English Advanced Short Answer Practice Texts

Vocabulary terms, authors, texts, and key phrases from the English Advanced short answer practice exam paper.

Gavin Aung Than

The cartoonist behind Zen Pencils who adapted Neil Gaiman's speech into the narrative comic extract 'Make Good Art'.

Make Good Art (Comic Extract)

A narrative comic strip drawn by Gavin Aung Than based on Neil Gaiman's words, illustrating an author turning internet criticism into creative success with the book 'The Trolls!'.

Rupert Brooke

The poet who wrote 'The Great Lover', cataloguing sensory, everyday physical objects and moments he has loved.

Benison

A blessing; an archaic term used in Rupert Brooke's poem 'The Great Lover' in the phrase 'The benison of hot water'.

The Blackboard Jungle

A 1955 prose fiction work by Evan Hunter set in New York, depicting a nervous applicant arriving for a job interview at an urban school.

North Manual Trades High School

The school featured in Evan Hunter's extract, characterised by chiseled letters above the entrance archway, a cyclone fence, concrete monotony, and corridors filled with directional signs.

Some Furniture

A discursive essay written by Helen Garner examining solitary living, personal recovery, and emotional resilience through the symbolic qualities of household furniture.

Jarrah

The type of timber salvaged from a demolished warehouse used to make the rectangular dining table purchased on Johnston Street in Helen Garner's essay.

Bodgie

An Australian slang term used by Helen Garner to describe the crude, inferior construction of raw pine offcuts and staples hidden underneath her recycled jarrah table.

Marks of Experience

The metaphorical interpretation given by the narrator's friend to the nail punctures across the jarrah table, framing flaws as emblems of enduring resilience.