1
25 marks
How does Lee portray Mayella Ewell as an important character in the novel?
Was this exam question helpful?
To Kill a Mockingbird (Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE English Literature): Exam Questions
Exam code: 0475 & 0992
3 hours8 questions
2
25 marks
How does Lee vividly explore the theme of prejudice in the novel?
Was this exam question helpful?
3
25 marks
Explore how Lee presents the experience of growing up in To Kill a Mockingbird.
Was this exam question helpful?
4
25 marks
How does Lee make Aunt Alexandra a vivid and memorable character in the novel?
Was this exam question helpful?
5
25 marks
To what extent does Lee present the law as central to the novel?
Was this exam question helpful?
6
25 marks
How does Lee use the character of Dill Harris to convey key ideas in To Kill a Mockingbird?
Was this exam question helpful?
7
25 marks
Read this passage, and then answer the question that follows it:
The back of the Radley house was less inviting than the front: a ramshackle porch ran the width of the house; there were two doors and two dark windows between the doors. Instead of a column, a rough two-by-four supported one end of the roof. An old Franklin stove sat in a corner of the porch; above it a hat-rack mirror caught the moon and shone eerily. ‘Ar-r,’ said Jem softly, lifting his foot. ‘’s matter?’ ‘Chickens,’ he breathed. That we would be obliged to dodge the unseen from all directions was confirmed when Dill ahead of us spelled G-o-d in a whisper. We crept to the side of the house, around to the window with the hanging shutter. The sill was several inches taller than Jem. ‘Give you a hand up,’ he muttered to Dill. ‘Wait, though.’ Jem grabbed his left wrist and my right wrist, I grabbed my left wrist and Jem’s right wrist, we crouched, and Dill sat on our saddle. We raised him and he caught the window sill. ‘Hurry,’ Jem whispered, ‘we can’t last much longer.’ Dill punched my shoulder, and we lowered him to the ground. ‘What’d you see?’ ‘Nothing. Curtains. There’s a little teeny light way off somewhere, though.’ ‘Let’s get away from here,’ breathed Jem. ‘Let’s go ’round in back again. Sh-h,’ he warned me, as I was about to protest. ‘Let’s try the back window.’ ‘Dill, no,’ I said. Dill stopped and let Jem go ahead. When Jem put his foot on the bottom step, the step squeaked. He stood still, then tried his weight by degrees. The step was silent. Jem skipped two steps, put his foot on the porch, heaved himself to it, and teetered a long moment. He regained his balance and dropped to his knees. He crawled to the window, raised his head and looked in. Then I saw the shadow. It was the shadow of a man with a hat on. At first I thought it was a tree, but there was no wind blowing, and tree-trunks never walked. The back porch was bathed in moonlight, and the shadow, crisp as toast, moved across the porch toward Jem. Dill saw it next. He put his hands to his face. When it crossed Jem, Jem saw it. He put his arms over his head and went rigid. The shadow stopped about a foot beyond Jem. Its arm came out from its side, dropped, and was still. Then it turned and moved back across Jem, walked along the porch and off the side of the house, returning as it had come. Jem leaped off the porch and galloped toward us. He flung open the gate, danced Dill and me through, and shooed us between two rows of swishing collards. Halfway through the collards I tripped; as I tripped the roar of a shotgun shattered the neighbourhood. Dill and Jem dived beside me. Jem’s breath came in sobs: ‘Fence by the school yard! – hurry, Scout!’ Jem held the bottom wire; Dill and I rolled through and were halfway to the shelter of the school yard’s solitary oak when we sensed that Jem was not with us. We ran back and found him struggling in the fence, kicking his pants off to get loose. He ran to the oak tree in his shorts. (from Chapter 6) |
In what ways does Lee make this a tense and exciting moment?
Was this exam question helpful?
8
25 marks
Read this passage carefully, and then answer the question that follows it. A rabid dog, Tim Johnson, is coming slowly down the street towards the Finch children and their neighbours. Sheriff Heck Tate has arrived, and Scout and Jem are watching.
Tim Johnson was advancing at a snail’s pace, but he was not playing or sniffing at foliage: he seemed dedicated to one course and motivated by an invisible force that was inching him toward us. We could see him shiver like a horse shedding flies; his jaw opened and shut; he was a-list, but he was being pulled gradually toward us.
‘He’s lookin’ for a place to die,’ said Jem. Mr Tate turned around. ‘He’s far from dead, Jem, he hasn’t got started yet.’
Tim Johnson reached the side street that ran in front of the Radley Place, and what remained of his poor mind made him pause and seem to consider which road he would take. He made a few hesitant steps and stopped in front of the Radley gate; then he tried to turn around, but was having difficulty.
Atticus said, ‘He’s within range, Heck. You better get him now before he goes down the side street – Lord knows who’s around the corner. Go inside, Cal.’
Calpurnia opened the screen door, latched it behind her, then unlatched it and held on to the hook. She tried to block Jem and me with her body, but we looked out from beneath her arms.
‘Take him, Mr Finch.’ Mr Tate handed the rifle to Atticus; Jem and I nearly fainted.
‘Don’t waste time, Heck,’ said Atticus. ‘Go on.’ ‘Mr Finch, this is a one-shot job.’ Atticus shook his head vehemently: ‘Don’t just stand there, Heck! He won’t wait all day for you –’
‘For God’s sake, Mr Finch, look where he is! Miss and you’ll go straight into the Radley house! I can’t shoot that well and you know it!’
‘I haven’t shot a gun in thirty years –’ Mr Tate almost threw the rifle at Atticus. ‘I’d feel mighty comfortable if you did now,’ he said.
In a fog, Jem and I watched our father take the gun and walk out into the middle of the street. He walked quickly, but I thought he moved like an underwater swimmer: time had slowed to a nauseating crawl.
When Atticus raised his glasses Calpurnia murmured, ‘Sweet Jesus help him,’ and put her hands to her cheeks.
Atticus pushed his glasses to his forehead; they slipped down, and he dropped them in the street. In the silence, I heard them crack. Atticus rubbed his eyes and chin; we saw him blink hard.
In front of the Radley gate, Tim Johnson had made up what was left of his mind. He had finally turned himself around, to pursue his original course up our street. He made two steps forward, then stopped and raised his head. We saw his body go rigid.
With movements so swift they seemed simultaneous, Atticus’s hand yanked a ball-tipped lever as he brought the gun to his shoulder.
The rifle cracked. Tim Johnson leaped, flopped over and crumpled on the sidewalk in a brown-and-white heap. He didn’t know what hit him.
How does Lee make this such a tense and revealing moment in the novel?
Remember to support your ideas with details from the writing.
Was this exam question helpful?