Unit 1 sets out the foundations of argument: the situation a text is written in, the claims it makes and the evidence it uses. This review draws the ideas together and then asks seven questions that combine two or more topics. The questions are original Marlbridge practice, not past exam questions, and the rubrics are a suggested Marlbridge rubric. Passages not credited to a named public-domain author were written by Marlbridge for practice.
Big ideas of Unit 1
- Every text has a situation. Exigence, writer, audience, purpose, context and message together explain why a text is written as it is (Topic 1.1).
- Exigence looks back; purpose looks forward. The trigger and the goal must be kept apart (Topic 1.2).
- Audience and context shape choices. Describe the audience as specifically as the text allows, and context as time, place and occasion (Topic 1.3).
- A claim requires a defence. Facts, topics and preferences are not claims (Topic 1.4).
- Evidence supports a claim. Types differ in strength, and the best evidence matches exactly what the claim says (Topic 1.5).
- Paragraphs join claim, evidence and commentary. Embed sources in your own sentences and explain them (Topic 1.6).
One-table summary
| Question to ask | Component or idea | Typical error |
|---|---|---|
| Why was this written now? | Exigence | Writing the goal instead |
| What does the writer want the audience to do? | Purpose | Naming the topic |
| Who is addressed, and who else will read? | Audience (primary, secondary) | “Everyone” |
| When, where, on what occasion? | Context | Giving only a date |
| Could a reasonable person disagree? | Claim | Treating a fact as a claim |
| Does the evidence match the claim exactly? | Evidence | Relevant-sounding but off-target |
| Is the evidence explained? | Commentary | Repeating the claim |
Questions
Try each question before opening its answer.
Question 1 (constructed response · 1.1, 1.2, 1.4, 1.5)
Thomas Paine began The American Crisis (1776) with: “These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” (a) Identify the exigence and the purpose. (b) State the claim in the second sentence. (c) Identify the kind of evidence Paine offers in the phrases “the summer soldier and the sunshine patriot” and say what it does.
Answer and explanation
Model answer. (a) Exigence: the military crisis of late 1776, with defeats and expiring enlistments that tempted people to give up. Purpose: to rally discouraged soldiers and citizens to keep serving. (b) Claim: those who stand firm in the crisis deserve the love and thanks of the nation, whereas those who shrink from service do not. (c) The phrases are vivid labels, a form of figurative description or characterisation that works as an illustration rather than a statistic: they name the fair-weather supporter and by contrast make steadfastness a mark of honour, so the audience is invited to choose which type to be.
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (6 points)
| Points | What earns it |
|---|---|
| 1 | Exigence identified as the crisis of 1776 (not the goal). |
| 1 | Purpose stated as an effect on the audience. |
| 1 | Claim stated as a position about who deserves credit. |
| 1 | Identifies the phrases as vivid characterisation or illustration (not a statistic). |
| 1 | Explains the effect on the audience (a choice of identity). |
| 1 | Keeps exigence and purpose distinct. |
Question 2 (constructed response · 1.4)
Label each statement as a fact, a topic, a preference or a claim that requires a defence, and for each claim say who might dispute it.
(i) “The ferry runs twice a day.” (ii) “Island transport.” (iii) “I like travelling by sea.” (iv) “The council should subsidise a third daily ferry, because island businesses lose trade when the existing sailings are full.”
Answer and explanation
Model answer. (i) Fact: it can be checked against the timetable. (ii) Topic: it names a subject and asserts nothing. (iii) Preference: it reports a taste that nobody can disprove. (iv) Claim: it asserts a policy that a reasonable person, such as a taxpayer or a councillor who prefers a different use of funds, could dispute, and it needs evidence about lost trade and cost.
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (5 points)
| Points | What earns it |
|---|---|
| 1 | (i) is a fact. |
| 1 | (ii) is a topic. |
| 1 | (iii) is a preference. |
| 1 | (iv) is a claim. |
| 1 | Names a plausible person or group who might dispute the claim, with a reason. |
Question 3 (multiple choice · 1.5, 1.3)
A writer wants to persuade sceptical business owners that a weekly street market would raise trade. Which piece of evidence is most strategic for this audience?
- (A) A poem about market days
- (B) A photograph of a smiling stallholder
- (C) A story about the writer’s holiday abroad
- (D) A comparison of takings in three similar towns before and after weekly markets began
Answer and explanation
Answer: (D). Business owners need evidence about trade, and a before-and-after comparison speaks directly to their need and to what they trust. The photograph sets a mood, the poem does not touch trade and the holiday story is irrelevant.
- (A) is wrong: irrelevant to the audience’s concern with trade.
- (B) is wrong: sets a mood but offers no evidence of trade.
- (C) is wrong: irrelevant to the claim.
Question 4 (constructed response · 1.5, 1.6)
The paragraph below, written by Marlbridge with invented data, has a claim and evidence but weak commentary and a dropped quotation. Rewrite it into a stronger paragraph of four to five sentences.
The bus lane has improved the high street. “Journey times from the station to the market fell from 24 minutes to 17.” This shows that the bus lane has improved the high street.
Answer and explanation
Model answer. The bus lane has improved the high street by making it easier to reach. According to the council’s survey, journey times from the station to the market fell from 24 minutes to 17, a saving of seven minutes on every trip. For shoppers and market traders, a quicker, more reliable journey means that fewer people give up and drive, and more arrive with time to spend in the shops. A change that shortens the trip by nearly a third therefore benefits trade as well as travel.
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (5 points)
| Points | What earns it |
|---|---|
| 1 | Claim stated in the writer’s own words. |
| 1 | Evidence embedded (not dropped) and attributed. |
| 1 | Commentary explains what the figure means (seven minutes, nearly a third). |
| 1 | Commentary connects the evidence to the claim about the high street. |
| 1 | Does not repeat the claim as commentary. |
7/24 = 0.29, so ‘nearly a third’.
Question 5 (constructed response · 1.3)
The following sentence is addressed to two audiences in turn: “The pool will be closed for two weeks for repairs.” (a) Rewrite it as a message to parents of nursery children and (b) as a notice to club swimmers in training for a competition. For each, name one change you made because of the audience’s needs.
Answer and explanation
Model answer. (a) “We are sorry to tell you that the pool will be closed for two weeks for repairs. Your child’s Tuesday lesson will be moved to the school hall, and no fee will be charged for the missed sessions.” Change: reassures and tells parents what happens to the lessons and fees. (b) “The pool is closed for the next two weeks for repairs. Training will move to Eastside Pool from Monday at the usual times; please bring your own lane tokens.” Change: gives the swimmers practical information on where and when they can keep training.
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (5 points)
| Points | What earns it |
|---|---|
| 1 | Version (a) addresses parents’ needs (lessons, fees or reassurance). |
| 1 | Version (b) addresses swimmers’ needs (where and when to train). |
| 1 | The two versions differ in tone or content for audience reasons. |
| 1 | Names a change for each audience. |
| 1 | Both keep the original information (closure for two weeks for repairs). |
Question 6 (constructed response · 1.1, 1.2, 1.3)
Susan B. Anthony opened a speech in 1873 with: “Friends and fellow citizens: I stand before you tonight under indictment for the alleged crime of having voted at the last presidential election, without having a lawful right to vote.” Write a short paragraph (four to five sentences) that identifies the exigence, the audience and the purpose, and explains how one phrase in the sentence responds to the situation.
Answer and explanation
Model answer. The exigence of Anthony’s speech was her indictment for voting in the 1872 election; the sentence names it at once, so listeners know why she is speaking. Her audience was local citizens, who might later sit on a jury or read of the case, and she addresses them as “Friends and fellow citizens.” Her purpose was to persuade them that the law which bars women from voting is the real wrong. The phrase “fellow citizens” assumes the very point at issue, that she and the women she represents are citizens in the full sense, so it begins the argument inside the opening address.
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (5 points)
| Points | What earns it |
|---|---|
| 1 | Exigence identified (the indictment). |
| 1 | Audience identified (local citizens, possible jurors or readers). |
| 1 | Purpose stated as an effect. |
| 1 | Phrase quoted accurately. |
| 1 | Explains how the phrase responds to the situation. |
Question 7 (constructed response · 1.1 to 1.6)
You are writing to your school council to persuade it to buy a second water fountain. (a) State your exigence. (b) State your purpose as a verb and a target. (c) Write a claim that requires a defence. (d) Name two different types of evidence you would use and say what job each does for this audience.
Answer and explanation
Model answer. (a) The queues at the single fountain, which have grown since the new term began. (b) To persuade the council to fund a second fountain before the summer term. (c) “The council should buy a second water fountain, because pupils miss part of their break queuing for a drink.” (d) A statistic from a timed count of queue lengths shows scale and seriousness for a council that wants numbers; a short account of one pupil who missed most of lunch exemplifies the effect in a human case.
Suggested Marlbridge rubric (5 points)
| Points | What earns it |
|---|---|
| 1 | Exigence is a trigger, not a goal. |
| 1 | Purpose has a verb and a target. |
| 1 | The claim is arguable and specific. |
| 1 | Names two different types of evidence. |
| 1 | Explains the job of each for this audience. |
Accept any plausible, specific answers that keep exigence, purpose and claim distinct.
After the review
Tick off the topic checklists for Unit 1, then move on to Unit 2: Audience, Appeals and the Thesis.