AQA English Literature Paper 2

What's in AQA Paper 2?

Paper 2 is the bigger paper, with three sections and three answers, worth 96 marks in total. It is closed book, so you work entirely from memory. Because there is a lot to do, timing is even more important here than in Paper 1.

Section A: Modern texts

This is An Inspector Calls. You choose one question from a choice of two, on a character or theme, and there is no printed extract, so you work from memory of the whole play. It is worth 30 marks plus 4 for spelling, punctuation and grammar, so 34 in total. Rehearse with the An Inspector Calls practice questions.

Section B: The poetry anthology

This is Power and Conflict. You are given one named poem printed on the paper and asked to compare how it and one other poem of your choice present an idea. It is worth 30 marks. The skill is choosing a strong second poem and comparing methods, which you can practise with the comparison guide.

Section C: Unseen poetry

This is Unseen Poetry. You get two poems you have never seen: the first question, worth 24 marks, asks you to analyse one poem; the second, worth 8 marks, asks you to compare the methods of both. There is no context here. Learn the method on the how to answer page.

Timing strategy

With three answers in 2 hours 15 minutes, a rough split is around 45 minutes on the modern text, 45 minutes on the anthology comparison, and 45 minutes on unseen poetry, spending far more of that last block on the 24 mark question than the 8 mark one. Keep an eye on the clock, because running out of time before Section C is a common and costly mistake. Always check the exact marks and timings against the current AQA specification.

Prepare each part fully on the An Inspector Calls, Power and Conflict and Unseen Poetry pages, and see the other paper on the Paper 1 hub.