Effects of Fairtrade on Farmers and Workers: A Comparative Analysis

1. Compare Practice questions Key points to remember: Language of question could be: ‘Compare and contrast’ or simply ‘compare’ – either way you need to speak about the similarities and differences between texts. Make it clear which text you are talking about – Text A/ Text B; Highlight what is asked for in question – question will have a focus; Make sure you have points from both texts; Systematically work through – point (adjective) /evidence (quote); You will need to use comparison connectives throughout; Consider title/ tone/ language choices/ images/ presentational devices and structure across the texts and respond to these ideas in your answer. Time and marks: * 10 marks = 15 minutes reading and answering the question; *8-10 points = 10 mark question         Target Attempt 1 Attempt 2 Attempt 3 T1 – Find a link or difference between the texts to compare T2 – Select quotes to support your ideas T3 – Keep quotes short T4 – Zoom in on the effect of individual words or the attitude they convey T5 – Keep using the stem of the question in your answer T6 – Don’t ramble. Make a point and move on T7 – Evidence then analysis T8 – Use more analytical vocabulary eg. Suggests, illustrates, presents T9 – Use connectives eg. However, on the other hand, in contrast Helpful sentence starters and tips: Dive in with your question stem eg. Text A presents the …. as…. in the quote “…..” This implies that…. However, a different approach is taken in Text B when … Find a link (perhaps weather, feelings, reactions) and explore how they differ Drawing a very brief grid can help you to plan your response   

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3. Q: Compare what the writers of Text D and Text E say about the effects of Fairtrade on the farmers and workers who work for Fairtrade groups. You must make it clear from which text you get your information. [10 marks] Text D Text D is taken from The Guardian newspaper The story of a coffee farmer The story of a coffee farmer Gerardo Arlas Camacho is a coffee farmer in Costa Rica. He is a board member on his village co-operative, which is a member of the Fairtrade consortium COOCAFE. He is married with three children. In the 1980s, the price of coffee was so low that it didn’t cover the cost of production. Many farmers abandoned their land and some even left the country to find work. In the mid-90s, I went tot America to make money and support my family. After eight years, I had earned enough to buy the family farm so that my parents could retire. But coffee prices were still so low that I was forced to return to America for another two years. Then the coffee business was unstable. We did not have a local school, good roads or bridges. Now that we are Fairtrade-certified, prices are stable and we receive a guaranteed amount for our coffee. We spent the money on education, environmental protection, roads and bridges, and improving the processing plant. We have a scholarship programme so that our kids can stay in school. I believe that my farm would be out of business if it wasn’t for Fairtrade. Free trade is not responsible trade. When prices go down, farmers produce more and prices drop further. Fairtrade is the way trade should be: fair, responsible and sustainable. My oldest son is in college, my ten-year-old has already had as much education as me, and my little girl is in her second year at school. With the help of Fairtrade, they might all be able to go to university and get a degree. They won’t have to jump the border from Mexico to America, like me. They can decide what they want in life. Since Fairtrade, our farms have become more environmentally-friendly. Our coffee is now produced in a sustainable way. We plant trees and have reduced the use of pesticides by 80% in 10 years. We used to cut 50 acres of forest down every year to fuel the ovens at our processing plant. Now we have a new oven which is fuelled by coffee waste products and the skins of macadamia nuts that we buy from farmers on the other side of Costa Rica. It is a win-win business. Fairtrade is not a closed system. It is open to everyone but we need more and more people to buy Fairtrade so other farmers can become certified. We already educate other producers around us about market prices so that buyers have to offer them a competitive rate and this benefits the wider community. When there was a hurricane, the main road became blocked and he bridge came down. We could afford to open the road and fix the bridge. When you are shopping, look for the Fairtrade label – you can be sure that the money is going straight to the producers. It will help us, and it will help people around the world, because the benefits of protecting the environment are for everyone. It’s a matter of helping each other. As a Fairtrade farmer, I finally feel competitive. It has given me the knowledge so that I am more able to defend myself and my people. I feel there is a future in front of us because we can stay in our own country and make a living growing coffee. Fairtrade is not charity. Just by going shopping, you can make a difference. 3

4. Q: Compare what the writers of Text D and Text E say about the effects of Fairtrade on the farmers and workers who work for Fairtrade groups. You must make it clear from which text you get your information. [10 marks] Text E Text E explains why some people now choose to buy products that are not Fairtrade. Why are coffe Why are coffee lovers turning their backs on Fairtrade? e lovers turning their backs on Fairtrade? At Workshop Coffee, customers savour their £4 Colombian coffees. It looks like caffeine heaven, but head of production Richard Shannon says some people think something is missing, “If it doesn’t have a Fairtrade logo then we must be holding the farmer down and standing on his neck whilst we steal his coffee.” Workshop is one of a number of specialist coffee companies that says it is committed to fair trade, but doesn’t have the certificate to prove it. Companies like this, which boast about their ethical sourcing of coffee, are choosing not to join the Fairtrade labelling scheme. This is bad news for Fairtrade, which saw UK sales fall for the first time ever last year, by 4%. This has largely been blamed on discount retailers such as Aldi and Lidl carrying far fewer Fairtrade lines than supermarkets like Sainsbury’s. But Fairtrade is also being affected at the top of the market by high-end companies like Workshop who complain that Fairtrade doesn’t pay enough for quality coffee. Many suppliers believe their trade is already fairer than Fairtrade. Last year, Workshop paid on average £6.50 per kilo, nearly twice as much for coffee as Fairtrade did. And, as they point out, Fairtrade doesn’t provide farmers with any greater guarantee of future income. Growers for the speciality market are able to call the shots. As the premium coffee market expands, producers get more power to choose who they sell to and for how much. The growth of the market also creates opportunities for more producers to benefit. Each year, new farmers join as they see their neighbours being highly rewarded for producing high quality coffee. There are doubts about the effectiveness of Fairtrade in getting a good deal for workers. The system guarantees prices for producers and money for social projects, but it can’t ensure that those who receive these payments spread the benefits. Many Fairtrade co-operatives employ people whose wages are lower and who work in worse conditions than those non-Fairtrade areas. One poor use of the Fairtrade payment was in a tea farm where the modern toilets (funded with Fairtrade money) were only used by senior managers. Some people are now beginning to question the fairness of Fairtrade and to ask, “Is it Fairtrade? Or is it fairly traded?” 4

5. Q: Compare what the writers of Text D and Text E say about the effects of Fairtrade on the farmers and workers who work for Fairtrade groups. You must make it clear from which text you get your information. [10 marks] Candidate 1 Candidate 1 Text D is a story about a coffee farmer who had his life changed, positively because of Fairtrade whilst Text E is about companies and ‘coffee lovers’ turning their backs on Fairtrade because Fairtrade has done some poor actions towards everyone especially farmers. In Text D there was a coffee farmer who goes by the name ‘Gerardo Arias Camacho’ and he struggled to make money and support his family, but all that changed when he became Fairtrade- certified, on the other hand in text E there is a coffee shop called ‘Workshop Coffee’ and at the start they struggled to keep customers and gain any profit but over time things got worse, especially when Fairtrade come in. By the same token both texts are discussing how Fairtrade changed their coffee shop and themselves, but apart from that, text D is positive and text E is negative, also text D may or may not be true neither could text E because there is evidence showing they could be real. Mark out of 10? ………….. Mark out of 10? ………….. Candidate 2 Candidate 2 In Text D, which is based on a farmer’s personal experiences in Costa Rica, Camacho tells us that Fairtrade has a positive effect on the farmers and workers. In contrast, to this, in Text E, the writer is writing from the consumer/retailers’ point of view and ‘questions the fairness of Fairtrade’ because he/she says that despite the ‘system’ aiding ‘social projects’ it ‘can’t ensure’ that the benefits ‘are spread’. Therefore Text E, implies that Fairtrade may not actually have a positive effect on all the farmers and workers. In comparison, Camacho tells us that the ‘benefits’ of Fairtrade are ‘for everyone’ and benefits the ‘community as a whole’. On the other hand, he owns his farm and has a high status in the community as a member of ‘CODCAFE’ therefore his views may not reflect the effects on Fairtrade on all farmers/workers. For example, Text E gives us an example of a ‘poor use of the Fairtrade payment’ where it only had a positive effect on the ‘senior managers’ as the ‘modern toilets’ built ‘were only used’ by them. Both pieces say that Fairtrade helps to guarantee ‘prices’ and fund ‘social projects’ – e.g. Camacho lists how the money has had a positive effect on ‘education’, infrastructure, and the environment. But, Text E has ‘doubts’ and suggests that some of Fairtrade’s effects may be negative, partly because retail is falling and therefore it’s making less money. Also, it says that ‘Fairtrade doesn’t provide farmers with any greater guarantee of future income’. In comparison, Camacho believes that Fairtrade has given him ‘a future’ and he can ‘make a living growing coffee.’ Yet Text E, also suggests that the conditions of Fairtrade farmers/workers are ‘worse’ than those in non-Fairtrade areas. On the other hand, without examples we cannot understand whether this is because the non-Fairtrade areas need the help less and maybe the Fairtrade areas were even worse before. As a consequence, both texts imply that Fairtrade can improve the ‘fairness of trade’ but Text E also believes ‘free trade’ can be fair. In comparison, Camacho disagrees with ‘free trade’ and believes all the effects of Fairtrade are positive because it has had a massive impact on his own life in Costa Rica. In comparison, Text E does not have as much evidence on the effects of Fairtrade because it is not based on personal experience, but unlike Text D, it implies that the effects aren’t all positive as the trade may not actually be ‘fair’. Mark out of 10? ………….. Mark out of 10? ………….. 5

6. Q: Compare what the writers of Text A and Text B say about the girls’ childhood experiences. You must make it clear from which text you get your information. [10 marks] Text A Text A is taken from an article in The Observer newspaper by Elizabeth Day Living dolls: inside the world of child beauty pageants Living dolls: inside the world of child beauty pageants They parade in miniature ballgowns, wear false eyelashes and can be as young as five… We venture into the world of mini beauty pageants to meet the young princesses and their pushy parents. Amber is seven years old and loves Miley Cyrus. She sleeps with a poster of the actress above her bed and stores all her most treasured possessions in a glittery purple box emblazoned with the image of Hannah Montana. She also likes watching music videos on YouTube and making up dances to accompany the songs of JLS, her favourite boy-band. But, most of all, Amber likes to collect stones. "This is my red collection," she says, unzipping her pink rucksack and carefully lifting out a series of rust- coloured stones. She lays them in a line on the carpet and looks at them proudly. To all intents and purposes, Amber is a confident little girl with an array of enthusiasms and interests. But it is hard not to notice as she talks that her eyelids are powdered with gold eyeshadow. Her hair has been styled with two sparkly hairclips and she is wearing a pale pink dress studded with fabric flowers. Later, she will show me a certificate she was given for taking part in the Mini Miss UK competition earlier this year. Because as well as being a normal seven year-old, Amber is also an aspiring child beauty queen. Did she enjoy entering the beauty pageant? Amber thinks for a second and then nods her head. Will she be entering any more? "Yes." She pauses, a touch uncertainly. "If Mummy told me to." Five years ago, there were no mini beauty pageants in Britain. Today, more than 20 are held each year with thousands of girls (and sometimes even boys) taking part. Many of the contestants are as young as five. A typical beauty pageant will consist of several rounds, often including an "evening wear" section and a talent round, in which contestants will display a particular gift, such as singing, dancing or baton-twirling. For a successful child beauty queen the rewards can be lucrative – the winner of Junior Miss British Isles can expect to pocket £2,500 – but it takes a lot of work. Sasha Bennington, 13, one of the most successful child beauty queens on the UK circuit, undergoes a gruelling beauty routine to keep up appearances and insists on a spray tan every week, a new set of acrylic nails each month and regular bleaching of her white blonde hair. To their critics, such beauty pageants are exploitative, pressurising children to adopt adult mannerisms that they do not fully understand and enforcing the message that physical appearance is all-important. Yet many in the pageant industry insist it is a harmless pastime that instils young girls with confidence and self-esteem. 6

7. Q: Compare what the writers of Text A and Text B say about the girls’ childhood experiences. You must make it clear from which text you get your information. [10 marks] Text Text B B is taken from ‘London Labour and London Poor’ by Henry Mayhew The Watercress Girl The Watercress Girl The little watercress girl who gave me the following statement, although only eight years of age, had entirely lost all childish ways, and was, indeed, in thoughts and manner, a woman. There was something cruelly pathetic in hearing this infant, so young that her features had scarcely formed themselves, talking of the bitterest struggles of life. I did not know how to talk with her. At first I treated her as a child, speaking on childish subjects; so that I might, by being familiar with her, remove all shyness, and get her to narrate her life freely. I asked her about her toys and her games with her companions; but the look of amazement that answered me soon put an end to any attempt at fun on my part. I then talked to her about the parks, and whether she ever went to them. "The parks!" she replied in wonder, "where are they?" I explained to her, telling her that they were large open places with green grass and tall trees, where beautiful carriages drove about, and people walked for pleasure, and children played. Her eyes brightened up a little as I spoke; and she asked, half doubtingly, "Would they let such as me go there- just to look?" Her little face, pale and thin with privation, was wrinkled where the dimples ought to have been, and she would sigh frequently. The poor child, although the weather was severe, was dressed in a thin cotton gown, with a threadbare shawl wrapped round her shoulders. She wore no covering to her head, and the long rusty hair stood out in all directions. When she walked she shuffled along, for fear that the large carpet slippers that served her for shoes should slip off her feet. "I go about the streets with water-cress, crying, 'Four bunches a penny, water-cress.' I am just eight years old-- that's all, and I've a big sister, and a brother and a sister younger than I am. On and off, I've been very near a twelvemonth in the streets. Before that, I had to take care of a baby for my aunt. No, it wasn't heavy--it was only two months old; but I minded it for ever such a time--till it could walk. It was a very nice little baby, not a very pretty one; but, if I touched it under the chin, it would laugh. My mother learned me to needle-work and to knit when I was about five. I used to go to school, too; but I wasn't there long. I've forgot all about it now, it's such a time ago; and mother took me away because the master whacked me. I didn't like him at all. What do you think? he hit me three times, ever so hard, across the face with his cane; and when mother saw the marks on my cheek, she went to confront him, but she couldn't see him--he was afraid. That's why I left school. 7

8. Q: Compare and contrast what these two writers say about queuing at theme parks. [10 marks] Text A Text A is taken from an article about Thorpe Park Thorpe Park: how to scare your teenagers Thorpe Park: how to scare your teenagers Thorpe Park – Rollercoaster Central, the thrill capital of England, the most terrifying location inside the M25 – holds a special place in the affections of all teenagers in the south-east of England, and a kind of horrified fascination for their parents. It is where the teens want to go for their first independent day out and, although their parents may wonder why, they are unlikely to issue a blanket ban. The high-speed rides are billed as scary – and most are certainly that – but it’s a pretty safe destination. It’s good stuff and there is plenty enough for a day’s entertainment, which makes the admission charge good value. It’s particularly good value if the teens are alone, because – we are reliably informed – long queues are very much part of the fun, allowing endless opportunities to anticipate the thrills ahead and dissect those already experienced. Adults may find the prospect of such queues too much so Fastrack (queue jumper!) tickets are the answer. In summary, teens will enjoy themselves immensely and talk about it for weeks afterwards but adults who are only present as supervisors or chauffeurs should be prepared to make sure that they book in advance and arrive in good time for the queue for the Fastrack tickets. Text B Text B is taken from an article about Alton Towers Great days out: Alton Towers Great days out: Alton Towers My last trip to Alton Towers was on a hot summer’s day and was an annual excursion organised by my school. I remember them announcing it in assembly at the start of the year and for the next eight months it was virtually the sole topic of conversation in the school yard. Once there, we were relieved we didn’t have to worry about queuing at the ticket office as we had paid in advance. The first queue we encountered was the one to get through the turnstiles but the guys in the ticket booths were very quick and we didn’t have to wait too long. Once in, the noise and euphoria hit us like an intoxicating drug. Oblivion is one of the scariest rollercoasters you can ever experience and the long queues only add to the tension. You’re also subjected to a number of video clips of a man calling himself the Lord of Darkness, who tells you that the ride is perfectly safe, but then lets out that familiar, sinister laugh associated with all villains. Once you’re on the ride, the tension rises even further as you ascend slowly upwards on the track then wheel to the right towards the infamous drop. After taking an hour to relax and enjoy some lunch, my friends and I proceeded at a more leisurely pace towards another famous rollercoaster, Nemesis, the first rollercoaster in Europe to run on the underside of the track. Once again, a long queue loomed but this time there were no video clips or booming laughter. Instead you shuffled slowly through an artificial canyon with rivers of red water. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, our turn had come. 8

9. Q: Compare and contrast what these two writers say about relationships between parents and children [10 marks] Text A is an extract from an article by Angela Epstein. Wash up? That’ll cost you £5, Mum. Should you really have to pay your children to help around the house? My boss had told me I had to phone him at 6:30pm – right in the middle of crisis hour, that time of day when tired hungry children collide with irritable parents and edge the household towards complete and utter meltdown. However, this evening my little girl was having an especially spectacular tantrum because, she alleged, someone had taken her blue plastic pony. “Sophie, stop that noise. I need to make a phone call,” I thundered, as if that would somehow make my crimson-faced daughter pipe down. She simply cranked up her howling. In desperation, I turned to Max, my 15-year-old son, and asked him to take his sister into the garden. I uttered the magic words, “I’ll pay you.”… Lifting an eyebrow, but not turning away from his Xbox, he started negotiations. It was 6:26pm. Time was ticking away fast. “How much?” he opened. I offered a pound. He wrinkled his nose and said, “Ten.” I told him I was only going to be five minutes, and this was extortion. I gave this boy life – and it was particularly painful. However, he sense the urgency of the situation. We settled at a fiver and so he led his sister outside and gave her a half-hearted push on the swing. And so my children are aware they can get large amounts of cash by taking advantage of me. It’s not that I have reared a brood of merciless youngsters who know the price of everything and the value of nothing. They’re actually a very loving, friendly bunch. They are simply taking their cue from me. You see, the way I live my life has been my undoing. Every day is a demented juggle between running a home and doing a job. My downfall was raising children who are sharp enough to realise that in my desperation to get everything done, there is money to be made. I don’t always give in. The other day I asked Max to answer the door. “I answered it last week,” he murmured. “Just do it,” I ordered. “How much?” he ventured, although he was joking (I think) and shot me a knowing smile before strolling off to let my visitor in. Don’t get me wrong. There are times when children should have incentives. They can learn a lot by being paid to wash the car or do the garden. It’s honest work and I’d have to pay someone to do it – so why shouldn’t they make a few quid? It teaches them early on in life that there is great dignity in being rewarded for hard work. But I can’t seem to resist the temptation to cough up whenever I need to buy another pair of hands or ten minutes of silence. Anything for an easy life. 9

10. Q: Compare and contrast what these two writers say about relationships between parents and children [10 marks] Text B is an extract from an article about teenagers. How to deal with lazy teenagers For many frustrated parents, parting the Red Sea might seem more of a possibility than parting the couch from their teenager’s rear end. We have entered an age where playing a video game or sending a text is about the extent of many teenagers’ weekly physical exertion. Our country is rapidly producing a generation of kids that are overweight and unexercised. Sadly, parents are often to blame for this problem. In an effort to avoid confrontation, or a desire to make their children happy, many parents are actually responsible for their kids being lazy. You may know the scene. The room is a mess, you ask the children to tidy up and they suddenly remember that they are tired. They may even summon ip some pressing homework - anything rather than help or do as you ask. You then get bossy. ‘Do this NOW,’ you bellow, but they claim they had no hand in the mess themselves and drift off, leaving you furious, powerless and unable to see what you have to do to get their co-operation. But why should parents be the only ones to take care of daily tasks in the home? Assigning jobs around the house is a great way to teach responsibility and you can encourage a sense of pride by thanking or complimenting them when they have done a good job. Let them know the importance of doing their bit to help the family. You should also develop a system of ‘consequences’ for failing to get jobs done. It is sensible to listen to their grumbles and let them have their say about how tidying or homework or whatever will eat into their football or television time. But you don’t have to give in. Often children just want to moan. Teenagers always need money and many have the insane idea that they are entitled to a certain portion of the parental income every week. This can be exploited by parents offering opportunities to complete specific jobs as a way to earn spending money. Is there a room that needs painting? Perhaps a garage needs to be cleared up? You only pay when the job is completed. The biggest factor in dealing with lazy teenagers is consistency. It is also vital to communicate effectively. Being a parent is a hard job but you should make every effort to let your teenager know that fun and pleasure come as a result of hard work. 10

11. Q: Compare and contrast what these two writers say about their childhoods [10 marks] Text A is an extract of biographical writing from Steve Backshall. Steve Backshall: Looking for adventure We made our way up the rough driveway to Collingwood House, through the thick bushes, to a collection of ramshackle buildings surrounded by towering oak and silver birch trees. The main farmhouse was little more than a hundred years old. Bright blue paint along the rafters failed to cover up the fact that they and almost everything else were deeply rotten. The whole place seemed like a vision, and my parents were both starry-eyed the second they saw it. Mum and Dad took up the management of the place more in the way of a lifestyle than just a home. They planted an enormous vegetable patch, and embarked on the impossible task of rebuilding the dilapidated buildings. After a few months, our first rescue animal arrived, an asthmatic donkey called Barney, and after that the floodgates opened. We collected all sorts: dogs, goats, floppy- eared rabbits, two intimidating geese called Victoria and Albert, and an Exmoor pony called Walnut who deliberately headed for low-hanging branches to try and forcibly remove anyone daft enough to try and ride him. All the animals were much more pets than they were farm animals. We used to play hide-and-seek with the goats, running off into the bracken when they weren't looking, then sitting quietly waiting. Just minutes later, a wet nose would nuzzle into your ear. It was my job to milk the goats before going to school each day, and it was a lot harder than it looked. If it was a warm day at school, I'd end up stinking of curdled milk. Even as a child I valued my own space, and the woods were my retreat. Wondrous ancient woodlands of conifer and broadleaf, dappled sunlight, the scent of pines, the scurry of squirrels. I knew the location of every fox earth and badger sett, stalked red deer to see how close I could get, and cried when one of the stable girls set light to a clutch of grass snake eggs found in a manure heap. For the rest of my life, no matter where I go or how much I make my current house my own, Collingwood House will always be my home. 11

12. Q: Compare and contrast what these two writers say about their childhoods [10 marks] Text B is an extract from a non-fiction book by Michael Caine. Michael Caine: War-time Homes During the Second World War, Michael Caine and his brother Stanley, like other children, were moved out of London to live with families in safer parts of the country. Stanley was sent to live with a district nurse and I was taken in by a couple who were just plain cruel. My mother couldn’t come to visit straight away because the Germans were bombing the railway lines. When she eventually managed to get down she found me covered in sores and starving. There was an allowance to cover the costs of taking in evacuees and my hosts were out to keep as much of it as possible; I’d been living on a tin of pilchards once a day. Even worse, they used to go away for the weekend and leave me locked in the cupboard under the stairs. I’ve never forgotten sitting hunched in the dark, crying for my mum and not knowing if anyone would ever come to get me out; time had ceased to have any meaning. That experience was so traumatic that it has left me with a lifelong fear of small, enclosed spaces and a burning hatred of any cruelty to children; all my charity work is aimed at children’s charities, particularly the NSPCC. Anyway, back then I decided I’d rather risk the bombing than be locked up in a cupboard again. Happily, my mother agreed and took Stanley and me straight back to London, determined not to be parted from us again. By now the Blitz on London was happening in earnest. The bombs got closer and closer and my mother had had enough. My father was called up to serve in the Royal Artillery and she took us to North Runcton in Norfolk, on the east coast of England. Sometimes I think the Second World War was the best thing that ever happened to me. Norfolk was a paradise for a scrawny little street urchin like me, coming from all the smog and fog and filth of London. I was a little runt when I went there and by the time I was fourteen I had shot up to six foot, like a sunflower growing up a wall. Or a weed. Wartime rationing meant no sugar, no sweets, no cakes – no artificial anything – but we had good food, supplemented with wild rabbits and moorhens’ eggs. Everything was organic because all the chemical fertilisers were needed for explosives, so I was given this unexpectedly healthy start in life. We lived with another ten families crammed together in an old farmhouse, with fresh air, good food and, best of all, the chance to roam free in the countryside. I went round with a gang of other evacuees; the village mothers wouldn’t let their kids play with us because we were so rough and our language was a bit suspect, to say the least. Now I look back on it, we must have been a bit of a nuisance but my experiences there changed my life. I appreciated the country because I went there and I appreciated London because I’d left it behind. 12

13. Q: Compare and contrast what these two writers say about falling in love. [10 marks] Text A is an extract from a letter written by John Steinbeck to his son at boarding school. He is replying to news that his son has fallen in love with a girl named Susan. Dear Thom, We had your letter this morning. I will answer it from my point of view and of course Elaine will from hers. First – if you are in love – that’s a good thing – that’s about the best thing that can happen to anyone. Don’t let anyone make it small or light to you. Second – There are several kinds of love. One is a selfish, mean, grasping, egotistical thing which uses love for self-importance. This is the ugly and crippling kind. The other is an outpouring of everything good in you – of kindness and consideration and respect – not only the social respect of manners but the greater respected which is recognition of another person as unique and valuable. The first kind can make you sick and small and weak but the second can release in you strength, and courage and goodness and even wisdom you didn’t know you had. You say this is not puppy love. If you feel so deeply – of course it isn’t puppy love. But I don’t think you were asking me what I feel. You know better than anyone. What you wanted me to help you with is what to do about it – and I can tell you. Glory in it for one thing and be very glad and grateful for it. The object of love is the best and most beautiful. Try to live up to it. If you love someone – there is no possible harm in saying so – only you must remember that some people are very shy and somethings the saying must take that shyness into consideration. Girls have a way of knowing or feeling what you feel, but they usually like to hear it also. It sometimes happens that what you feel is not returned for one reason or another – but that does not make your feeling less valuable and good. Lastly, I know your feeling because I have it and I’m glad you have it. We will be glad to meet Susan. She will be very welcome. But Elaine will make all such arrangements because that is her province and she will be very glad to. She knows about love too and maybe she can give you more help than I can. And don’t worry about losing. If it is right, it happens – The main thing is not to hurry. Nothing good gets away. Love Father 13

14. Q: Compare and contrast what these two writers say about falling in love. [10 marks] Text B is an article from ‘The Guardian’ newspaper titled ‘Why you should leave your first love’ by Daisy Buchanan. Why you should leave your first love Why you should leave your first love One of the smartest things I ever did, up there with learning how to make a good roux, and realising that ‘dry clean only’ is not an instruction that can be enforced by law, was to break up with my very first boyfriend. There was nothing wrong with either of us, but we were completely wrong for each other. However, at 15, the ferocity of our feelings was strong enough to glue us together for years. We had so much in common! We were both 15! We both really, really, really wanted a boyfriend or girlfriend! We both read books and felt a bit self-conscious about things and sometimes got teased for being quite good at history! This was meant to be! By the time I was 21, I realized that if fate had anything in store for me, it was not that relationship. We had no idea who we were and what we wanted at 15, but the intoxicating power of first love meant we came perilously close to settling down and being unhappy ever after. It wasn’t until I was out of my teens that I realized I could have fallen in thrilling, all-consuming love with about 10% of the male population, had I put my mind to it. Hormones heightened my emotions and make me crave my own relationship. Every book I read and every song I heard was about love, and armed with the idea that a good partner is one you have plenty in common with, I’d fantasise about compatible boys because they too ate cereal, watched Neighbours and had hands. When I was a staff writer for the teen magazine Bliss, I’d talk to many girls who were just as lovestruck as I was when I was their age. A few would say that their friends were boy-crazy and they weren’t bothered; a few told me they were happy to wait until they met the right one; and quite a lot were on a mission to meet The One – or thought they had met The One and planned to make it work at all costs. Twilight was their bible, and Bella, the young woman who falls in love with vampire Edward Cullen, was their heroine. The Twilight series captivated teens because it trades on the idea that first love is perfect love. The character of Bella is written as a cipher- she’s supposed to be beautiful but other than that, we don’t really know what she looks like, never mind the facets of her personality. Any teen can easily, instantly imagine themselves as her, in her world. Edward makes such an appealing love interest because his main interest is Bella. It’s easy to understand why the story appeals to young, nervous teens. It’s a lovely fantasy, but makes for a dangerous and damaging reality. I would never tell a teen not to read Twilight, but with all my heart, I’d urge them not to start the quest for The One immediately afterwards. Teens are, like Bella, relatively undefined and free of context. They don’t know who they will become. Dating can be a good way to explore and discover what makes you happy and what you won’t put up with. Teens need to hear that the first love, the one they should protect at all costs, is themselves. That knowing when to stop throwing good time after bad is the only way to reach the happy ending. We can’t stop adolescents from thinking of themselves as the starts of a story, but we can teach them that early relationships make up the first, not the final chapters. 14