Cambridge International AS & A Level

ENGLISH LANGUAGE 9093/31

Paper 3 Language Analysis October/November 2022

2 hours 15 minutes

You must answer on the enclosed answer booklet.

* 8 3 1 7 8 3 3 9 0 0 *

You will need: Answer booklet (enclosed)

INSTRUCTIONS
● Answer all questions.
● Follow the instructions on the front cover of the answer booklet. If you need additional answer paper,
ask the invigilator for a continuation booklet.
● Dictionaries are not allowed.

INFORMATION
● The total mark for this paper is 50.
● The number of marks for each question or part question is shown in brackets [ ].

This document has 8 pages. Any blank pages are indicated.

DC (CJ) 327869/1
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Section A: Language change

Question 1

Read Texts A, B and C.

Analyse how Text A exemplifies the various ways in which the English language has changed
over time. In your answer, you should refer to specific details from Texts A, B and C, as well as to
ideas and examples from your wider study of language change. [25]

Text A

An extract from a letter written in 1774 by a father to his daughter at boarding school

A Letter from a Father

Believe me, they are the beʃt friends who take the
trouble to ʃhew you what you ought to do, and what you ought
not to do ; who plainly tell you your faults, that you may amend
them. 5
I would farther adviʃe you not to enter into party
quarrels. Where there is a number of young people together,
little jealouʃies and diʃputes will ariʃe, and offences will be given.
Every body is, ʃome how or other, drawn in to take a ʃide ; each
ʃide grows keen, and the parties, by degrees, contract particular 10
likings and averʃions to one another. This humour is carried
from the boarding-ʃchool, and increaʃed by their intercourʃe
with the world ; where it daily diʃcovers itʃelf by a diʃpoʃition to
argue, and a readineʃs to take part in every affair that comes to be
a matter of publick diʃcuʃʃion, and in which every one, however 15
unfit ʃhe may be, aʃʃumes a right to judge. How often have
we ʃeen towns, cities, a great part of a country, nay the whole
nation, divided about matters in which not one in ten thouʃand
had any concern ; yet all ʃeemed to be as deeply engaged, as
if their own ʃafety or intereʃt had been at ʃtake ! I have often 20
wondered to ʃee the women the keeneʃt in ʃuch diʃputes ;
which, to me, appeared very unbecoming1. Let a woman, when
ʃhe is called to it, maintain her opinion, or diʃʃent from others,
in decent terms, and without entering into an argument ʃo far
as to alter her temper, or diʃcompoʃe her features. She ʃhould 25
avoid all converʃation that may deprive her of that ʃoftneʃs and
compoʃure which are ʃo agreeable in the fair ʃex, and ought to
accompany all their ʃpeeches and behaviour. A  woman ruffled
with paʃʃion makes a diʃagreeable appearance ; indeed, ʃhe is
not herʃelf. 30
That you may be reʃtrained from engaging in theʃe
ʃilly conteʃts, always aʃk yourʃelf—what concern have I in this
affair ? If you have none, be ʃilent ; if you have any, tell your
mind calmly ; and, as far as they will bear it, put a favourable
conʃtruction upon the actions and opinions of others. 35

1 unbecoming: inappropriate, not flattering

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Text B

Five of the top modifiers of ‘humour’ from the Early English Books Corpus (1470s–1690s) and
from the English Web 2015 corpus (texts collected from the internet in 2015).

‘humour’ ‘humour’
(1470s–1690s) (2015)
ill wry
peccant1 gallows
corrupt fast-paced
sharp slapstick
melancholy tongue-in-cheek

1 peccant: sinful

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 n-gram graph for the words unbecoming and inappropriate (1750–2000)

0.00130%
0.00120%
inappropriate
0.00110%
0.00100%
0.00090%
0.00080%

9093/31/O/N/22
0.00070%
0.00060%
4

0.00050%
0.00040%
0.00030%
0.00020%
0.00010%
unbecoming
0.00000%
1760 1780 1800 1820 1840 1860 1880 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000
Text C

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BLANK PAGE

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Section B: Child language acquisition

Question 2

Read the following text, which is a transcription of a conversation between Bailey (age 3 years)
and her mother. They are at home and Bailey is playing with a toy telephone.

Analyse ways in which Bailey and her mother are using language in this conversation. In your
answer, you should refer to specific details from the transcription, as well as to ideas and examples
from your wider study of child language acquisition. [25]

Mother: who are you calling↗

Bailey: ˚somebody˚ um (2) oh did you see that on my /sʌm/ [holds up her thumb]

Mother: what happened↗

Bailey: um (.) i dont know

Mother: did lola1 scratch you↗ 5

Bailey: no rory1↘

Mother: rory scratched you↗

//
Bailey: yeah

Mother: im sorry↘ 10
//
Bailey: i didnt know how it did it (.) i didnt know how it comed out (.) um (.) rorys
paws (.) i didnt know how it comed out

Mother: her claws

Bailey: yeah 15

Mother: theyre sharp arent they

Bailey: yeah (1) i didnt know that it comed out (.) i didnt know that it comed out of her
paws

Mother: you didnt↗ (1) oh my goodness (2) who are you talking to

Bailey: can you talk to somebody (2) im doing it on my ear 20

Mother: but who is it↘

Bailey: its bunnyhorse

Mother: bunnyhorse↗ (.) whats bunnyhorse doing↘

Bailey: he just /peɪɪŋ/ at home and waiting for his mama to come and he daddy (.) his
aunt is watching him right now 25

Mother: who is↗

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Bailey: his aunt

Mother: his aunt is watching him↗

//
Bailey: yeah 30

Mother: oh my goodness (.) is he having fun with her↗

Bailey: yeah and /deɪ/ making eggs right now

Mother: eggs↗

Bailey: and potato too

Mother: oh my (.) that sounds good 35

Bailey: oh bunny says er (.) bunnyhorse says hes got go to eat dinner

Mother: hes got to go to eat dinner↗

Bailey: yeah (1) my phone is called (2) is yours big↗

Mother: yeah mine is a little bit bigger

Bailey: it big↗ 40

Mother: just a little bigger (.) how about (.) let me see yours (.) hold yours up

Bailey: mine are little

Mother: yes yours is little

1 lola and rory : the names of Bailey and Mother’s pet cats

TRANSCRIPTION KEY
(1) = pause in seconds
(.) = micropause
underlined = stressed sound/syllable(s)
// = speech overlap
[italics] = paralinguistic features
<italics>= contextual information
UPPER CASE = words spoken with increased volume
˚word˚= words spoken with decreased volume
↗ = upward intonation
↘ = downward intonation
/wɪv/ = phonemic representation of speech sounds

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REFERENCE TABLE OF International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) PHONEMIC SYMBOLS

(RECEIVED PRONUNCIATION)

1 Consonants of English 2 Pure vowels of English

/f/ fat, rough / iː / beat, keep
/v/ very, village, love /ɪ/ bit, tip, busy
/ɵ/ theatre, thank, athlete /e/ bet, many
/ð/ this, them, with, either /æ/ bat
/s/ sing, thinks, losses /ʌ/ cup, son, blood
/z/ zoo, beds, easy / aː / car, heart, calm, aunt
/ʃ/ sugar, bush /ɒ/ pot, want
/ʒ/ pleasure, beige / ɔː / port, saw, talk
/h/ high, hit, behind /ə/ about, sudden
/p/ pit, top / ɜː / word, bird
/t/ tip, pot, steep /ʊ/ book, wood, put
/k/ keep, tick, scare / uː / food, soup, rude
/b/ bad, rub
/d/ bad, dim 3 Diphthongs of English
/g/ gun, big / eɪ / late, day, great
/ tʃ / church, lunch / aɪ / time, high, die
/ dʒ / judge, gin, jury / ɔɪ / boy, noise
/m/ mad, jam, small / aʊ / cow, house, town
/n/ man, no, snow / əʊ / boat, home, know
/ŋ/ singer, long / ɪə / ear, here
/l/ loud, kill, play / eə / air, care, chair
/j/ you, beyond / ʊə / cure, jury
/w/ one, when, sweet
/r/ rim, bread
/ʔ/ uh-oh

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