DP English A Lang & Lit · HL / SL · Everything You Need to Know About Analysis

Synthesized Techniques: The Full Picture

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  1. Question 1

    A student writes: 'The poet uses assonance. The poet also uses a metaphor to create effect.' Which revision best demonstrates true linking rather than listing?
    No clue? Show me the answer
    Correct answerCorrect!Incorrect
    AThe assonance intensifies the metaphor's melancholy, so the drawn-out vowels make the image of decay linger in the reader's ear.

    Step-by-step walkthrough

    Choose a solution method

    Method #1Direct reasoning

    Step 1: Identify the flaw

    The original sentence names two devices joined only by 'also' with no stated interaction between them.

    Step 2: Apply the linking formula

    True linking requires a claim, two devices with evidence, and a combined-effect statement showing what happens because both occur together.

    Step 3: Interpret option A

    Option A states that assonance intensifies the metaphor's effect and explains the resulting sensory outcome, satisfying the combined-effect requirement.

    Step 4: Select the answer

    Only option A moves beyond naming devices to explain their interaction, so it is correct.

    Method #2Process of elimination

    Step 1: Eliminate B

    B merely locates each device in different lines without describing any interaction, so it is still listing.

    Step 2: Eliminate C

    C states both devices are present but gives no effect or interaction, failing the linking requirement entirely.

    Step 3: Eliminate D

    D notes recurrence of each device separately but never connects their effects, remaining a list disguised as commentary.

    Step 4: Compare remaining option

    A is the only option with a stated combined effect, matching the definition of linking given in the content.

    Step 5: Confirm

    Option A is therefore the correct answer.

  2. Question 2

    According to the linking formula for synthesizing techniques, what is the step students most often skip when combining two devices in one analytical point?
    No clue? Show me the answer
    Correct answerCorrect!Incorrect
    BExplicitly stating the combined effect that occurs because both devices appear together in the passage.

    Step-by-step walkthrough

    Choose a solution method

    Method #1Direct reasoning

    Step 1: Recall the formula

    The linking formula is claim, device one plus quotation, device two plus quotation, then combined effect.

    Step 2: Apply the stated warning

    The content explicitly flags the final step, the combined-effect statement, as the one most often omitted by students.

    Step 3: Interpret the consequence

    Skipping this step leaves two disconnected observations rather than one unified argument about interaction.

    Step 4: Select the answer

    The combined-effect statement is therefore the correct answer.

    Method #2Process of elimination

    Step 1: Eliminate B

    Naming the device is the easier first step and not the one flagged as commonly skipped.

    Step 2: Eliminate C

    Quoting evidence is a basic requirement students generally do include, unlike the synthesising sentence.

    Step 3: Eliminate D

    Category choice is not mentioned as a skipped step; any combination of categories can be linked.

    Step 4: Compare with content

    Only the explicit combined-effect statement matches the warning given about students' most common omission.

    Step 5: Confirm

    Option A is confirmed correct.

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