VCE English argument and language analysis (Unit 4 AoS 2) quiz

Whether you personally agree or disagree with the author's position on the issue being discussed

Whether the author has used correct grammar, spelling and punctuation throughout the whole text

How the text positions its audience to share its argument through specific language and structural choices

How many separate persuasive techniques and language devices you are able to spot and identify within the text

Spotting techniques is too easy, so VCAA deliberately awards no marks for any kind of technique work at all

Persuasive techniques are simply not relevant to argument analysis, which is only ever about the author's contention

Markers are simply not allowed to read long technique lists, so they skip straight over them and end up marking only your introduction and conclusion instead

VCAA criteria reward analysis of how techniques operate together to position the audience, not lists of devices present in the text

Never. You are analysing the construction of persuasion, not voting on the merits

Yes, you should always clearly state your own position on the issue somewhere early in the response

Only in the conclusion, where a brief statement of whether you agree rounds the analysis off nicely

Only if you happen to disagree with the author, since defending your objection adds analytical depth

Your own considered view on the topic, stated up front

The one-sentence statement of what the text is arguing

The full list of persuasive techniques the text uses

A judgement of whether the text treats the issue fairly

The actual physical place or seat where each member of the audience happens to sit while they are reading the text

The author's overall tone, such as whether the writing sounds angry, calm or sarcastic

Shaping the audience's response to the issue (what they feel, what they believe, what they do)

The total length of the text and how many paragraphs the author has chosen to use

Section A, the text response part of the exam

Section B, where you create a text from a stimulus

It is only ever assessed in school-based SACs

Section C (60 minutes of the 3-hour exam)

The author's framing of opponents as 'a small fringe' minimises their cultural authority and positions the audience to dismiss alternative views as marginal.

The author uses rhetorical questions throughout the piece, and there are several of them scattered across the different paragraphs of the text being analysed.

Rhetorical questions are a persuasive technique, and using them is generally an effective way for any writer to make readers think more carefully about an issue.

The author has used at least three different rhetorical devices in the text, including a rhetorical question, some repetition and a clear emotive metaphor.

No, only the written language counts in argument analysis, so any images or cartoons should be ignored

Yes, visual elements are part of the persuasion and contribute to positioning the audience

Only if the exam question specifically tells you to analyse the visual material that is included

Visuals belong in an art class rather than English, so analysing them gains you no marks in Section C

Write a formal comparison of the pieces, judging which one is the more persuasive and giving it most of your response

Analyse only the longest piece in detail, and simply mention the shorter pieces briefly in your conclusion

Analyse how each piece builds, supports or answers the argument, linking them where they work together to persuade the audience

Alternate strictly between the pieces sentence by sentence, swapping back and forth throughout every paragraph

Simply say that 'the audience is the readers of the newspaper' and leave the identification there without any further detail

Treat audience identification as optional, since the assessors are mainly interested in the techniques rather than who is being persuaded

Assume the audience is everyone in the general public, because a persuasive text is written to influence as many people as it possibly can

Be specific: educated metro readers, parents of school-age children, people sympathetic to environmental concerns, etc.