus refugees in “endless night”

6
1 mark

What does “hands… which did not tremble then” imply?

  • He was confident and controlled in the war zone.

  • He was arrogant and careless under pressure.

  • He was naïve, too young to feel nerves.

  • He stayed steady while shooting; emotion shakes him later.

7
1 mark

“A hundred agonies… editor will pick out five or six” suggests…

  • Lots of suffering is reduced to a few chosen pictures.

  • Editors are immune to horror through overexposure.

  • Every image is printed without selection.

  • Most photos are sold to art galleries.

8
1 mark

What does “he stares impassively… they do not care” convey?

  • The public remain unmoved despite his disturbing images.

  • He admires how strong the public are under pressure.

  • He hopes the photos will eventually inspire compassion.

  • He trusts readers to understand his personal sacrifice.

9
1 mark

What does the ending (flying back to war) suggest overall?

  • The editor demands he covers another domestic story.

  • The public encourage him to take more photographs.

  • The cycle of violence and his work continues without change.

  • The government rewards him for his commitment to service.

1
1 mark

What atmosphere is created by “in his dark room he is finally alone”?

  • a brief moment of calm between assignments

  • a quiet solitude that soothes yet unsettles him

  • a sense of triumph at professional success

  • a detached mood that rejects reflection

2
1 mark

What effect is created by comparing the scene to a church service?

  • It mocks faith and undermines belief.

  • It distracts from the sadness of war.

  • It uses irony to make religion seem foolish.

  • It makes his work seem sacred and serious.

3
1 mark

What is suggested by the list “Belfast. Beirut. Phnom Penh.”?

  • that the speaker recalls each place with nostalgia

  • that war’s reach is constant and repetitive

  • that he finds excitement in new experiences

  • that the cities are fictional and symbolic

4
1 mark

What contrast is developed between “Rural England” and “running children in a nightmare heat”?

  • that England hides the pain it helps to cause

  • that both scenes share equal emotional weight

  • that home comfort opposes war’s chaos abroad

  • that weather is the main cause of suffering

5
1 mark

What mood is suggested by “Solutions slop in trays beneath his hands”?

  • uneasy movement echoing his emotional instability

  • calm precision that restores his concentration

  • restless anger building during the process

  • indifference that replaces compassion for others

6
1 mark

How does third-person narration affect our view of the photographer?

  • It removes emotion and creates cold distance.

  • It maintains restraint yet hints at inner strain.

  • It glorifies him as the poem’s moral hero.

  • It implies the story comes from his editor.

1
1 mark

How do War Photographer and Kamikaze explore the struggle between doing one’s duty and following one’s own conscience?

  • Both poets show people who obey orders but secretly question them, later feeling guilt and regret.

  • Both poems show how duty can trap people, leaving them lonely and cut off from their true feelings.

  • Duffy’s photographer follows rules to show truth, while Garland’s pilot chooses freedom as a brave act.

  • Duffy shows calm obedience hiding inner conflict, while Garland shows a clear moral choice. Both reveal that freedom brings honesty but also isolation.

2
1 mark

How do War Photographer and Remains present endurance after conflict?

  • Both poets show survival as fragile — men haunted by duty who keep going through habit or memory.

  • Duffy’s photographer copes by detaching, while Armitage’s soldier survives by confessing. Both show endurance as pain that never ends.

  • Duffy and Armitage present endurance as being stuck: the photographer’s routine and the soldier’s memories trap them instead of healing them.

  • Both poets show pain fading with time, turning endurance into acceptance and peace.

3
1 mark

How do War Photographer and Exposure differ in their tone towards suffering and the hope of renewal?

  • Both poets treat human endurance with respect, showing suffering as meaningful and peace as possible after war.

  • Duffy’s tone is calm and detached, showing compassion as useless in a numb world, while Owen’s tone is sad and prayer-like, turning despair into dignity.

  • Both poets sound bitter about human cruelty, but Duffy’s cynicism gives no hope, while Owen’s anger looks for moral change through pity.

  • Duffy’s photographer and Owen’s soldiers both seem numb, suggesting pain loses meaning when it happens again and again.