VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: stimulus 1: ‘No two journeys are…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 97.5%: White Creation was only ever a myth. Matter is just redistributed; nothing is truly yours. You’re the…
White
Creation was only ever a myth. Matter is just redistributed; nothing is truly yours. You’re the manifestation of a thousand identities, fragments of people who once loved and collided — the pinnacle of their beauty, and their ruin. For me, that’s what you are: arms and legs I stitched from memory, the pinnacle of my making, the bane of my existence.
A blank **white** canvas for me to draw my path. Not my parents’ choice. Not theirs. Mine.
I know this sounds deluded, but listen. Just because it was you before, and it’s no longer your own, doesn’t make you any different from what I’ve become. This time… this time I promise to tell you the whole truth. I won’t keep secrets. You won’t have to read my story twice.
Yellow
Every life is the sum of choices leading to your death; every choice matters, like I was in a forest with infinite paths with no clear exit. Left.... or right, that’s what you were screaming, right? Or was it me that was screaming? God, personal choices are barely personal anymore. Maybe on a surface level it’s me that walked left, but embedded into that was a year of abuse by you and yourself.
No matter what I pick someone gets hurt. I’ll always end up a monster to either yourself or maybe you. I don’t want to hurt anyone. If only I could pick the middle option, maybe the path in between the two roads, never needing to pick a direction. What if I could go up instead of left or right? Maybe east instead of north.
as long as its me walking these steps my fate is my own the orientation of matter is only mine to manipulate so ill pick the path straight.
Red
The iron taste in my mouth; the weak, weighted grass below me. The destination seems to be thinning. my journey is difficult but it is one of my own. The sand turns even muddier, melting like a swamp below my feet trying to distract me. Am I distracted? I’ll never know, nor do I want to know. This journey is mine, my own. I’ll walk for as long as it takes to reach my conclusion.
The baggage I clung to in order to get here was rough. Hikers pass by me with bags drained of water, food and necessities of the sort, yet mine is rough, rugged, full of rocks. They all run as mine weakens, like someone proposing in front of me and all I can do is shatter before them. The iron taste comes back and flows down my face. The iron taste comes back and flows down my face. The iron taste…
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: resist and persist
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 87.5%: "Its's not fair" Those were Vincent Chin's last words as his skull was crashed open by a baseball bat. And he…
"Its's not fair" Those were Vincent Chin's last words as his skull was crashed open by a baseball bat.
And he was right.
It was not fair.
It was not fair, that two white men could beat an asian man to death in the street, then walk away with probation and a $3000 fine.
It was not fair, that Vincent was listed as "white" in official records, as if his race, the very reason he was murdered, could be erased with the stroke of a pen.
It was not fair, that his own mother buried her only son and was told it was justice. What kind of justice is that? What kind of country is this?
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: Stimulus- protest
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 70%: time for change is now Today marks a turning point.The decisions we make now will shape the future we step into…
time for change is now
Today marks a turning point.The decisions we make now will shape the future we step into tomorrow. We are gathered here today. To talk about an issue as old as time itself, the struggle for the rights of women. For too long Us women have been treated as less than equals in societies where we are seen as second class citizens, where our voices and choices are undermined. It is time for this to change. These injustices against us as women CANNOT continue!
These conferences will continue to happen every month. To show we will no longer be complacent wives and mothers. We will no longer be submissive while our rights are taken from us. The time for change is now. Our daughters will not face the same cinjustices we, our mothers and women for centuries before us have faced. Our daughters will live in a world where their worth is not tied to their relationship with men, Their looks or the way they dress.
In many parts of the Middle East and even in developed countries such as our own. The outdated mindset and views amongst the middle eastern community still thrives. Women in Australia still exist today that are denied their freedom. Being subject to cultural norms that suppress them. We cannot allow this to continue on. These women are told their only contribution to the world is to feed their husbands and raise their kids. Not allowed to drive, denied access to things they like, and kept captive in their own homes.
Throughout history, it has been protest that has ignited change. Women have taken to the streets, risking everything to demand their rights. From the suffragettes who marched for
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: How does tessa hadleys short stories…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 70%: Hadley conveys in her short stories ‘bad dreams’ and ‘experiences’ that new experiences can lead to unexpected…
Hadley conveys in her short stories ‘bad dreams’ and ‘experiences’ that new experiences can lead to unexpected transformation. Hadley suggests this through her female protagonists and explores the differences of transformation for different characters. She conveys that transformation can occur in diverse ways and each person goes through unique experiences that change their outlook on the world. Hadley portrays through her characters in both stories that experience occurs at unexpected times and often happens privately before manifesting outwardly. Hadley’s use of female protagonists specifically relates to the time periods she is showcasing and explores the traditional roles of women that prevent them from truly exploring their identities.
Hadley presents transformation as beginning with a moment of disturbance, symbolised by the daughter’s nightmare and the overturned furniture. The nightmare is not just a passing fear, but a powerful moment where the child is subconsciously confronted by the concepts of mortality and death. The true effect of this revelation is evident when the daughter is ‘’full of horror’’ when she wakes up. The daughter's act of creating chaos in the living room symbolises her first steps of transformation as she breaks out of character from the innocent shy girl she is described to be. Hadley uses the dream to symbolise the girl’s first encounter with complex, adult concepts particularly mortality, suggesting that even young children can grasp heavy and confronting ideas which can significantly impact their outlook on the world and lead to transformation. Her fear of becoming ‘’mundane’’ like the character Susan in her book frightened her. Which is Hadley’s way of portraying the effect of gender roles to young girls in the 1980s. by showcasing the girl's love for literature and knowledge is overshadowed by her responsibilities as a girl in society. Hadley captures this shift with sensitivity,
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: Rainbow’s End is about the impact of human…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 87.5%: Jane Harrison’s play Rainbow’s End explores individual and collective life experiences in order to foster the…
Jane Harrison’s play Rainbow’s End explores individual and collective life experiences in order to foster the audience’s understanding of humanity. By examining three generations of Indigenous women, Harrison seeks to rouse empathy in the audience towards the Aboriginal situation, and hence heighten awareness of the universality of fundamental experiences such as connection, empowerment, and anguish. In doing so, the play consolidates what it truly means to be human.
Harrison delves into relationships as a catalyst for transformative human experiences. Gladys is characterised as relentlessly optimistic, yet her narrative arc highlights the complex experiences of an unforgiving and hostile environment. The hopeful naivety of Gladys is epitomised by her dream sequences, such as her dream of having “won two prizes” in the Pick-A-Box quiz show, showcasing her profound idealism which is contrasted against Nan’s cynical and sarcastic comment that “[she’d] like to see [a black contestant]” on the program. In this way, Nan is crafted by Harrison as a literary foil to Gladys, with her pessimistic character serving to reinforce the optimism of Gladys. This is epitomised by Nan’s hopeless exclamation that the bank is “never going to give [Dolly]” a job, with the word ‘never’ demonstrating an endless and unchanging belief in the futility of seeking ambitious opportunities. Conversely, Gladys maintains an optimistic outlook even in the face of Nan’s cynicism by questioning “why should [Dolly’s] address stop her in life?”, revealing how Gladys’ relationship with Nan catalyses her desire to be even more firm in her hopeful mindset. Moreover, Dolly and Errol’s relationship also functions as a catalyst for hopeful transformation. Nan’s dream sequence of “wedding bells and confetti” in the conclusion of the play foreshadows Errol and Dolly getting married, which is indicative of harmonious race relations and the achievement of unity between Indigenous and non-Indigenous individuals. This ending parallels the recurring song ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’, with the lyrics stating that “dreams really do come true” showcasing how experiencing connections with other people can empower individuals to attain their dreams.
Education is presented as a human experience that can shape one’s sense of self in an immensely positive way. Despite Gladys’ illiteracy, she is depicted as extremely knowledgeable, emphasised through her ability to quickly respond to the ‘Pick-A-Box’ question of “what is the more common term for an ocular contusion?” with the correct answer of “a black eye”. This reference to a ‘black eye’ may be symbolic of Gladys’ Indigenous outlook on the world, which, when accentuated through education and literacy, is able to empower the Aboriginal population. For example, Gladys’ experience with the inspector, who condescendingly encourages her to “inform [herself]”, generates her realisation that as an Indigenous woman she has the right to demand justice for her people; her passionate exclamation that “this is [her] land” thus epitomises how kn
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: Title: 'Songlines of the Ancestors'…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 85%: Songlines of the Ancestors A time before ours. The pure white sand was cool beneath my feet, still damp from…
Songlines of the Ancestors
A time before ours.
The pure white sand was cool beneath my feet, still damp from the moving tide which washes over the dry land. The rhythmic untidiness of the turquoise waves crash against the shoreline, creating a lyrical pattern which echoed amongst the mountain range. The evening sky was dappled with pink and violet clouds, a painting of those who walked before us. As a child, I never thought the wind could speak. It was simply a noise. But now I can hear it, it carried history - a songline of our ancestors.
The beach was my home - the river which split the lands between the angst of town life and the calmness of our country. My mother would read books under the glistering sun, while my Dad and I built castles which collapsed quicker than they were made. My sister would splash in the water along the ocean's edge, protected by the ancestors above. This beach was more than a landscape. It connected me with the stories of our elders. It was country, stitched into the fabric of my family, shaping who I am today.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: To what extent does Sunset Boulevard…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 75%: Sunset Boulevard, a film noir masterpiece written by Billy Wilder presents a condemning portrayal of Hollywood as a…
Sunset Boulevard, a film noir masterpiece written by Billy Wilder presents a condemning portrayal of Hollywood as a place defined by exploitation and hopelessness. Through the utilisation of various characters throughout the film, Wilder critiques the industry as they perceive actors as a commodity to be consumed for profits. Through the blurring of reality and illusion, Wilder reveals the Hollywood system which seduces victims into a cycle of self-destruction. Alternatively, Wilder argues the Hollywood system can create a product which condemns immorality and prioritises emotions over profit.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: Demonstrate effective writing skills…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 77.5%: The kids playing joyfully in the distance, the clattering of pots and pans, the pouring of water and sizzling…
The kids playing joyfully in the distance, the clattering of pots and pans, the pouring of water and sizzling oils making scrumptious egg burjhi. The orange morning sun hits the dusty sand in front of me. My now weak frail hands turn off the radio to my side. Peace. It’s not uncommon for me, an old man in my 80s to sit in silence. But although my body weakens, my mind feels just as sharp as it was back then. I often reminisce on the adventures of my past. But today different memories emerge. Woken by the young folk in front of me, cheering on in preparation for today’s festival, I just can’t help but remember the pressures we had put up just to achieve this. I spend 5 more minutes in silence. Then 10. I turned the radio back on.
VCE · Creative Response
Creative Response: Framework 2: Writing about protest.…
VCE Creative Response essay scoring 87.5%: Title: Necessary Resistance, Necessary Action, Necessary Future. Resistance. Action. Future. A necessary,…
Title: Necessary Resistance, Necessary Action, Necessary Future.
Resistance. Action. Future. A necessary, failsafe method to win our tomorrow back.
Too long our government has perpetuated the cycle of gambling harm. Too many times have we seen families been torn apart by the destructive force that is reckless risk taking. Too often do our young people have a ‘cheeky, once-off game’ only to have their lives swiped from right below their nose.
I know this because I was that teenager. I was that young adult who dived too deep. I was that man whose family was split. All while our changemakers looked upon us with a mocking satire – as if we are fools fulfilling their destiny.
The truth is, Australians do not like to be taken for fools. Take a look at our proud history of defiance and resistance and you will detect a fiery will that can spread through a collective when it feels like it’s been taken for granted, is being talked down to or, in the parlance of our forebears, ‘being taken for mugs’.
So it stands with the rising epidemic of problem gambling. What has been an aspect of our culture - a sneaky bet, a quiet flutter, a quick game - has been bastardised, mutated and corporatised as a revenue-raiser and as a source of reliable profit. A government and a gaming industry that encourages a populace to lose $32 billion in the last financial year, knows that those with a problem probably won’t speak because of shame or denial, and that apparently the money is going back into government spending anyway, so everything’s okay.
They call it a ‘safe bet’. “Have a punt,” they say. But nothing is safe about the malicious, nefarious nature of Australia’s favourite pastime: problem gambling. It’s only called a ‘safe bet’ because the only people who can safely bet are those who have nothing more to lose.
To our beloved government, this so-called amusement is nothing more than a mug’s game—a hobby for those too braindead, they assume, to engage with anything else. Yet they, the ones meant to guide these ‘mugs’ out of their hellholes, are the very ones perpetuating it. Why? To protect their steady stream of gambling tax revenue.
What they have not counted on in their insidious budgeting is the power of a union, particularly the lobby groups that are forming, from those like me who fell into the widening gap between profiteering and working class misery, to others who have lost family members to suicide, to responsible citizens who cannot bear to witness the community and individual ruin that comes from letting risk-taking get so out of control.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: To what extent are all the characters from…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 75%: Set amidst the golden age of Hollywood , Billy Wilder uses Sunset Boulevard to closely examine how individuals…
Set amidst the golden age of Hollywood , Billy Wilder uses Sunset Boulevard to closely examine how individuals become entrapped in their pursuit for success in Hollywood. Furthermore Wilder examines how this entrapment can have devastating impacts on an individual. However, Wilder also analyses how some planets are not truly entrapped, but are rather blinded by their desires and emotions.
Firstly, Wilder examines how characters become entrapped as a result of their pursuit of fame and success in Hollywood. Wilder presents the entrapment of Joe at the beginning of the movie, when he is in debt and hopelessly typing away at his typewriter. This shows Joe's commitment or rather obsessive compulsion to "make it big" in Hollywood. However during this pursuit of fame and success, being entrapped emotionally by his drive to become successful in the movie business. Wilder furthermore explores the unhealthy nature of his entrapment, with Joe committing crimes just to escape the "smirking delight" of the doubters at his original job. Showing how Joe's commitment has turned into an illogical obsessions which keeps him entrapped in this endless pursuit of success in Hollywood. Wilder further examines how this entrapment even extends to the most successful individuals. During Joe's meeting with Sheldrake, Wilder specifically chooses a high-angle shot and ulcer medication on Sheldrake's table to depict how even these high status individuals within the industry are equally vulnerable as others. Through this, Wilder juxtaposes the audiences idealistic views of Hollywood with the harsh reality to depict how entrapment subtly lurks at every corner of Hollywood.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: Trevor Noah's memoir Born a Crime explores…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 90%: Set against the backdrop of apartheid and its aftermath, Trevor Noah's memoir, Born a Crime, illuminates how South…
Set against the backdrop of apartheid and its aftermath, Trevor Noah's memoir, Born a Crime, illuminates how South Africans experience suffering both during and after the fall of apartheids oppressive system. Noah explores how apartheids racial categorisation instigated a system of suffering by enforcing segregation and denying identity. Moreover, Noah illustrates how South Africans suffered not only under the systematic oppression of apartheid itself, but also due to the violence and conflict between tribes that raised from the systematic division. Furthermore, Noah exposes how even after apartheids fall, South Africans continued to suffer through economic inequality that was forced upon their community.
Noah explores how apartheid’s racial classification system created profound suffering through forced separation, identity denial, and the psychological trauma of being rendered “illegal.” Noah opens his memoir with legal epigraphs quoting apartheid statutes: “Any European male who has intercourse with a native female…shall be guilty of an offence.” The stark, dehumanising language of law immediately reveals how the state intruded into the most intimate areas of life, criminalising love and family. Noah underscores this intrusion when he writes, “A half-white, half-black child who violated any number of laws – I was born a crime,” encapsulating the psychological burden of existing as evidence of an offence. For mixed-race children, suffering came not only from social rejection but also from internalising the sense of being unwanted by the state itself. Noah reflects more broadly that “the genius of apartheid was convincing people who were the overwhelming majority to turn on each other,” showing how apartheid weaponised division and inflicted long-term trauma by teaching South Africans to distrust one another. The juxtaposition of historical documentation with personal anecdotes allows Noah to highlight the human cost behind bureaucratic language. Through these strategies, he conveys his view that apartheid caused not only physical suffering but also deep psychological wounds, and he values the importance of exposing these systems so that such suffering is neither minimised nor forgotten.
VCE · Language Analysis
Language Analysis: Newsletter>Principal’s Message Last…
VCE Language Analysis essay scoring 77.5%: In a weekly newsletter uploaded to Spire Primary School’s site on 8 July 2017, Principal Denise Walker…
In a weekly newsletter uploaded to Spire Primary School’s site on 8 July 2017, Principal Denise Walker addresses the growing issue of plastic waste, arguing that while the school has taken significant steps towards sustainability, more must be done to tackle excessive packaging. Her piece is accompanied by a comment from Louise, a parent, who pushes back against Walker’s suggestions, criticising them as impractical for modern families. Across the two texts, inclusive language, tonal shifts, visual imagery, and appeals to responsibility are deployed to position parents either towards or against Walker’s vision for a more sustainable school community.
From the outset, Walker establishes context by praising the school’s past initiatives before turning to the pressing issue of plastic packaging. She highlights Spire as “the only local school that has a ‘Walk/Pedal to School Day’ once a week, rather than once a month or even once a term!” The repetition of “once” underscores how the school is already outperforming others, instilling pride in parents and presenting Spire as a community leader in environmental responsibility. Yet, Walker quickly tempers this pride by pointing to the ubiquity of unnecessary packaging: “the newspaper in plastic, hamburgers in boxes, individual packets of tissues, little packages of rice crackers and chips.” This listing overwhelms the reader with examples of excess, shifting their feelings from pride to guilt by highlighting how their everyday consumption contributes to environmental harm. The accompanying image of dull grey landfill piles reinforces this guilt, visually emphasising the bleak future awaiting if waste continues unchecked. By beginning with achievements before turning to failures, Walker carefully guides parents from self-congratulation towards acknowledging that further action is urgently needed.
VCE · Language Analysis
Language Analysis: Background information The Narrow…
VCE Language Analysis essay scoring 75%: In an open letter published in the local newspaper, shared on social media and displayed in shops across the…
In an open letter published in the local newspaper, shared on social media and displayed in shops across the Narrow Valley region, The Student Music Leadership Group advocates for the establishment of a youth-driven music festival. Framing the decline of the long-running garden festival as evidence of cultural stagnation, the students contend that a new , inclusive festival will revitalise the region. Targeting older residents proud of tradition, families and business owners reliant on tourism, the group uses an enthusiastic, hopeful tone to present generational change as essential for prosperity and renewal.
From the outset, the writers position themselves as energetic, inclusive, and representative of the community’s future. The letter begins by introducing the group as “high-school music students, teachers and mentors” united by passion and diversity, inviting readers to trust their credibility and feel reassured that youth voices are capable of leadership. By stressing that the festival will include “all budding musicians, regardless of age and abilities,” the writers appeal to fairness and community spirit, encouraging the audience to see themselves, or their children reflected in this inclusive vision. The groups reference to thousands of social media followers builds credibility, positioning readers to believe the proposal already has widespread momentum and that they should join in rather than be left behind. Rhetorical questions such as “What about our garden festival? Who doesn’t love a garden?” create a playful yet pointed contrast, nudging readers to reconsider their attachment to the old festival and shift their support towards the new event. Together, these strategies establish the students as credible leaders while framing their proposal as both inclusive and necessary for the community’s cultural future.
The leadership group then shifts their argument to anticipate
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: → What does Oedipus the King suggest about…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 82.5%: In Oedipus the King, Sophocles explores the effects of pride and certainty, specifically the dangers that it can…
In Oedipus the King, Sophocles explores the effects of pride and certainty, specifically the dangers that it can create when left unchecked. This is exemplified through Oedipus, whose persistent demand of knowledge of his past to save Thebes from Apollo’s curse ultimately leads to the loss of his marriage, royalty and sanity, making him the victim of his own determination. Sophocles simultaneously commends the courage to pursue truth while exposing the ruinous impacts this very journey can lead to when hubris and need for clarity interfere. Within this message, Sophocles condemns this very pride for fostering ignorance and arrogance. Ultimately, Sophocles explores how self-conceitment when left unchecked can foster hubris that blinds individuals to truth and fate, suggesting how it leads to violence, suffering, and ruin.
To begin the play, Sophocles valorises the pursuit of certainty as a courage and righteous journey. The Athenian audience is poised to laud Oedipus’ kingship through his selfless acts to protect the very city that he leads. Beyond his willingness to find Laius' murderer, to “bring it all to light”, he reveals his emotional connection to the city as he “grieves” for them and their “pain”. In empathy for his city, Oedipus “wept” for their loss and for their safety, and it is this compassion that drives him to uncover the truth for his city. Through this, Sophocles cultivates an image of Oedipus as a selfless and honorable leader that will search for certainty and complete accuracy as a means to protect the very city that he leads. In this image, the audience are framed to see not only Oedipus as a righteous leader, but as his search of truth as a courage act that should be commended as an achievement that offers service to his community. In this context, the Chorus holds Oedipus in a similar accord, seeing him as a leader that they can “implore” and “bend to”, adding to the audience's positive outlook on Oedipu. Sophocles introduces Oedipus as a character that is held as a respected and honorable leader to commend the courageous act that he is setting out to do, and undisturbed by pride and an obsession with accuracy, it is an admirable pursuit.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: ‘Lisa is the real hero of Rear Window. Do…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 85%: In a world where society’s patriarchal structure was the norm, the sudden shift of women adopting more male-centric…
In a world where society’s patriarchal structure was the norm, the sudden shift of women adopting more male-centric roles was confusing many during the 1950s. The Rear Window (1954) directed by Alfred Hitchcock, directly addresses these concerns and puts them at rest as he believes that women can fill spots where men can’t. To progress as a society Hitchcock suggests that we have to adapt and accept the change of women taking more masculine traits. The master of suspense uses Lisa Fremont as a medium to convey his message to the audience presenting her as the hidden hero of the film, as she represents the shift of gender norms during the 1950’s as she is portrayed as not only as a spectacle but also a courageous, brave and pushes the narrative forward. Although she is taking action and subverting from these traditional gender roles, her decisions makes her seem as if she is only taking these to please Jeffries, meaning she is still adhering to the male dominated structure. Ultimately, Hitchcock presents a complex portrayal of gender, one that embraces the evolution of women’s roles, yet reveals how deeply embedded male dominance remains within social and romantic structures especially within the dynamic between men and women.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: All who deserve it are justly punished in…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 80%: 2024 exam In Oedipus the King, all who deserve it are justly punished. In the polytheistic world of Ancient greece…
2024 exam
In Oedipus the King, all who deserve it are justly punished.
In the polytheistic world of Ancient greece where there was the rising debate between mans own intelect and reverance to omnipotent dieties, Oedipus the king by Sophocles argues that not everyone who deserves punishment are justly punished. Although there are those reverant to the gods decrees and try to do right by the polis that are threatened, yet there are those ignorant to their prophecy which only compels them closer to their downfall. Ultimately those who fail to acknowledge divine authority are punished.
Sophocles in the tragic play advances the notion that even those with good intentions are still threatened. Creon from the plays outset is a man with reason, with his always first instinct to go to the gods to consult Apollos oracle and retell their commands, "Apollo commands us" however he who acts with sophrosyne for the best outcome of the polis, a characteristic which the athenian audience would value is punished by Oedipus. Oedipus contrary who acts out all at once like the typical athenian mase orders to Creon, "I want you dead", a punishment for someone that had done no wrong to Oedipus and as a result fractured their relationship in the royal house. A reminder to the audience to always be rational in their decisions and take accountability not to make hasteful decisions with no basis.
Indirectly Oedipus punishes his own polis through his failure to see beyond his own sense of self, "you pray to the gods let me grant your prayers." a Dramatic irony is employed by Sophocles as the audience is aware of the ancient myth and will know he is the sole cause of the plague and is a burden unleaded casted over the city of Thebes. Sophocles also explores that punishment was not also deserved through the conflict between Oedipus and Tiresias, who tries to alert Oedipus, that his "great good fortune" was also his "ruin" indicating to Oedipus that his own horrible truth was predetermined concept, and that his fate itself was a punishment foreshadowing although he acted with true intention.
cast upon him by the gods. Through this Sophocles indicates to the Athenian audience the power of fate and the destruction it may provide through irreverence.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: “…she wanted in a sudden passion to break…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 70%: Tessa Hadley's anthology of English short stories Bad Dreams and Other Stories illustrates how moments of sudden…
Tessa Hadley's anthology of English short stories Bad Dreams and Other Stories illustrates how moments of sudden passion rarely have lasting effects. Hadley suggests how once a woman pursues her desires it is not what they believed it would be. She also hints how strong passions is not effective in the long term. Overall Hadley warns about the consequences of short-term desires.
Hadley brings to light how once a woman gets the opportunity to pursue her desires it is not what they had expected to be. In the first story of the collection 'An Abduction', Hadley demonstrates how Jane's strong desire for sex with Daniel fuelled by the fact that she perceives him to be "the best looking of the three boys" leads her to feel regretful of her actions in her adult years as she reflects on her past with her therapist. This realisation conveys Hadley's message that these sudden moments of passion are often short-lived and unmeaningful, as it is revealed that at the end of the story if she and Daniel ever "crossed paths again, he would not even remember." This can also be represented through 'Experience' where Laura unsuccessfully tries to pursue Julian, her friend Hana's ex-partner. Laura goes as far as to "dress up in Hana's lavish clothes" in order to seduce Julian but he makes an excuse that he has plans with his children. Laura then feels embarrassed and realises that "she didn't even find him attractive anyway", and it was all due to her sudden craving for an experience of some sort to satiate her temporary desires. Hadley therefore shows how bursts of desire does not necessarily correlate to a positive outcome.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: “Wealth can be both a shield and a curse…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 87.5%: By the end of the text, Jackson’s female characters emerge triumphant, forging a new world for themselves and…
By the end of the text, Jackson’s female characters emerge triumphant, forging a new world for themselves and illustrating how the only way to escape the toxic social hierarchies of 1960s America is to escape the financial system entirely. After the fire, both Merricat and Constance exclaim that they “are so happy”, symbolising the peace and satisfaction that only complete isolation could bring them. Despite the fire having destroyed the Blackwood’s belongings, the remains of their estate still protects them, with Merricat reimagining “Our house was a castle, turreted and open to the sky. Here the “castle” metaphor highlights how the sisters' inherited wealth will still act as a fortress-like refuge from the lowerclass and their ill-intentions. The author therefore positions privilege as a necessity, shielding the Blackwoods from the poor against all odds. The
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: To what extent are the lives of the…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 80%: Written in 1962, Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle explores the limitations placed upon the…
Written in 1962, Shirley Jackson’s We Have Always Lived in the Castle explores the limitations placed upon the aristocratic Blackwoods as a result of the patriarchal and formal society they live in. Narrated by the psychologically damaged mind of Merricat, Jackson explores how unrelenting gender roles and rigid social norms lead to a bleak society in which the identity of individuals are suppressed. Ultimately, Jackson works to not only condemn the harsh patriarchal norms societies are based upon, but also demonstrate that liberation and freedom can be achieved through a rejection of these conventional societal values.
Jackson depicts both the women of the village and the Blackwood family as being restricted by expectations of conformity through their formal and rigid interactions with the world. During Mrs. Wright and Helen Clark’s ‘dutiful’ visit to the Blackwood house, Merricat notices Mrs. Wright’s ‘trembling’ hands and her ‘hesitat[ion] over the plate’ offered by Constance. The visibly fraught state of Mrs Wright highlights the social obligations she must fulfil, despite any legitimate concerns for her personal safety, for the sake of social formalities. Jackson expands on this in their mother’s portrait, which was ‘looking down’ on Constance, symbolising both the social duties she has inherited from her mother, despite her agoraphobia, while also highlighting the spirit that now lives on in Constance’s body, forcing her to embody her mother’s spirit. However, Jackson also explores the limitations of social duties through Mrs. Wright’s ‘timid’ demeanour when she is given the chance to take a ‘glance’ at the Blackwoods’ infamous dining room. Her morbid curiosity, only surfacing in the confines of the house, serves to emphasise the identity Mrs. Wright must hide in the face of general society, her meek demeanour highlighting her awareness of the fact the actions are deemed unacceptable to greater society. Therefore, through Mrs. Wright’s and Constance’s prevailing social duties, Jackson underscores the oppressive nature of social etiquette created by rigid societal norms.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: Requiem for a beast suggsest that…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 85%: However, Ottley also highlights how the journey to restoration may be tormenting but conceivable, endorsing the…
However, Ottley also highlights how the journey to restoration may be tormenting but conceivable, endorsing the value of reconciliation through confrontation of the past and storytelling. Ottley’s placement of the multi-voiced and layered narrative structure emphasises the importance of given voices to the silenced. This is done by his decision to start and end the novella with the elder’s voice, a way for him to restore what was taken away from the victims of the stolen generations. Through this, Ottley demonstrates how healing starts and ends, breaking the cycle of silence and exemplifying the value of how reconciliation requires listening to those who were silenced first. Moreover, Ottley uses mythology as symbolic storytelling in the traditional sense to continue the Aboriginal practice, specifically mentioning the ending of the minotaur. Theseus having been saved from the labyrinth
VCE · Language Analysis
Language Analysis: Welcome to Country at the footy is not…
VCE Language Analysis essay scoring 87.5%: Debate has recently emerged over the inclusion of Welcome to Country ceremonies at many major sporting…
Debate has recently emerged over the inclusion of Welcome to Country ceremonies at many major sporting events, particularly during the AFL finals, with some critics dismissing them as divisive or unnecessary. Responding in his opinion piece, “Welcome to Country at the footy is not the place to push personal views” (The Age, 19 September 2024), Matthew Stokes, an AFL columnist and former player argues that while Welcome to Country ceremonies should remain a respectful acknowledgment of Indigenous heritage, its increasing frequency and politicisation risk alienating audiences and diluting its cultural power. Writing with the dual authority of his Aboriginal identity and professional sporting career, Stokes employs a reflective yet conversational tone to appeal to both AFL fans and socially progressive Australians concerned with Indigenous affairs. Accompanying the piece are two photographs , one depicting a Welcome to Country ceremony being performed at an AFL game and one of AFL players on the field celebrating, which visually reinforces Stoke’s contention that football should primarily be a unifying spectacle rather than a platform for political expression.
With the central aim of reframing Welcome to Country as a ceremony that should unify rather than divide, Stokes commences his piece by juxtaposing its description as a “beautiful, respectful ceremony” with the claim that it has become “confusing” and “divisive.” By opening with this contrast, he positions readers to reflect on how far the practice has drifted from its original intention and implicitly validates the frustrations of those who feel alienated by its current form. His repeated use of inclusive language that “unites us” and AFL fans together in recognising “our history” appeals to collective identity, positioning the audience to see the ceremony's original purpose as belonging to all Australians. Yet by warning that it is increasingly “overdone” and used to “push agendas,” Stokes employs emotive diction to simulate audience frustration suggesting that the ceremony risks alienating rather connecting. Moreover, his acknowledgement that “many people are confused by its purpose” disarms potential accusations of ignorance, encouraging readers to view their doubts as legitimate rather than prejudiced. This makes the reader more receptive to his critique. Furthermore, Stokes warns that repetition risks diluting the ceremony’s significance, arguing that when it is “overdone” or misused to “push agendas,” it loses the respect it was designed to foster. This reasoning appeals to readers’ sense of cultural preservation, framing his critique as motivated not by hostility but by a genuine desire to protect the ceremony’s value.
Additionally, with the intention of aligning himself with the everyday football fan, Stokes bluntly asserts that “people are not there to watch Welcome to Country, they are there to watch a game of football.” This direct and colloquial phrasing positions the audience to agree with a statement that feels like plain common sense, reframing the objections to the ceremony as practical rather than prejudiced. By drawing on specific examples such as Shannon Ruska’s “rousing” Welcome to Country at the Gabba or Edwin Fejo and Liam Stansfield’s efforts in Darwin, Stokes uses anecdotal evidence to
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: Norma is the true victim of Sunset…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 80%: As a forgotten star cast away by Hollywood, Norma Desmond succumbs to a world that fails to be “a little patient…
As a forgotten star cast away by Hollywood, Norma Desmond succumbs to a world that fails to be “a little patient and a little kind”, despite her victimhood. Aligning with its noir style, Sunset Boulevard takes a cynical view of its Hollywood setting, revealing the superficiality and vanity of the star system that the industry established. Although she is rarely depicted sympathetically, the morally ambiguous cast of characters meddles in the unconventional femme fatale’s sense of reality, complicating the true culprit behind her tragic ending.
Wilder condemns Hollywood’s preoccupation with outward appearances by depicting the horrors of its by-product, manifested in the character Norma Desmond. Norma’s obsession with beauty is an extension of her ultimate goal for “a return” to “the screen”. Wilder sets up Norma’s motivations and beliefs early in the film as the audience witnesses her watching her own silent films and living in a “house so crowded with Norma Desmonds”, indicating her attachment with the past to be of an abnormal, neurotic degree, as narrated by the cynical noir protagonist, describing the obsession as “plain crazy”. Norma’s attachment to her past self, her past face, is contextualised by the silent-film era she belonged to, where actors “didn’t need dialogue, (they) had faces.” Desperate for stardom, Norma Demond’s efforts to relive the past lead her to retain the belief held “in the crazy Twenties” that an actor’s stage presence is inseparable from her face. Norma’s pursuit of beauty culminates in the gothic horror-esque montage of her “merciless series of treatments”, where the faceless individuals manipulate and probe at Norma, heightening the sense of discomfort in the audience. Joe negatively frames the treatments as militaristic, commenting on how the “army of beauty experts” had “invaded her house”. A low-angle, low-key lighting shot of Norma’s bandaged face in the subsequent scene further unsettles the audience by positioning her to appear intimidating, likening her to a Frankenstein monster. Wilder accuses Hollywood of creating the gothic monster Norma becomes, trapped in a system that deems her unworthy of the spotlight due to her appearance. To Norma, the torturous treatments are necessary for her return to the role of Salome, as she falls victim to the beauty standards set by Hollywood.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: The world that exists by the end of We…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 100%: The overbearing social dogmas that underpinned the milieu of the 1950s to 60s America restricted liberty and…
The overbearing social dogmas that underpinned the milieu of the 1950s to 60s America restricted liberty and prioritised conformity to convention. In her seminal neo-gothic fiction, We Have Always Lived in the Castle, novelist Shirley Jackson devises two sisters burdened by the gendered strictures and class conscious attitudes of their society, who breach the norms of their community by embracing a life of fantasy, love, and femininity. Ultimately, Jackson suggests that in a world that values capitalistic ideals over love and peace, individuals can only achieve these idealised states by rejecting what society holds sacred.
In a world characterised by strict social standards and a tendency to persecute individuals who seek to defy them, Jackson presents how individuals can use fear and fantasy to transcend its confines and achieve an idealised relationship to their community. Through her use of dialogue, Jackson displays how the villagers mythologise themselves by weaponising society’s fear to abnormality, in turn rendering them immune to its oppressive intentions. After the conflagration consumes the Blackwood mansion and the villagers ransack it, the sisters live in a “castle, turreted and open to the sky.” In this ‘castle’, a gothic symbol of power, the sisters are integrated into the “tall tales” of the villagers, who tell stories that the sisters “eat the little girls,” prompting a father of the village to not “want the kids going near” the house. Here, the sisters use the villagers’ fears of abnormality and eccentricity against them to protect themselves from the destruction and tyranny that they represent, in turn forging an idealised world where the sisters can live beyond the suppressive actions of the villagers. Through this, Jackson suggests that entreating into a world of fantasy that represents everything society rejects is a potent way of achieving a utopian state. Similarly, Jackson presents how fear can be used as a tactic of forging a mutualistic symbiotic relationship between individuals and the broader community. Through her use of symbolism, Jackson underpins how women can transfigure the relationship they have to members of their society through the fear the sisters are able to evoke within the village people. Due to the apprehension associated with the sisters and the threat of their retaliation, the villagers give offerings of food to them, such as the mother who gave them an offering with the message, “he didn’t mean it, please” after her child sung the twisted nursery rhyme, “‘Merricat, said Constance, would you like a cup of tea?’” on their doorstep. Particularly, Merricat cites that they are “the largest church supper” the village has ever had, emblematising the sisters’ deification and reverence by their community. The importance of this worshipping is vividly rendered in Merricat’s haunting statement that people should “bow [their] heads” to her or they will “be dead”. Here, Jackson depicts how the sisters are able to forge an idyllic world where the villagers dote on them and sustain them, which fulfils the desire for power that Merricat yearns for for much of the novel. In doing so, Jackson posits that women can exploit the fear they induce in society for breaching social convention to achieve their desires, in turn bettering their circumstances.
Indeed, in a society haunted by the spectre of the archetypal Nuclear family, Jackson presents how women can recalibrate their definition of, and respect for, traditional notions of family, in order to achieve a Prelapsarian state devoid of burdens. Wielding a motif, Jackson lauds how the Blackwood sisters defy familial legacies that suppress their autonomy and self-determination, and subsequently, their quality of life. Mother’s portrait, which was always “watching over” the sisters in the drawing room, is a pivotal motif in the novel that represents domesticity and conformity to gendered conventions. Prompting the sisters to keeping the drawing room “shining and silky”, and thus, retain domesticised rituals fundamental to the subordination of women, after the fires, the sisters close the drawing room door and “never [open it]” again. Here, Jackson presents how the sisters emancipate themselves from the intergenerational burdens enforcing complicity to traditional expectations of womanhood, in turn allowing them
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: “Merricat,” she said, smiling at me, “look…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 100%: The overbearing, unflinching gendered strictures of 1950s and 60s America formulated the archetypical ‘nuclear…
The overbearing, unflinching gendered strictures of 1950s and 60s America formulated the archetypical ‘nuclear family’, a model that deprived women of their agency and control for a life of domesticity and servitude. In her proto-feminist gothic novel, We Have Always Lived in the Castle, Shirley Jackson delineates the methods of subjugation through which the patriarchy keeps women ensnared into a life of conformity. Ultimately, Jackson presents women who dismantle the gendered dogmas that suppress their way of life and retreat into a world of fantasy and female freedom to unveil the importance that women transcend patriarchal definition.
In a world where class-consciousness and strict social norms create a domineering pressure to conform, Jackson depicts the power of embracing fantasy and creativity as a means of liberating women from the limitations of their oppressors. Through her use of symbolism in the form of sympathetic magic, the novelist conveys how women cultivate belief systems to achieve agency in a world where they have been systematically deprived of it. In response to Charles’ overbearing patriarchal presence that stifles the idyllic feminine world the two sisters made for themselves, Merricat uses sympathetic magic, “smashing” Charles’ mirror and burning his pipe in the bin to symbolically expunge his presence from the house. Particularly, the symbolism of her pouring water on Charles’ bed as if to literally wash his presence from it depicts how her use of sympathetic magic enables her to reclaim autonomy and reject Charles’ presence from the house when her supplication for him to “please go away” was unsuccessful. Through this, Jackson praises the creative means that women can use in order to reclaim some sense of agency when men seek to immobilise them and paralyse them in a life of domesticity, whilst encouraging her readership to understand the lengths women are pushed to when they are systematically disenfranchised through patriarchal measures.
As well as the more proximal familial circumstances, Jackson likewise conveys how women can control their own circumstances through fantasy to inoculate themselves from the oppressive tendencies of society at large. Through symbolism, the writer depicts how the sisters mythologise themselves in order to evade the malignant members of society that ostracise them for their difference. Rather than embracing a life of conformity as the villagers wish, the sisters reject social norms and become a part of the village’s “tall tales”; after a village kid sings the old nursery rhyme at their doorstep, “‘Merricat’, said Constance, ‘would you like a cup of tea?’”, a note appears the following night, “He didn’t mean it, I’m sorry”. By embracing a life of ‘monstrosity’ through retreating into the darkness of their “castle”, the sisters become emblems of fear for the villagers, in turn enabling the sisters to have power over them; in turn, they maintain their life by supplying food to their door in fears of retaliation. Here, Jackson displays how the utter rebellion against socio-ideological values can turn women into fearful symbols that command submission from those around them, inverting the power dynamics and enabling women to reclaim the control over their life. Thus, she implores her female readership to liberate themselves from the fear of ostracism, and instead embrace a life of abnormality and deviance.
Likewise, Jackson explores how women’s refusal to conform allows them to enfranchise themselves and reclaim their autonomy. Through her characterisation of Merricat, the novelist conveys how women’s refusal to relinquish their identity allows them to garner both agency and dignity. Merricat’s eccentric and idiosyncratic personality, such as when she buried “silver coins” under their