Angelou’s poems as one work: the collective I, refrain, rhythm and the turn at the end

What the exam asks

In Paper 2, you have 1 hour 45 minutes to answer one of four general questions by comparing two literary works you have studied, without the texts in front of you. To score top marks in Criterion A (knowledge, understanding and interpretation) and Criterion B1 (analysis and evaluation of textual features and/or authorial choices), you should discuss more than one poem from our twelve-poem selection, showing how Angelou’s signature choices of voice, form, rhythm and structure work across the collection as a whole.